(updated on July 2021)
[A qualified CRM system helps facilitate the growth of your business through optimization. If a business is handling operations manually, it will quickly become inefficient once it hits over 100 opportunities annually. SugarCRM is ideal for small startups as well as giant companies. It can be customized to match the needs of the customer.]
As indicated by the World Economic Forum and Forbes, 90% of the new companies and startups come up short inside the initial 5 years of their origin. Why do you think that is? I’m sure all entrepreneurs have praiseworthy passion about the expansion of their venture. But passion and zeal isn’t enough for a successful startup, is it? In a panoramic view, the reasons range from budgetary constraints, technical limitations, weak marketing strategies and futile management systems.
It doesn’t matter what the scale of your startup is. You may be a small sized venture or an established enterprise. But remember one fact; ‘startup’ is just a term. Every business procedure was initially a startup. And regardless of the magnitude of your venture, you must be facing some sort of hassles and hurdles in your business procedures. An efficient and productive CRM can help you eliminate some of the most elementary bugs in your startup.
I shall present to you 30 signs that indicate your startup is in dire need of a CRM:
1. People don’t know we exist.
If a startup is able to solidify its name in the mantle of the business community, believe me, it has done half its the job.
2. Lose a salesperson; lose a client.
This indicates that your startup is reliant on the individualistic sales prowess of your salesperson. Your clients should be loyal to your startup.
3. Client communication has become a nuisance.
Every entrepreneur understands that retaining a customer is as important, if not more, than gaining a new one. If you do not have an established way to track and nurture your existing clientele, then an efficient CRM can be the game changer for you. With a CRM in place, you can maintain customer records and effectively devise the best business strategies by keeping track of customer behavior.
4. I just can’t find relevant customer data when I need it.
Ineffective data entry can be the nail in the coffin of any startup. Don’t take it lightly.
5. I’m getting insane traffic on my website, but still no conversions.
That might be because your startup doesn’t have personalized communication on your website. Remember, clients want that.
6. Startup decisions and risks are taken on gut feeling, rather than by using statistical evidence.
A well-organized CRM system will present to you, certain sales forecasting tools that can revamp your startup.
7. A client calls me. I have no idea about his purchase history and product preference.
That doesn’t impart a positive impression, does it? Clients of a new startup are always expecting a personal touch in business dealings. Hence, it is the right time to avail this opportunity and leverage CRM solutions for creating meaningful customer relationships.
8. Can’t understand which specific product my leads are interested in.
Despite the traffic, you can’t exactly pinpoint the product your leads are most interested in. This is really important because, for more sales, more time and resources must be allocated to your startup’s ‘hot potato’ product.
9. I can’t decide my startup’s future investment opportunities.
Predictive analysis is an inherent feature of a CRM system. Decisions regarding future investments of your startups become much more secure and safe.
10. My salespeople don’t have my client’s information when they’re on the field.
Presenting your startup team members with invigorating client information over the phone is not only unreliable, but unprofessional as well.
11. On a sick day, my startup team can’t work from home.
Your startup is lacking distant relocation of consumer data. A CRM can remedy this complication.
12. I’m storing information on hard drives.
Use cloud computing for processing data of your startup. Make your life easier.
13. I have no social media insights of my business.
Social media is now the primary tool used by startups for marketing purposes. A Social CRM will help you get a much better insight into the effectiveness of your marketing campaigns.
14. The printing quotas of my startup are too hot to handle.
Nowadays, even small businesses have so much data to hold, that preservation of hard copies is an annoyance.
15. Same data has to be updated on different platforms.
Entering redundant information over and over again, on different platforms, is an unsuitable and delaying activity for startups. CRM integration with third-party software platforms is set to resolve this issue.
16. I spend too much time checking on my startup team members.
So your clients were not satisfied. You cross examined your team members and they didn’t have any statistical proof to back their claims. Not only does this build distrust among your team members, but you also lose out on valuable time which can be used to enhance your startup.
17. I don’t know how efficiently my Sales team is communicating with my clients.
Again, another problem which rises because of lack of statistical evidence.
18. I can’t get an overview of how many client issues are outstanding.
I understand that you might be really busy. But clients need to be catered to with cautious guidance and responsible feedback.
19. Building a mailing list and sending a newsletter is just so time consuming.
Another inefficient and neglectful activity for a budding startup. An effective CRM will resolve this affair in no time.
20. I have no way to track the amount of work my employees do regularly.
The team members in your startup might be slacking and complicating your business processes. How about you keep eyes on the idlers using a productive CRM?
21. Finally, I’ve nurtured a lead into a client. But, I don’t understand how I did it.
A promising startup needs to have an overall understanding of its entire sales funnel.
22. Keeping track of business events is reliant on either my memory, excel sheets or sticky notes.
This is why you might be missing out on some cardinal business occasions. Streamline the processes of your startup using a systematic and orderly CRM. In your CRM, leverage the RT StikiNotes as it is the top SugarCRM plugin for taking notes inside your CRM and driving efficiency.
23. Finding data for creating reports and presentations is a constant headache.
If you want to transform your startup into a full blown business venture, time consuming activities such as these must be weeded out. For this, you must leverage reporting and analytics in CRM to derive actionable insights from your data for better decision-making.
24. Members of my startup team have conflicting versions of data and information.
Confusions like these can often lead optimistic deals into dead ends.
25. My startup is lacking resources for remote access to information.
For establishing an effective commute of information to all parties involved in your startup, a CRM is almost mandatory.
26. When I finally find time to speak to customers, I don’t understand which ones I should be talking to.
That might be because you have no proper sorted data available regarding your client’s preferences.
27. Ineffective communication between my startup team members.
There is a constant internal communication problem within your startup.
28. I can’t make sense of my startup’s Big Data. I need Smart Data.
Absolutely true! You might have thousands of sheets regarding the information of your customers, but what good is all that information if you’re unable to make sense of it?
29. I meet 3 clients in a day. The first one is near my office. Then, I meet another one who is an hour away. The last one is near my office as well! Why didn’t anyone tell me that?
Another classic example of inefficient business procedures within a startup. Deploy a CRM, and rid yourself from these difficulties.
30. I just need to worry less!
Of course you do. After all, you’re the owner of a promising business. Keeping yourself free from stress is vital, not only for your health, but for the health of your startup as well.
So, if you see any of these symptoms within your budding business venture, I suggest that you ought to adopt the best CRM for startups for the resolution of these issues as soon as possible.
So, are you looking to adopt a CRM? Check out this Infographic on CRM Comparison of 13 popular systems.
Rolustech is a SugarCRM Certified Developer & Partner Firm. We have helped more than 700 firms with various SugarCRM Customization, Migrations and Integrations. Contact us today for your FREE Consultation Session. We will be happy to assist you!
