According to IDG, companies with accurate data grow 35% faster year-on-year, nevertheless many UK businesses neglect their data – until they realise how much is at stake. Here we explain how effective data management can significantly increase the success of your CRM system and take your business to the next level…
CRM and data
A CRM software system is a central repository where you can record customer and prospect information, track calls, emails, meetings and to-do items.
When your data is up to date and maintained regularly, you can use it to nurture customer relationships, increase productivity and encourage retention. Added to this, according to HubSpot, 75% of sales managers say that using a CRM helps drive and increase sales.
On the other hand, as we discussed in our Bad CRM – Bad Decisions post, CRM systems are nothing without good quality data. Bad data will affect your business’ performance, your ability to make informed strategic decisions and user adoption, as the data and intelligence provided cannot be trusted.
The consequences of poor data quality
According to Experian, organisations believe 23% of their data is inaccurate. This includes duplicate data, missing fields, invalid entries and bad formatting or processing, which impacts everything from email deliverability to customer satisfaction and ultimately profits. What’s more, a study by Aimia suggests 69% of Britons are closing down accounts and subscriptions, and “unfriending” companies because of poorly targeted communications.
The consequences don’t stop there…
Misinformed decisions: If information is unreliable and contains errors, or is simply non-existent, your reports will be inaccurate. Consequently, important decisions will be made based on misinformation or even gut instinct. But, is trusting your gut really a better option than trusting a detailed report based on real-time data?
Unsatisfied customers: Experian states that 75% of organisations believe lack of quality data is undermining their ability to provide an excellent customer experience. With data inaccuracies, duplicates and missing information, customers will become frustrated when a customer service advisor is unable to find their records or information from prior interactions.
Wasted money: The average organisation loses at least 12% of its income due to bad data. This includes wasted marketing spend, on both email communications and direct mail, as well as resources. This is money you will never get a return on.
Poor user adoption: If your CRM is packed with incomplete records and inaccuracies, your team will need to spend time validating this information instead of focusing on what matters the most – sales or providing excellent customer service.
Successful CRM and data excellence
The value of a CRM system lies in the data you enter and then use to build an accurate picture of your customers to approach them with the right message at the right time. Here are four reasons CRM data quality should be a top priority for your business…
Increased sales: Using a CRM system can help drive and increase sales. This is thanks to a unified view into customer information, allowing sales teams to identify cross-sell and up-sell opportunities to maximise revenue.
Increased satisfaction & retention: A CRM system with up to date and accurate data will provide insight into your customers’ preferences and opinions/ This allows you to personalise your product or service offering in line with their needs, which ultimately contributes towards increased satisfaction and client retention.
Actionable insights: If you have great data, you’ll be able to obtain accurate reports and analyse trends, allowing you to focus on the most profitable business activities and ultimately make faster and smarter decisions. Further to this, you’ll be able to adopt an agile business model, identifying and reacting to issues or changes in the market before they occur.
Optimised marketing: A CRM system that contains accurate, up to date data will enable you to intelligently target customers with a right product or service when they’re most likely to make a purchase. Meaningful customer engagement and communication can result in long term loyalty, which is key to the growth and success of your business.
Failure to manage data effectively can result in a loss of business, reputation, growth and profits. Therefore, data quality should be your ultimate goal. It may seem like a big undertaking, however, improving the quality of your CRM data doesn’t have to be costly or time consuming – explore our helpful tips on how to effectively improve the quality of your CRM data here >
