Excel has been used for years for different processes in companies. One of them: managing customers.

What happens when times change? Why don't we recommend managing your customers with Excel?

The tool has advantages such as being known and understood by almost anyone. In addition, it is a traditional method that can be found in the comfort of every computer. But, it has disadvantages that hinder productivity in companies.

Disadvantages. Not possible:

• Work collaboratively online. Since it is not a Cloud tool.
• Automate tasks. The tool requires manual data uploading which takes extra hours of work and where there is the possibility of making mistakes (with data that must be protected by legal regulations). Even if you have an online store it is necessary to download your customer database in CSV from time to time to keep the list updated.
• Develop campaigns from Excel. The database must be exported to an email.
• Schedule automatic mailings or mailingsto different groups of customers/contacts.

So... With Excel you exploit the potential of your company?

There are tools specially designed to manage relationships with customers and contacts. As the name Customer Relationship Management indicates, CRM software was created for this purpose and has some advantages compared to Excel.

At Expertizen, we use Zoho CRM, one of the most widely used CRMs. What are its advantages?

Cloud Tool 

Being in the cloud, it can be interconnected with other systems (e.g. ERP, online store) and perform processes with a few clicks. In addition, it allows to have all the information centralized and in real time. In this case, the database is not fed manually, which reduces the probability of errors in data loading, segmentation or sending campaigns.

Collaboration

A CRM software allows you to work in a team and to know the history of changes that were made by others. It makes it possible to make comments, assign tasks, opportunities and customer follow-ups. Each user can have a role and assigned permissions. In higher versions, it is even possible to assign geographic territories to each salesperson/user, preventing everyone from having access to the same information. In addition, the tool can connect to your email service to visualize the team's email exchange with contacts associated with opportunities or customers.

Simplicity

Everything is at your fingertips. Zoho CRM has a user-friendly interface to visualize the phases of the sales process, the percentage of success in each of them, the assigned tasks, among others. Not only is the daily visualization user-friendly, but it also allows you to generate customized reports and dashboards. If you are currently working with Excel, it is possible to import files efficiently and quickly, without generating problems.

Automation

Save time and gain productivity by automating repetitive tasks. These include sending emails, scheduling tasks and updating required fields. You can set up and customize workflows and approval rules.

Having Zoho CRM will save you time, increase your productivity and make your company successful in business deals. We are not kidding when we say that its interface is simple and has a great reach behind it.

In addition, you will be able to centralize marketing efforts to know exactly what deals were obtained through them. Obtaining reports from different departments.

At Expertizen, we are official Zoho partners. We can offer demonstrations, implementations, custom configurations and training for companies in the use of their tools.