Customer Management Tools When was the last time that you sorted your e-mail address book? Most people never do - it's time consuming and tedious. However, e-mail is perhaps the most-abused tool that can be used for customer management. This article suggests several resources that can make the management of your customer relationships much easier. Taking advantage of such tools will help you make a concerted effort at improving customer management. E-mail, Telephone, and Postal Mail Your three fundamental tools for customer management are the three most common routes of business communication. E-mail, telephone, and postal mail should be exploited to build and maintain relationships with your customers. Let's take the phone first. Pick up the phone right now, call your top five customers, and thank them for doing business with you. When was the last time that you took 45 seconds out to do this? Next, assemble a list of business contacts to call on regular basis - say hello, ask how they like your products/services, and if you can offer them anything else. You'd be surprised how often this leads to an extra sale. Use postal mail and e-mail with caution - try not to spam your clients. However, a well-written newsletter, company brief, or other document sent every few months will remind customers that your business is doing well because of them. Your Calendar Planning and recording each interaction with a customer is critical to good customer management. Set regular deadlines for customer "touches", and use your calendar to track each time you called, entertained, or sold to a client. Take it up a notch by noting important dates for your contacts - birthdays, fiscal year-ends, and corporate anniversaries are excellent times to drop your client a line. Business Newspapers and Magazines Odds are you already read business publications, but probably just to keep an eye on your own business. Train yourself to scan business papers for news that might affect your customer's company. Just as a buyout or layoffs can warn you about when not to place a sales call, expansions or new contracts for your customer's company indicate when it's time to go in for the kill. Also use business papers to investigate your customer's collaborators and competitors - perhaps these companies need your product or service as well. The Internet The web should be one of your primary tools for sales research. Why not use it to help manage customer relationships? News articles, financial statements, and the company web site are often excellent indicators of what kind of business your customer is really doing. Google the company, Google the contact, and you'd be surprised how much useful information can appear. Promotional Materials Promotions are an obvious but proven way to keep the customer relationship going strong. A mouse pad or T-shirt with your company name will serve as a subtle of your relationship. Take it up a notch by getting creative with your promotions. Your customer probably has a dozen notepads from vendors; one more isn't going to stand out. Regardless, promotions keep your customer happy because - hey - everyone likes free stuff. Partners in Bribery If you really want to take this to the next level, partner with a local donut shop, ice cream store, or florist. They'll be happy to deliver food or flowers on your behalf, and probably wouldn't mind pasting one of your business cards on the box or vase. Generosities like this are cost-effective but sincere reminders that you value the business relationship. CRM Software You knew this was coming - we always stick CRM software in the mix. In all seriousness, though, customer relationship management software can be the key to building and keeping business relationships. It saves you time, keeps you in line, and often offers perspectives on your customer relations that you hadn't considered. You don't even have to use our product, Web Cliento, to get a taste of how powerful a customer management tool CRM software can be.   New To CRM? CRM software FAQ Advantages of web software Choosing a CRM solution About Web Cliento Top 10 Reasons to Try It AppShore On Demand Browser Requirements Security Standards   Get a free trial View the online demo   Copyright 2006 by Erudite Systems, Inc.

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