Sales People Fail Businesses, not CRM Systems

Microsoft Dynamics research Reveals that 60% of Sales Directors see CRM as Fundamental to their Sales Process, yet a Quarter have Lost Customers Directly because of Ineffective Use of CRM Technology

Reading– UK – 27 June 2006 - Research commissioned by Microsoft Dynamics shows that one in six sales directors see customer relationship management technology as fundamental to their sales process. However, the ineffective use of CRM is costing many companies dear.

The research, which surveys 100 sales directors in companies with between 100 and 1000 employees, finds that 56% of respondents do not use their CRM system for sales forecasting – a key strategic benefit of CRM. This may be because many sales teams are not using CRM properly, and as the survey shows, 44% of sales directors say that fewer that 80% of their sales staff are using CRM effectively. In turn, sales directors are doing little to turn the tide: 72% of sales directors tolerate inefficient use of CRM to some extent within their companies and nearly three-quarters (73%) do not discipline sales staff for their failure to use CRM properly.

Inefficient use of CRM is having a severe knock-on impact on respondents’ businesses. Nearly one-quarter (24%) of UK medium-sized businesses have directly lost customers, 48% say they are missing out on potential revenue and one-third have experienced increased levels of customer dissatisfaction due to poor CRM use.

The key barriers to effective CRM use are that sales people don’t like to change the way they work (49% of respondents) and are resistant to new and unfamiliar technologies (37%). If sales directors are to get full benefits from CRM they should therefore consider implementing easy to use and familiar systems to encourage better utilisation. If they don’t facilitate or force their sales people to use CRM properly, sales directors in UK companies ultimately risk losing further potential revenue and more customers as a result.

“Medium-sized businesses are spending £125 million a year on CRM technology¹, but if the systems are not selected to make the sales team’s jobs easier, then this is money wasted,” said Jason Nash, Microsoft Dynamics CRM product manager. “Successful CRM implementation is about much more than just technology. It touches on several other areas, such as change management and defining business processes. If you can tailor your system to look the way you want it to look, and work the way your sales team work, it will move from being seen as a difficult additional process to an integral part of sales success.”

Grosvenor Group, a London-based international property development, investment and fund management group, wanted a CRM solution that could help the company build and maintain strong relationships with clients and business partners worldwide. “To the people who work on the charity side of the business it looks like a customised charity system, when in fact it’s really Microsoft Dynamics CRM,” says Basil Shall, systems director at Grosvenor Group. “We’ve been able to customise Microsoft Dynamics CRM to look as it should look for each area of our global operations. By doing this, our regional offices can use information in a way that’s familiar to them and makes them more productive,” Shall says. “Plus they don’t feel that it’s being imposed on them by those head office people back in London.”

To see a full breakdown of the research figures, please email dynamics@infernopr.com. For more CRM-related information and advice on Microsoft’s dedicated portal for medium-sized businesses go to: http://www.microsoft.com/uk/business/insights/article-customer.aspx

About the research

Microsoft commissioned Loudhouse Research to survey 100 sales directors from mid-market businesses (100-1000 employees) that were using CRM systems in June 2006. For a full breakdown of the results, please contact dynamics@infernopr.com

About Microsoft Dynamics

Microsoft Dynamics is a line of financial, customer relationship and supply chain management solutions that helps businesses work more effectively. Delivered through a network of channel partners providing specialised services, these integrated, adaptable business management solutions work like and with familiar Microsoft software to streamline processes across an entire business.

About Microsoft

Founded in 1975, Microsoft (Nasdaq "MSFT") is the worldwide leader in software, services and solutions that help people and businesses realise their full potential.

Contact information

Journalists should contact The Microsoft Press Centre. Telephone 0870 20 77377, lines are open 9.00am to 6.00pm Monday to Friday.

Customer enquiries should be directed to Microsoft on 0870 6010 100. Opening hours are 8.00am to 6.00pm.

Top of page