Business software is a single technological solution companies use to interact with customers. There was a time when speaking with a client was one of the few tech-free business activities, but now CRM solutions and other innovations offer features and functionality to assist or take over engagement responsibilities.
Fast Company detailed how a California hardware store used a robot to interact with customers. A touch screen on wheels could move around a store and display available products to consumers and then guide them to the proper location. The machine automatically answered questions and served consumer needs. While most small businesses won’t be employing robots for stores any time soon, automated performance becomes increasingly common in every organization.
Modern customers want automation
Most shoppers today – both B2C and B2B – want self-service options. In the hardware store example, the mobile automated worker allows shoppers to ask questions and see answers displayed through images and text. Many consumers want the ability to seek information on their own before dealing with a company representative that might try to influence their decision.
Companies must provide automation through eCommerce solutions and other strategies to facilitate self-service while still playing a part in the customer’s journey. Business 2 Community shared numerous industry studies that said modern consumers want self-service options when it came to product research, sales and customer care.
This may mean a business offers an eCommerce site where an online shopper can select a product, purchase it and have it shipped to their home without ever having to speak to a human being. To facilitate this process, businesses need automated ERP solutions that can process orders, check inventories and update managers on online performance.
Businesses must also implement CRM that is integrated with their ERP systems, so automatic business functions work in conjunction with customer records. By collecting and utilizing information about each transaction, businesses can recognize consumers as individuals and provide both excellence human interactions as well as efficient automated performance.
CRM solutions allow entire company to stay in sync
The desire for self-service options does not eliminate the need for human care agents. One of the Business 2 Community reports – a Forrester research study – concluded satisfaction with phone engagements was typically higher than automated Web service. Shoppers don’t want one or the other, they want a variety of business interaction options for different needs and they expect consistent care across all platforms.
A business software solution like Microsoft Dynamics CRM offers a centralized source for information so every company representative has the same answers for consumers. Human agents receive the same direct insight into product data and inventory levels that machines do and they can apply soft skills like empathy to communication routines.
Automated workflows available in Dynamics CRM can increase the efficiency of employee performance by providing warnings when it’s time to reach out to leads or check in with clients. Managers can oversee the entire operation to see that human agents and machine learning features work together to provide consumers with the best of both worlds.
As companies offer customers with automate self-service options – whether they be online or in-store – they need CRM solutions to ensure data captured and communicated works with the entire company infrastructure.