In a business landscape that demands both international scope and personalized attention, Customer Relationship Management (CRM) is a vital tool for any company looking to establish and maintain a competitive position. CRM allows you to comprehensively track your relationship with clients across all company interactions, including appointment setting, credit card processing, and direct marketing efforts.
At its core, CRM is about one thing: data. In today’s increasingly technological world, the amount of data that one can leverage is vast. From the ad which first caught a client’s attention to their payment method of choice and every interaction your company has in between, there is no detail too small to help you strengthen these relationships.
When a small business is starting out, it’s simple to track data in-house. If you have only a handful of clients, it’s easy to document names, orders, account information, etc. Without advanced and detailed information tracking, the personal touch afforded to your first dozen clients is difficult to replicate for your next hundred, and impossible by the time that number doubles.
Managing such data is a full time job unto itself, which is why contracting with companies that offer customer relationship management services is so important. Establishing merchant accounts with service providers is an excellent way to outsource your data collection and organization needs.
For retail and business to business ventures alike, credit card processing is becoming a more prominent part of the CRM landscape. Credit cards, whether debit cards from small credit unions or company cards for Fortune 500 corporations are rapidly usurping all other modes of payment due to their convenience and security.
With around 65 percent of in-person transactions being made by card and an even larger percentage of online orders, credit card processing services automatically compile an incredible set of data about when, where, and how customers are giving you their business. The same goes for any other facet of your business from shipping to advertising. Maintaining merchant accounts with your service providers is a simple way to track not only your spending, but your customers’ as well.