(Editor’s note: This installment is part two in a series.)
Many flooring business owners or operators think that a CRM system is simply a platform on which they can manage their sales team and operations. However, the reality is a truly robust CRM system can potentially be your strongest hire.
When applied properly, these systems can regularly perform tasks at a higher level than any human could. Through automation and organization, a CRM can enhance productivity for each and every one of your employees.
How can a website possibly be your most valuable hire? Here’s how:
The cost of a robust CRM is innately offset by the massive value it brings to the table.
- A CRM system partially assumes the role of a sales manager. The system will not only facilitate your lead/ opportunity management, but it will also assist in managing your sales team internally. In addition, data analysis tools allow you to track key metrics—such as conversion rate—for each salesperson.
- A CRM performs many functions that are similar to your sales support staff, helping to track quotes, order material and schedule appointments or installations.
- Any CRM should take some of the workload from your administrative assistants by inherently organizing all sales/order documentation. CRMs should always reduce the need for paper documentation, ensuring that more of your workflow is tracked electronically.
- A CRM is a good platform to standardize your best practices and ensure that your new employees follow the pre-defined workflow and SOPs.
- It can be your job scheduler and dispatcher as well. A CRM should track each of your jobs on a unified company calendar, helping to coordinate your installation crews across many projects. For each project, the system will send documentation to your installers including work orders, cut sheets and shop drawings. When an installation is completed, the system automatically informs the billing department that it’s time to invoice.
- A CRM has the ability to automate a large portion of your billing process. By syncing your data over to accounting systems such as Quickbooks, C.F. Data-Structure and Xero accounting, the system can be your billing department representative.
- By tracking purchase orders, deliveries and outstanding bills, the CRM can be your purchaser.
A CRM system works as hard as your multi-talented staff, at a rate that is impossible for humans to match. These programs are working 24/7, 365 days a year. No weekends, no overtime, no paid or unpaid vacations. For this hire, you will never need to pay insurance benefits, payroll taxes or match their 401k contributions. Truth be told, the cost of a robust CRM is innately offset by the massive value it brings to the table. This value is enhanced even further by pursuing a CRM that is made for your specific industry sector.
Results from recent surveys we conducted uncovered the top three business challenges
of most flooring businesses: 1. Growing sales revenue and profitability; 2. Acquiring and training talent; and 3. Providing better customer service with enhanced operational efficiencies.
CRM systems have been there to help businesses meet these challenges, especially in regards to growing business with new-talent hires.
Steven Wang is CEO of Measure Square, a takeoff estimating and flooring job CRM software company since 2002. He may be reached at: steven@measuresquare.com.
