Do not automate it: bad business advice
Suppose you decide to go by car to the sea, for example, from Moscow to Sochi. It will come to your mind the day before departure to go over the engine in the garage, or finally put the bigfoot wheels and carry out a total tuning in order to race along the M-4 road in all its newfound beauty? Hardly. This is a matter of comfort, safety and sober thinking of the driver.
But to take and automate the company so that tomorrow it starts to bring super-profits - this is please. “What does it mean, impossible? You are a vendor! I pay you. ”It seems to you that you can implement CRM, ERP and other software right now in the company in which you work or which you head? This is a misconception. Any of your aspirations, beginnings and implementations from the first search query before starting work in a new IT infrastructure will face obstacles. Some of them will fall down from where they did not expect - there are exactly as many surprises as there will be with bigfoot on M-4. And even more. For a more spectacular failure, follow our harmful advice - we collected them for 11 years with sweat and blood. In short, innovative hardcore, sometimes horror and bad quatrains from our team. Do not shoot at programmers - we compose as we can.
Disclaimer
A little about the structure of the article. At first we wanted to write only bad advice - with humor, irony and sarcasm. But after the compilation of the primary list, our team somehow depressed. It turned out that we essentially wrote the truth about the situation in many organizations of small and medium-sized businesses - is it possible for us not to know when there are thousands of RegionSoft CRM implementations behind us ? In general, everything would be funny if it were not so sad. Therefore, after each “good advice” we added the “How Actually” block - about what to do. It is not enough :-)
One link in the process can ruin the whole system.
The consequences of such advice are lost clients and money, uncoordinated processes and, as a consequence, working conflicts between employees.
Today service decides much more than price and even (oh, horror!) Product quality. Even in the market of CRM-systems, the promo and the speed of attracting customers allow some not very advanced systems to strive for leadership. This is a given, and it must be taken. So, today the speed of decision-making, reaction, choice is so great that there is nothing to do on the market without automation. Often the client chooses you as a supplier, developer, retailer, consultant solely due to efficiency. For example, a CRM system helps to be prompt and attentive to customers .
Life example
Imagine that a company sells Chinese laptops with a cool upgrade. And there are two such companies. One makes mega cool: laser engraving of keys, setting up the OS, expanding the memory, an additional guarantee from the service company. But all of it is two engineers who do it themselves, they call themselves, they do the advertising in Direkt itself. And another company actually only re-stitches the keys, but calls the customer and says: "If you order before November 1, you can re-replace the erased stickers for free." At the same time, they know that their cheap stickers will be erased by June, and now in June they call and say: "Come, we were waiting." A person comes, and there they are already offering him to expand the memory, and check for viruses, and another car and a small service cart. Impressed with the service and free replacement of stickers, the customer buys other services, simultaneously advising the company to friends. Naturally, all the replacement periods, contacts and plans for additional sales are stored in the CRM-system, which allows you to stay ahead of the first company and “make money on the back.”
And this is the case everywhere - for example, if a year after receiving you get a call from the dentist, are interested in how your tooth is called for a routine examination, you should know that the clinic has a CRM system (as well as money for development and high-quality equipment).
In addition, automated systems relieve the sales team, marketing, support and service, thereby increasing the time to work with one client and the degree of satisfaction. No need to think about missed calls, meetings, affairs, forgotten documents, approvals, notifying colleagues - the same CRM-system will take this routine on itself. For example, in RegionSoft CRM such schemes are configured within the mechanism of business processes.
When saved on proper integration. And what, basically works the same!
No one says that it is necessary to integrate all automation systems, but certain bundles are required. For example, a CRM system should be somehow integrated with the site, with telephony, exchange some (!) Data with 1C (for example, from CRM in 1C only counterparties are transmitted, for which there is a realization, data on the implemented nomenclature and related objects, and from 1C in CRM incoming payments). This allows you to create end-to-end automation, whose effectiveness is much higher than the sum of the efficiencies of disparate software.
And, especially, to integrate all the information between 1C and CRM - this is akin to delirium. Firstly, it is stupid, since any duplication of information must be exclusively justified, and it is virtually impossible to justify the content of two different systems with the same data. Secondly, it is technologically very difficult, and because of this expensive. Just imagine the complexity of the integration process, for example, warehouse accounting in two different systems, so that all documents, movements in registers, balances, costs, lots, etc. are identical. This story is from a science fiction movie.
And of course, you need to get rid of the old software - it is expensive, you can count.
Of course, any automation system should not meet the criteria of high cost, coolness or prestige of the brand, but the specific requirements of the company. As they say, the suit on the figure should be cut. Therefore, before implementation, it is worth examining the needs, compiling a list of vendors and choosing based on the needs of the system, as well as the convenience of work. In this case, it happens that 3-4 solutions are suitable. Then you need to choose the functions that are most critical for you and see how they are implemented by anyone. For example, RegionSoft CRMabsolutely not "friendly" with social networks, but pumped through in terms of automation of work with the b2b sector in the form of availability of warehouse accounting modules, multi-site production, project management, work with telephony and primary, planning, business processes, depth of client card content .
Oddly enough, too low or too high price - this is the last thing you should focus on when implementing. First, often the price is put from the ceiling (“let's put 19,990 for a license”), secondly, the high cost may be due to unnecessary and unclaimed twists (for example, the formal presence of AI in the system), thirdly, the price is too low or conditional gratuity often turn out to be a marketing trap. In general, “Ponte is more expensive than money” and “fraer’s greed was killed” are not the best sayings for automating small and medium businesses.
We could now talk about the fact that developers, retailers, clinics, etc. should take care of security especially. But no - everyone needs to take care of the security of the client database and data. There is nothing more serious than the information security of the company and in particular the customer base. Even if you are a tiny outdoor advertising agency or a Yandex Direct partner, your data will be just the way to your competitors. Who, contrary to your expectations, are not asleep, but are actively hunting for your managers with a base. And there are offended employees, fraudsters, unscrupulous providers without compliance with the SLA - and all this is a cumulative risk for you, your business, your money.
We tell you everything by the example of a CRM system as the most universal software, which should be in general in any company, but in fact there are security threats in any software: you can also damage or steal drawings, code, analytics, photos, schemes, business process logic, financial documents, supplier lists, and more. Even in the military departments, where everything seems to be arranged seriously from a security point of view, incidents such as transferring secret data to third parties occur.
Cultivator without TZ, how it works - HZ
In life, the specification is the basis for successful implementation. This is a document that the developer creates, and usually does it for a fee, because to prepare the TOR, it is necessary to analyze the client’s requirements, dive into its tasks, select a development model, design and describe the workings of the created mechanisms and functions as thoroughly as possible, state it all in printed form and agreed with the customer. The technical task is signed along with the contract, but unlike the standard contract it is an individual document defining the essence of the project. TK guarantees the accuracy of work and deadlines. This is an absolutely obligatory document, unless you order the development of a student, and the whole project is not worth 5000 rubles.
It's simple: if the implementation is necessary, it needs to be implemented. But to do this wisely, to balance the functionality and cost of implementation, which will be affordable for you and will lead to the desired result.
First you need to identify the main tasks, without which you can not work. In the process of testing a solution (usually it is a demo version or a test key that can be ordered from the vendor), you should open for each of these tasks, whether their system performs and at what level (excellent / good / satisfactory). If some of the main tasks are implemented insufficiently - negotiate with the vendor and clarify whether they can be adapted to your requirements. You will have the first and most important list of improvements.
If the vendor is ready for the necessary modifications, fix them for yourself and continue further - make a list of missing opportunities that you can put up with, for example, for the first time. Determine for yourself the period for which you need to realize these opportunities. Negotiate with the vendor, evaluate the technical capability, approximate time and cost. Make a technical task.
In fact, after that you will have almost a complete idea of whether this solution will suit you or not. In addition, you will have a complete list of the necessary improvements, an assessment of their cost and implementation dates. You will be fully armed and will be able to make an informed decision, including, if necessary, split the implementation into several stages. The result is not long in coming.
Tip: When drafting requirements, do not force the vendor to break the structure of the application so that it requires global reworking of the entire system. It is always very expensive and time consuming, and also does not ensure high stability of the resulting solution. The right way is to partially adapt to the basic capabilities of the system, and in places where it is impossible to adapt, it is impossible to modify it for yourself. If such bilateral adaptation is impossible - it is better to look for another system.
In principle, compulsory deterrence of the growth of the company will not do you any harm - you simply miss the opportunity to take more space in the market and earn more. Again, there is a risk of being uninteresting for employees and losing the most professional and ambitious ones. Scaling is almost always a blessing, especially when it is organic, it should not be missed.
Fast growth without loss of efficiency is possible only if the business is ready. And you need to prepare the sleigh in the summer, well, that is, all the conditions must be created in advance - it does not happen that on Wednesday you were a small company, and on Thursday you woke up average. So, several aspects should be implemented:
Automation will solve most of the problems associated with time-consuming processes, routine tasks and issues, "rake" part of the workflow. In addition, at a certain point in the scale of the business, the manager comes to realize that numbers are starting to rule his head. Statistics. Different. For this, criteria should be built, with the help of which you will assess the condition of your business, its growth points or stagnation. And for their evaluation it is necessary to have a basic element - the measurements themselves, without which it is impossible to perform an assessment.
Those. with the growth of business, the approach to its understanding and management is changing, business processes are changing. Consequently, the CRM system must be “alive”, responding to the changing conditions of the business environment. A competent leader should take this into account if he wants to go higher.
Development of own software, especially enterprise level, is an expensive and resource-intensive project. You invest a lot of effort, money, time, nerves, and at the exit in a few years you will get an automation system of the most basic level (this applies not only to CRM, but also experimenting with other types of corporate software).
You need to understand that the CRM system is not just a task scheduler. This is a complex network infrastructure solution for teamwork of a team of people. Those typical solutions that are on the market have been created over the years and have been developing for decades, tens and hundreds of millions (and not always rubles) are spent on their development. And if a typical product with a bunch of functionality can be bought on 1 day for 100 thousand rubles, and for a couple of months, another 100 thousand rubles. to refine what is missing in it, then you will have to create such a system from scratch for at least 5 years and spend 10 million rubles in aggregate. or more. And it’s not a fact that by that moment your companywill not grow / it will change its business and it will need another solution.
The lack of automation in a crisis can play a cruel joke: in fact, the company loses an additional powerful resource that can work tirelessly and provide operations. Overloaded with tasks and stress of a crisis period, employees may be more likely to make mistakes, not to cope with the volume of work. For example, a CRM system can automate part of routine processes, “take over” reminders, mailings, segmentation, deadlines, etc. Thus, employees have time and energy to maneuver.
In addition, if your customer base is segmented and classified, you can, during the economic stagnation, conduct economical, but highly effective actions aimed at specific customer segments, thereby not letting your potential customers forget about you and prepare them for active work as soon as economic stagnation will end its temporary period. And you will certainly be ahead of those of your competitors who have not taken care of this ...
Manual data entry and maintenance of all commercial information in office editors leads to a high probability of human error. And as you know, treatment is always more expensive than prevention and proceeds much more difficult.
Modern systems are programmed without errors, focused on the person, designed to increase the speed of completion of cases, productivity, efficiency. Accordingly, the introduction of a CRM, ERP or profile automation system significantly reduces the likelihood of error and the overhead of fixing it. Automation does not replace a person, but actually frees them from part of routine tasks and petty work, which take up a large amount of time, as well as from the main human factor: forgetfulness.
Judging the corporate software for the design and animation of the interface controls is extremely rash. The interface of such software should have a number of qualities:
Users get used to the interface of the corporate system quite quickly - they also work with it several times a day, so it’s definitely not worth judging by the first impression. If in doubt, look at the dashboards of complex objects or vehicles; these are the working interfaces tested by time and experience.
Well, and a small remark: the head should not look at dashboards, but periodically unload or request detailed reports. Only deep analytics and work with data can form the basis of strategic decisions. A bright graphs and numbers on the results of the day - it's like a watch to see, normal operational activities. Do not dwell on them.
You shouldn’t believe reviews in principle, especially since there is an old rule of advertisers: a good client will leave to use and not tell, and the offended will write everywhere. In any case, you can read, but rely on the opinions of such "experts" is definitely not worth it.
As a vivid example, you can consider reviews of hotels on aggregator sites. It is no secret that many tour operators publish fictional negative reviews about hotels with which they have no accommodation contracts, and about "their" hotels exclusively in a positive style. Therefore, when you read reviews about the same hotel, you are at a loss - one consumer broadcasts that there are cockroaches in the hotel, dirty dishes and poor-quality food, and the other - perfect cleanliness, attentive maids and cleanest beaches.
Better than the vendor of the future users of the software, no one will precisely teach - here both experience, and tactics, and approach. This is not necessarily a lesson in a large office with a bunch of PCs, the online practice is quite good. Moreover, this is the most classroom training has long proved to be ineffective and not particularly relevant to our age with virtual distances :-) Plus, the developer always provides you with documentation, videos, articles, etc.
As for the problem of different qualifications of employees, everything is solved in a rather trivial way: internal experts are trained, who in turn pass on the knowledge and skills to the other colleagues, simultaneously consulting them. This is a convenient, winning in every sense approach.
Shamans in the service of users of IT systems: they will guess the problem without a timviewer and communication, they will help by the screenshot.
Much depends on the expert level of your employees: if there are employees in the office who are ready to solve questions and respond quickly to problems of third-party software, then you need technical support from time to time. If the software is expensive, complex, or you have not previously had experience with such software, the first time is better to choose a priority support package in order to avoid downtime and serious failures. In addition, the support package helps save on the maintenance of an individual employee who works with automation systems. If the company is small, such savings look reasonable and balanced.
Well, the main bad advice: do not automate anything, live as you lived - after all, and so the company is afloat. Let competitors spend on all these programs, implementation and operation. True, it sounds silly? You have no idea how much.
All the right and successful automation!
If you need CRM or hyper CRM (but not a little ERP yet), go to us www.regionsoft.ru . We have 17 years of experience in IT, 11 years of development of CRM-systems for small and medium businesses, thousands of implementations. We can not only joke about software, but also work very seriously with him.
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But to take and automate the company so that tomorrow it starts to bring super-profits - this is please. “What does it mean, impossible? You are a vendor! I pay you. ”It seems to you that you can implement CRM, ERP and other software right now in the company in which you work or which you head? This is a misconception. Any of your aspirations, beginnings and implementations from the first search query before starting work in a new IT infrastructure will face obstacles. Some of them will fall down from where they did not expect - there are exactly as many surprises as there will be with bigfoot on M-4. And even more. For a more spectacular failure, follow our harmful advice - we collected them for 11 years with sweat and blood. In short, innovative hardcore, sometimes horror and bad quatrains from our team. Do not shoot at programmers - we compose as we can.
Disclaimer
A little about the structure of the article. At first we wanted to write only bad advice - with humor, irony and sarcasm. But after the compilation of the primary list, our team somehow depressed. It turned out that we essentially wrote the truth about the situation in many organizations of small and medium-sized businesses - is it possible for us not to know when there are thousands of RegionSoft CRM implementations behind us ? In general, everything would be funny if it were not so sad. Therefore, after each “good advice” we added the “How Actually” block - about what to do. It is not enough :-)
One link in the process can ruin the whole system.
Tie with business processes
Do not simplify business processes. You have become accustomed to them, have been working with them for a hundred years and did not even suspect that all these approvals, actions and failure of the deadlines are called “business process”. If your CRM / ERP / BPM requires setting up processes, bring it in as it is, along with the outdated steps, stretched deadlines and confusion in those responsible. Give automation of the mess!
Do not even try to assemble a working group, draw a process on paper or a flipchart, cross out the unnecessary and include the necessary one. After all, then you will have much more free time at work and the authorities will certainly find what to occupy you. Believe me, pulling the usual gum is much more fun than putting brains to something new and trying to make more money for the company (and, therefore, for yourself). You are also paid as much as you asked for, and probably even added a little bit.
And in general, avoid the very concept of a business process. If you implement it in a CRM system, then your work will become clear and transparent: the head of the office will no longer be able to forget to hand over the documents for signature to the general one, and the head of the sales department will have to create the shipment, collect the documents and transfer the task to the logistics as soon as possible. The client will like this approach, he will bring three more, and this is a direct way to increase the amount of work. And who wants to work!
As a matter of fact
The consequences of such advice are lost clients and money, uncoordinated processes and, as a consequence, working conflicts between employees. Today service decides much more than price and even (oh, horror!) Product quality. Even in the market of CRM-systems, the promo and the speed of attracting customers allow some not very advanced systems to strive for leadership. This is a given, and it must be taken. So, today the speed of decision-making, reaction, choice is so great that there is nothing to do on the market without automation. Often the client chooses you as a supplier, developer, retailer, consultant solely due to efficiency. For example, a CRM system helps to be prompt and attentive to customers .
Life example
Imagine that a company sells Chinese laptops with a cool upgrade. And there are two such companies. One makes mega cool: laser engraving of keys, setting up the OS, expanding the memory, an additional guarantee from the service company. But all of it is two engineers who do it themselves, they call themselves, they do the advertising in Direkt itself. And another company actually only re-stitches the keys, but calls the customer and says: "If you order before November 1, you can re-replace the erased stickers for free." At the same time, they know that their cheap stickers will be erased by June, and now in June they call and say: "Come, we were waiting." A person comes, and there they are already offering him to expand the memory, and check for viruses, and another car and a small service cart. Impressed with the service and free replacement of stickers, the customer buys other services, simultaneously advising the company to friends. Naturally, all the replacement periods, contacts and plans for additional sales are stored in the CRM-system, which allows you to stay ahead of the first company and “make money on the back.”
And this is the case everywhere - for example, if a year after receiving you get a call from the dentist, are interested in how your tooth is called for a routine examination, you should know that the clinic has a CRM system (as well as money for development and high-quality equipment).
In addition, automated systems relieve the sales team, marketing, support and service, thereby increasing the time to work with one client and the degree of satisfaction. No need to think about missed calls, meetings, affairs, forgotten documents, approvals, notifying colleagues - the same CRM-system will take this routine on itself. For example, in RegionSoft CRM such schemes are configured within the mechanism of business processes.
When saved on proper integration. And what, basically works the same!
No integration
If you do not have integrations, then in fact you do not lose anything. Even a single information array of the company is useless: let each department have its own analyst. If necessary, let them collect and exchange data.
Keep a whole zoo of software, do not abandon old programs and in any case do not transfer data to the new system. In the end, there may remain valuable old data that will need to be addressed in the future. And payment ... Well, think about it, 900 rubles per user per month, there are only 15 of us. Cheaper to pay for meals, you can afford!
Well, and if you integrate - so integrate. Tell your implementer that the CRM system should have all the data from 1C, and 1C all from CRM. Then you will not even need to think about which system to log in to invoice or ship the goods. Hooray! This is freedom of mind!
As a matter of fact
No one says that it is necessary to integrate all automation systems, but certain bundles are required. For example, a CRM system should be somehow integrated with the site, with telephony, exchange some (!) Data with 1C (for example, from CRM in 1C only counterparties are transmitted, for which there is a realization, data on the implemented nomenclature and related objects, and from 1C in CRM incoming payments). This allows you to create end-to-end automation, whose effectiveness is much higher than the sum of the efficiencies of disparate software.And, especially, to integrate all the information between 1C and CRM - this is akin to delirium. Firstly, it is stupid, since any duplication of information must be exclusively justified, and it is virtually impossible to justify the content of two different systems with the same data. Secondly, it is technologically very difficult, and because of this expensive. Just imagine the complexity of the integration process, for example, warehouse accounting in two different systems, so that all documents, movements in registers, balances, costs, lots, etc. are identical. This story is from a science fiction movie.
And of course, you need to get rid of the old software - it is expensive, you can count.
Use the most powerful tools.
When you choose a CRM system for yourself, by all means make a request for advanced features: the presence of artificial intelligence, machine learning, VR technology. Let neural networks learn from your data - for 4000 records is real big data! Pay special attention to the availability of OLAP-analytics and database vendor - your client base will feel confident at least in Oracle. And it doesn’t matter that the vendor ensures that your data volume works perfectly with open source DBMSs - there is no good free.
Use the simplest tools.
It’s not a pity to stop using a simple CRM system, again you can quickly get used to the new one. And the main advantage is that you will be spared from unnecessary and unnecessary functions. Some business processes, call records, etc. What the hell do you need is an email client built into CRM, if you can coolly use free mail.ru or Yandex mail? There will be enough signs with the necessary data, customer cards, transactions and sales funnel. But seriously speaking, the best CRM system is Excel.
As a matter of fact
Of course, any automation system should not meet the criteria of high cost, coolness or prestige of the brand, but the specific requirements of the company. As they say, the suit on the figure should be cut. Therefore, before implementation, it is worth examining the needs, compiling a list of vendors and choosing based on the needs of the system, as well as the convenience of work. In this case, it happens that 3-4 solutions are suitable. Then you need to choose the functions that are most critical for you and see how they are implemented by anyone. For example, RegionSoft CRMabsolutely not "friendly" with social networks, but pumped through in terms of automation of work with the b2b sector in the form of availability of warehouse accounting modules, multi-site production, project management, work with telephony and primary, planning, business processes, depth of client card content .Oddly enough, too low or too high price - this is the last thing you should focus on when implementing. First, often the price is put from the ceiling (“let's put 19,990 for a license”), secondly, the high cost may be due to unnecessary and unclaimed twists (for example, the formal presence of AI in the system), thirdly, the price is too low or conditional gratuity often turn out to be a marketing trap. In general, “Ponte is more expensive than money” and “fraer’s greed was killed” are not the best sayings for automating small and medium businesses.
Do not spend on safety
Never back up the database, because no one notices it anyway. It is better to free up the space to upload pictures or erotic videos. And if the base collapses (which is very unlikely), you can simply quit the office quickly, and shift the data recovery problems to a new employee.
Choose CRM in the cloud, and in public - it's cheaper. You just get your piece of shared storage, and no one and nothing can stop you from using it. Yes, the provider may have problems, but it rather quickly restores the servers. In addition, systems in the cloud in 99% of cases are rented, and the price is quite small - for example, 990 p. per user per month. And if you have 20 people in the company, it’s only 19,800 p. per month - less than the salary of almost any employee.
As a matter of fact
We could now talk about the fact that developers, retailers, clinics, etc. should take care of security especially. But no - everyone needs to take care of the security of the client database and data. There is nothing more serious than the information security of the company and in particular the customer base. Even if you are a tiny outdoor advertising agency or a Yandex Direct partner, your data will be just the way to your competitors. Who, contrary to your expectations, are not asleep, but are actively hunting for your managers with a base. And there are offended employees, fraudsters, unscrupulous providers without compliance with the SLA - and all this is a cumulative risk for you, your business, your money.We tell you everything by the example of a CRM system as the most universal software, which should be in general in any company, but in fact there are security threats in any software: you can also damage or steal drawings, code, analytics, photos, schemes, business process logic, financial documents, supplier lists, and more. Even in the military departments, where everything seems to be arranged seriously from a security point of view, incidents such as transferring secret data to third parties occur.
Cultivator without TZ, how it works - HZ
Never write TK and do not collect requirements
If for some reason the vendor created the TZ and gave it to you for signing - do not read anything and do not delve into the essence of the document, this is not a contract, but just a piece of paper to calm the nerves of the vendor’s engineers. Refusing to draw up a TZ, you will not just save money - you will save yourself from controlling every stage of implementation - you pay a real pro, why control something else. They are obliged to provide you with software that will clearly meet your global demand, “I meant that it should have been that way.”
And of course, in no case do not collect requirements from your colleagues. Just imagine: you need to form a working group, review processes, interview employees, analyze information, highlight requirements ... And this is during working hours! Well, judge for yourself - what is special about sales or production?
As a matter of fact
In life, the specification is the basis for successful implementation. This is a document that the developer creates, and usually does it for a fee, because to prepare the TOR, it is necessary to analyze the client’s requirements, dive into its tasks, select a development model, design and describe the workings of the created mechanisms and functions as thoroughly as possible, state it all in printed form and agreed with the customer. The technical task is signed along with the contract, but unlike the standard contract it is an individual document defining the essence of the project. TK guarantees the accuracy of work and deadlines. This is an absolutely obligatory document, unless you order the development of a student, and the whole project is not worth 5000 rubles.Refuse to make improvements
As a matter of fact
It's simple: if the implementation is necessary, it needs to be implemented. But to do this wisely, to balance the functionality and cost of implementation, which will be affordable for you and will lead to the desired result. First you need to identify the main tasks, without which you can not work. In the process of testing a solution (usually it is a demo version or a test key that can be ordered from the vendor), you should open for each of these tasks, whether their system performs and at what level (excellent / good / satisfactory). If some of the main tasks are implemented insufficiently - negotiate with the vendor and clarify whether they can be adapted to your requirements. You will have the first and most important list of improvements.
If the vendor is ready for the necessary modifications, fix them for yourself and continue further - make a list of missing opportunities that you can put up with, for example, for the first time. Determine for yourself the period for which you need to realize these opportunities. Negotiate with the vendor, evaluate the technical capability, approximate time and cost. Make a technical task.
In fact, after that you will have almost a complete idea of whether this solution will suit you or not. In addition, you will have a complete list of the necessary improvements, an assessment of their cost and implementation dates. You will be fully armed and will be able to make an informed decision, including, if necessary, split the implementation into several stages. The result is not long in coming.
Tip: When drafting requirements, do not force the vendor to break the structure of the application so that it requires global reworking of the entire system. It is always very expensive and time consuming, and also does not ensure high stability of the resulting solution. The right way is to partially adapt to the basic capabilities of the system, and in places where it is impossible to adapt, it is impossible to modify it for yourself. If such bilateral adaptation is impossible - it is better to look for another system.
Keep the development in check, growth requires resources
But on the other hand, when there was once a sales manager, and now eight, one of them is the head of the department, my work will not change - I still need to contact one head. What for then CRM-system? And so all questions can be solved as before.
Let the head of department be responsible for the efficiency of line employees. There will be bad sales - will not receive an award, immediately begin to move.
As a matter of fact
In principle, compulsory deterrence of the growth of the company will not do you any harm - you simply miss the opportunity to take more space in the market and earn more. Again, there is a risk of being uninteresting for employees and losing the most professional and ambitious ones. Scaling is almost always a blessing, especially when it is organic, it should not be missed. Fast growth without loss of efficiency is possible only if the business is ready. And you need to prepare the sleigh in the summer, well, that is, all the conditions must be created in advance - it does not happen that on Wednesday you were a small company, and on Thursday you woke up average. So, several aspects should be implemented:
- business processes have been established and automated - so you can easily scale and withstand the increase and complexity of tasks;
- all key processes and management should be automated (at a minimum, this is CRM or ERP, the rest of the software set depends on the field of activity);
- Your employees must be efficient - that is, ready for workload, changes, new tasks.
Automation will solve most of the problems associated with time-consuming processes, routine tasks and issues, "rake" part of the workflow. In addition, at a certain point in the scale of the business, the manager comes to realize that numbers are starting to rule his head. Statistics. Different. For this, criteria should be built, with the help of which you will assess the condition of your business, its growth points or stagnation. And for their evaluation it is necessary to have a basic element - the measurements themselves, without which it is impossible to perform an assessment.
Those. with the growth of business, the approach to its understanding and management is changing, business processes are changing. Consequently, the CRM system must be “alive”, responding to the changing conditions of the business environment. A competent leader should take this into account if he wants to go higher.
Make your software, it is 100% cooler
You will spend only 5-7 years, but you will get quite a working release 1.0, in which you can already lead clients, build a sales funnel, generate simple reports and issue a beautiful panel with data for the general. Developing your CRM, you will fully experience all the delights of development, learn something about design, interfaces, backend and security. This is a definite plus, especially for technology companies - indeed, if you are a small Internet provider or seller of agricultural equipment, why not confirm your manufacturability?
As a matter of fact
Development of own software, especially enterprise level, is an expensive and resource-intensive project. You invest a lot of effort, money, time, nerves, and at the exit in a few years you will get an automation system of the most basic level (this applies not only to CRM, but also experimenting with other types of corporate software).You need to understand that the CRM system is not just a task scheduler. This is a complex network infrastructure solution for teamwork of a team of people. Those typical solutions that are on the market have been created over the years and have been developing for decades, tens and hundreds of millions (and not always rubles) are spent on their development. And if a typical product with a bunch of functionality can be bought on 1 day for 100 thousand rubles, and for a couple of months, another 100 thousand rubles. to refine what is missing in it, then you will have to create such a system from scratch for at least 5 years and spend 10 million rubles in aggregate. or more. And it’s not a fact that by that moment your company
Sit on money and do not move
Save on everything: on equipment, equipment, the Internet, and especially - on servers. Triple save if you are not a software company, but you work in any other area.
Ahead of the New Year and a whole series of holidays. You can cool save if December 25 to dismiss all employees, and on January 15 to recruit new ones. Firstly, for almost a whole month one does not have to pay wages and taxes from it (it’s still holidays, to feed these freeloaders), and secondly, when you take new ones in January, issue a trial period with a reduced salary. That's cool! Imagine what a savings !!!
Especially beware of the introduction of automation systems for anything, for example, CRM-systems. It is not known when such an investment will pay off. And then you have to save the staff, because someone in this CRM should work. And in general, the larger the company, the harder it is to maintain it.
As a matter of fact
The lack of automation in a crisis can play a cruel joke: in fact, the company loses an additional powerful resource that can work tirelessly and provide operations. Overloaded with tasks and stress of a crisis period, employees may be more likely to make mistakes, not to cope with the volume of work. For example, a CRM system can automate part of routine processes, “take over” reminders, mailings, segmentation, deadlines, etc. Thus, employees have time and energy to maneuver.In addition, if your customer base is segmented and classified, you can, during the economic stagnation, conduct economical, but highly effective actions aimed at specific customer segments, thereby not letting your potential customers forget about you and prepare them for active work as soon as economic stagnation will end its temporary period. And you will certainly be ahead of those of your competitors who have not taken care of this ...
Work only with your hands and head.
As a matter of fact
Manual data entry and maintenance of all commercial information in office editors leads to a high probability of human error. And as you know, treatment is always more expensive than prevention and proceeds much more difficult. Modern systems are programmed without errors, focused on the person, designed to increase the speed of completion of cases, productivity, efficiency. Accordingly, the introduction of a CRM, ERP or profile automation system significantly reduces the likelihood of error and the overhead of fixing it. Automation does not replace a person, but actually frees them from part of routine tasks and petty work, which take up a large amount of time, as well as from the main human factor: forgetfulness.
- It is necessary to understand all the processes taking place, step by step. If you hear phrases like “we collect sales plans for branches, Ivanov forms orders, sends Petrov to the warehouse, then something turns around at transport workers and as a result shipment happens”, this is not a process, this is a process with a black hole “something there is spinning at the transport workers. ” A black hole can easily absorb the other elements of the chain.
- You should not strive to remake and automate all business processes at once. The more progressive and thoughtful the implementation process will be, the faster you will feel the effect of automation. In one day, you will definitely not do anything, even if you are a tiny startup.
- Evaluate the results of the work processes (for example, using the mechanism of KPI).
- If problems arise and their elegant solutions appear, immediately make changes to the automation system so you can optimize work on the fly.
The main thing in any software is dashboards
Dashboards are a key business tool, alpha and omega of proper analytics. When you buy a car, it doesn’t matter to you how the gears are spinning, as long as everything looks premium (well, or acceptable). The same with numbers - several meanings speak eloquently about the state of affairs, little things should not worry you. Well, the main advantage: it is worth looking at the dashboard and eye grabs all the most important. It is also good to admire the columns and diagrams and prokrastirovat - like working questions, but do not tear your eyes, what a beauty!
As a matter of fact
Judging the corporate software for the design and animation of the interface controls is extremely rash. The interface of such software should have a number of qualities:- to be comfortable - all necessary functions should be at hand
- be informative - all necessary data should be collected in seconds or minutes
- to be exhaustive - the system should collect all relevant and necessary information on the software profile
- be customizable - the user should be able to customize the content of the interface with the elements he needs in his work
- to be discreet - corporate software is not a place for design experiments and ryushechek, the focus should be on the needs of the end user.
Users get used to the interface of the corporate system quite quickly - they also work with it several times a day, so it’s definitely not worth judging by the first impression. If in doubt, look at the dashboards of complex objects or vehicles; these are the working interfaces tested by time and experience.
Well, and a small remark: the head should not look at dashboards, but periodically unload or request detailed reports. Only deep analytics and work with data can form the basis of strategic decisions. A bright graphs and numbers on the results of the day - it's like a watch to see, normal operational activities. Do not dwell on them.
Choose a system for reviews
The main thing is to believe only negative reviews, positive or neutral guaranteed by the companies themselves. But the negative experience will certainly repeat again, which means that it is worth thinking about the choice of this or that solution.
As a matter of fact
You shouldn’t believe reviews in principle, especially since there is an old rule of advertisers: a good client will leave to use and not tell, and the offended will write everywhere. In any case, you can read, but rely on the opinions of such "experts" is definitely not worth it. As a vivid example, you can consider reviews of hotels on aggregator sites. It is no secret that many tour operators publish fictional negative reviews about hotels with which they have no accommodation contracts, and about "their" hotels exclusively in a positive style. Therefore, when you read reviews about the same hotel, you are at a loss - one consumer broadcasts that there are cockroaches in the hotel, dirty dishes and poor-quality food, and the other - perfect cleanliness, attentive maids and cleanest beaches.
Do not buy training from a vendor
If you do decide to study, collect as many employees as possible - let them fall asleep to the representatives of the vendor to the maximum. And bring together production workers, salespeople, marketers and system administrators. If they listen to each other's questions and answers to them, they will be able not only to learn how to work with the new software, but also learn the principles of the work of their colleagues.
As a matter of fact
Better than the vendor of the future users of the software, no one will precisely teach - here both experience, and tactics, and approach. This is not necessarily a lesson in a large office with a bunch of PCs, the online practice is quite good. Moreover, this is the most classroom training has long proved to be ineffective and not particularly relevant to our age with virtual distances :-) Plus, the developer always provides you with documentation, videos, articles, etc. As for the problem of different qualifications of employees, everything is solved in a rather trivial way: internal experts are trained, who in turn pass on the knowledge and skills to the other colleagues, simultaneously consulting them. This is a convenient, winning in every sense approach.
Shamans in the service of users of IT systems: they will guess the problem without a timviewer and communication, they will help by the screenshot.
Do not use priority tech support.
In general, your automation system vendor doesn’t keep the support team in vain - so bother them on any issue. Do not read the documentation, do not use prompts in the interface, it is much faster and more convenient to call. You do not have to know the terminology and the name of the module in which something went wrong, so report as you see: "The blue window hung and did not move, there is some kind of orange line at the bottom."
If you are asked to remotely connect to your PC, resist. This is spying pure water! Technical support staff will download the entire database and will use it for their needs. Or will spy on how you sit VKontakte. In general, it is better not to risk it.
As a matter of fact
Much depends on the expert level of your employees: if there are employees in the office who are ready to solve questions and respond quickly to problems of third-party software, then you need technical support from time to time. If the software is expensive, complex, or you have not previously had experience with such software, the first time is better to choose a priority support package in order to avoid downtime and serious failures. In addition, the support package helps save on the maintenance of an individual employee who works with automation systems. If the company is small, such savings look reasonable and balanced.Well, the main bad advice: do not automate anything, live as you lived - after all, and so the company is afloat. Let competitors spend on all these programs, implementation and operation. True, it sounds silly? You have no idea how much.
All the right and successful automation!
If you need CRM or hyper CRM (but not a little ERP yet), go to us www.regionsoft.ru . We have 17 years of experience in IT, 11 years of development of CRM-systems for small and medium businesses, thousands of implementations. We can not only joke about software, but also work very seriously with him.
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