If you’re a growing business preparing to purchase your first CRM, choosing the one that is right for you can be a daunting process. With so many alternatives out there, it’s challenging just figuring out where to begin let alone trying to determine which one best meets your needs.
Here at Prialto, we’ve helped dozens of startup clients through the CRM selection and adoption process and have narrowed it down into a list of easy-to-follow steps.
Here are our best practices for how to choose a CRM.
The first step in choosing a CRM is determining what results you hope to attain from it. Before you start thinking about specifics, decide if you just need to track general sales data or if you want special features that are specific to your industry.
If the former applies, you can consider any CRM that's designed for multiple industries. If the second refers to you, search for CRMs created specifically for your field.
Next, make a list of must-have features such as:
Next make a list of 5-10 CRMs that have those features and contain many case studies, customer reviews and other forms of social proof on their site.
Once you have a list of CRMs that meet your baseline requirements, it’s time to evaluate their usability. One of the most overwhelming parts of shopping for a CRM is that they all seem complicated. To find the easiest-to-adopt CRM, consider these three factors:
For more information about how to successfully adopt a CRM, check out this article: How to Successfully Implement New Workplace Technologies
Once you’ve narrowed down your list based on those factors, finalize how much cash you want to invest in it. Most CRMs have a tiered pricing structure, often with three tiers, that offer flat monthly rates for specific quantities of features. You should choose your plan based on three factors:
After you’ve evaluated those factors, choose the CRM that meets all of your criteria for the lowest cost.
Keep in mind: Despite all of the benefits that CRMs offer, one of the major downsides is that they require a significant time investment learn how to use them and to keep them up-to-date.
If your sales team is being slowed down by their lack of understanding of how to use the CRM and/or having to constantly input data, consider hiring a virtual sales assistant.
When you hire one through a managed service like ours, we’ll provide you with a dedicated assistant who will keep your CRM up-to-date so you can yield all the benefits without having to invest a lot of time.
Plus, since we sell our service in units of 55 hours per month, your assistant will have plenty of time to reach out to prospects, schedule meetings, manage expenses and take care of other sales support tasks on your behalf.
Related: 4 Ways Outsourcing CRM Management Can Boost Sales Productivity