According to the Salesforce Research State of Marketing report , companies are managing more data than ever about their customers. However, only 47% of them have managed to have a completely unified view of said information, thanks to the use of CRM tools.

The same report indicates that 95% of customers are more loyal to a brand that inspires confidence. In this sense, CRM systems allow companies to design campaigns with high levels of personalization. Which inspires more confidence and, therefore, generates higher rates of loyalty.

What is Customer Relationship Management or CRM?

The term Customer Relationship Management or CRM refers to the management of customer relationships by a company. This through 3 CRM classifications:

  • CRM as software
  • CRM as a strategy
  • CRM as a process

CRM as software

CRM as software is a computer product used by work teams, mainly marketing and sales, to record, monitor and analyze all interactions between the company and its customers or potential customers. The power CRM for your business, Know more of It.

CRM tools are generally offered through the cloud. This makes it easy to share customer information among all company staff. In this sense, CRM systems record customer data such as:

  • Email
  • Phone number
  • Profiles on social networks
  • Website
  • News about your business activity
  • Additional notes on your habits or needs

In this way, CRM systems create a 360 ° view of customers. This makes it easier to design more effective marketing campaigns and loyalty programs.

CRM as a strategy

CRM as a strategy refers to a business philosophy and methodology that specifies how relationships with customers should be managed in order to obtain their commercial loyalty. This taking into account the objectives and nature of each business.

Within CRM strategies, the use of CRM software as support and execution tools is contemplated and specified.

CRM as a process

CRM as a process encompasses all the activities carried out by the company to nurture and manage relationships with its customers. It is, basically, the execution and implementation of the CRM strategy.

The objective of the process is simple and straightforward: to optimize tasks to improve business relationships.

4 keys to improving loyalty programs with CRM tools

CRM tools are the most effective technological resource for tracking loyalty programs. This is due to the ability they offer to monitor all interactions with each of the customers. Being able to evaluate how they react to offers, promotions, discounts and other benefits that seek loyalty .

In this scenario, the 4 keys to improving loyalty programs through CRM systems are:

  • Customer centric
  • Operational omnichannel
  • Automated and intelligent loyalty programs
  • Loyalty program scheduling

1. Customer centric

Any CRM strategy that seeks to optimize loyalty programs must have a customer centric approach. That is, the needs, habits and desires of customers must be placed at the center of all corporate processes.

In this sense, CRM systems make it possible to establish an omnichannel approach and integration between all marketing, sales and customer service services. This in order to offer a high-impact shopping experience (before, during and after) throughout the customer journey.

This unification of channels through CRM tools makes it possible to centralize the registration of all points of contact between customers and the company.

Therefore, consumers no longer have to endure the frustration of explaining their problem to each department separately. Well, all the organization’s staff can access the unified contact record and see the different communications that have been had with customers.

2. Operational omnichannel

Closely related to the point of customer centric, operational omnichannel refers to the centralization of all internal business processes through CRM systems. This makes it easier for different people in an organization to work together, even when they belong to different departments.

According to HubSpot’s State of Inbound report , only 21% of sales and marketing teams work together. However, the commercial strategy is 3 times more effective for those teams that do work aligned.

For example, a sales team can collaborate with a product development team to design custom quotes.

Additionally, sales managers can monitor the progress of each salesperson separately. This by viewing and analyzing the information about each of the contacts that sellers have established with potential customers through different channels.

Unifying all communication channels and thus consolidating operational omnichannel allows sales teams to detect sales opportunities more clearly. While marketing teams can simplify their analysis and make more accurate forecasts.

In this way, loyalty programs can be designed and deployed under the control of multidisciplinary high-performance work teams.

3. Automated and intelligent loyalty programs

State-of-the-art CRM tools are able to intelligently implement loyalty programs automatically. In other words, its analysis algorithms detect everything from consumption habits to the risks of abandonment. Which should be used by the organization to configure automated campaigns with a high level of personalization.

In this context, CRM software can make purchase recommendations based on detected habits or special promotions for customers at risk of abandonment.

On the other hand, loyalty programs are further optimized if CRM systems process information on the activity of customers’ social networks. Such information as likes, dislikes and feelings about brands.

In short, CRM software automates communications according to the information they have about customers and according to the phase of the customer journey in which they are. Thus, the platforms use the history and preferences of consumers to activate welcome campaigns, anniversaries or specific tactics according to the levels of loyalty detected.

4. Scheduling of loyalty programs

It is very important to keep track of the periods of time that a loyalty program is valid. This according to dates of national celebration, sporting events, cultural festivities or according to specific moments according to each type of client in particular.

Said registry allows to schedule the publications of offers, promotions or any other loyalty tactic within the valid time periods. For its part, CRM software facilitates all this necessary scheduling.

In addition, they provide both a global and detailed perspective of each client and their behaviors according to specific dates. In this way, loyalty programs can be scheduled and configured with higher accuracy rates.

Outsourcing loyalty programs with state-of-the-art CRM software

At Cognodata we are specialists in the design and execution of loyalty programs through the Salesforce CRM system. One of the most powerful platforms on the market and a leader according to the Gartner Magic Quadrant on multiple occasions .

Salesforce is one of the oldest CRM tools in the world. It offers companies an unprecedented perspective on how their customers feel and how they perceive the organization.

In this way, at Cognodata we can detect problems in real time at each stage of the customer journey. With this, we design high-impact solutions through personalized and automated loyalty programs.

Additionally, according to the performance of promotions, at Cognodata we help develop algorithmic models that allow us to detect trends and recommendations to be used in promotional campaigns.

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