The ecommerce niche is one of the most competitive out there, and individuals who are looking to gain an edge must look for software that will allow them to scale without compromising on customer service. One of the most effective ways of realizing that goal is by implementing a client relationship management (CRM) application on your ecommerce website.
CRMs have been around for many years but thanks to cloud computing, they can be easily implemented on your store’s website. While the CRMs are distributed via the cloud, they can be customized to suit your particular business model and are worth their weight in gold. We are going to review some of the key features that all CRM’s have and why you should implement them right away.
Assessing Your Traffic Sources
When you have a CRM in place, it will give you the ability to track the individual movements of each visitor on your website. Along with having the ability to track what consumers are doing on your site, the CRM will also let you know where these visitors are coming from. Some of them may be from organic search via the search engines, however, if you are allocating resources for marketing campaigns then you can track the performance of those channels and, based on that, determine which channels are giving you the best value. If you did not have the CRM in place, it would be virtually impossible to know what marketing activities are actually giving you the results you want.
Analytical Reporting
Over the course of time, the CRM will be able to provide you with analytical reports that provide an overview of consumer behavior on your website. This behavior data is vital when you are trying to gain market share and grow profits. There could be a section of your website that is underutilized or a section where consumers spend the bulk of their time. By referring to the reports, it will help you develop more effective marketing strategies.
An example would be, if you notice that the bulk of your customers are focused on a specific page on your shop, you might consider writing up a promotion based on that particular product since it is getting the most attention.
Without this analytical reporting feature, you would not be able to identify and exploit these opportunities. Something to bear in mind is that you will have the ability to design the CRM reports based on your specific needs and business model.
Real-Time Team Collaboration & Task Management
While the CRM is great at managing customer relationships, it also enables team collaboration in real-time. By using the team collaboration feature that is built within the CRM software, you and the key members in your organization can speak with one another. This open transparency is vital when your online shop is trying to gain ground. You cannot afford to lose a minute or productivity and this real-time collaboration tool can really give you the edge you need.
Along with having the ability to collaborate from within the CRM, you can also assign tasks so each member of the team is responsible for his/her respective department. By working from within the CRM, you save time by not having to duplicate work or use spreadsheets to track individuals and their respective projects.
Establishing a Sales Channel
Whenever you have a lead in the CRM, you will need to assign a status on that lead. Is it a potential customer, current customer, or former customer? These classifications are very simple, but you can assign the ones that are most relevant to your particular business model.
With the lead status in place your sales team can begin reaching out to each of these customers and engaging them to try and advance the conversation. If the prospect is not yet a customer, you can try to identify what would be the best way to convert them into a paying customer. If the customer is an existing customer, are there products and services you could upsell?
The CRM gives you the ability generate reports letting you know the status of all the leads and, based on that information, you could forecast your potential income moving forward. Having the ability to forecast sales is vital when trying to make informed-decisions on what steps you need to take moving forward with your online business.
Today’s CRMs are more powerful than in the past. As ecommerce evolves to the cross-channel selling platform it is today, this software has advanced to meet users’ needs, too. Whether you’re just listing items on a standalone Shopify store or have a need for an Amazon CRM software solution that also connects to your eBay store and marketplace accounts, there are viable options to consider that can meet your needs.
Customer Service and Identifying Trends
These modules can work in parallel to help you better understand the needs of your customers. Whenever a customer requires service, the customer service section of your CRM will be able to help address those needs. Via the team collaboration and task management function, you can assign certain members of your team with handling customer service.
Over time, if you notice there has been a spike in the number of customers requiring service you can use that trend information to develop a remedy. If you did not have this trend identification feature in the CRM, you would not know the cause of the issue and how to best resolve it.
Product Returns
This is a great feature to have if you are selling physical products via your ecommerce website. Whenever a person wants to return a product, if you have the inventory control application activated, the returned product will be credited to your inventory and the customer’s account will receive credit. Since everything is handled from the CRM, you will not come across a situation where the needs of your customers are not met.
While meeting the needs of your customers, the CRM will also give you the ability to find opportunities that you could otherwise miss out on. The challenge for you is taking decisive action and implementing the CRM. With each passing day, your competitors are gaining ground so you need to follow these tips if you want to gain the upper-hand.
