Defining key objectives and measures of success

Now you have a detailed understanding of the business-wide drivers for change, it is time to set some objectives. This is often best achieved by defining specific ways in which you will measure the success of your new CRM system.

Examples of success measures include the following:

• To increase the conversion rate of lead to deal by 50% within 3 months
• To have the ability to measure our ROI on marketing
• To know how many times per year we have communicated with existing clients
• To have visibility of how many/which products each of our clients has
• All quotes, orders, and jobs paperwork will be replaced with electronic documentation
• Our operations team will be reminded when every service is due in advance so this can be scheduled and completed on time
• To increase first-year retention of members from 40% (current level) to 60% within 2 years
• To have the ability to measure where leads have come from
• To have the ability to measure conversion rates (from inquiry to customer)
• To provide the sales management team with complete visibility of the pipeline
• To provide senior management with a weighted forecast of the pipeline
• To have the ability to break down sales performance by territory/area and target areas for improvement
• To replace several spreadsheets and Outlook contact directories that are currently used in the business with a single central database accessible by all the team

  Tip

  Write down at least five specific ways in which you will measure the success of your new CRM system. This will help you to prove when your goals have been met.

Once you know what success looks like, you are ready to think about how to start designing your new CRM in Zoho and, specifically, the foundation modules.