CRM For Dummies

CRM For Dummies

by Lars Helgeson
Released July 2017
Publisher(s): For Dummies
ISBN: 9781119368977

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Book description

Save time, save money, and grow your business with more effective CRM

CRM For Dummies is the small business leader's guide to managing customer interactions. Customer relationship management is a critical part of any business, and it encompasses everything from business strategy and HR to sales, marketing, events, and more. Solutions exist for businesses of any size, but how do you know which one is right for you? What features do you need? Do you have the people and processes in place to get the most out of whichever one you choose? This book is designed to help business leaders better understand effective CRM and identify the right solution for their business—but it's about much more than software; effective CRM requires appropriate team structures, intradepartmental collaboration, and process efficiency. Packed with tactics and strategies that will save your company thousands of dollars and man-hours, these chapters answer the most pressing questions that will make the biggest impact on your sales.

Building relationships with current and future customers is the critical point of business. This book helps you bring sales, marketing, and operations together to work toward that common goal, and shows you the tools and techniques that make your efforts more effective.

  • Define your market segments, buyer personas, and voice
  • Build an effective internal structure, and choose the right CRM solution
  • Optimize leads and conduct effective email marketing
  • Streamline processes, automate where possible, and employ analytics

Your customers are the lifeblood of your company; you need to reach them, engage them, and retain them—without wasting precious time or money. CRM For Dummies gets you up to speed on the latest, most effective CRM tools and techniques to help your business succeed.

Table of contents

    1. Cover
    2. Introduction
      1. About This Book
      2. Icons Used in This Book
      3. Where to Go from Here
    3. Part 1: Laying the CRM Foundation
      1. Chapter 1: Embarking on Your Journey to Complete CRM
        1. Bringing the R in CRM to the Forefront
        2. Extending CRM to Your Entire Business
        3. Knowing the Buzzwords
        4. Using Strategies and Tactics
        5. Finding Your Success with Complete CRM
      2. Chapter 2: Gearing Up Internally for CRM
        1. Overcoming Resistance to Change
        2. Encouraging and Facilitating Innovation and Collaboration
        3. Creating a Consistent and Effective Brand Communication Strategy
        4. Working with the Gatekeepers in IT
        5. Adopting a Data-Driven Mindset
        6. Applying Your Culture to CRM
      3. Chapter 3: Choosing the Best Software
        1. Choosing between Software as a Service (SaaS) or On-Premise
        2. Evaluating Software Vendors
        3. Testing CRM Software
        4. Making the Final Decision
        5. Educating Users on Responsibility
        6. Installing the Right Data Security Tools
        7. Training Your Staff
    4. Part 2: Setting Up Yourself for Success
      1. Chapter 4: Organizing Your CRM through Segments and Personas
        1. Segmenting Your Market
        2. Identifying Buyer Personas
        3. Developing Your Best Brand
        4. Testing Your Brand
        5. Delivering the Right Content
        6. Avoiding Content Saturation
      2. Chapter 5: Creating Story Arcs and Buyer Journeys with CRM
        1. Building Brand Awareness
        2. Improving Brand Perception
        3. Making the Best Contact the First Time
        4. Qualifying Leads
        5. Getting Your Leads into Your Funnel
        6. Using Workflows to Engage with Your Customers
        7. Designing Workflows
        8. Closing Leads with Effective Process
        9. Using Opportunities versus Consumer Sales Funnels
        10. Implementing Process Abandonment
        11. Following Up after the Sale
      3. Chapter 6: Defining Process and Your Data Model
        1. Applying Management by Walking Around
        2. Outlining Key Areas
        3. Moving from Whiteboard to CRM
        4. Defining Contact Data Fields
        5. Scoring Your Leads and Clients
    5. Part 3: Implementing Your CRM
      1. Chapter 7: Setting Up Your CRM Elements
        1. Contact versus Account-Based CRM
        2. Defining Users and Their Roles
        3. Using a Group-Centric Architecture
        4. Setting Up Custom Data Fields
        5. Storing Files
        6. Signing Documents Automatically
        7. Bridging Your Online Store and Your CRM
        8. Integrating Billing, Quotes, and Invoices
        9. Connecting Legacy and Related Software
        10. Importing Leads by File
      2. Chapter 8: Capturing Leads to Build Your CRM Database
        1. Finding the Best Lead Capture Methods
        2. Buying Leads from Third Parties
        3. Bringing Leads in with Your Website
        4. Tracking Sources with Campaign IDs
        5. Deploying Signup Forms
        6. Deploying Ticketing Forms
        7. Appending Data
        8. Building Automation into Forms
      3. Chapter 9: Capturing Leads with Other Methods
        1. Interacting with Chat
        2. Interacting via SMS/MMS
        3. Interacting over the Phone
        4. Meeting Over Web Conference
        5. Interacting over Social Media
        6. Meeting Leads in Real Life
        7. Integrating Inbound Leads through Zapier
      4. Chapter 10: Communicating Effectively with Email
        1. Avoiding Spam
        2. Adhering to Legal Requirements
        3. Employing SPF and DKIM
        4. Choosing the Right Email Service Provider
        5. Managing Your Lists
        6. Gathering New Leads
        7. Designing Emails That Work
        8. Tracking Email Marketing Campaigns
        9. Personalizing Your Messages
        10. Triggering Email from Actions
      5. Chapter 11: Joining the Marketing Automation Revolution
        1. Defining Automation
        2. Designing Your Campaigns
        3. Setting Up Triggers
        4. Encouraging Leads to Activate Triggers
        5. Automating Workflows Around Lead Scoring
        6. Designing Workflows
      6. Chapter 12: Managing Your Knowledge Base in Your CRM
        1. Knowing What to Put in Your Knowledge Base
        2. Building Access Levels for Information
        3. Structuring Knowledge for Internal Consumption
        4. Sharing Knowledge with Leads and Clients
      7. Chapter 13: Managing Projects with Your CRM
        1. Setting Up a Project
        2. Leading Your Project Team
        3. Measuring Important Metrics for Your Team
      8. Chapter 14: Managing Events with Your CRM
        1. Bringing People to Your Brand
        2. Hosting Events
        3. Setting Up Registration Options
        4. Automating Responses and Follow-Ups
        5. Connecting with Calendars
    6. Part 4: Analytics and Improvement
      1. Chapter 15: Measuring Business Performance with CRM
        1. Constructing Funnels
        2. Analyzing Website Visitors
        3. A/B Webpage Testing
        4. Managing Affiliates
        5. Measuring Email Marketing
        6. Tracking Social Media
        7. Taking a Global View
      2. Chapter 16: Gathering Feedback and Supporting Customers
        1. Sending Surveys
        2. Supporting Clients with Ticketing Forms
        3. Chatting with Leads and Clients
      3. Chapter 17: Using Analytics the Right Way
        1. Defining Your Key Performance Indicators
        2. Analyzing Your Website Traffic
        3. Scoring Your Leads and Clients
        4. Predictive Analytics
    7. Part 5: The Part of Tens
      1. Chapter 18: Ten Top-Notch Software Review Websites
        1. Expert Market
        2. G2 Crowd
        3. SaaSGenius
        4. GetApp
        5. Technology Advice
        6. Software Advice
        7. Capterra
        8. Finances Online
        9. TrustRadius
        10. Marketing Automation Club
      2. Chapter 19: Ten Common CRM Mistakes
        1. Not Getting Buy In from Your Team
        2. Believing CRM Is about Software
        3. Not Doing Your Homework First
        4. Not Listening to Expert Advice
        5. Not Going through Vendor Software Training
        6. Not Setting Up DKIM and SPF
        7. Buying Lists
        8. Relying Only on Cold Calling
        9. Not Journey Mapping First
        10. Focusing on One Requirement
    8. Appendix A: CRM Decision Matrix
      1. Vendor
      2. CRM
    9. Appendix B: Self-Assessment
    10. About the Author
    11. Advertisement Page
    12. Connect with Dummies
    13. End User License Agreement

Product information

  • Title: CRM For Dummies
  • Author(s): Lars Helgeson
  • Release date: July 2017
  • Publisher(s): For Dummies
  • ISBN: 9781119368977