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How to Get a Sales Team's Buy-in for CRM Software
businessnewsdaily.com
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1. Demonstrate the daily benefits of the CRM system. “When everyone is clear on how the software frees up their time and helps boost productivity, adoption will remain solid, consistent and even enthusiastic.” 2. Address user feedback.
How to encourage CRM system usage “After your sales team is on board with your CRM solution, it’s critical to maintain your user adoption rate and ensure everyone continues to embrace the system.” Consistently using the CRM system and refraining from falling back to old data collection and storage methods are vital to seeing the benefits of your investment. Consider the following ways to ensure your team continues to use the system.
Zach Hendrix, co-founder of GreenPal, experienced this type of pushback after acquiring a new company and finding that its CRM implementation didn’t go as planned. After a costly implementation process, he found that the sales department wasn’t using the system at all, opting to maintain their own records across a combination of legal pads, Post-its, emails and spreadsheets. In short, it was a mess. ““In retrospect, what I didn’t realize was that I was just adding one more task to our salespeople’s list of things to do.” Hendrix didn’t give up, of course. He analyzed his first approach and tried a different angle.
1. Choose a CRM that aligns with the sales department’s current processes. “Without a comprehensive understanding of your sales department’s current process – who does what and how job roles will change with a new CRM – you run a high risk of user pushback.” It might be easier to make the final CRM purchase decision within a small group, but failure to consult senior managers in the sales department can have long-term consequences.
Consider the following tips to get your sales team on board in no time. “1. Choose a CRM that aligns with the sales department’s current processes.” Unfortunately, some SMBs adopt technology without considering how new software will affect daily routines and processes. Without a comprehensive understanding of your sales department’s current process – who does what and how job roles will change with a new CRM – you run a high risk of user pushback.
Additionally, the tech-savvy early adopters of the CRM are likely to feel ownership over the implementation process, which can be helpful when other sales staff members express frustration or distrust of the new system. Hearing a colleague say a CRM system’s features will improve the sales process is more powerful than getting the same message from a higher-up who won’t even be using the product. “3. Appoint a CRM manager.” While you’ll want your entire team to be well versed in your CRM solution, you should appoint a high-performance user to serve as the CRM manager. This manager should be someone who is:
3. Appoint a CRM manager. “While you’ll want your entire team to be well versed in your CRM solution, you should appoint a high-performance user to serve as the CRM manager.” A strong communicator
While you’ll want your entire team to be well versed in your CRM solution, you should appoint a high-performance user to serve as the CRM manager. This manager should be someone who is: “A strong communicator” Organized and able to set up employee training sessions
A strong communicator “Organized and able to set up employee training sessions” A CRM manager will serve as the liaison between your teams and the new software, so make sure they understand the technology and can explain it to others clearly.
Organized and able to set up employee training sessions “A CRM manager will serve as the liaison between your teams and the new software, so make sure they understand the technology and can explain it to others clearly.” 4. Publicize value early and often.
To make your implementation easier, check out the CRM integrations that can tie a system into your existing tech stack. “2. Involve your sales department early in the adoption process.” All the experts we consulted agreed on one thing: Failure to involve the sales department in the implementation process will cause problems in the future. Of course, high-level purchasing decisions aren’t typically made democratically, nor should they be. But choosing a few tech-savvy sales department members to sit in on demos can help you get buy-in from other associates.
2. Involve your sales department early in the adoption process. “But choosing a few tech-savvy sales department members to sit in on demos can help you get buy-in from other associates.” Additionally, having senior sales staff and managers on board early creates a great built-in support system for associates who are more resistant to change.
“Because I had looped some of the most tech-savvy reps in early in the process, I had five salespeople saying this was a good idea – plus our VP of sales, other sales managers and the entire tech department,” Tuso said. “This made selling [the other sales staff] easy and enabled me to focus on delivering the very best training and implementation plan possible.” “Pilot groups are considered a best practice in adopting any new software system.” Additionally, the tech-savvy early adopters of the CRM are likely to feel ownership over the implementation process, which can be helpful when other sales staff members express frustration or distrust of the new system. Hearing a colleague say a CRM system’s features will improve the sales process is more powerful than getting the same message from a higher-up who won’t even be using the product.
Additionally, having senior sales staff and managers on board early creates a great built-in support system for associates who are more resistant to change. “He told Business News Daily that, in addition to having a small group of technically skilled sales staff pilot the project, he relied on them to get other staff members on board.” “Because I had looped some of the most tech-savvy reps in early in the process, I had five salespeople saying this was a good idea – plus our VP of sales, other sales managers and the entire tech department,” Tuso said. “This made selling [the other sales staff] easy and enabled me to focus on delivering the very best training and implementation plan possible.”
Pilot groups are considered a best practice in adopting any new software system. And since sales departments use CRM tools heavily, it only makes sense to include sales staff in the process. “Additionally, the tech-savvy early adopters of the CRM are likely to feel ownership over the implementation process, which can be helpful when other sales staff members express frustration or distrust of the new system.” 3. Appoint a CRM manager.
Pilot groups are considered a best practice in adopting any new software system. And since sales departments use CRM tools heavily, it only makes sense to include sales staff in the process. “Hearing a colleague say a CRM system’s features will improve the sales process is more powerful than getting the same message from a higher-up who won’t even be using the product.” 3. Appoint a CRM manager.
1. Choose a CRM that aligns with the sales department’s current processes. “Unfortunately, some SMBs adopt technology without considering how new software will affect daily routines and processes.” It might be easier to make the final CRM purchase decision within a small group, but failure to consult senior managers in the sales department can have long-term consequences.
“Without buy-in from your sales team, you could end up investing in a product no one wants to use.” Plan ahead to avoid this pitfall, and involve your sales team in the decision. After all, they will be the ones who rely on the CRM software you use every day.
Unfortunately, some SMBs adopt technology without considering how new software will affect daily routines and processes. Without a comprehensive understanding of your sales department’s current process – who does what and how job roles will change with a new CRM – you run a high risk of user pushback. “It might be easier to make the final CRM purchase decision within a small group, but failure to consult senior managers in the sales department can have long-term consequences.” One of the most popular, comprehensive CRM solutions is Salesforce CRM.
Zach Hendrix, co-founder of GreenPal, experienced this type of pushback after acquiring a new company and finding that its CRM implementation didn’t go as planned. After a costly implementation process, he found that the sales department wasn’t using the system at all, opting to maintain their own records across a combination of legal pads, Post-its, emails and spreadsheets. In short, it was a mess. ““We basically purchased the software and paid an IT professional to install it, and [the] result after six months was that nobody used it,” Hendrix said.” Hendrix didn’t give up, of course. He analyzed his first approach and tried a different angle.
If you're already prepared to choose a CRM solution, check out our reviews of the best CRM software to suit your budget and needs. “Employee pushback to CRM adoption is usually the result of poor implementation rather than unusable systems.” Consider the following tips to get your sales team on board in no time.