Why Marketers Should Measure Performance Using a Native CRM Tool
Learn how a native CRM tool helps marketers streamline data performance.
Brianna Perkins, Director of Marketing, Full Circle Insights, shares why a single measurement tool within your CRM that integrates all collected data is the best way to reorganize your data and minimize error. She also shares tips for marketers to streamline their data without reducing their efforts to fewer platforms.
Measuring performance at business-to-business (B2B) organizations can be complicated. B2B companies typically have longer, more complex sales cycles than those selling to consumers. There are usually more people involved in the purchase decision in B2B, an average of six to 10 customers in different roles who have researched products or services independently.
Customer relationship management (CRM) platforms help B2B companies manage complexity. CRM systems serve as the revenue system of record, and CRM data is broadly credible across departments. Business units like marketing also tend to use point solutions for various activities, including digital marketing, which can result in scattered data, making it difficult to produce accurate metrics.
A single measurement tool inside the CRM is a great way to integrate all your company’s data to minimize manual errors, improve process efficiency and generate reports with meaningful insights. Here’s a closer look at the business case for using a single measurement tool within the CRM to measure B2B company performance and open new possibilities for collaboration.
Creating a Single Source of Data Truth
In 2011, there were about 150 martech solutions. This year, that number will probably surpass 10,000. Marketing teams at B2B companies may have a handful of point solutions or more than a hundred; as such, it’s critical to consolidate information from multiple sources onto a single platform that creates a source of data truth that everyone can trust.
The CRM system is the ideal platform to serve as this source of data truth. Using one measurement tool built natively on the CRM system and allowing you to integrate data from multiple sources can help reduce human error drastically from manual data input. A single tool could also mitigate risks for privacy regulation noncompliance by centralizing data on a platform that guarantees compliance with regulations like Personally Identifiable Information (PII).
Another advantage is that this approach enables companies to streamline or prospect transitions from one business unit to another, ultimately creating an enhanced experience for the prospect. For example, if the marketing team uses a CRM-based tool to track leads or monitor account activation in the sales funnel, team members know when to hand the lead over to sales for follow-up.
When the sales team closes a deal, they can transition the new customer to the customer success team. With the CRM system serving as a single source of truth, everyone has access to the data, allowing the company to serve customers more seamlessly at every touchpoint.
See More: A Guide To Slicing and Dicing Your CRM Data
Using Data to Improve Investment and Process Efficiency
With a shared source of data truth and alignment on key metrics that describe the buyer journey, internal teams operate more efficiently by seamlessly transitioning customers, and they also have an opportunity to improve efficiency internally. For example, a measurement tool in the CRM that allows marketing to track leads or accounts across the buying journey gives marketers insight into which campaigns are most effective at generating revenue so they can allocate budget dollars accordingly.
In addition to more efficient investment of resources, a single measurement tool in the CRM instance can improve process efficiency by pinpointing bottlenecks like handoff issues. If leads or activated accounts aren’t progressing when marketing forwards qualified leads or activated accounts, the marketing and sales teams can come together and improve processes.
In business, time is money, and leaders need insight on where to invest employees’ time as well as how to allocate budget dollars best. A measurement tool that provides insights into investment and process efficiency allows you to optimize budgets and team productivity in real-time.
Reporting That Illustrates Progress
By integrating information from multiple sources in the CRM as a single source of data truth, a performance measurement tool improves accuracy by reducing human error introduced by manual processes. Alignment around key metrics also provides opportunities for departments to work together to optimize processes and allocate resources to achieve greater efficiency.
Every business unit needs a way to monitor its contributions to revenue, i.e., “defend the spend,” Organizations as a whole need to understand their progress toward annual goals to correct course if necessary. A single measurement tool in the CRM can align teams and the B2B organization around key reporting metrics that cohesively monitor progress toward objectives.
In this way, the single performance measurement tool can also provide accurate reporting that delivers insight into the buyer journey, pipeline and revenue. When all the data is accessible across the organization, business unit leaders can see how their efforts contribute to revenue and gain insight into company performance toward annual goals.
A single source of data truth unifies information across business units and illuminates the customer experience, and that’s crucial information for every leader within the organization. The good news is that most B2B companies already have a CRM instance that helps them handle their complex sales cycle. Now they need a single measurement tool that’s built natively on the CRM to bring it all together.
How are you using CRM data to measure your marketing performance ? Share with us on Facebook, Twitter, and LinkedIn . We’d love to hear from you!
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