How to Choose the Right CRM for a Manufacturing Business

Choosing the correct Customer Relationship Management (CRM) system for a manufacturing business is essential to ensuring that your sales teams are equipped with the necessary tools to manage their processes efficiently. A CRM specifically designed for manufacturing needs to not only have the basic features that sales teams need but also include advanced functionalities that cater to the complexities of the manufacturing industry and its lengthy sales cycle.

Advanced Features in a Manufacturing CRM

A CRM tailored for manufacturing businesses should integrate CPQ (Configure, Price, Quote) features that allow sales teams to configure accurate quotes in real-time based on current ERP data, get them approved, and then send them directly from their Outlook or Gmail inbox. Additionally, a manufacturing CRM should provide a 360-degree view of customer interactions, showing them what previous orders were, how often they order, and what they might need next. This comprehensive view is only possible when customer data is universally connected with the business.

Ensuring Seamless Integration and Compliance

The CRM should be designed by manufacturing professionals with a profound understanding of the industry's unique needs. One key feature to look for is an embedded proprietary CPQ that streamlines the entire sales process. It should also easily integrate with any Enterprise Resource Planning (ERP) and E-commerce systems, ensuring that data flows seamlessly between different departments and platforms.

Manufacturing-specific development should be future-focused, with a roadmap that takes into account the evolving needs of the manufacturing sector. Migration to a cloud-based solution is highly recommended, as it simplifies updates and security patches, making the CRM accessible and secure. Plus, a cloud service like Amazon Web Services (AWS) offers self-contained clients, which means that even a breach would only affect you if the cloud itself is breached through your connection.

Best Practices and Expert Guidance

To help businesses navigate the complexities of choosing the right CRM, Verenia offers a comprehensive guide. This guide is based on our extensive experience in the manufacturing industry and outlines the key features that a CRM for manufacturing should have. You can also define your own requirements based on your specific needs, and we provide a requirements list in Excel format for easy review and customization. This compliance table can be used to send to vendors to ensure that you find the right CRM and the right vendor for your manufacturing business.

To dive deeper into these best practices and to get a comprehensive guide, check out our blog post, where we highlight the key features that a CRM for manufacturing should have and how you can define your own requirements based on your needs.

For more information and expert guidance, visit our blog post.