We don’t need to preach at length about the value of CRM if you already have one. However, are you experiencing all the benefits you could be? Like many smaller businesses, it could be that you are settling for a mediocre solution because the idea of rolling out a new CRM project is akin to signing up for a full marathon as a novice runner. If the thought of tackling a CRM implementation project brings you out in a cold sweat, you may be ignoring some very serious CRM red flags.

These inefficiency red flags are not going to magically disappear, so consider the long-term impact those day-to-day gripes can have on your operations. Seemingly innocuous issues that are off the radar of senior leaders and management teams can erode the profitability and ROI of the sales and marketing function. And it’s often those folks in the weeds dealing with these pains day-to-day that are key to shining a light on the problem. By showing you what they don’t want, they can, in fact, lead you to what you really do need!

If you are experiencing any of the following, it could indicate that your existing system is outdated, not fit for purpose, and is actually a hindrance to your company’s performance. Suggesting you need to upgrade your CRM sooner rather than later.

Poor compatibility with other systems and limited integration capabilities

Even for some smaller businesses, your CRM needs to be ‘talking’ and sharing data with other systems in your business, such as your ERP, marketing software, or even accounts software. When it doesn’t do this, it causes unnecessary admin issues and headaches for your employees. Team members are likely to be disgruntled about the amount of manual data entry needed, and siloed data caused by lack of integration adds can seriously hamper growth efforts, causing inefficiencies and difficulty in ‘seeing the big picture’.

The system struggles to change as you do.

Few businesses stand still, and change is inevitable for everyone, so you need a CRM that can keep up. If you have noticed that it’s a real struggle to get your system to adapt to new processes and procedures, then it could signal the need for a new platform.

Sometimes, during growth periods, associated CRM costs can spiral, as the more data you use, the higher your monthly costs. This data threshold and tiered pricing strategy is quite common with out-of-the-box solutions, meaning the once low-cost option that seemed ideal when you first started out is now costly to manage since your data volumes have started to soar.

In the worst-case scenarios, a CRM isn’t able to cope with the increase in data at all.

For other organisations, the struggle is also felt in the pocket when costly CRM development skills are needed to help the system adapt, due to flexibility not being ‘baked into the system’ from the off. This lack of future-proofing is a common problem and indicates that you’ve come to the end of the line with your current platform.

Your users have never liked using your system, and nothing seems to get them to use it better.

You can put lipstick on a pig, but in the end it’s still a pig….

User adoption is often overlooked when selecting, building or deploying a new system, and the grim reality is that if users weren’t considered in the early stages, then it will always be a challenge to get the most from your CRM.

Systems that were built without considering users often fail to meet the needs of the employees and the wider organisation, which leads to frustrations and inefficiencies. Even the best training session will fail to make real progress with a system that isn’t intuitive to users and doesn’t make the users’ lives easier. (We offer some great tips for better user adoption in this article; 10 tips for good CRM user adoption – Rocket CRM)

Quite often, these poorly designed systems that fail to focus on end users also probably don’t fit your processes either and are likely causing a negative ripple effect of efficiency across the board. There’s really no hope for systems like this. It’s time to part ways!

You don’t fully trust your CRM’s reporting and analytics, or worse still, you can’t access them at all.

Again, more common than you might think, ineffective reporting is a very valid reason to start considering replacing your CRM.

If your current platform gives little value through actionable insights or its reporting features are limited, you could be missing countless opportunities for growth and be making better decisions more swiftly, in all areas of sales and marketing.

If you struggle to view sales team performance, sales forecasting, sales conversions, sales pipeline movement or marketing impact, then an upgrade is mandatory. There is no good reason why you should need to waste time exporting and creating pivot tables these days.

Real-time reporting gives you that sharper edge and greater agility, which are standard with CRMs in the modern day.

Limited automation features or none at all

If you know that a lot of your staff’s time is spent doing repetitive tasks like lead scoring, adding contacts to lists, follow-up reminders, or creating email sends, you should be asking why. 

Imagine those menial tasks were removed overnight; how more efficient and effective could your teams be without the burden of this type of time-intensive activity?

By automating and streaming your  sales and marketing activity you can simultaneously drive employee satisfaction and increase productivity. And modern CRMs make this so simple to do.

Is it time for you to take action?

CRM red flags are a big issue, so biting the bullet and upgrading your CRM is a smarter move in the long run, even if some folks in your organisation don’t see the urgency and think we can ‘make do’ for now.

This is when it’s probably time to begin thinking about proposing a new CRM for your organisation and start pulling together your business proposal. If you’re ready to start scoping out your CRM requirements, skim through this article Tips on selecting the right CRM | Rocket CRM. You can also speak to us for a free 30-minute consultation.

ABOUT ROCKET CRM

Rocket CRM is a Microsoft Dynamics 365, and a platinum Click accredited partner, helping small to medium-sized businesses and charities harness the power of scalable CRM technology. Our mission is to make powerful CRM software simple with custom-built, user-focused solutions.

Website: rocketcrm.co.uk

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