Dan McDade

ViewPoint | The Truth About Lead Generation is a blog exploring issues related to B2B sales, marketing and lead generation.

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Authored by Dan McDade, president and CEO of PointClear, ViewPoint draws on his 20-plus years of experience helping companies develop prospects and drive revenues. Named one of the 50 most influential people in sales lead management in 2009 and 2010 by the Sales Lead Management Association, Dan offers insights into how to close the gap between marketing and sales and explorations on the most effective means of reaching target audiences—supported by real-world examples—Dan fosters productive thought and collaboration among executives.

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What if CRM had not been invented?

Posted by Guest Blogger on Wed, Feb 16, 2011
  
  
  
  

James ObermayerJames Obermayer, Executive Director and CEO of the Sales Lead Management Association and President of Sales Leakage Consulting is a regular guest blogger with ViewPoint. Jim returns this month with another thought provoking article...

I am asking you to take another journey of counterfactual reflection.i

Last month we discussed Counterfactual Reflection (CR) as it pertains to marketing automation. There were lively comments about where individuals would be if marketing automation had not been invented. This focus helps us refine the use of marketing automation and enhance the arguments for its implementation.

As a reminder, Counterfactual Reflection considers a turning point in the past and makes assumptions as if the event had not occurred. So the question this week is, “What if Customer Relationship Managementii had not evolved, where would we be today?”

What would be the state of sales and marketing? What differences in marketing and sales management would have occurred if CRM with all of its benefits had not been a part of B2B and B2C marketing?

A day doesn’t pass that I don’t hear a remark (usually from salespeople), about the difficulties of using their company’s CRM system. I use a CR question to bring them back to reality. Without CRM, where, oh where, would we be?

Can you give us two benefits of CRM that have helped you personally? How successful would your salespeople be if they didn’t have a CRM system? What about customer service; current customers, new prospects? What about your career; your company?

iFootnote: Professor Laura Kray, Professor Philip Tetlock. "Might Have Been to What Must Have Been: Counterfactual Thinking Creates Meaning" was published in the Journal of Personality and Social Psychology in January 2010 

iiWikipedia: Customer relationship management (CRM) as a widely-implemented strategy for managing a company’s interactions with customers, clients and sales prospects. It involves using technology to organize, automate, and synchronize business processes—principally sales activities, but also those for marketing, customer service, and technical support. The overall goals are to find, attract, and win new clients, nurture and retain those the company already has, entice former clients back into the fold, and reduce the costs of marketing and client services. Customer relationship management describes a company-wide business strategy including customer-interface departments as well as other departments. 

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I look at CRM as a three legged stool - sales, marketing, and customer support. The benefits of software applications to manage customer support issues and organize product feedback is obvious - and support people have not resisted the use of these applications. However, the sales reps have traditionally resisted using CRM systems because they often did not think the effort of recording their customer actions was worth the time it took. However, since the internet turned the sales rep/prospect relationship on its head, sales reps need a CRM system so that the prospect's buying intentions captured by Marketing Automation systems can be pushed to them. Without the treasure trove of information gathered from the prospect's digital interactions before they will take a call from a sales rep, the sales rep would not know how to sell the prospect - the old days of "I would like 15 minutes to better understand your needs" are long gone. Knowing when a prospect is ready to talk to a salesman through the lead behavior tracking is the key to calling on the prospect when they are ready to talk (caller ID puts the prospect in charge of the call). Knowing what to talk about gained through the automated nurturing process is key to having a successful first call. Net - without a CRM system to receive the information from the Marketing Automation system, today's sales rep would be flying blind.  
Posted @ Wednesday, February 16, 2011 4:53 PM by Richard Brock
I look at these tools as enablers to make me more productive. One of the keys to productivity for me is organization. These tools keep me organized. For example. I rely on the tools to alert me to my next meeting. Long gone are the days of me reviewing my calendar periodically to see what's coming up. I get an alert on my cell, laptop & desktop simultaneously so no matter where I am I don't miss an appointment. With these tools I can manage hundreds of customer interactions. The tools keep track of previous interactions and future commitments. Without them I'd be much less productive.
Posted @ Thursday, February 17, 2011 10:58 AM by Andy Brownell
Salespeople flying blind? Yes I agree Richard. Salespeople are still reluctant to take the time, and it does do that, but what choices are there? None. CRM and the over-night sensation of marketing automation (which was ten years in the making), provide savvy sales reps with more information than anyone thought possible. But then again, you were an early, early pioneer in the field.
Posted @ Monday, February 21, 2011 12:31 PM by James Obermayer
 
 
You’re certainly right Andy. CRM systems take away worry and frustration. Salespeople today are busier than ever. There are more demands on their time and more pressure to produce. One of the greatest arguments for salespeople using a CRM tool is the organization factor. Enter the date and forget it until it is time to act. Enter the opportunity and skip the Excel spreadsheets to report on the sales funnel. I have been working with a small sales force that had successfully avoided using their CRM system. Now that they are on it, they now skip printing three reports for each sales meeting. Their schedule is there for management to see. The pipeline is visible and gives them pride. Where before they put opportunities on a board in their office (which was never accurate), they now have a real pipeline. 
 
Posted @ Tuesday, March 08, 2011 6:10 PM by James W. Obermayter
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