According to Google, 50 percent of search queries globally now come from mobile devices. Gone are the days when a solution is built for one single purpose. Today we want a solution which is much like swiss army knife, solving multi needs, which includes multi integrations, and most importantly which can be accessed from anywhere.
Mobility has become a key business priority. A 2014 Comscore report mentions the rise of mobile-only internet users over desktop-only users. Not all software solutions can be leveraged equally through mobile, for certain software solutions which are more secure, the mobile strategies should be laid more diligently.
Of all the changes that took in customer relationship management in the recent past, one of the most exciting as well as concerning is mobile CRM. Mobilizing CRM has a lot of benefits which includes lowering the sales cost, improving the response rate and improving the visibility.
It is imperative to show quick wins in creating a business case for mobile CRM. Define how mobile solutions can help employees work more productively in the future. To increase ROI of mobile CRM applications, develop a roadmap that considers leveraging other technology platforms, such as integration, social networking.
Here are key factors to be kept in mind when mobilizing CRM:
Chalk out Your Business Objectives
When a mobile CRM is implemented, it should supplement the existing interaction channels. You need to chalk out your clear business objectives where you can realize immediate benefits on a business side. Identify those scenarios where the mobile app integration in a normal execution of the day-to-day business process can improve productivity.
For instance, will allow workers to track the customer’s activity in a real-time throughout the day, make them more productive? With most of the calls ending up in voicemails, it is very crucial for a salesperson to understand when the prospect is on his desk so that the moment he understands the prospect has checked his email, and this information pops-up on the mobile, he can immediately reach his overcall.
Articulate your Mobile CRM Strategies
A mobile CRM strategy should provide a strong need that persuades companies to strongly consider enterprise mobile strategy. The benefits should definitely surpass the challenges like security issues in case of mobile CRM. Your company must define the right policies and processes and select the right enterprise-class mobile security management tools to enforce enterprise security policies.
Prevent data loss. One of the top concerns with mobile CRM is the risk of losing customer data. It happens often, especially now that companies are adapting to Bring-Your-Own-Device (BYOD) strategies. Create a more secure policy before BYOD strategy is implemented, by creating password protection, getting enrolled in device-management programs etc. IT team can create a plan to differentiate personal data from corporate data. This segregation helps IT to wipe sensitive data remotely in the case of device lost, stolen, or otherwise compromised. The keystone is device authentication and data encryption tools for the business data transferred between back-end systems and devices. Security must get ahead of the curve and play a more active role in planning the firm’s mobile strategy.
Also, data entry is severely limited on mobile devices. Most users recognize this functionality as part of their SMS. It’s not as common in CRM software, but there are tools and techniques so that CRM apps can suggest or autocomplete field entry.
Train your Team Well
Most of the employees don’t actually leverage the full potential of a mobile CRM. For instance, a field medical representative has a very short time to convey product information to doctors. A video clip shown on a tablet is very compelling and time-efficient.
Your job is only half done when you implement a software solution, the actual task begins when the employees are trained well on each and every feature of the CRM, before they go live. Training employees on how to effectively leverage a mobile CRM solution as a business tool is one of the most important steps during implementation. To help drive user adoption, you need a plan to ensure that the users understand what is expected of them, how they will be measured, and how to use the solution to accomplish those goals. CRM solution vendors typically offer instructor-led training, custom training, or train-the-trainer courses to support frontline users, power users, administrators, and solution developers.
Also, make sure your customer data is reliable and up-to-date. The whole point of having a ‘mobile’ CRM is to update the data on-the-go or as soon as it is required.
Understand the Data and User Groups
Even before you implement the mobile CRM access to the users, you need to understand what set of information they need in performing their daily tasks and what data he needs to collect on a daily basis.
Define and understand the user groups and activities to support mobile solutions: the ways employees conduct business, the way they interact with each other, the way they would like to interact with each other, and how the company delivers products and services to its customers. For instance, in a group of regional sales managers who work daily with independent reps. They need help being more productive in carrying out the daily tasks of call planning, sales presentations, follow-up task assignments, sales activity tracking, and sales forecasting. Mobile applications allow them to complete administrative tasks during open times throughout the day and not have to wait to return home to do their paperwork.
And there are decision-makers who spend time in analyzing information, making complex decisions, who need reports and dashboards right in front of them to make these crucial decisions, interact with people including other employees, customers, and suppliers. Most of their work is done on mobile platforms, unlike the other users who are on the desk and can access a desktop application.
A critical implementation step involves defining the process for migrating appropriate data to the CRM solution. You must identify where the data comes from, what format it will be in, and how clean it will be. After defining what data you will migrate, you must next clean it. Put a procedure for keeping data clean and up to date in place. CRM solution providers maintain lists of resources approved for data migration and cleansing.
Understand the Use Cases that you need to Support
You need to not only define the general user types that you want to support through mobile CRM solutions but also drill deep to understand the exact job activities these users perform and how having a mobile device can help.
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