Most commonly asked questions about CRM

8 min readApr 17, 2019

List of 12 most commonly asked questions about a CRM while choosing the best one.

Maintaining a lasting relationship with customers is crucial for the growth of any organization. However, without a proper system in place providing utmost customer satisfaction seems like a challenging task. So, most of the successful companies are using customer relationship management (CRM) software for building and maintaining profitable long-term relationships with their esteemed customers.

“The purpose of business is to create and keep a customer.” -Peter Drucker

Frequently asked questions about a CRM

91% of companies with 10 or more employees use a CRM. The market still has many naïve and growing companies who are still unsure about this useful software. They are still wondering what a CRM is and why do they need it. To help these companies, below I have stated the most commonly asked questions about a CRM along with their answers that generate vital information about this widely used software.

“How you gather, manage and use information will determine whether you win or lose”- Bill Gates

1. What is CRM?

CRM stands for Customer Relationship Management software that helps companies in staying on top of their customer relationships. It keeps everyone in the team on the same page with a centralized view of the sales deals and its related data. With the easy availability of the information, companies can provide a better buying experience to their customers. It renders greater insights into customer data and makes sales process manageable.

“Corporations invest in sophisticated CRM, or Customer Relationship Management, programs to effectively oversee their relationship with their customers at every point during the buying process” — Marc Ostrofsky

2. What are the benefits of investing in CRM software?

Investing in a CRM can help you in expanding your profit margins and improve the bottom line of your business. Besides, CRM software has a broad spectrum of benefits like it:

Improves sales productivity
Keeps your data organized
Decreases clutter and confusion
Increases customer retention
Reduces data redundancy
Provides access to up-to-date information
Improves response rate to direct emails
Keeps all the records neat
Always have crucial information at hand

3. Should I purchase a CRM system or build one from scratch?

This decision can be made only after evaluating the needs of your business, as every company has different requirements. Building your own system tailored to your unique requirements might seem enticing to boost your revenue growth. However, you need to go through a complex cycle of development procedure and hire experienced developers with technical expertise to build it.

Instead, you can even improve your company’s top-line revenue by purchasing a cloud-based CRM system. You will get to use more advanced features at the cost-effective price plus you don’t even need to worry about its maintenance and upgrade cost.

4. What is the difference between on-premise and cloud-based CRM?

On-premise CRM and the relevant data is hosted locally by the company on their own server for internal usage while cloud-based CRM and its data is hosted online or on the cloud. The information in a cloud-based software is accessible from anywhere through the internet while in on-premise, you don’t have this flexibility as everything would be managed onsite.

Cloud-based CRM software are quick and painless to deploy unlike the on-premise CRM that has long processes as it demands technical help and investment in expensive hardware to get started.

5. How much does a CRM cost?

CRM provides a huge return on investment, but choosing the right one is crucial for small and medium-sized businesses.

As such, there is no fixed price for a CRM solution, but most of the cloud-based CRM vendors follow subscription-based pricing model where subscribers can choose either a monthly or an annual plan charged per user depending upon the individual requirements.

Instead of paying every month, it is beneficial to choose the yearly plan, as several CRM providers like Salesmate offer special discounts to the user who opts yearly subscriptions.

Most of the cloud-based CRM providers offer a basic plan that includes all the essential features of a customer relationship management software.
There is also a professional plan available for the companies that need advanced functionalities. They even have the option of buying plugins or add-ons as per their specific requirements.
The best thing about cloud-based CRM is that it has a pay-as-you-go option which means you only pay for what you use.
Few CRM software even have a hidden cost attached to them, so it is necessary to inquire before settling for one.
In the case of an on-premise system, they only provide a one-time payment.

6. Can the sales reps download the customer database and leave the company?

Most of the companies have security concerns regarding their database, which is understandable. In case of a CRM, businesses can enable privacy settings to keep their data secure. In a CRM, the company can prohibit selective people from performing certain activities. Data can be accessed only according to the defined permission. The company can select whom they wish to give the admin rights and turn off specific functionalities for certain users.

7. Does small businesses who have limited customers need special software to manage them?

Haphazard management of processes, & contacts results in a disastrous outcome. Though a small business has limited customers, they are the source of their revenue. So they can’t afford to lose them due to any kind of mistakes.

A feature-rich software like a CRM minimizes any manual error, helps in retaining valuable customers and also aids in generating new business. With this high-end tool, small businesses can automate most of their processes to reach out to the customers in real-time. Moreover, it helps in streamlining all the essential information about the customer in one place. Such information can help to refine processes and strategies as the company grows.

8. How does CRM help sales teams?

CRM empowers sales team and helps them in closing a deal faster

With a CRM, sales teams can:

Create multiple sales pipelines for managing their sales efficiently
Get clear visibility of their sales deals
See the rotting period and address the deals in real-time
Track their deals and measure its progress
Set workflows and follow-up on time
Use reports to identify roadblocks and forecast sales
Access, update and share information with other members of the team

9. How does CRM work with emails?

CRM gives you complete control over your emails. It allows you to integrate with major email service providers like Google and Microsoft Outlook as well as other personal webmail service providers. With a CRM, you can set up a sequence of emails to nurture prospects over time. Moreover, you can even track emails to measure the open and click rate for improving your email campaigns.

10. How can I handle analytics within a CRM?

The analytics in a CRM is mostly managed through reports. With insightful & real time reports in a CRM, you can measure vital metrics, track performance and identify risks quickly. With such information, you can understand what’s working and where do you need improvements. Most of the CRM solutions even provide the flexibility to customize the solution as per your specific requirements.

11. Can I evaluate CRM for buying it?

Most of the cloud-based CRM solution offers a 15 to 30 days free trial for exploring their features. With a free trial, you can understand how the software works in real-time and determine if it is a right fit for your organization.

Want to try a CRM that works well with your small business requirements? Try Salesmate CRM free for 15 days and assess your business better by increasing visibility and overall business revenue.

Grow your sales now, Try Salesmate CRM for free!!

12. What are the main features to look in a CRM?

A CRM can be very beneficial for your business provided you use its features wisely. Here are the main features that you need to look for in a CRM:

Contact management

Find all the information associated with your business contacts in one place. With this feature in a CRM, you can access your contact information from anywhere without any hassle.

Stay organized and get 360 degree customer view with contact management from Salesmate CRM. IT helps you to have an organized list of contacts including all the important details of customer and take bulk actions whenever required.

Learn more about Salesmate contact management system.

Deal Management

Know where your deals are in the sales pipeline and track their progress with deal management feature of a CRM. It aids in identifying stalled deals and getting timely updates about your deals for closing them quickly.

Never miss a single opportunity and stay updated with current status of deals with seamless deal management from Salesmate CRM. Manage deals in sales pipeline through simple drag and drop navigation. Managing deals and conversation with the prospects is super simple in Salesmate CRM.

Learn more about deal management from Salesmate CRM.

Sales automation

Set workflows and automate most of the busywork with sales automation feature of a CRM. You can automatically send introductory emails, assign tasks, set reminders and follow-up without delay.

Why spend hours in doing daily repetitive tasks again and again when there’s an error free and very simple automation process for sales. Sales automation from Salesmate allows you to spend more time on selling by automating daily repetitive activities like assigning deals to sales reps, sending reminders etc.

Check out more on sales automation from Salesmate CRM.

Mobile CRM

Take customer relationship management on a remote device with mobile CRM and increase your productivity. You can receive instant updates and keep an eye on your deals on the go.

Enable mobile sales with Salesmate mobile CRM. Take all your prospects information in your pocket when you go out for field work. Manage your sales, have all the information and create records from your fingertips. Make your smartphones your ultimate selling machine.

Learn more about Salesmate mobile CRM.

Built-in phone system

With a built-in virtual phone system, you can call from within your CRM and effectively communicate with your sales prospects. It allows you to seamlessly create & save notes, record calls and send text messages from within your CRM.

Built-in phone system from Salesmate CRM allows sales reps to stay on track and make and receive more sales calls without leaving the CRM system even without spending on other phone systems. I also allows you to send bulk SMS to your client lists. You can do call recording, call transfer, create notes while calling, send voicemail greetings, automatically log calls and more with Salesmate built in phone.

Learn more about Salesmate built-in phone system.

Final words

CRM is the best tool for managing sales and bolster your customer relationship. It makes your work easier and faster. Evaluate your business needs and consider all the factors before choosing a CRM. With a CRM like Salesmate, you can keep an eye on your sales and improve your overall performance. Try Salesmate for free or request a demo to see how it can help you scale your business.

We welcome you to Salesmate! 🙂 A subtle yet systematic and intuitive sales intelligence-based CRM that provides high quality service without blowing a hole in your budget. Want to know more? Start a free 15-day trial, today!