CRM for distribution: an essential tool for your business

For several years now, new digital solutions have been developed that allow professionals to stand out from increasingly fierce competition. Among them, Customer Relationship Management (CRM) software has garnered legitimate success with its ability to optimize customer relationship management.

Deploying a CRM for distribution is highly recommended for overcoming numerous challenges inherent to this industry. In practice, this software is considered a formidable digital tool for optimizing the performance of sales managers in the field.

What is a CRM? What are the benefits associated with this software? What are the features of CRM for distribution? We’ll review these important questions in the article below.

What’s a CRM?

Every business, corporation or organization now appreciates the key role that the customer relationship holds in the development of professional activities. While it’s crucial to have productive teams, the use of digital solutions is also recommended for numerous reasons.

A CRM (acronym for Customer Relationship Management) addresses numerous issues related to this invaluable customer relationship.

What are the main functionalities to look for?

CRM software comes with many useful tools. Regardless of the nature of your business, corporation or organization, some functionalities are more helpful than others for properly managing your customer relationship.

Marketing

CRM software allows you to create online campaigns to maximize your return on investment by:

• Identifying the best textual content while analyzing the ideal periods for sending messages
• Integrating sales and analyses to target and convert every prospect
• Assisting in the creation and sending of messages based on specific channels that track target customers

Sales-related functionalities

The centralization of data naturally allows crucial information to be shared. Sales team members can then benefit from a comprehensive overview of the performance of a business, corporation or organization. Additionally, CRM software makes it easier to identify “good buyers” (customer relationship development). Lastly, the integration of artificial intelligence within CRM software allows professionals to identify ideal strategies and to implement them during the sales process.

Optimizing customer service

CRM software also serves to optimize customer service. This is evident in the following characteristics:

• Establishment of contact via your clients’ preferred equipment and channel
• Presentation of detailed analyses where cost reduction and service optimization are visible
• Decisive visibility of the clientele to guide your staff during proposals (personalization of proposals)

Dispatch service

Organizing your technicians and distributing tasks are other sought-after functionalities in CRM software. Once again, the centralization of data in an online storage space allows employees to quickly access critical information. Improving services (deliveries) will inarguably strengthen clients’ trust.

Furthermore, the automation that comes with a CRM allows you to effectively match the skills of each technician depending on your needs. Lastly, geolocalization and live dissemination of information during an intervention strengthen the internal organization of a business, corporation or organization.

Optimal project management

To maximize the results of a business, corporation or organization, it’s essential to choose a CRM that includes project management functionalities. This way, you’ll be able to:

• Efficiently plan your projects and allocate resources
• Determine how time will be managed for each task
• Track billing and spending
• Generate reports
• Access a portal for collaborative purposes

Other equally essential functionalities

Besides the above-mentioned functionalities, CRMs offer other digital tools that are useful for professionals.

The automation of manual and repetitive tasks is a perfect example. This functionality offers convenience while also limiting entry errors and improving the reliability of analyses for each department (this is especially true for the sales team).

Intelligent management of sensitive data is another functionality offered by some CRM software. The identification of critical information allows customized strategies to be reviewed and applied.

Depending on their profile, a business, corporation or organization may prioritize other functionalities. Again, choosing CRM software is a crucial step towards guaranteeing optimal results.

How can I benefit from using a CRM?

What can a CRM bring to my business, corporation or organization? This most pertinent question has many answers. The following is a non-exhaustive list of benefits linked to digital solutions that are now considered essential.

Better client management with CRM software

Your relationships with your prospects and clients are optimized thanks to information provided every time a client is contacted. By displaying complementary data, a CRM allows you to personalize your clientele and gain their trust, all while giving them greater responsibility during buying decisions.

A CRM centralizes your data and makes it easier to access information

The centralization of pertinent data naturally makes it easier to access this information. With a few clicks, each department can quickly find accurate data that’s updated in real-time.

Optimized overall management

Functionalities related to marketing, customer insight, field service and sales, as well as other essential elements for every business, corporation or organization improve your sales and your brand image.

An ideal solution for increasing productivity and agility

Besides the many functionalities previously discussed in this article, you could also ask yourself the following relevant question: What are the concrete benefits of a CRM for my business, corporation or organization? Again, several answers may be noted:

• Better communication between each department and your prospects/clients
• Significant amount of time saved thanks to the automation of repetitive tasks
• More efficient employees

Maximize your sales figures and benefits

As you can see, the many features of CRM software offer significant benefits. Deploying Customer Relationship Management software will quickly boost sales while ensuring that costs are properly managed.

What are the features of a CRM for distribution?

By using a CRM for distribution, you’ll gain a real competitive edge and distinguish yourself from other players in your field. Which functionalities of a CRM for distribution can help you overcome the challenges of this industry?

What are the challenges of the distribution sector?

The distribution sector is characterized by some critical challenges:

• Retaining clients
• Tracking buying processes and presenting the best offer
• Guaranteeing top-quality service
• Meeting and assisting clientele directly

While these challenges seem obvious, developing a profitable client relationship involves many issues. As such, CRMs for distribution offer multiple functionalities that will simplify and automate urgent tasks, delivering surprising results.

How can a CRM for distribution help you overcome these challenges?

Automate marketing campaigns

It is now of utmost importance for every business or corporation involved in distribution to run online marketing campaigns. A CRM allows you to multiply your ads, all while using every channel available to reach your prospects. Likewise, with this software, you can efficiently personalize your content to make it more profitable.

Benefits:

• Present quality content—beneficial for your brand image
• Automate campaigns—your CRM for distribution analyzes results to optimize your campaigns (an ideal characteristic for piquing your prospects’ curiosity)

Optimize collaboration with your partners

While CRMs for distribution ensure better client relations, this software also improves communication with suppliers. Your collaborations will continue to increase their profitability thanks to better coordination of sales efforts.

Digitize your points of sale

It’s profitable for your vendors who have access authorization to deploy a CRM for distribution. Their staff will be better equipped to productively and efficiently meet client needs by having access to reliable real-time data. As such, your collaborators will become ambassadors of your business or corporation.

Benefits:

• Accessibility of CRMs for distribution – data centralized in the cloud and updated in real time via a mobile app, guaranteed, without any temporal or geographic restriction (mobility)
• Higher performance of employees in the field
• Continuous availability of information/data to anticipate unexpected events and better manage complex situations
• Faster in-store assistance for clients
• Increased efficiency allows vendors to focus on urgent tasks for clients (automated NVA tasks)

Personalize your offers

With a CRM for distribution, you can offer products based on demand in a timely manner in good stores. You can do precisely this with Microsoft Field Service, a solution well-known for its inventory planning capacities. As such, professionals use this popular software to ensure that prices or promotional offers meet consumer expectations. Sales predictions rely on a number of useful analyses to give your organization a boost.

Benefits:

• Satisfied, and therefore loyal, clients
• Employees who are well-equipped to efficiently respond to inquiries

Efficiently manage complaints and inquiries

Every CRM for distribution includes a customer service component. With this feature, you’ll be able to respond to inquiries more quickly. In the same vein, you can view a client’s history to predict their potential complaints.

Benefits:

• Efficiently respond to every complaint to guarantee client satisfaction
• A CRM helps you analyze complaints in detail by product sheet
• Naturally, centralized data means that information is shared with all of a business’ locations

Significantly improve communication with your clientele

Lastly, a CRM for distribution is a multi-channel communication tool for professionals. This characteristic is useful for tracking consumers’ progress in its entirety and for becoming a true standard in the eyes of your clientele.

Benefits:

• Optimize the scope of your communication
• Present reliable data that’s personalized for your clientele
• Respond quickly and efficiently to every inquiry thanks to digital media

How can I choose the best CRM for my business, corporation or organization?

Without any specific knowledge, selecting CRM software that’s customized for a business, corporation or organization can turn into a complex process. Therefore, it’s worth highlighting several characteristics that will help you decide.

Personalization

To achieve the best results, you should have the option of personalizing every “detail” and feature of CRM software. While some solutions come with restrictive limitations, others properly fulfill this requirement (the Microsoft solution offered on our (Gestisoft’s) website is a perfect example).

Choose extensible CRM software

Dealing with deployments via the cloud or on-site can satisfy certain needs that are particular to a given business, corporation or organization. Additionally, a CRM must be compatible with other platforms and software, such as your architecture software, your ERP software, etc.

Set security levels for each user

An effective CRM system allows you to set security levels for each user. By assigning them a specific “role”, you are authorizing the user to access, integrate or modify centralized information, or denying them these permissions.

Choose a scalable solution

Expanding a business, corporation or organization is obviously a major priority for professionals. Your current needs may therefore change. Effective CRM software will assist you as you scale up your professional activities while also allowing you to streamline every process on a daily basis.

The CRM ecosystem

The CRM ecosystem (or stack) consists of the set of tools that are directly (or indirectly) connected. For optimal results, this set-up should evidently be constructed gradually. Safeguarding client data (and prospects’ data) is essential to fully benefit from a CRM stack. Again, a CRM ecosystem will be shaped by your choice of software.

Choose Gestisoft for your CRM implementation

Deploying a CRM for distribution can help every business or corporation overcome the challenges of this industry. Competition from other players is a significant and critical factor for many professionals.

When you’re ready to choose your CRM, keep in mind that you’re making a long-term investment for your office. Your choice of software needs to be a well-informed decision. At Gestisoft, we make this easy with our team of CRM and ERP experts who will guide you in making your purchase and support you in implementing your software. Contact us today to discuss your needs, we’ll work together to find the solution that’s most suitable for your professional situation.