What is the key to dominating in any industry? Apart from different factors like marketing, quality, and pricing, the aspect that plays a major role in boosting business growth is none other than the sales process.
With more and more businesses mushrooming in every niche practically every second of the day, it has become increasingly crucial to find a way to set yourself apart. But how can you do that? How can your business stand out among the competition?
At its core, every business revolves around its relationship with clients. However, dealing with various people not only demands careful tracking of the countless interactions but also a hyper-focused approach to their requirements at varying phases of the sales pipeline. Striking a balance in fulfilling all these conditions to satisfy both the company and its clients is a challenge a lot of businesses face.
This is where Customer Relationship Management (CRM) comes in.
As businesses grow and the competition becomes even stiffer, having an efficient system to continuously improve the customer experience is a decisive brand differentiator. Hence, implementing CRM software has turned into a must-have for any company that hopes to earn a fighting chance at standing out—and for good reason.
The current estimate for the CRM software market is roughly $30 billion, a number expected to hit $80 billion by 2025. The increased investment in this technology is a clear reflection of its capacity to drive sales and boost returns on investment (ROI). However, choosing the right CRM software is critical to bolstering revenues and company growth.
If done right, every dollar spent on effective CRM software can rake in an average ROI of $8.71. More specifically, CRM applications can deliver increased conversions and boost sales by almost 29%. These tools can also increase sales productivity by 34%, while sales forecast accuracy can go up by 42%. So, what defines effective CRM software?
Here’s a quick guide to what CRM software should be able to do:
On top of the above, your CRM software must offer one more crucial feature for it to become a complete package: quotation management.
What is quotation management?
While investing in CRM software will undoubtedly give your company an advantage, implementing one with an integrated quotation management tool will catapult your business to the top. Bill Gates once shared that “(the) first rule of any technology used in a business is that automation applied to an efficient operation will magnify the efficiency. The second is that automation applied to an inefficient operation will magnify the inefficiency.”
Although CRM software can bring incredible results to any business, having one with a quick quotation feature can be a game-changer.
Quoting software allows you to streamline and automate your sales operations, starting with the proposal stage. It’s a tool that can provide the sales process with a head start by giving multiple parts of a company the capacity to recognise potential leads, design effective strategies for increased conversions, and prepare a projected total sales revenue target in production.
Quotation management helps you collect relevant data on a prospect and pinpoint the requirements of each one quickly. You can then utilise this information to determine the depth of the segments and identify the functional areas that demand attention.
In a nutshell, quotation management offers the following advantages:
Why is a quick quotation important?
A quick quote allows you to focus on your customers instead of spending all your time coming up with proposals and drafting paperwork. This tool arms you with the ability to quickly generate a comprehensive business proposal complete with total sales revenue quotes that are crafted with a winning strategy in mind.
However, not all quoting tools can boost sales. To be effective, your CRM software’s integrated quotation management capability should offer the following features at the very minimum:
Because you can generate a proposal in various file formats, you can easily share it via different channels. This means that your proposal should be accessible for mobile use. After all, 81% of CRM users demand access to data on multiple devices, such as laptops and smartphones, with 24% more sales representatives reaching their sales quota yearly thanks to mobile access.
Remember—it’s not enough to send the quote. You should also be able to track it and see if it has been received, responded to, modified, and returned to you. The most efficient quotation tool should be able to accomplish these things at its most basic level.
Final thoughts
The conventional way to seal the deal is a handshake, but in this day and age, you need to utilise all the technological advancements available to scale your business and boost your sales revenue.
Customers expect a personalised approach throughout the entire sales cycle, with 86% agreeing to shell out 25% more cash to receive a superior customer experience. This makes CRM a critical investment for the growth of any business.
As with any crucial decision, though, it’s necessary to consider all requirements before making a choice. One of the major factors to take into account is offering a smooth sales journey to every potential customer. While there are many ways to achieve this, opting for a CRM with an integrated quotation management system is an excellent first step.
To learn more about how CRM can help you close deals quicker and increase your revenue, read our white paper Grow More Revenue and Close More Deals or contact one of our team on: +44 118 3030 100
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