9 Tips, How to Increase User Acceptance For a CRM System

A successful outcome of a CRM system relies on a large part on the acceptance of its users. Admirably, the newly introduced system should be used by all employees for all the daily tasks in the company right from the start. After all, the main goal is to increase productivity. Easily said than done since there are many impediments that can lead to low user readiness. We'll list the reasons for a negative attitude and how you can increase user acceptance by following our guidelines.

The advantages of a CRM system should be clear to everyone. Improved collaboration between sales, service, and marketing increases productivity and boosts sales. Nevertheless, it often happens that this potential is not completely used. The quicker an organization uses the potential of a CRM system, the faster this will be noticeable in sales and customer satisfaction.

Right after the introduction of a CRM system, productivity can drop noticeably. This drop is not exclusively related to the learning curve. In many cases, the employees are diffuse and tense because they have to leave their comfort zone. A CRM system can be a highly complex system, depending on how many processes are implemented and pose enormous challenges for less technically-affine users.

Read our 9 tips to increase user acceptance and avoid such a scenario for your organization.

Involve Employees in the Implementation of the System

In bigger organizations, it is obviously tough to involve every employee. You should still identify a group of key-users for every business unit that are in close contact with the CRM implementation partner. Recurring meetings should be organized with these groups to discuss expected behavior and desired functionalities in the CRM system. The remaining users can bring up their ideas and expectations to the key users. This is helpful to channel the communication between the users and the implementation partner. 

Adapt the System to Existing Wording in the Company

Try to use terms in the system that are in use within the organization. Most of the companies have their own sub-culture with their own language. Even if it sometimes sounds strange, it is helpful to create a familiar environment for a higher acceptance. This method will reduce the effort involved in re-learning and rethinking. 

Design the CRM Intuitively

The upper management may already have a lot of different ideas about which sophisticated processes should be implemented in the CRM. Though, you should be careful with the complexity, don't overburden your employees at the beginning. At the start, implement processes that are crucial and give the organization the most benefit. More complex processes can be implemented in smaller subprojects afterward. This allows your employees to get warm with the new system. Besides that, It is important to have the system tested properly. This allows creating a system according to the user's expectations.

Initial Data Migration into the CRM

It is important to import all data that you have in Excel spreadsheets, Word documents or other systems into the CRM. Especially from the popular Excel spreadsheet, is it hard to get rid of. If all the data is in the CRM, the employees have fewer reasons to use the Excel documents. Obviously, management should be a role model and stop using Excel spreadsheets. 

Training and Courses

Train your staff before the go-live. Insufficient training leads to frustration and a negative attitude towards CRM. Usually, the implementation partners offer user training including user manuals.

Plan a Time Effort for the Initial Familiarization

In the introduction phase, the new system leads to additional work effort during the adaption phase and data maintenance. Be sure to consider that additional effort in your target planning for the fiscal year. It is important to reward the right behavior and not punish the employee for intensively using the new system. If the employee has the feeling that he or she cannot meet the targets because of the CRM, she or he will stop using the new system.

Standardize the Data Entry

Try to standardize the data entries for fields as much as possible using option sets or lookups. If there is too much room for interpretation while entering data, it can lead to a loss of user motivation. Especially in the adaption phase, many people move with uncertainty in the system. Try to eliminate this uncertainty with standardized data entries.

The Management Should Set an Example

Management should be a good example and use the new CRM extensively. If the commitment of the management is low, it will make itself noticeable in user behavior. Incentives and impulses should be given from the top. Mention CRM explicitly in the written task description or in verbal communication.

Take Away the Fear of a Loss of Power

Some employees might be afraid of sharing their information with the entire sales team. Suddenly, the information for a hot lead should be shared with everyone. Make a statement to all employees that a thought out security model exists in CRM that can define who has access to what kind of information. By the way, it's not a good sign if such concerns arise among your employees. The whole organization should pull together and pursue a common goal - to make the business grow.

Conclusion

Try to eliminate the resistance in the company as good as possible. Have an open ear for criticism and feedback. Involve the employees in the development of the system. Try to eliminate the doubts by skillful communication before they even occur. Eliminate prejudices and make the added value clearly visible to everyone. Act proactively instead of reactively. The success of a CRM system depends not only on your implementation partner but also on the acceptance of your staff.