This is Part Two of our CRM series, where we'll present you with key questions regarding Sales Efficiencies.

Sales Efficiencies

The more you know about your customers and their buying habits, the better prepared you'll be when they're ready to make a purchase. A good CRM system will classify your prospects and help identify your best customers.  With detailed information about your customers, you can accurately project and respond to their buying needs through the sales cycle. A good system also acts as a sales assistant to help you automate sales tasks - allowing you to spend more time focusing on strategic sales issues.

Ask yourself the following questions:

• Are forecasts done on paper/Excel Friday afternoons so that the manager can compile them manually?
• Do managers or sales operations have to compile all the Excel spreadsheets to create a report, which is only a snapshot of the past weeks activities, not the current picture?
• Do remote sales people have their own databases that their manager or other team members cannot see?
• If your sales team does not have readily access to vital accounting data like accounts receivable, credit limits, balances etc., how long does it take them to get that information from your accounting department?
• Does your organization has a sales process that your sales teams are supposed to follow but you have no way to enforce it?
• Does your sales management team have issues with proactively managing your sales pipeline and producing timely and accurate, forecasts?
• Does Do managers have sales reps completing call reports on paper, taking them out of the field?
• Are a large percentage of sales brought in late in the quarter and many at a significant discount?
• Does management spend substantial amounts of time fighting "fires" and little time mentoring, training and coaching their teams?

Sales force automation - SFA - enables you to analyze the entire sales cycle and successfully manage your sales pipeline - from the first contact to final sale. SFA systems provide the tools for sales team to:

• Perform analysis to ensure time and energy are spent on the deals most likely to close
• Improve lead distribution and tracking
• Analyze training and performance
• Centralize contact and interaction management
• Effectively process quotes and orders
• Provide remote sales staff with instant access to corporate information

Read Part One: Contact Management