How To Determine If Your CRM System Will Fail
One of the primary reasons why many CRM systems fail is because of the quality of the data. Even if you are using a high end CRM system, your company will have no chance of success if it is processing data that is incorrect or faulty. Fortunately, data quality is one of the easiest problems to fix, if you catch it at the beginning instead of the end.
A CRM system can only be as good as the information that it contains or processes. There are a number of things companies can do to avoid processes data that is low in quality. A failure to use these steps will ultimately result in the company losing a tremendous amount of money.
The best way to solve this problem is to create what is called a data capture system. Rules should be created regarding how this system must be used. Only certain individuals should be given access to this system. They are the only people that should be allowed to insert data, alter it, or delete it. These rules and guidelines should be submitted to the system adminstrator, and everyone in the organization should be aware of them. It is also important to check for duplicate files within the database. A process should be set up for this task. As an example, before employees are allowed to create a new record, they must first search the database to make sure a duplicate record doesn’t already exist.
There are a number of companies that choose to use acronyms within their systems. It is important to make sure these acronyms are consistent within the system. If acronyms are written in a certain way, they must always be written in the same manner. No one should ever use a different procedure for creating them. When this is done, it can help the company avoid the costly problem of duplication. It is also important to set up a specific schedule for when the files need to be updated. It should never be done at random. Consistency equals organization, and inconsistency equals failure. It is also importent to decide what address system you will use for the customers.
Once the company has decided on an address system, they should not change it. For instance, if the company has decided that the physical address must be used, the postal address should never be used under any circumstances. Adding a postal address in a database that only uses physical addresses will lead to problems. The next thing that companies will want to pay attention to spelling issues. A spell check program should be used at all times, and everyone who accesses the database must always check their spelling. One of the fastest ways to fail at a direct mail campaign is to use the incorrect spelling for the person you’re mailing the offer to.
Guidelines should be established for how new files are created. In fact, a great deal of emphasis should be placed in this area. When a file or field is created, there should be a way of approving it before it is entered in the system. If this is not done, you can be certain that duplicate files will eventually make their way into the database. Since most companies are now marketing their products via the Internet, many of them are collecting the email addresses of their clients.
As you can imagine, it is crucially important to make sure the email addresses are properly stored. Guidelines must be established on how email addresses should be entered into the system.
It is always important to make sure the databases are backed up. A team of employees should be used for this task, and they must be responsible for making sure it is done correctly. It is also important to establish a system for defining how often the database should be backed up. However, it is not just enough to create a schedule for this. A method should be established for how the information in the database will be backed up. The storage medium for the backed up files should be high in quality. The last thing a company needs is to back up files only to find that they cannot be used later on. To ensure the safety of the data, it is always a good idea to store it in multiple formats.
