Traditionally, customer relationship management (CRM) is one of many different ways in which a company can manage and analyse its own interactions with its customers. Have you ever thought about the way in which CRM solutions could be implemented in government technology to help simplify some of their processes?
CRM systems (think SugarCRM, Salesforce, and HubSpot) use data analysis about a customers’ history with a business to improve relationships with those customers, specifically focusing on customer retention, which, when all goes well, helps to drive sales growth.
Businesses that use a CRM approach and systems can learn more about their target audiences and how to best cater for their needs.
Read more about the basics and how a CRM relates to your company’s growth on our previous blog post.
But it’s not just businesses that can benefit from the use of CRM. The use of Customer Relationship Management can also help government technology. Government Customer Relationship Management needs are, of course, different than those of businesses. They must serve the general public at large and not just profitable customers. CRM solutions for government use often need to integrate with existing government systems.
One of the main benefits of adopting a cloud-based system is that it can help reduce the costs of infrastructure, data storage, maintenance, and security. CRMs can also help contribute to a more efficiently run government as a whole.
One of the most important benefits of government CRM comes in the form of citizen engagement and improving it where possible. Businesses use Customer Relationship Management systems to manage contacts, maintain relationships, arrange follow-ups, and move leads through the sales cycle. This is not entirely dissimilar to local government, but with citizens instead of customers.
Citizens are often looking for self-service areas where they can report issues and requests, such as traffic or construction information. A self-service system is often more accessible for citizens and easier on government agencies. The use of a CRM system can automatically route service requests by department and allow government bodies to free employees from their desks in order to perform other tasks. Ultimately, if valuable government employees didn’t have to sit and respond to requests all day, their labour could be prioritised elsewhere.
Additionally, cloud-based platforms can aid government agencies internally in terms of recruitment and employee retention.
It is widely believed that the key to retaining employees is to have open and active communication between the people at the colloquial “top” and “bottom” or an organisation. CRM is a great way to ensure that this communication is taking place each and every day. CRM systems allow for employees to access various types of engagement resources whenever an issue arises. If needed, an employee can quickly reach the desk of a manager, and vice versa. CRMs allow managers to communicate with employees, update schedules in real time, and automatically assign tasks or cases.
The use of CRM systems are unrivaled in boosting efficiency and productivity, not only within a businesses setting, but within government agencies. CRM systems can help local governments provide service and improve citizen engagement without increasing staff workload.
At the end of the day, efficiency is key, and many government agencies stand to benefit greatly from a well-designed and implemented CRM system.
Want to learn more about implementing a CRM system within your business? Contact us using the form below if you have any questions.
