Strong customer relationship management is the foundation of a healthy business. If you are into a direct-to-customer business, you need to ensure that you have the best policies that help you enhance your customer acquisition process and convert them into your regular clients. While the product and quality of service are the base of acquiring quality clients, you should understand that without a proper give and take, nothing can work. If you cannot manage your clients, answer their queries and deliver quality products to them simultaneously, the chances of your survival are next to impossible in the market. In small-scale businesses a team of two is enough to take care of all the proceedings however when things start scaling, you need technology by your side to survive. Tools like CRM make it easy for you to keep the relationship stable and going as it holds all the information you may ever require to target the perfect person with the perfect deal. Not to mention, when you have a good database of clients, you need a CRM to maintain their records and understand the patterns by using multiple analysis techniques used in salesforce.&nbsp;&nbsp;

With that being said, CRM tools are widely available solutions to help enterprises enhance the quality of management. With the help of a CRM, managing inventories, understanding users’ expectations, and resolving issues that a user is facing becomes super easy. Also, after every issue that you solve, you learn about the weak spot of your service and you get to work on it. The tool is simple to acquire as it is available online ready to use as well as can customized by a <a href="https://www.amplifyre.com/community/articles/strategy/how-to-create-a-crm-from-scratch-step-by-step">CRM development</a> company. The options that enterprises have for CRMs to choose from are really confusing as almost every other tool seems to be the perfect solution and yet it has some important things missing.&nbsp;&nbsp;

Having too many options is not a problem for those who know what they are looking for but the problem with many enterprises is that they are unaware of the features that they are looking for. They do not know exactly what core functionalities a CRM must have and what are the custom usable features that they want for their work. Well, you being a startup founder, should also worry about the cost-effectiveness of the tool that you implement and if you plan to go big with the idea, scalability should also be in your mind. Some of the features that you must acquire in your CRM are -&nbsp;&nbsp;

When you opt for a CRM, you are not only getting a tool to handle your clients, you are integrating and implementing a system that will hold your precious database and since you are in your initial stage, you might not change this system very often. You will get to know about a lot of changes in the technology and as you grow you will need more tools to run in sync with a CRM, for instance, the ERP that you use. Before opting for a CRM you need to ensure that it has external integration capabilities which means it can simply make things work for you, in the long run, no matter what you introduce shortly.

User flexibility, mobile support, ease of access, etc, is something that you always want for yourself. A CRM is never off duty which is why if you have a responsive version of the same, you can be active on it so your clients never have to wait for the solution. Flexibility also means that it is customizable and easy to use. You can arrange the tool you use the most, give it a unique touch as per your requirement, and more importantly, it should be easy to learn to operate. Then and only then it is helpful as if you need an expert to teach you, it will lead to extra expenses which we do not want, now do we?

Today you might be catering let’s say a thousand clients. The number is not going to stay the same, you need a CRM that is easy to scale when required and never breaks down when more data is pushed through it. This is the initial stage of your enterprise and if you do not pay attention to these factors, chances are that you will get dependent on the CRM and when it breaks down, your entire operations will take the hit. To avoid that, go for a configuration that is scalable and gives you support at every instance instead of turning into a liability. The more scalable your CRM is the better it goes for you!

Added functionalities can be optional for you. These are external support features that you may want to ensure the smooth working of your CRM. For instance availability of reports, and a 24x7 maintenance support package. When you are in control, things will often go south as it is your first time with a CRM, you can go for a support system so that whenever you mess things up there is someone ready to serve you. Usually, support and maintenance are a part of the subscription however if you insist on creating for yourself a custom software, you may need to pay upfront for the same. Reporting and analytics are also added features that can assist your startup in decision-making for your business.&nbsp;

The world is moving quickly towards automation and you can not stay behind. What if due any reason the admin is unavailable? What if a client sends a message and they do not get a reply? Well, automation comes into play in such situations. You can not only automate data integration of your employees and users, but you can also automate first interactions and greetings. Not to mention, if you have opted for monthly reporting, the process can be automated so you can utilize your resources when required. An automated CRM is capable of running on its own and needs no supervision whatsoever.

ANy CRM that offers these 5 qualities to you can be a great option for your startup as these will take the performance of your brand to the next level. Other than these, the reputation of the vendor that you work with, what is their track record? Their experience and your learning abilities are also deciding factors in deciding if the CRM is the perfect one for you. There are often times when you are in a dilemma between two types of CRM, one that has all the characteristics you are looking for but is costly and the other one that fits your budget but has a few compromises that you will have to make while implementing. Such a situation can be troublesome as in both the cases you are going to spend your hard-earned money, which can be a deciding factor for you as you are in the startup phase of your enterprise, and still, you will not get exactly what you need.&nbsp;

The best way to handle such a situation is to take the advice from someone who is experienced or opt for a consultation with a custom CRM development company that can remove unnecessary features from a system to maintain the cost as per your pockets. Give a thought to these factors and you will surely be able to maintain a perfectly balanced CRM for your organization. Hope this answers your query, Good Luck!

I am a startup founder looking for a good CRM tool to ensure strong customer relationships. It would be great to know the key features to look for while choosing a CRM tool.

What are the important features that constitute a good CRM?