Using CRM for Effective Lead Management

A recent article by CRM Solutions highlighted 8 factors to consider when evaluating CRM for effective lead management. Using this article we have presented below 4 ways that businesses can use ACT! to improve lead management.

Effective Lead management in ACT!

1. Capture all the information you need, including the sources of your leads
   Most leads are not ready to purchase on the day they are first contacted. Capturing all the information you require to help your leads will ensure you are better prepared when it comes time to contact them again. Understanding where your leads are coming from is also important to help identify where to look for new leads.
   
   How to achieve this in ACT!:
   • Make sure all of the data you want to capture can be placed in appropriate fields – if required, create your own fields and place them strategically in your layout.
   • Make key fields compulsory, doing this means data has to be entered in the field before a contact record can be saved.
   • Always ask your leads how they heard about you and record this in a “Lead source” field.
   
    
2. Determine which leads are most worthwhile to your business
   All leads are not created equal. Evaluating leads using criteria defined and understood by the entire business can help sales people focus on the leads with the highest potential for success.
   
   How to achieve this in ACT!:
   • Score leads according to their level of motivation & committment to purchase. For example an “A” lead would be highly motivated whereas a “D” lead would not be.
   • Use the ACT! Opportunities area to determine what stage of the sales pipeline your lead is in and the potential value of the sale. When prioritising sales efforts use the Stage and Weighted Value fields to determine which leads are worth pursuing.
   
    
3. Nurture leads by keeping regular contact and providing useful information
   Leads that have high potential but are not yet ready to purchase must be nurtured. To do this businesses must understand where they are in their decision making process and provide the right information at the right time.
   
   How to achieve this in ACT!:
   • Sign leads up to your newsletter and/or use drip-marketing - where you send a series of emails containing small, useful pieces of information to help them with their decision.
   • Use Smart Tasks to ensure leads are contacted regularly. You may wish to use the lead score as a criteria. For example, follow up all "A" leads if last reach is more than 1 month, and follow up all "D" leads if last reach is more than 6 months.
   • Continually evaluate your leads motivation to buy and modify their score accordingly.
   
    
4. Report on key business metrics & use this to improve your processes
   All businesses use past information to make decisions about the future. You can use ACT! Reporting tools and addons to identify patterns and set benchmarks for lead conversion and sales. For example use reports to:
   • Identify which lead source is the most effective (# of leads, value of sales)
   • Determine how long it takes a typical lead to convert to a customer and see if this is influenced by the product/service or lead source
   • See which sales people are converting the most leads and generating the most sales
   • Identify seasonal buying patterns to find out which months are best for sales
   
   How to achieve this in ACT!:
   Some of the reports detailed above can be generated using the native ACT! Dashboard and Report writer however some of the more advanced reports might require a reporting addon such as Smart Dash.