Shop assistant 1, “Would you like any help at all? I am right here when you need me, OK, dear?”
Shop assistant 2:, “G’day, Matt! Happy to see you back just one week before your birthday. Here are a couple of T-shirts you checked out previously. They are flying off the shelves… we only have a few sizes left, including yours, so we reduced the price for these. Add to cart?
Planning a birthday party and need something in the smart-casual category? Here is a jacket in your favorite navy blue and beige trousers in a matching fabric, just as you like them, in your preferred price range. Is the party taking you over your monthly budget? No worries, mate, grab a Birthday discount! See you soon, Matt, we knew you’d love this classy duet!”
Do you feel the difference?
In case you didn’t sense it, Mathew is from Australia too, thus the “g’day” greetings. This is content personalization in action.
Pretty amazing, right?
This is how e-commerce functions when boosted by CRM.
Needless to say, retail and e-commerce are the businesses for which ROI is the quickest and benefits are the most obvious. With the majority of B2C eCommerce models having more than affordable average checks, getting people to buy is a “mission possible” scenario.
When backed by the wealth of data that comes from CRM, e-commerce is capable of attracting more leads with high-purchase intent, minimizing leakage at every step of the funnel, converting more quickly, and upselling more.
Retail customer relationship management systems are the oxygen of the e-commerce blood system that brings nutrients to every cell, stimulating processes in the entire organism.
We are excited to lead you through the basics of the CRM for retail development, its benefits, the fundamental functions of customer relations management software for e-commerce, and – most importantly – the specifics of custom CRM for retail.
What Is CRM In Retail?
What is CRM for retail?
A customer relations management system is software that collects & manages client data to provide an efficient means of communication, increase customer loyalty, expedite the conversion cycle, enable upselling, and support in-depth analysis to create further efficiencies across the board.
What are the features of CRM?
There are different CRMs available on the market, most of which are turnkey, universal solutions for all industries.
There is some industry-specific CRM software too, that is engineered to suit the needs of a specific industry, for example, retail and e-commerce.
And there are custom CRM software development systems for companies that invest in their unique technical DNA and have the data analytics department and capability needed to translate the insights arising from big data into surplus in the bottom line.
Nonetheless, all of these solutions share a few common features:
- Contact management
- Task management
- Deals & Pipeline management
- Calendar & reminders
- Social media integrations
- Email marketing
- Reporting & analytics
When it comes to the specifics of the CRM in retail, the most common additions of industry-specific features on top of a universal system are:
- Merchandise management
- Order management
- Return management
- Mail order
What Functions Does a CRM Have?
The role of a CRM in retail and e-commerce is vital, as it collects data on every touchpoint a client has with the brand and helps marketers move clients down the funnel more quickly.
Let’s review some of the main functions of this technological wonder.
1. Contact data collection, storage, and management
One of the most fundamental functions is to collect & store data related to clients. With all the social media & touchpoint website tracking integration, CRMs have now moved into collecting enriched profiles for each contact that go way beyond the mere name, gender, and location parameters. Modern CRMs create client profiles with professional data, social media profile links, website activity, and purchasing and browsing history.
2. Organization of workflow of the team
Task management is a powerful functionality that helps to create, assign, schedule, and postpone tasks: for yourself and respective team members.
3. Deal and pipelines management mission control center
Deal and pipeline management help to record, manage, schedule, and organize all business coming into your sales funnel and assign it to pipelines, team members, etc. Dashboard view & reporting allows for the best monitoring of both successful and low-performing trends.
4. Calendar and reminder modules
Most customer relationship management software will have a calendar and reminders embedded. These allow team members to plan processes seamlessly and send reminders of upcoming meetings to partners and clients.
5. Reporting & analytics
Big Data is the new secret ingredient of a successful e-commerce business. Those online shop owners who managed to jump on this wagon early on got way ahead of their competition. Big data enables businesses to see trends in the budding stages when there’s still time to react.
A properly cleaned and deciphered big data set is an amazing crystal ball too. You can get good answers to adequately posed questions.
6. Social media integration
Social media has been growing ever since its conception, and no substitutes are anywhere in sight. The advertising power is incredible, as retail & eCommerce leaders know all too well.
Social media can be integrated with CRMs via third-party apps like Zapier or via API. This marriage is made in millionaires’ heaven… at least in future millionaires’ heaven.
7. Email marketing
Email marketing is a basic feature of every CRM out there. Some systems go as far as providing a suite of features rivaling that of email marketing software with open rate stats, group mailing features, and the like.
The Impact Of CRM Usage In Retail
CRMs are the mission control center of e-commerce and retail. They have an impact across so many functions and departments, including:
Top clients segment optimization
Data accumulation & interpretation help businesses sort out and segment the top customers. Loyal clients have a higher average check and lifetime value, being overall the crème de la crème of your customers. By using CRM’s segmentation features, a business can separate the top 5%, 10%, 20% into specific groups and analyze them to:
- Scale success and attract more such clients
- Maximize revenue from an existing pool of top clients
- Create handmade promotions for loyal customers
- Run an ambassadors’ offer
- Socially listen to them to understand sentiments toward the brand
Granular personalization opportunities
Personalization is an impactful marketing technique that’s widely used by the retail industry online and offline.
CRM is a wealth of data that permits endlessly granular personalization. It can be taken to any stage of the funnel and any method of communication with clients: from marketing automation, email marketing, and loyalty program management, to sending out birthday offers.
Nurturing brand loyalty
It’s easier to establish contact with a person you have some background info on. It’s even easier to keep the bond going with rich information on file, which includes social insights as well as corporate information. CRMs provide an opportunity to get access to enriched client profiles.
Apple, for example, focuses on CRM usage in its stores, ensuring great customer service. They strive to make sure that each iPhone purchase is a worthwhile event and a special experience. We all know it worked like magic, don’t we?
Why Develop a Custom CRM Solution vs a Ready-Made One?
Out-of-the-box solutions are available for as little as $20 per user per month in the plug-and-play format with an extensive suite of features. Why would you need to invest all the time and capital required into creating one of your own?
1. You are big enough to feel possessive about your customer’s big data
With GDPR in place, data is much more secure than it has ever been. But big players still focus on keeping their data to themselves. This is one of the big reasons why Amazon and Apple will develop their own software a lot. It gives them full control of the data, and they are the ones benefiting from its analysis.
2. Big company = Many users = big monthly check
A small- or medium-sized e-commerce business will be tempted to buy an out-of-the-box CRM, as they don’t have enough cash flow to create a system of their own.
A bigger company with a lot of employees may end up paying quite a hefty monthly fee for CRM usage, even if the vendor charges just $20 per month per user and has an enterprise discount. So, even if the price of a custom CRM system for e-commerce is $40,000 – $200,000, this one-time investment may be a better deal.
3. Custom is custom. Nothing to add. Nothing to take away. Perfect fit.
If you have ever had a custom-made suit or pair of shoes, you know what it feels like. There’s no friction. No wearing-in period. You put it on, and it feels like you belong. Similarly, with custom CRM, you only get the features you need. You don’t have the clutter you don’t use.
Custom CRM Development Benefits
Retail CRM software, when custom-developed as per your business needs, will help your online store business flourish, bringing loads of value, measurable in saved hours, increased conversions, and saved dollars:
- Save time automating repetitive tasks & enabling smooth task management and daily planning.
- Increase client loyalty by nurturing relationships through social listening, honing in on your top converting segments, and personalizing email marketing.
- Zoom in on the details through tagging options and creation of custom fields to assign a common descriptor to any data point, enabling further reporting.
- Get industry-leading insights by leveraging big data to analyze the user journey and increase efficiency at every stage of the funnel.
- Personalize email marketing, boosting this already high-ROI channel to new records in open rates, click-through rates & conversion.
Things To Consider Before You Build a Custom CRM for E-Commerce
Before buying a CRM or opting to develop your own retail CRM, consider doing the math: you need to find out about custom CRM development costs and figure out how much monthly payments will be for a ready-made solution for your team size.
Depending on the developer’s country of operation, a CRM may cost as little as $40K without loads of extra features. Suppliers in Asia and Eastern Europe offer an incredible value for your money in terms of website, mobile and software development.
If, based on your current stage of company development, market ambitions, and funding, you make a decision in favor of a custom CRM for eCommerce or retail, take into account the following criteria:
- What features do you need in your CRM
- What currently used apps & software solutions do you want your new software to be compatible with
- What existing CRM solutions do you like and why
- What access levels do you need in your system
- What company with an extensive verifiable eCommerce software development portfolio can you delegate it to
Why Zoolatech?
Building your own CRM is a big decision, as you get the entire company’s technical DNA rewired.
CRM is a key part of a tech stack, specifically for retail and e-commerce.
If you are at the stage of your company’s growth, where you both appreciate the power of big data and can afford a few tens of thousands for a custom-made customer relations management system, then we are delighted to meet you.
Zoolatech, as a savvy software development company, decided to provide top technical solutions at a fraction of the usual cost. So our clients get it all:
- Western granular understanding of the e-commerce business & technological infrastructure is crucial for success
- Silicon Valley-like communication & clear, straightforward business processes
- Technical talent of a high caliber with the most attractive price tag
Let’s get your needs for CRM in retailing covered within a cost-effective price range and with quality guaranteed from Palo Alto.
Allow our sales department to provide you with our best quote tailored to your particular needs. The consultation is free, and you can start making plans based on specific figures.
Get in Touch with the Zoolatech team to get Big Data working for your success.
