Why You Should Integrate CRM & Inventory Management
If you’re constantly switching between browsers and none of your systems communicate with each other, it’s time to start looking at integrated solutions. Discover the merits of a CRM solution that integrates with your Inventory Management system and reap the benefits of a stock-aware Sales team.
Are you fed-up of paper documents or over-reliant on Excel for storing valuable customer data? Is the lack of accountability and shareability within your Sales team affecting overall business performance? Then consider integrating inventory to a CRM system to improve data accuracy and overall customer service performance.
So, what is a CRM system and how can integrating your existing inventory management system with CRM software help improve the overall running of your business? Inventory management deals with stock information, shipping details, purchase order history, as well as other functional areas within your workflow, and CRM solutions deals with the tracking of sales, stock levels, managing sales pipeline, and other elements of your sales process like quoting and problem ticketing. By integrating both systems to one solution, you get the best of both worlds!
How CRM Integrates with Inventory Management Software
But how does the integration work and what data is shared across platforms?
A well-integrated CRM solution will enable real-time communication with your back-office inventory management system, allowing data to be seamlessly transferred without any manual processing. Changes to customer or product-related data are updated within their respective system but will also be visible within the central user-interface – say goodbye to the times when you had to switch between systems to update or cross-reference data!
This means, for example, that when a sales order is processed in the CRM, the inventory management system is automatically updated to reflect the new stock levels. It also means that certain workflows can be automated, saving both your time and the customers. For instance, when processing orders, an integrated solution allows your Sales team to instantly check stock availability and prices, generate quotes, and confirm orders, all from within a customer’s CRM record.
Ultimately, this level of readily available data means your Sales, Marketing, and Operations teams (and so on) can fulfil their tasks without being dependent on one another or having to transfer data from separate systems.
Benefits of Integrating CRM and Inventory Management Systems
On the whole, leveraging a CRM system that integrates with inventory management software is essential for driving operational efficiency, maximising average order values, and satisfying customers. The seamless flow of customer and inventory data will not only equip your customer-facing teams with the necessary data for closing sales and nurturing customers, but it’ll also help inform strategic decisions in response to buying behaviours and demand forecasts – this ensures you’re not sat on a surplus of stock or trying to sell products you simply don’t have (either way, you’d be losing money!).
Let’s look in greater detail at some of the key benefits of using an integrated CRM solution.
1. Better understand buying behaviour
Your Inventory Management system will be packed full of order and stock information. This allows for your Sales team to have access to customer-specific information and a better understanding of customer buying patterns, sales history, special pricing, and so on. Having access to this range of data increases visibility of a customer’s buying journey and enables your Sales team to gather fruitful insights and better manage and track changes in spend habits - so that they can provide the highest quality of service possible. In turn, your business will benefit from more streamlined operations and improved business productivity.
2. Storage of critical customer information
Having insightful customer information at your disposal puts your company a step above the rest. With access to critical customer information, the sales process can be tailored to provide exactly what your customers need.
Not only can the Sales team benefit from this, but Customer Service teams will also have access to all the customer’s critical data stored in the CRM, such as phone number and job title, so they too can instantly retrieve information without rummaging through paper work or sieving through spreadsheets; reducing response times and increasing customer satisfaction. Additionally, with one integrated software package, even if something unanticipated happens, company information and data will remain securely stored and the organisation can continue to run smoothly.
3. Automated processes reduce errors in data entry
Before CRMs and high-level integration existed, companies were heavily reliant on paper documents. With an integrated CRM solution, however, businesses can now streamline operations to automate output and enhance productivity. This move to incorporate CRM software with Inventory Management is today becoming an imperative step for businesses to improve their teams’ understanding of various stages within their customers’ buying journey.
The reduction of manual processes is achieved by replacing the error-prone and labour-intensive transfer of data from spreadsheets and apps with one integrated software package. Reducing errors in data entry will not only streamline business processes, but also improve customer satisfaction.
Research has shown that 80% of marketers highlighted the role of automation in attracting new leads and generating conversions - according to whom, the chances of converting leads are nine times more likely if a customer is responded to within five minutes. So, having a CRM system that not only integrates with your back-office system to display up-to-date data, but also has automated functionalities such as email templates or sending alerts when a customer’s logged a problem, is transformative for driving greater lead conversion rates.
4. Improved, long lasting customer relationships
Delivering great customer service within a product business is essential to retaining customers for longer. But with disparate systems, customer-facing teams can’t perform optimally in their role. Whether it’s advising a customer what’s in stock and what’s not, being prompted about a customer that hasn’t ordered in a while, or honouring special pricing for a quote to a regular customer, CRM integration can improve the customer experience at every touchpoint.
Other key benefits include:
- Efficiency of operations: all of your data from order history to customer records is stored in one location, so anyone in your team can access it at any time, from any place.
- Allows Sales team to become stock-aware: stock-aware CRM systems extract crucial data from your Inventory Management system so your Sales team can make informed and data-driven decisions.
- Improved reporting: Integrated CRM solutions provide configurable reporting systems so you can keep on top of the most important metrics for your business.
- An overall increase in sales velocity: Integrated CRM systems are designed specifically for sales-driven teams to maximise sales growth and optimise their workflow.
How to Build the Ultimate Tech Stack
In today’s fast-paced environment, building a tech stack that’ll not only meet the demands of your day-to-day operations, but also scale with growth, is more crucial than ever. But to reiterate, the ultimate tech stack isn’t simply having multiple software solutions; it’s about how they integrate with one another to seamlessly share data. With integration at the core of a stock-aware CRM system, you’ll remove the challenges posed by data silos and have ungated access to features specifically designed for optimal processing in the B2B wholesale, manufacturing, or distribution industry.
For example, operating in an industry where selling hundreds or thousands of units of stock is a daily occurrence, ensuring your Sales team have real-time visibility of your stock availability and pricing is crucial for generating accurate quotes and quickly processing orders. It takes one small, outdated figure to disrupt your supply chain, yet the consequences won’t be so minor! So, looking for a CRM that’ll integrate with your inventory management system to centralise order management functionalities is a must if you’re looking to optimise your quote-to-order workflow - even benefit from reduced admin time as your inventory management system automatically adjusts stock levels once a sale’s been processed in the CRM.
Another reason why a CRM that integrates with your inventory management system is essential for building the ultimate tech stack is for access to features that allow accurate stock control. Operating in an industry where buying trends fluctuate and your stock may become outdated (or worse, perish), ensuring you have a holistic view of your stock along with an accurate demand forecast is key. When your CRM communicates with your inventory management, you’ll have a powerful tool that informs decision making by aligning your sales forecasts with up-to-date inventory data and production capacity. This ensures timely responses to high-priority opportunities and minimises stock discrepancies.
Investing in a new system is a big commitment (both financially and timely), and we recognise that the process of searching for that ‘best fitting’ system can be long-winded. But you can’t assess whether a CRM is well-suited for your business by simply relying on company websites or word-of-mouth – you’ve got to trial the product itself. That’s why Prospect CRM offers a product demo and integrated trial at no cost, so you can navigate CRM features in real-time and assess how the two systems work in tandem before committing.
Integrate your inventory management system with Prospect CRM to form one, seamless solution. Get in touch with our Sales team or start a 14-day free trial now!
