- Sales are slowing and most businesses respond by chasing new leads
- Your CRM already holds previous clients, stalled quotes and opportunities
- Zoho CRM can surface them with saved views, workflows and Zoho Analytics
- None of it works unless your data can be trusted
- Want a second set of eyes? Book a Free CRM Account
Sales are slowing. Uncertainty is everywhere. When revenue dips, the instinct is to either cut costs or buy more leads. Buying more leads can be through spending more or using another platform. You feel good that you have done something and you can demonstrate the data in the next meeting. But is spending more the right solution?
Few businesses stop to check the one asset they already own. Your database is the pot of gold and you have been standing on it all along.
What is already in your database?
Open your CRM and look for four groups of people.
- Past clients who have gone silent for 12 months. They know your company, your products, services and they trust you. An outbound call does not cost anything, certainly when compared to new business
- Quotes that went quiet. Unless the project was shelved, most quotes were not lost. Probably there was no follow up. Even if the sale was lost, someone who asked for a price can still be a potential buyer on their next project
- Customers who bought only one service. Most multi-product or service companies sell only one product or service. Product or service specific salespeople don’t usually promote other products. However, if the client uses one of your product or service, there is a high chance they would be happy to use another
- Contacts who opened every email but never got a call. Data is important not just for reports, but for insights. Clients have been clicking your emails and reading your content but they have not been contacted. A short call can change them into a repeat customer
How Zoho CRM gives eyes to see the gold
You do not need a complex setup to find the above. Create three features in your database.
- Saved views. Build a view of clients with no activity in six months. It takes about five minutes and gives your team a readymade call list
- Workflows. Set up automated reminders and follow up tasks for deals that have gone quiet. This can be a team setup so it becomes a requirement, not something to remember occasionally
- Analytics. Combine purchase history with engagement to spot upsell ready clients. You stop guessing who to call next and start working from evidence
See how Relevate can set up Zoho CRM for growing businesses.
Why none of it works without clean data
A saved view is only as good as the data behind it. Clean your data frequently. Duplicate contacts, missing fields and outdated details can cause more confusion in reports and workflows.
The solution is to treat your database like a single source of truth. Marketing, sales, support and management should be able to see every client with the same history and the same status. There should not be different spreadsheets or guessing which version is right.
Do an audit based on the below questions:
- How many duplicate records do we have?
- How many contacts have no owner?
- How many records have no activity date?
- Which key fields are regularly left blank?
If the answers are not available or confusing, this is a good place to start.
Why a slower market is the right time
Quieter periods mean more time for introspection. Instead of adding more money into new business, spend a few weeks looking inward.
Keep it simple because it works:
- Clean the data
- Segment the four groups above
- Set up one follow up workflow
Small traction from existing clients can add revenue in lean times. They also create an additional stream when the market picks up.
Want a second set of eyes?
Sometimes the quickest way to see what is in your CRM is to have someone else look at it. Relevate offers a free CRM review covering data quality, clients, quotes and upsell gaps.
The market may be uncertain, but your database is not. The gold is already there and the only question is when you pick it up.
