Customer Relationship Management (CRM) Software can be made to replicate the buying process through which companies lead customers when purchasing a product. It also allows the sales team to manage and keep track of the sales process.

A CRM software can become a boon for a company as it has the ability to capture leads, oversee sales pipelines, make deals, propose plans, use email and other channels of communications, and keep tabs on the performance of the sales team.

However, implementation of CRM can be a process filled with complications and pitfalls. There are many variables that you need to consider as you start the implementation. You need to carefully plan how the system will be set up, integrated, customized, tested, and reported.

If you’re not sure how to go about this whole CRM business, hiring someone like a  professional and experienced Microsoft Dynamics CRM consultant is a good idea. Better to let a professional handle the job instead of stumbling around and costing the company time and money.

Now let’s discuss some of the mistakes that you should avoid while implementing CRM.

No Actual Strategy

Not just the implementation of CRM, starting any project with a lack of vision and strategy is bound to lead towards failure. In order to avoid a blunder of epic proportions, go through your business objectives and clearly define what you’re looking to achieve by implementing a CRM.

Your goals should be realistic and measurable while making sure the vendor you choose can help you achieve said goals.

Unenthusiastic Team Members

One of the top reasons behind the failure of CRM implementation is passive user adoption. People don’t like change and resist it when it’s forced upon them. So take into confidence the people who are going to use or be affected by CRM. Involve them from the very beginning and take notice of their feedback.

Highlight how the CRM implementation is going to help the company and them individually. Help them allay any fears that they might have.

Failure to Correctly Migrate Data   

As you shift towards CRM, the data that you previously worked on needs to be migrated If there is any mistake during this process then it could lead to duplicate or inaccurate data. To prevent a catastrophe like this, make sure that formats are correctly defined and data checks are in place.

Lack of Training and Support

Now that you’ve successfully implemented and customized the CRM, nothing could go wrong. Right? Wrong. Plenty of things still can go wrong. For example, if your team members are incorrectly using the software then this can lead to missing data. Many future business decisions are going to hinge on this CRM so incomplete data can lead towards making a crucial wrong decision.

So make sure that your team members receive adequate training and support to avoid blunders like this.

Conclusion

These are just some of the mistakes that one can face during the implementation of CRM. There are other pitfalls as well but this list contains the biggest and most common mistakes out there. We recommend hiring a Microsoft Dynamics CRM Consultant or the like to avoid these complications