How to write CRM specifications & downloadable template
The implementation of a CRM tool begins with the drafting of a CRM specification.
This essential step defines the company's objectives in this area, the scope of action for the sales force and marketing department, and all the criteria needed to qualify its needs and uses in terms of customer relationship management.
How can you ensure the success of your project ?
By using our CRM specifications template, available as a free download in this article, before comparing and implementing CRM software.
Why write a CRM specification?
Customer relationship management can't be improvised, and neither can the choice of CRM software.
The purpose of a specification is to serve as a reference for the implementation of your CRM solution. It's a roadmap that sets out precisely how the CRM software will be used.
Basically, this reference document must answer the following questions:
- What is the purpose of CRM?
- A CRM, for whom?
- For what purpose?
- How should it be used?
- When and in what cases should it be used?
When you draw up your CRM specifications, you define :
- your company's objectives,
- expected results,
- the users concerned by the CRM solution,
- the needs of the sales team,
- the needs of the marketing department,
- the roles of each team,
- interactions between each department,
- interoperability requirements with other software already in place in your organization.
How do you draw up your CRM specifications?
5 steps to follow
There are 5 steps to drawing up a well-thought-out specification, during which you need to answer a number of questions to identify the tool best suited to your CRM project.
Step 1: Presentation of your company and its activities
- Administrative information about your company,
- Company presentation,
- Overall corporate strategy.
Step 2: Details of CRM project objectives and challenges
- Presentation of existing situation,
- Establishment of measurable objectives,
- Consideration of all issues,
- Priority and desired functionalities.
Step 3: Describe the business processes envisaged
- Services and missions of the various departments,
- Customer relationship management processes,
- Data access.
Step 4: Integration of existing data and technical resources
- Integration of existing data,
- Integration of the CRM solution with existing tools.
Step 5: Implementation of the CRM project within the company
- Contacts for the CRM project,
- Budget and schedule,
- Identification of training needs.
CRM specifications template to download
This free CRM specifications template, in PDF format, is your guide to drafting.
By following our advice, you'll ensure that you choose a CRM solution that meets your criteria, particularly with regard to :
- technical issues,
- functionality
- cost/budget,
- planning aspects.
A few additional tips for your CRM specifications
It's advisable to adopt the following 3 behaviors to better write your specifications:
- Complete the customer journey.
- Involve your staff in the writing process.
- Question usage rather than functionality.
💡 Note that it is also possible to call on the CRM software publisher itself for support in defining your specifications.
🛠️ Cirrus Shield, for example, 100% customizable CRM software, offers a packaged consulting approach. This means you benefit from their expertise in deploying your solution (design of specifications, solution parameterization, data migration, developments specific to your needs, user training, etc.).
🛠 Divalto weavy, another example of CRM, offers a CRM specification template and dedicates a team to supporting you in your project, from simple information to the deployment of your tool. The solution is designed to adapt as closely as possible to your needs, and offers numerous possibilities for connection with management software.
Which CRM software to choose?
Once you've drawn up your CRM specifications, it's time to compare the functionalities of the different CRM software packages on the market , to choose the one best suited to your company's needs.
💡 Some interesting features or modules to look out for depending on your expectations:
- Contact management: manage duplicates in your database, this is the minimum requirement. Being able to segment your lists allows you to go much further in personalizing your offers.
- Multi-channel integration: whatever the point of contact established with a customer (telephone, point of sale, social networks, etc.), you centralize data and interactions.
- Sales management: there's nothing better than sales tracking functionalities combined with an opportunity tracking module to effectively manage sales activity.
- Business intelligence: by exploiting artificial intelligence, you benefit from better customer knowledge and anticipate sales opportunities. Improve your sales processes.
- Marketing tools: you can connect your CRM tool to an emailing solution to send targeted campaigns, or a marketing automation module to automate your transactional emails and help prospects mature in the sales funnel. The inbound marketing favored by BtoB customers is indeed a relationship marketing practice that leads to purchase, especially for long sales cycles.
Updated article, originally published in December 2017.