We’ve been working with Selltis user Andon Specialties, a manufacturer’s representative and distributor of process automation, analytical and fluid handling products, to help them improve their return on investment in CRM.
One major initiative for Andon has been giving them a 360-degree view of their growing business by integrating their existing CRM system with their ERP, Prophet 21. This has helped them gain fuller visibility into their organization. In many ways, this integration is the holy grail of getting maximum ROI from CRM, but it’s hard work and there are plenty of hurdles along the way.
We recently spoke with Andon’s vice president of operations, Keith Rainwater, on the lessons he’s learned from the experience:
- Get everyone on the same page, including representatives from your sales, HR, system, IT and other teams, from the start, “then work on it consistently week-to-week to drive it home,” Rainwater said.
- Find your champions. While there is value in having a representative from every department on your CRM team, they won’t need to attend every meeting. Rainwater said it was helpful to identify “two or three key folks” to attend meetings and drive action.
- Touch the project regularly. “Really do your best to stay focused on it and stress that you’re working on things on a weekly basis. It’s really difficult when you’re working on things for a few days and you don’t touch them again for a month and then you pick it back up, because you’re having to relearn, go back and revisit,” Rainwater said.
- Realize that the technology must fit your company, not the other way around. “You have to know who you are first and then you’ve got to mold the solution,” Rainwater said, making any needed customizations as early on as possible. “Get that clear in your head first. You don’t want to be shifting on the fly.”
- Take baby steps. “You’re not going to be able to do everything overnight,” Rainwater said. Having a tool fully implemented on the technology side doesn’t mean that it’s been fully implemented culturally. And it would be impossible to accomplish all of your goals right from the start. “Get the basics in place,” he said. “You don’t try to hit a home run on the first pitch.”
Download the Andon case study to learn more about their journey with CRM, and visit our testimonials page for more client stories.