Why Free CRM Software is a Game Changer for SMEs

The productivity of customer relationships characterizes the success of a business. Among modern effective solutions, free CRM software is singled out, which is able to fully automate work processes at the enterprise. It is worth noting that specialized CRM systems are being created for large concerns, and small and medium-sized businesses choose software from a ready-made assortment. In this article we will talk about the need to implement free CRM software.

Small and medium-sized businesses: features and differences 

Before diving into the study of the structure of CRM systems, let’s highlight the main features and differences between small and medium-sized businesses. Conditionally, this gradation looks like this:

  • Medium-sized business — the company’s management staff, employees, technical staff, the possibility of attracting investments, opening branches.
  • A small business owner works for himself, and attracts a small number of employees, including freelancers. 

That is, the differences are in the specifics and scope of activities. For example, a small business owner can sell a service remotely. He hires staff in an online format, registers them for hire in accordance with the current legislation. At the same time, the owner usually independently delves into all management processes, controls the turnover of funds and other positions. 

Medium-sized businesses are the gap between small and large. Such companies have a certain staff, the head delegates part of the obligations to subordinates, attracts investments and systematically expands activities. 

Accordingly, when choosing free CRM software, it is necessary to take into account the specifics of business graduation. The modern software market offers universal system products. For example, Bitrix24 is suitable for SMEs and is available for free to an unlimited number of users. 

Free CRM software: advantages for SMEs

The abbreviation CRM literally means customer relationship management. These are application-type software tools that automate the marketing directions of business structures. Modern developments in the field of free CRM software allow you to optimize the entire work of the company, speed up and reduce the cost of almost any workflow. Let’s look at the key advantages of implementing this software in small and medium-sized businesses.

Automation and optimization 

Algorithms of system CRM products automate various work tasks. Modern software offers different options: optimization of routine actions and complicated events. Automation covers all areas of work — manages marketing processes, compiles and analyzes reports on sales results, concluded transactions. 

Breakthrough improvements in company management are possible with the introduction of a suitable CRM. Small and medium-sized businesses need to choose free CRM software that automate the control of transactions, improve the formulation of work tasks for managers, make reports and plan a budget. 

Work on bugs 

Quite often, the company simply loses customers without knowing about it. This error is relevant for medium-sized businesses, but even in small businesses there are shortcomings that are not noticed in time. The problem looks like this: 

  • Customer records are kept manually in an Excel spreadsheet.
  • The ratio of orders and direct sales is not analyzed.
  • Comparison of losses for adjacent time periods is not carried out. 

In fact, even one department of a company can work without proper interconnection and be the cause of losses. You can quickly fix this error with the help of the introduction of free CRM software. After entering the settings, the system product will analyze sales, demand and other parameters, providing regular statistics and analytics. The search for a universal CRM system often leads to Bitrix24, because this software offers free functionality and handles many marketing tasks. 

Budget savings 

Do you want to reduce advertising costs or reduce the number of staff? Install free CRM software and enjoy increased profits. 

With the help of CRM, you can configure advertising in an effective format. That is, the program selects the most productive niches for promotion and bypasses useless ones. You will not pay for ads that are meaninglessly displayed on the Web and do not increase sales.

Implementation of CRM systems: for or against

Small business owners usually save money for investments, trying to make sales without unnecessary costs. Therefore, a natural question arises: is it possible to do without CRM? 

The uncertainty of this topic is also relevant for medium-sized businesses, since free CRM software offers limited opportunities. At the same time, businessmen do not want to buy paid packages of services, considering them impractical. Let’s look into it in detail and find the answer to the question. 

What CRM gives to owners of small and medium-sized businesses:

  • A reduction in the number of employees.
  • Organization of company management.
  • Optimization of advertising.
  • Document flow ordering.
  • Analysis of the work of the staff.

The effectiveness of advertising campaigns. 

Accordingly, if you refuse to implement free CRM software, you will expect to receive unforeseen advertising costs, staff errors that entail an outflow of customers, and other negative aspects. In addition, you can use the free CRM format — agree, this is the main argument for the implementation of this software. 

An example of optimizing small and medium-sized businesses using free CRM 

There are highly targeted and universal CRM systems. For example, you should like the Bitrix24 software. The system product is universal, suitable for implementation in small business structures and medium-sized enterprises. 

The free functionality of Bitrix24 is available to an unlimited number of users. That is, you will be able to fully test the software before implementation, evaluate the strengths and weaknesses. The versatility of Bitrix24 lies in the settings that can be implemented for a specific business. 

This free CRM software automates work with clients regarding correspondence, telephony, sending notifications. The developers have provided for the possibility of analytics, reporting and integration with various services. 

In which cases do you necessarily need free CRM software?

Keeping daily records is necessary and mandatory for any business. But depending on the volume of turnover, sales and the size of the audience, different free CRM software will be used. When a company has no more than 10 clients, it is enough to keep records in an Excel spreadsheet, where general access is provided for management and profile employees. 

Sometimes this will be enough to track the stages of the sales funnel relative to each client and the volume of requests received — calls, notifications, correspondence by email. However, it is worth noting that at the slightest failure, inaccuracy or error of an employee, problems will increase and you will have to manually process a huge amount of information. Therefore, we recommend installing free CRM software. 

If your company can boast of a sufficiently large number of customers, the introduction of CRM is necessary. The old scheme using Excel spreadsheets will no longer work due to increasing sales volumes and cooperation with suppliers. Either you install free CRM software, or you will be forced to expand the staff of marketers, accountants and other employees to cover and process information. 

Business can’t cope without CRM: signs 

We recommend paying attention to the alarming business signals that indicate the need for automation:

  • The document flow has increased and there has been a loss of information.
  • Business processes are fully formed and conducted manually.
  • The target audience is increasing and the staff is not coping with the service of new customers in a timely manner. 
  • A large number of applications come from different sources. 
  • The burden on the company’s employees increases and contributes to the appearance of human errors. 

Marketing professionals say that most of the management of small and medium-sized businesses is based on intuition. This approach may work at the start of a business project, but there is a high probability of errors in the future. This is a human factor that can be upgraded with the help of free CRM software without harming the company. 

Conclusion 

CRM implementation trends in small and medium-sized businesses are an automated approach to all work processes. You get uninterrupted sales, systematic attraction of a new audience and will be able to track the dynamics of the development of your own business. Give preference to universal software products like Bitrix24 CRM, test software, configure and optimize your business according to your desires.