A decade ago, CRM software was considered a luxury item only affordable to large companies. However, the market has changed, and CRM software is now an affordable and customizable tool suitable for businesses of all sizes and industries. Over 91% of companies with 10 or more employees use CRM software. Despite the proven benefits of CRM, some sales reps find it too complicated and time-consuming to use. However, companies that automate their CRMs can enjoy several advantages, such as shorter sales cycles, increased productivity, and sales and revenue growth. This article explores CRM automation, its benefits, and how to implement six CRM automation workflows for sales teams.
CRM automation refers to using the dedicated functionalities of a CRM system to delegate repetitive tasks usually performed by sales, marketing, and customer service teams to a machine. The most common workflows for CRM automation include lead capture, qualification, routing, data entry, task creation, lead nurturing, sales forecasting, and reporting.
Sales teams can benefit from CRM automation in several ways, including increased efficiency, better morale, improved accuracy, enhanced customer experience and loyalty, shorter sales cycles, increased revenue, and better decision-making. However, over-automating the sales process can make it more complicated, so companies need to implement only the CRM automation that their sales team needs.
The six CRM automation workflows that can benefit virtually any sales team include data entry, automated lead capture, automated lead qualification, lead routing, task creation, and lead nurturing. Automated data entry can save time, eliminate errors, and ensure that all data gets saved to the appropriate customer record fields. Automated lead capture can streamline lead capture from various sources, while automated lead qualification can help qualify captured leads based on specific criteria. Lead routing ensures that all leads that enter the sales funnel get automatically assigned to sales reps, while task creation ensures that sales reps perform appropriate actions for each lead. Finally, lead nurturing delivers targeted content and follow-up messages to leads to keep them engaged and move them through the sales funnel.
