Introduction to 'Getting started with customer relationship management tools'

Running and growing your business is rewarding, but it can be hard. There’s a lot to juggle. Managing sales, marketing, communications, production and fulfilment can be overwhelming at times. This is where customer relationship management (CRM) tools come in.

In this lesson, you’ll learn what CRM is, and how these digital tools can help you. We’ve got tips on how to pick the right CRM tools for your business. We'll also take you through the steps you need to prepare to use these tools.

What you'll learn

  • What CRM tools are and what they do.
  • The benefits of using CRM software.
  • How to select the best CRM for you.
  • The steps to take before your CRM launch.

How long it takes

21 minutes

What is 'CRM'?

Chapter 1

How long it takes

1 minute

The idea and the tools

Customer relationship management (CRM) is all about how to manage your interactions with your current and potential users.

To start, this means keeping a record of customer details. So, we ask ‘what details do we want to keep?’ and it turns out there’s quite a lot. Basic client information is a must. Any contact we’ve had with the customer. We want their sales history. Preferences they’ve mentioned. The channels they use to contact us. That’s a lot to keep track of, and we often need this information.

When people talk about CRM, they usually mean a CRM system. This is something that stores all these details, in one place. CRM tools help you use this data to give your customers a consistent and tailored experience with you. With a CRM, you can store contact details, spot sales openings, note service issues and manage marketing campaigns - all in one place.

Why use these tools?

Chapter 2

How long it takes

3 minutes

What are the benefits?

We’ve talked about what a CRM system is. But why should you spend your time and money on one?

First, let’s look at the benefits to your business.

 

Using a CRM can help you:

Stay connected with your users

Simplify your processes

Increase your profits

Benefits in more detail

Know your customers better

With a CRM, you’ll have all your customer details at your fingertips. So you can stay in touch with your clients in a way that works for them. They’ll get info and offers that are based on their earlier activity.

And as you get to know your clients better, you’ll find more effective chances to upsell or cross-sell.

“The purpose of business is to create and keep a customer”

Peter Drucker

Improve your customer retention

Building long-term loyalty is important to any business. Each time you make contact with a customer, it's a chance to help them decide to come back to you.

CRM tools help keep you tuned in to what your current customers want. They have analytics features to help you give the right service and support for each of your clients. Plus, with all the data in one place, you can respond quickly to feedback, questions and trends.

Segment your users

Customer segmentation is a powerful marketing tool. It groups your users based on demographic and other data.

If you apply filters based on what you know about your customers, you can speak more directly to their needs and interests. So your email campaigns focus on what's relevant to them. When they receive this info, they’re more likely to respond. This could mean they follow a link to your website, or make a purchase.

Building on this response, you can also use these filters to help you adapt your sales pitch and timing. So it could improve your chance of conversion or winning that deal.

Communicate better – and faster

CRM tools can speed up communication. Say one of your users has a question. You can see their details and order history straight away. You'll get an instant awareness of their needs. This helps you to respond quickly and with the right support. Plus, enquiry-logging and programmed follow-up emails let them know that you’re on it.

Be consistent with your clients

Over time, a client might contact your business in several different ways. They could follow an ad link from a social channel, order online from your website or complete a survey from an email you sent them. They may phone or speak in person to people in your sales, service or support teams.

CRMs can capture every interaction, so your team can see the whole picture. This helps you to give your customers a seamless experience, no matter who they speak with and how they contact you.

Spot trends early

CRM software can often help you see something coming before it becomes clear to your competitors. If you’re able to predict trends or changing behaviour, you can spot your customers’ demand for new products and services. You could plan ahead to adapt what you offer.

Protect data privacy (GDPR)

The UK General Data Protection Regulation (GDPR) law aims to protect users’ rights and freedoms. It’s important to obey GDPR rules to protect both your users and your business. If you don't, you risk facing hefty fines and losing your customers' trust.

CRM software can offer better data protection for users. It does this by working compliance into the model, and replacing manual tasks.

To help, you should look for a CRM system that lets you:

  • Prove user consent.
  • Know exactly what data you hold.
  • Update and delete data.
  • Store data securely.

What CRM tools do

Chapter 3

How long it takes

7 minutes

The key features of CRM tools

Every CRM platform is different. So think about what you want from this kind of tool, before you decide which one to go for. We’ll talk more about this in the next chapter. For now, let’s look at the key functions that most of them have.

 

Customer focus

Contact management

Quote and order management

Case management

Contact management

You can store user data such as names, email addresses and social media accounts in a searchable database. You'll also be able to see all their details in one place.

 

Quote and order management

Create and send quotes, invoices and receipts. The CRM keeps all contact between you and your clients in the same place. This helps you avoid losing orders or contact with different colleagues, so you can give better customer service.

 

Case management

Issue tracking helps you to sort and manage user issues. So you can deal with questions promptly and avoid complaint escalation.

 

 

Sales focus

Conversion management

Sales automation

Sales forecasting

Conversion management

CRMs can simplify how you convert leads into sales. You’ll get to know the users in your pipeline better. And this leads to a more tailored approach. So you can sort leads based on business potential.

 

Sales automation

Manually emailing, scheduling or digging through files for info - all these take up valuable time. A CRM can do these necessary but repetitive manual tasks to improve productivity.

 

Sales forecasting

Data analytics let you build a more detailed picture. You can create forecasts for future sales and revenue, based on your data and trends. This makes it easier to be more precise in your forecasting. So you can set realistic targets.

 

 

Efficiency focus

Task management

Analytics tools

Custom features

Integration with other tools

Task management

Keeping track of tasks helps you and your team work more efficiently. Plan and sort tasks, assign them to team members, and create reminders that sync with your calendar.

 

Analytics tools

No more sifting through mountains of data! Analytics tools sift the data and give the details you need. You can set the filters to get summaries and reports with the right level of detail for you. This helps you gain a good understanding of your data. Plus it makes troubleshooting more effective.

 

Custom features

Every business works differently, so it's important to tailor your CRM tool so it works for you. Add or remove features to build a tool that fits your organisation.

 

Integration with other tools

You don't want CRM to be yet another platform to juggle! The good news is that most CRM tools integrate with existing software. Using these tools, you can connect existing apps like your calendar, social media, live chat or eCommerce platform.

Activity

Take five minutes to think about these CRM features.

Which ones are the most important for your business? Make a note of these.

Finding the right tool

Chapter 4

How long it takes

4 minutes

Finding the best fit

With CRM software, you won't find a one-size-fits-all option. Luckily you’ll find plenty of choice. Every business has different needs. And there's a CRM tool out there to fit each one of them.

Think about where you want your focus to be. Is it on sales, service or social media? You might want an all-in-one platform. Do you have more niche requirements? If so, maybe look for software that you can tweak to meet these.

To help you match your needs with a CRM, first look at the types of CRM tools available. There are three main types of CRM: operational, analytical and collaborative.

Operational CRM

This type of platform combines sales, marketing and service tasks. This means you can:

  • Review the customer cycle.
  • Simplify your ad campaigns.
  • Manage customer service and user support.

HubSpot is a popular example.

This kind of tool is a good ‘all-round’ option for most businesses.

Analytical CRM

This software helps you take a deeper dive into user data. It gives a greater understanding of behaviour and trends. So you can target your offers more effectively.

Examples include the world’s most popular CRM, Salesforce.

Collaborative CRM

Here, the focus is on communication and the sharing of data. So your teams, stakeholders, partners and vendors can work together more effectively on promotions and campaigns.

An example of a collaborative CRM is Microsoft Dynamics 365.

Try before you buy

Some CRMs offer a free version of their software. Others may give you a free trial for a short amount of time. So you can try things out before you decide which one’s right for your business. Don’t rush into a decision before you fully explore the options, as this could prove costly.

Top tips for selecting your CRM system

Test your knowledge

Try again - that's not quite right!

Hint: This CRM helps your team work with others.

That's right!

A collaborative CRM helps your team work together with others, sharing data both within and outside the business.

Remember

With so many options available, it’s easy to feel overwhelmed with choice.

When you pick a tool, decide which features are important. Check your options and do your research.

Your roll-out plan

Chapter 5

How long it takes

5 minutes

Planning for a smooth launch

The launch of a new CRM needs some planning. And you can start to plan once you’ve picked your tool.

There’s lots to do before the launch. You’ll want to look at your data and prepare to move it to the new system. Your team will be starting to learn how to use the tool. They'll also be testing it out.

Here are some key points to think about when you’re putting together your roll-out plan.

Prepare your people

Map your data

Test the process

Prepare your people

Train your team

A successful roll-out relies on buy-in from all your team members. So it’s important to spread awareness of the new CRM at an early stage. This gives them time to get to know it.

Set aside a large chunk of time to train your team, before the ‘go live’ date. This way, you’re giving them the chance to test the software and learn how to use it, before they rely on it. If you don’t do this, you could have unhappy teams and costly mistakes.

Factor in a period of adjustment after the launch, too. It’s good to have a system in place so people can report snags and give feedback, for a smooth transition.

 

Share with your stakeholders

Key stakeholders will need to know why the roll-out is happening and what it means to them. It’s important to let them know the positive impact your new CRM will have on them.

Show that this tool will make their jobs easier and operations more efficient. Point out how it will help to drive sales and boost the business’s reputation.

 

Map your data

Plan for data migration

Migrating your data can be complex and time-consuming, so you’ll need a clear plan. Most CRMs have apps to help with this, but do check. Before the actual migration, you’ll need to spring clean your system and remove old data that could clog up your new CRM.

Make sure you also have a plan in place for the migration day itself. Think about scheduling your team, data backups, and how you'll let people know about system downtime.

 

Analyse your info

As you get ready for a new CRM, you have the chance to audit your data. Now’s the time to look at what data your team use, and how they use it. This will highlight any redundant info. It can also help guide your focus when you test the new system.

 

Maps and flows

At this stage, your focus is on what data needs to move, where it’s going, and how it will get there.

 

Here’s a couple of ways to do this:

Data mapping

This is all about ‘translating’ data from how it looks on your current systems, to a format that your CRM can use. You look at each piece of data you have, to see where it is and what it looks like. Then you ask ‘How does this fit into our new system?’

For instance, your sales and marketing teams might hold the same data separately. Sales might use a spreadsheet for this, while Marketing might have a different database. When you move this data to your CRM, you’ll want to merge the two sets of data into one. The CRM needs to understand the data, too. This may mean you need to reformat some data.

As you note down each piece of data you need to move, you can spot any duplicates. Doing this can also pick up data that's redundant.

Some CRMs include data-mapping tools, so do look out for those.

 

Data Flow Diagrams (DFDs)

These show the flow of information through your systems. You can use them to work out what data you need to move to the new CRM. They may also show you where data is no longer used.

Your data flow diagrams can be high level or more detailed. There are tools to help create these diagrams, or you can map them out using pen and paper.

This article tells you more about DFDs, including how to create one.

Test the process

Before you launch the CRM system, you'll need to test it. You should also test the data migration before you make this move.

 

Talk to your tech team

Fully brief your IT team so they’re ready to carry out testing. Allow plenty of time for this before ‘going live’. This gives you time to follow up any issues with your CRM vendor and make any changes that you need.

 

Testers should cover:

  • System testing
  • Functional testing
  • Stress testing
  • Performance testing
  • Usability testing
  • Acceptance testing
  • Integration testing

 

Data migration tests

Moving your data to the new CRM can be scary. To reduce the risks, test a small set of data first.

 

Follow these steps to test the process:

Step 1

Back up your data

Step 2

Run the migration process

Step 3

Compare the migrated data with your backed-up data

Do make sure that everything you sent across has moved to the right place. Once it’s there, check you can see and use it in the way you want.

Remember

Data migration involves various moving parts. Make the most of software tools to simplify and support the process.

Top tips for a smooth launch

Recap and next steps

Chapter 6

How long it takes

1 minute

Let’s recap

In this course, we’ve given you top tips and info on CRMs.

 

You've seen:

  • What CRM tools are, and how they can help you capture and manage customer data.
  • How these tools can benefit both your business and your customers.
  • The three main types of CRM system.
  • How to prepare for the smooth launch of a new CRM, including data migration.

Activity

Write down your top three key takeaways from this lesson.

Your next steps

You’ve now started to learn about CRM systems. With so many options, your next step may be to try the different features on a free platform. This could help you find out what type of system works best for you. You can then make your decision based on a clear plan.

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Lloyds Bank Academy is committed to providing information in a way that is accessible and useful for our users. This information, however, is not in any way intended to amount to authority or advice on which reliance should be placed. You should seek professional advice as appropriate and required. Any sites, products or services named in this module are just examples of what's available. Lloyds Bank does not endorse the services they provide. The information in this module was last updated on 8th May 2025.