Even apart from CRM technology, research says that 29% of all SME (Small and Medium Enterprises) view technology as a driving tool that motors the growth of an organization and boosts profitability.
Hence, here we are today to explore how we can leverage modern solutions, which are increasing in popularity (like CRM technology) in 2017, to achieve a competitive advantage and work towards sustainable growth.
CRM technology at the heart of business agenda
In the past few years, we have observed a distinct shift from a product to customer focused strategies, which are allowing businesses to discover the ultimate potential of customer value. In line with these changes, CRM technology has also been evolving, showing a CAGR (Compound Annual Growth Rate) of 15.1 % between the span of 2012 and 2017.
Moreover, according to Gartner, it has been predicted that CRM will reach a $36 billion market in 2017, as improving the customer experience will remain a priority.
So continue reading to find out why you should invest in CRM technology in 2017, over here.
The rise of mobile
According to a research done by Sage, it has been observed that 89% of employees in the US use a mobile device for their work and that 67% of organizations believe that they would lose competitive edge without these devices.
Therefore, as businesses are now focusing on how they can increase the productivity of their remote workers, the acceptances of mobile-enabled solutions are skyrocketing throughout the global demography. All the way through 2017, mobile CRM technology will become more sophisticated, which will allow field based staffs to access their Customer Relationship Management platforms from any devices, regardless of location preferences.
The big data revolution
Accessing real-time data will become an absolute necessity in 2017 and so would actionable insights for driving business growth. Businesses this year will want to find out a greater understanding of what their customers want, what they think, and how they view a brand. Consequently, data will extend the value proposition of CRM technology, to businesses of all type and size, by providing real-time BI (Business Intelligence) tools that will help to identify new growth, enable smarter decision-making, and find new opportunities, which will improve overall business performances.
Tighter CRM integration
In 2017, it will become increasingly important for CRM technology to seamlessly integrate customer relationship solutions with all your business applications, as it is found in converged CRM solutions like ConvergeHub. Platforms such as e-commerce, accounting, analytics, and marketing automation will get integrated with CRM, which will drastically reduce the countless hours employees now spend re-keying data from one system to another.
This year CRM users will demand native integration with other platforms to make even more efficient use of their time, which will streamline business processes, save time and so ensure interoperability across all departments.
Cloud solution will be on the rise
According to Forbes, data storage management and data analytics are projected to lead cloud adoption among SMB. For this, cloud-based CRM technology will offer sophisticated BI (Business Intelligence) tools. Moreover, as cloud storage will become increasingly popular this year, it will allow employees to access software anywhere on the go, on smart handheld devices of their choice.
Final verdict
In 2017, businesses both in the US and elsewhere across the globe companies will invest in CRM technology solutions not only for improving business growth but also to keep up with their competitions.
So, this year when the benefits of adopting a CRM solution for your business outweigh the drawbacks, it is the time that you consider a CRM for your business and consequently makes your company harvest an escalating return on your investments.