The definition of contact management is simple: it’s the process of recording and managing contact details. A business can achieve this through a contact management system (CMS). Different versions of a CMS offer different functions and capabilities.
If you want to learn more about the definition of contact management and details about the various systems available, keep reading. We’ll break down the unique features of a functional CMS, how implementing a CMS can help your business, and why it’s worth investing in call centers to assist with contact management.
Why Would You Want a Contact Management System?
The purpose of a CMS is to organize and manage contacts more effectively. While most communication goes through digital channels, a business still needs a place to store all the names and contact information of clients, leads, and other contacts. Exchanging business cards is still common in many industries, but keeping track of the cards once you get them is tough.
Even the most basic customer management system allows you to input the following details about contacts:
- Name
- Email address
- Phone number
- Physical address
- Company name
- Role within company
A customer management system may allow you to share this information with employees to streamline the entire marketing and sales process.
Additional Features of a CMS
Along with the capabilities outlined above, a contact management system may include additional features and functionality. Each platform will have its own list of capabilities, but some of the most common features include:
Tools to list and organize contact information- Organization tools, such as tags, groups, and fields
- Search functionality
- Mobile access
- Phone and email integration
- Reports
- Dashboards
- Connection to social networking services (SNS)
Benefits of a Contact Management System
Beyond improving organization, many additional benefits come with using a CMS for your business.
Happier Customers
When your business has all the information about a customer on hand, it’s easier to provide better customer service. Customers will appreciate feeling like they don’t have to repeat themselves and that the business cares enough to keep track of their information.
Customer experience is one of the most common reasons customers stay with or leave a business. It’s so crucial to business success that 85% of business buyers and 79% of consumers rate experience as being just as important as the product or service they plan to purchase.
Enhanced Team Organization
With a contact management system in place, you can improve the way your team organizes critical data. Employees no longer have to scramble to find information because it’s all in one easily accessible place. Plus, employees won’t have to ask customers for information more than once.
Improving organization allows your team to provide enhanced customer service while giving them access to important data. Customers hate repeating the same details to every new support representative that joins the call. According to research performed by Salesforce, 65% of consumers have to re-explain their situation to a different representative.
Increased Sales
By improving your company’s organization and providing better customer service, you’ll likely see an increase in sales. Customers who feel satisfied with their experiences usually become repeat customers, and it’s more profitable to keep current customers than seek out new ones.
Still skeptical about the importance of keeping customers happy? A recent report put out by Bain & Company showed that a 5% increase in customer retention can result in over 25% more sales.
Understand the Limitations
While a contact management system is helpful, there are some limitations. Many people see it as a database to store information, integrating the data with other systems like customer relationship management (CRM) systems. When you understand the limitations and capabilities of a CMS, you can utilize it more effectively.
Difference Between CM and CMR
Now that you know the definition of contact management, it’s helpful to understand the difference between contact management and customer relationship management. Contact management and customer relationship management tend to get mixed up among users, but they have unique functions and capabilities.
Contact management focuses on gathering and organizing the contact information for customers, prospects, leads, and other business contacts. Some systems also include functionality that allows users to include notes about the contact. But beyond that capability, it’s up to the user to use the information and actively foster relationships.
Customer relationship management systems focus on managing the existing relationships a business and its employees have developed with customers. A customer relationship management system typically has more advanced functionality than a CMS.
A CRM system may include some of the same features as those found in a CMS, but might be able to gather more data and offer additional tools for customer engagement and sales. Some systems can even automate certain tasks to nurture relationships.
A CMS may be the ideal solution for a newer business that doesn’t have the budget (or need) for a complex CRM system. Managing contact information is highly valuable, especially when a small business is forming relationships and communicating with its customer base.
How Call Centers Can Help with Contact Management and Customer Relationships
As mentioned before, contact management systems are highly useful for gathering, organizing, and storing information about your customers. But the business is responsible for fostering and maintaining customer relationships, which can take time, money, and effort.
Instead of wasting these precious resources, consider outsourcing customer relationship tasks to a call center. The employees in a call center can put in the effort to maintain customer relationships and provide support. They can even follow up with potential leads generated by your marketing or sales team.
ROI Call Center Solutions Can Help Foster Customer Relationships
Using a call center to handle all support calls is a smart business decision, regardless of company size or industry. Partnering with ROI Call Center Solutions is an even smarter business move.
We’re much more than just a simple call center; we train our employees on everything they need to know about your business and customers to provide the highest level of service. Through focus groups, surveys, and market analysis, our experienced team members can help garner a better picture of the future of your business. We can also help with generating and following up with potential leads to gain you more business.
If you’re ready to improve your company’s success, find out how a partnership with ROI Call Center Solutions can benefit you. We can answer any questions about call center outsourcing or provide a cost estimate based on your business needs.