Even if you have not heard about QuickBooks CRM, you must be aware of these expressions:
“Our Customer is the King.”
“We do not consider customer satisfaction. We believe in customer delight.”
“Our customer is at the center of our business model.”
You surely must have heard many of these sayings, or have read them in the annual letter to the investors. Since there are many executives who like to associate themselves with the team of customer-friendly business leaders.
However, this is also true that according to Shep Hyken (a renowned Forbes contributor) businesses lose as much as $65 billion every year because of inefficient customer service.
There are many who think that customer service is all about sending that extra email to receive feedback or assure customers with certain additional discounts. However, in reality, that is not even close to quality customer service, which only happens when communication between a brand and its consumers is such that the consumers completely feels satisfied with the value that they get from their purchases when they compare it with the value they paid for buying that product or service.
Businesses lose as much as $65 billion every year because of inefficient customer service- Shep Hyken Click To TweetThis implies that every minuscule of conversation and communication that occurred between the brand and the consumer should have just one core focus- to provide the consumers with a positive perception of the value received by the customer.
The communication between a company and its consumers begins with the marketing channels, and then graduates to sales and winds-up as a bill sent to the customer, ending the loop until the next time. This makes billing and invoicing a vital aspect of the communication process. Still it is astonishing to see that despite the advanced business models of the present times; many establishments still use primitive invoicing and billing technologies.
Nevertheless, if you do not want the communication loop with your customers to remain outdated, here are a few steps that you should consider to improve your billing and invoicing processes:
Many small and even medium businesses still find using handwritten bills helpful instead of electronic ones. To the owners of these business establishments, this can seem to be a cheaper short-term option, although it can result in a negative effect on the long-term business goals of the company.
On the other hand, when online billing is used instead of handwritten ones by using QuickBooks CRM or a best CRM for QuickBooks online like ConvergeHub that seamlessly integrates an accounting and bookkeeping software with customer management system, both these platforms increases efficiency in the business process and even reduces costs and increases customer retention in the long run.
As businesses grow and expands, billing becomes more time consuming and complex. This is where companies can resort to end-to-end invoicing and billing solutions. Specialized technology providers such as QuickBooks CRM integration free not only offers automated solutions for generation of invoices, but it also helps in customer intimation, and the billing processes.
In reality, easy to use CRM software, simply adds an extra layer of analysis to the entire invoicing and billing process. In general, invoices and bills are not considered as a part of the communication process with the customers and are hence not analyzed. However when invoice data gets automatically store in the CRM database after being integrated with an accounting software like QuickBooks, this can be a great starting point for studying purchase and payment behaviors of the customers for cross-selling and up-selling of products and services by relying on QuickBooks CRM or the best CRM software for QuickBooks.
Consistency is an element that should be present in everything, like, the look of the invoices and bills, their format and the carrying effect of the bills. Per say, the format of the invoice and the bills, which refers to the branding, typography, the contact details; when they are uniform, it communicates to the customers that the company handles even the minutest of details with exceptional care.
Finally, by using a QuickBooks CRM, you can also bring uniformity of the carrying effect of the invoices and the bills, which means terms of payment and any other conditions present in the invoices and the bills, which are needed to be clearly laid down on each of these financial documentations of the company.
This consistency in invoicing and billing should be maintained for each and every leads, prospects and customers through all business processes, which by using a QuickBooks CRM make it easy to find relevant data and documents of the customers, when needed.
Most small and medium businesses have a standard rate at which accounts receivable are to be collected from the customers. However, how does a company puts special emphasis on its key accounts? Is it by providing its key accounts with a flexible timeline? Well then to put it into a perspective, a company must have a clear policy on the tenure on its accounts receivable laid out for its key customers. These timeline policies of accounts receivable should be explained in the details of the bills that the key customers receive. Customers who have been with the brand long enough to prove their reliability.
Treat your customers like humans and not just account numbers
When starting a fresh business relationship with your customers, make it amply clear that you have performed your due research on the new customer before setting up the payment terms, which can include extended credit lines or lump sum payments. Therefore, once you use an automated invoicing and billing system by using the best QuickBooks CRM for sales teams , like ConvergeHub, you can create a unique relationship with every customer that will be reflected on their payment terms.
Additionally by using a QuickBooks CRM, you can send a polite reminder to your customers by using its automation feature, if any customer misses their payment.
At the end of the day, you must always remember that your customers are human and so it is natural that they can make mistakes, just like everyone.
Use an invoice like marketing collateral
Billing is the last stage in the entire communication process with your customers. A bill shows the product or service provided, along with price, quantity, and taxes levied on the sale. Therefore, you can always use it as marketing collateral as well. A bill, in general, contains the all the essential information of your customers. Hence, you can leverage the bill as marketing collateral by putting a social button within it (once you generate an electronic bill by using QuickBooks CRM), which allows the bill to provide all the necessary closure to the entire sales process and your communications with the customer.
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