Customer Resource Management for the Offline Business

One of the most important factors in the success of a business is how they handle the relationship with the customer. Even though it is important, many local business owners do not have any type of customer relationship management or CRM system in place. This can be a great place for a business to increase the lifetime value of a customer.

There are many different software vendors providing a CRM product. Some of the newer and more popular ones are totally online, so there are no expensive servers to maintain. Everything can be done through the customer's web browser. Although all the different products are beyond the scope of this training, there is plenty of information on the internet that compares and contrasts the differences.

The first step is to evaluate the current interaction with the customers. You will need to find out if there is any type of system in place that captures the customer information. Service type of businesses will probably have some type of customer information, but many retail type of businesses will not be capturing the information. Regardless of the type of business, one of the best ways to capture customer information is through the use of a customer loyalty program. This can be a special discount card that the customer swipes every time they make a purchase or it can be entering their phone number to track purchases. Don't underestimate the power of collecting customer spending habits. It will allow the local business owner to create better product offerings and learn how much the average customer spends.

A CRM system is not one size fits all, so it is important to match the right product with the business. A single retail location will have a different need than a multiple location restaurant. Some service organizations will need an online solution that allows the customer to view the status of their request or update their request. There is no limit to the type of service that can be provided with a CRM system. The important tip is to not go overboard and create unnecessary problems and cost. At the very least the system should be able to track unique customers.

Creating happy customers will create a happy business owner and they will be thanking you the whole time. Coming up next is some more services for keeping your local business owner happy.