Machinery by Lime – The benefits of an industry best practice CRM
Maybe, until now, your focus has only been on investments aimed at optimising production and efficiency in your manufacturing. However, the consequences of overlooking your customer-centric processes are becoming clear. You might be struggling with shared Excel files in your back-office that nobody actually has ownership over, a stand-alone ticket system or an ERP system that lives its own life. Not to mention the contracts and quotations piling up at the shared server and the e-mails stored in each sales reps inbox, making you dependent on individuals to access crucial business information.
It might be time to think about integrating a Customer Relationship Management (CRM) systems at your business! A well-implemented CRM system has the potential to revolutionise the way you manage customer interactions, streamline your internal processes, and ultimately enhance the overall satisfaction of your customers. The benefits of a CRM extend beyond just data consolidation; a CRM helps foster more efficient communication, break down silos in information storage, and removes dependency on individuals to access important business information.
In other words, embracing a CRM system for your business can be the starting point of a shift towards a more organised, interconnected, and customer-centric way of working that’s tailored to meet the unique requirements of your business.
Do you want to know more about CRM system and what Lime CRM can do for you?
From leads to service
Imagine a workday that starts during your daily commute, as you effortlessly open your CRM on your phone. Your CRM system becomes your compass, guiding you through the day by highlighting important tasks that you need to take care of. It might inform you of customers with declining sales, prompting you to plan visits to address their needs. Alternatively, it could alert you to critical issues with a customer’s machinery, making sure you’re prepared to provide timely assistance to the customer.
Arriving at work, armed with insights from your CRM, you’ll be ready for anything. As you settle in front of your desk, a customer calls with an inquiry about a sales offer. Without missing a beat, you respond, “The price Sara quoted you last week remains valid. However, I’ve noticed that accessories for your existing machines haven’t been addressed in the past year. Do you want us to put that into your quotation too?” Having this kind of proactive approach will not only earn you gratitude from the customer but also prompt them to disclose their malfunctioning machine that requires service. Effortlessly, you escalate a service order to your field technician and schedule a service appointment on the spot with the customer.
This kind of seamless integrations empowers you to be perceived by the customer as a vendor who anticipates their needs and delivers solutions instantly. It may sound like a fairy tale, but this kind of scenario can be your reality when you have a well-implemented CRM system in place. You can transform your daily operations into a streamlined, responsive, and customer-centric experience that elevates your business above your competitors.
Connecting the dots between departments
By integrating a CRM system into your operations, you enable seamless collaboration among all your departments, providing everyone with a shared platform where the latest customer information is instantly available. This kind of integration can transform your sales, service, and aftermarket departments into becoming a unified unit that can bridge the gap between field activities and office operations. Continuing the previous example, imagine a service technician receiving an instant notification about a service call. While en route to the customer, they can effortlessly access a wealth of information right in the CRM: a comprehensive history of previous services, details about the machine type at the customer, and the most recent year in which accessories were changed.
This level of information flow not only enhances the efficiency of your service team but also makes sure that every interaction with the customer is well-informed and personalised. This kind of unified view of your customer data allows your teams to anticipate needs, offer tailored solutions, and provide a consistently high level of service.
What is Lime CRM for the machinery industry?
Lime CRM isn’t a tool that fits everyone, but can instead be adjusted for the specific workflows at your company. When you’re buying an industry specific CRM-solution it shouldn’t be an “all you can eat buffet” of options you’ll never use. A great industry specific CRM-solution should already have made the choices for you, so you have access to all the great tools for your needs right out of the box.
Lime CRM for the machinery-industry usually includes the following options:
- A company overview with search functions that allows you to easily find what you are looking for.
- A connection to your ERP system, making sure that your daily tools and software is well integrated with the CRM system. This will make it possible for you to get indications when your customers have a declining sales trend, allowing you to be proactive and contact them with the right product, just in time.
- Data storage of your sold products and it’s current or previous owners if that’s needed. Many of our customers do not only sell but also buy or rent out machines and products, creating a need to allocate both the current and historical position of the product.
- Handling of maintenance and repairs, both reactive and proactive. When the customer actively reaches out to you for help, Lime CRM supports the ticket workflow from start to finish.
- Agreements and contracts, either framework contracts or service agreements. The customer shouldn’t have to keep track of their agreements, instead, stay ahead of your customer and keep track of everything with the help of Lime CRM.
- Marketing Automation. Stop sending out newsletters and SMS manually and step into the next decade by adding computer logic! With a great MA-flow you can automatically send out the right kind of marketing material depending on what product the customer has bought. With integration of a marketing automation tool right in your CRM system the power of automated marketing is right at your fingertips.
Learn more about Lime CRM for Machinery
In this webinar, our industry sales expert Mathias walks you through some common situations and
needs of machine companies and how a CRM can facilitate business.
Experience
A classic mistake that many companies do is to go with a vendor that paints an attractive picture of their solution, but they don’t have any real customers within that industry sector. We have a solid customer base in the machinery industry and have more than 30 years of know-how in the CRM space. With over a thousand implementations per year, we have our ear to the ground and continuously improve our products to the ever evolving needs of the industry.
Making the move
In the end, the biggest challenge might not be to choose the right tool but to make the move and start using a CRM system. We believe that the best kind of implementation are those where software implementation and behavioural changes work in symbiosis with each other. In our complete CRM solution we can also include change management, helping you make sure that your new CRM system is backed up by the right behaviours and routines within your organisation.
Do you want to know more about what Lime CRM can do for your company?
What are you waiting for?
There’s no time to waste! Let’s find the solution that will help you get more customers and turn existing ones into loyal ambassadors today.