Customer Relationship Management (CRM) has always been a vital part of maintaining and growing a business. Originally, tasks such as organizing leads and customers, building connections, and analyzing customer patterns needed to be done manually. With the growth of technology, these tasks have now been outsourced to CRM software designed to save time and resources while helping the company grow. Here are eight top things to look for when buying CRM software.

1. Ease of use- The first thing to look for is the software’s ease of use. Right out the bat, it must be simple to catch on to without extensive training. Look for options with an intuitive and user-friendly interface and dashboard that allows the team to find what they are looking for easily. Going with a complicated system will slow down work and cause frustration among the team, which could impact performance.
2. Integration allowance- Next, the CRM should offer essential integrations to post-sales tools, such as e-mail marketing, social media, web analytics, ERP (enterprise resource planning), HR, and more. These add-ons can significantly impact a team’s functionality and productivity.
3. Revenue tracking- As a business grows, financial tracking can be really difficult. Many CRM software today offers real-time data about sales, performance, profitability, revenue analytics, reporting features, etc., helping businesses improve their sales, marketing, and financial strategies and reach their targets.
4. Safety and security – CRM software manages a lot of sensitive data, so safety and security are important factors to watch out for. Look for CRM that meets the highest data security standards and complies with laws like GDPR and CCPA. Such CRM software locks customer and company data behind encrypted walls, making them less vulnerable to cyber attacks, scams, and data breaches.
5. Automation- One major pain point many companies have is spending precious resources on mundane tasks like data entry. Look for a CRM solution that automates routine work like data entry, sending e-mails, setting follow-up reminders, etc., leaving the team with enough time for strategic decision-making.
6. Internal communication- With a CRM system, teams must also be able to communicate, collaborate, and share information on the projects they are working on. This goes a long way in improving professional relationships in the organization and ensuring a smooth workflow.
7. Reporting and forecasting- CRM tools are equipped to collect data from every team at every step. This data is then used to make customized reports that outline the company’s performance at all levels. This data will then help forecast the business’s growth and profits, create new development strategies, and set new goals for the future.
8. Document and contact management- It is also important to look for software that efficiently organizes all documents and contacts. By saving all digital paperwork in one location, stakeholders can easily access it from any location without any hassle. This reduces the back-and-forth within the team when searching for certain information.

By sorting out contacts on the CRM, it becomes easier to divide customers into segments and target certain groups for upcoming events, launches, and sales. It also creates a space to store customer history (such as order history, previous interactions, and more) so customer service representatives can tailor their communication accordingly.