SaaS CRM is Here to Stay
Earlier this year, Forrester released its report, ‘Navigate The Future Of CRM In 2015’, summarizing the top trends application development and delivery professionals need to take into account when formulating CRM plans in 2015. The report provides some valuable insight and predictions that are worth noting.
SaaS CRM is here to stay – meaning the move towards cloud-delivered CRM rather than on-premise deployments is well underway. Gartner predicts the percentage of companies with cloud-based CRM platforms will rise above 50% in 2015. On-premise CRM requires that every new feature, service pack, or enhancement likely requires a costly upgrade project. With the number of updates and upgrades increasing, many companies realize it’s much more cost-effective to the go to the cloud. This means less IT staff on-premise, lower IT infrastructure costs, and a more adaptable platform for the future.
Companies will operationalize insights from connected devices
Forrester predicts that “insights derived from the web of connected devices (the “Internet of Things”, or IoT) will be better leveraged within CRM to offer deeply personalized engagement delivered in context, better planning and anticipation of future customer needs, proactive - even preemptive - service with faster resolution, and better customer satisfaction.” Of course, included here is the clear fact that, in parallel, mobile capabilities are becoming more powerful as well. That’s a critical point, too, since salespeople spend more time out of the office in sales meetings and traveling. So as time moves on, CRM vendors are investing in their mobile platforms to make them more powerful. We think that to stay competitive they’ll have to offer powerful mobile and tablet apps that in the long run will enable salespeople to close more deals, be better prepared for meetings and report more accurately.
Microsoft recently added voice commands to their Dynamics CRM app for Windows phones. With voice commands, salespeople can bring up CRM records, add notes, and get facts that can help them close more deals.
One key trend we see is the realization that social media is becoming essential to all areas of business. As such, CRM is adapting so that your people can always have their ears to the ground. Putting employees in the conversation means your business can get things right. Salespeople can spot new opportunities and respond to competitive threats with precision. Marketing teams can use social insights to fine-tune messaging, and customer care teams can use sentiment analysis to understand customers and to make interactions more meaningful.
The Social Listening tool has been enhanced with the Dynamics 2015 update. Marketers can get social insights displayed about your company’s brands and campaigns on the platform. Sales reps can now take advantage of social conversations to spot customer problems, find opportunities to upsell, and add more value than the competition.
As a regional CRM expert and Microsoft Gold Certified Partner, NexusTek can work with you to design and deliver a custom-tailored Microsoft Dynamics CRM system that will put your company on a path to success.
by NexusTec
SaaS CRM is Here to Stay is a post from: CRM Software Blog
The post SaaS CRM is Here to Stay appeared first on CRM Software Blog.
This was originally posted here.
*This post is locked for comments