What is CRM and how can it help your business?

Customer care, How to, Small business1 comment

If you’re running your own business, you probably go out regularly to networking events.  Face to face networking is a great way to promote your services and build relationships with other business owners.  However, once you start networking on a regular basis, you suddenly find that you’re starting to accumulate a lot of business cards.  So the question is, what do you do with them all?

Well, if you’re not careful, they can end up in the bottom of a drawer!  This is obviously not doing a lot of good for your business and means that you could be missing out on potential opportunities.  So if you are meeting people you want to stay in contact with or think may become future partners or suppliers, then you need to be able to find their information quickly and easily.  One of the best ways of doing this is to use a CRM system – CRM stands for Customer Relationship Management.

So how can a CRM system help your business?  Well, here are a few tips.

When I first started up in business, I used an Excel spreadsheet to capture my contact details.  This is great to start with but as my contacts grew then I decided that I needed a more sophisticated system to manage my contact information.  One of the great benefits of having a CRM system is that you can use it to manage your sales pipeline.  For example, you can tag and sort your contacts by their relationship to your business, eg supplier, lead, potential client etc.  From this you can quickly spot any opportunities, and what action needs to be taken by adding tasks and targets to the contact profile.  So if you met someone at a networking event who is interested in working with you, then you can flag that on their profile, add a reminder to follow them up and then track progress of your contact with them.

There are 2 types of CRM: software you can download to your computer or a cloud-based application.  I personally prefer a cloud-based system because it allows you to access your information from anywhere.  OK, you will have to pay a monthly or yearly fee but the time saving advantages it brings to your business will far outweigh the cost.  For example, many cloud based systems integrate with each other, eg CapsuleCRM works with Kashflow, Xero, MailChimp and Google Apps.

So, as you can see, having a CRM system will help you spot any potential opportunities, and when used in conjunction with other applications, can help you work more effectively.  And if you don’t have time to do this yourself, then many virtual assistants have experience of working with CRM systems, leaving you to focus on following up and making that sale!

What’s In It For Me?

Customer care, Marketing, Online marketing0 comments

One of the things that a lot of people struggle with when they set up in business is getting to grips with marketing. I know that I did when I started writing content for my website. It’s a great way to communicate how your services or products can benefit your potential customers. However, like a lot of people I made one of the biggest marketing message mistakes there is.

What is it? Well, I fell into the trap of writing my content from the point of view of “what we do” (WWD) rather than “what’s in it for me” (WIFM).

It’s said that when people are searching on the internet and click on a website, they will only spend about 3-5 seconds before deciding whether what the company is offering will fulfil their needs. So the content needs to be clearly focused on the service or product you’re providing, the benefits it brings to clients and the results they can expect from using it.

Think about it, how many times have you searched for something and come across websites that just say “we do x, y and z” or “we provide this kind of service”. All they are doing is communicating about what they are interested in. However, you, the prospective client, is reading the content from a position of self-interest – all you want to know is how you will personally benefit from using the service or product.

Well, the same goes for your website or newsletter. When you’re writing it, put yourself in your clients’ shoes and think about what they’re looking for, what are their struggles and challenges and how you can help them. Websites that are centred on “what’s in it for me” will get far more hits and enquiries than those that are based on “what we do”.

So whether it’s writing content for your website or putting together your newsletter, remember to not just make it all about you, your company and what you offer. It is essential to give your potential clients a good reason as to how they will gain from using your services or products. If you can show them that you are able to understand and address their needs, then they are more likely to do business with you.

Is Your Business Suffering from Volcanic Ash?

Customer care, Small business, Virtual Assistant0 comments

Reading about all the travel disruption over the past few weeks – with the ash from the Icelandic volcano shutting down flights – made me think about the benefits of working virtually.  We’ve all read the stories about business people either not being able to get to their destination or being stuck in Europe and spending several days trying to get back home using various forms of transport.  Either way, it’s been a major disruption to UK businesses with thousands of pounds being lost.

For those of us who work remotely, travel disruption doesn’t affect us.  As a virtual assistant, I’m not held up by cancelled trains, travel strikes, bad weather or even volcanic ash!  All I need to get the job done is a PC and broadband connection.  The main benefit of this to small businesses is that work can carry on as normal without any delays or hold ups, and money is saved as they only pay for the time spent working on a project and not while I’m stuck on a train trying to get into the office.

So a disruption like the volcancic ash cloud needn’t clog up your business!  By using remote workers either full time, or as a contingency when staff are unavailable, will enable you to carry on providing a full and seamless service to clients even when a crisis hits.

How do you build trust in your business?

Customer care, How to, Small business1 comment

Recently the news has been full of stories about people betraying another person’s trust.  These have included celebrities and footballers and one prime example is the general public losing faith with banks.  What these stories show is how quickly a relationship can turn sour if one side doesn’t deliver what is expected of them.  It’s the same for business: our clients trust us to deliver a certain level of service and if we don’t then the relationship can be damaged forever.  Unlike celebrities though, we don’t have a Max Clifford figure to help us gloss over any shortcomings, so this got me thinking about how we can build trust with our clients and get them to become raving fans for our business.

First of all, sit down with any prospective client and go through what kind of challenges they face in their business and how your services can help them.  Don’t hard sell though, just talk to the client and try to find out about them and their business.  See if there’s any common ground between you as this helps build a connection which you can use to grow the relationship.

If the client is unsure about using your services immediately, then offer to add them to your mailing list so they can receive regular updates on your services or products.  Keep in touch with them either through email marketing, networking meetings or just meeting over a coffee to chat about the ups and downs of running a business!  This gives them a chance to get to know you and see what you can do before committing.

Trying to “warm up” a contact takes time and has been compared to wooing someone!  Instead of tempting them with roses and chocolates though, use free guides and newsletters that will help them in their business.  Not so romantic perhaps, but once they can see what you can do and that you can “walk the talk” then they will begin to trust you and see you as someone who can address their needs.

Once they do become a client, set out clearly the terms of the contract and what each of you expects from the other.  Have regular review meetings to make sure that you’re both happy.  Try to exceed expectations where you can and be proactive by getting to know the client’s business so you can see where you can add value.  Lastly always seek feedback from the client and find out how you can improve your service to them.

By building up a relationship with clients,  you not only get a sense of satisfaction that you’re helping them succeed in their business but you’re also helping to build your own business with a growing network of loyal and satisfied customers.