Salesbox tells us that:
Often, it’s not so much to do with forgetting hidden costs – there’s enough information out there on what to include in a software budget – but not drilling down into them enough. Things like overtime, add up and whilst you’re spending significant amounts of time implementing a new system, customizing it and training users, productivity can take a hit.
Checkout these 3 hidden CRM costs and find out how you can minimize them:
Customization & Integration
Don’t forget to consider indirect costs. As well as the obvious expense of hiring an expert to coordinate all this, or paying your vendor for customization services (if it’s not included in the subscription fee), you’ll need to factor in loss of productivity throughout the process and potential staff overtime.
Minimize this by making a good range of integration options a key requirement for your CRM. Having a CRM specifically designed to click with other software your business uses will save you significant amounts of time and money.
Requirements in this area will vary from business to business, but integration with your email provider and whatever calendar your team uses is an absolute must. This makes things significantly easier and will increase user engagement with the new system right off the bat.
User Training
Plan for training new users by training a number of ‘superusers’ during CRM implementation. You can then train new hires in-house without having to pay for instructor-led training (if it’s not included in the subscription fee).
E-learning modules are also a good option – check with potential vendors whether they are offered, and whether they can be included in license price. If each user has perpetual access to these without the need for any extra cost this can be a great way of shaving pennies off your training budget.
Support
Depending on your needs, a basic package can be a valuable support tool. Equally, you don’t want to find out, three months into ownership of a new CRM, that the personalized, 24-7 support you thought was included doesn’t exist, and that to get the level of support you want you’ll need to shell out an unexpected amount of cash.
Avoid surprise support costs by asking potential vendors to outline their support offerings in detail. Getting the right level of support for your business is absolutely essential. Support and maintenance is a bad area to cut costs for the sake of it, but by making sure you’re fully informed of what you’re getting for your money, you can budget accordingly.
View the full article at SalesBox.
