Why is training and education so important for good CRM?
One must unlearn the old system and learn the new one. Therefore, comprehensive training, a training plan, and a learning assessment are crucial. This ensures that all employees involved in the rollout acquire basic knowledge. No one wants to remain stagnant. Therefore, an exercise or training plan is needed. You’re familiar with this concept from musicians or athletes. Even craftsmen practice with their tools before using them with customers. And it’s the same here. Only those who aim to maintain and improve their level will remain successful. Therefore, continuous training is necessary.
Training includes process flow training, technical skills, training on customer orientation, attitude, and mindset.
CRM providers such as Salesforce, Microsoft, or SAP, as well as Cursor, CAS, and other mid-sized providers, offer an academy where the product can be trained.
Avoidable mistakes: no investment in address and data quality, no change management, no changed leadership through new goals
If the software goes live and the address and data quality are as poor as before, then unfortunately, a false start is inevitable. Other typical mistakes include not accompanying employees through the change. Training and education are one thing. Customer orientation is a cultural issue. Goals and leadership tasks and methods change. A company doesn’t transition from one moment to the next.
For this, top management must lead from the beginning, question themselves, adapt their own tasks and behaviors, and change goals and leadership. Ultimately, this results in a revised formulation of the vision and corporate goals.
Tip:
It also requires a change in the organization. CRM, customer orientation, etc., demand a new organization focused on target and customer groups. The old, functionally structured organization no longer works. It’s not enough to just inspire sales or marketing. CRM affects the entire company. Introducing software alone is not enough.
What are the reasons for the failure of CRM implementation?
As part of a corporate development under the umbrella of digital transformation, many projects are always underway. The IT landscape is usually not just modernized but revolutionized. Outdated technologies are replaced by new ones. Interfaces are adjusted or completely redesigned.
This means, in plain terms, that juggling many balls (here projects) increases the risk of dropping one (CRM tool doesn’t work). What are the important reasons for failure? We have listed a lot of reasons in the area of software application. Therefore, here are just a few reasons excerpted:
- Lack of company vision, employees do not see benefits
- Simply imposed CRM software without involving employees
- Lack of leadership role modeling in CRM system usage
- Lack of data and address quality in the CRM system
We have now collected over 20 reasons. Not all of them occur simultaneously in a company. But it’s usually 3-5 reasons. Identifying and eliminating these afterwards is usually the greater effort. Therefore, knowing the possible pitfalls and obstacles, we make sure they don’t occur in the first place.
Communication of successes – Marketing for the project progress – Step by step
Communication about the CRM software during the project progress is extremely important. For many in the company, CRM is a strategic issue. There is a lot of passion involved. If rumors about CRM arise due to insufficient or incorrect communication, it is very harmful. Therefore, continuous communication about the new software, changed CRM processes, status quo of the installation, etc., is enormously important.
This can be done in the cafeteria with posters, flyers, or videos. Intranet podcasts and experiences of key users can be heard. The CRM provider creates a video from screenshots. A video shoulder view shows what has changed. The management stands in the topic chat and answers questions. However, the management must not hide behind the chat but also show up in the hallway with “management by wandering around” and advertise the project. There are many ideas on how to communicate milestones or completion of a sub-project.
The main thing is to do it. Ongoing information is very important for uninvolved employees.
For example, after such a project, Salesforce produces a reference video for the customer.
