I recently had lunch with a friend. As things often do with me, the conversation turned to Dynamics 365, processes and customer satisfaction. If these topics don’t sound related to you, let me explain The importance of being on time
My friend was telling me how he had wanted to refinance his house. Naturally, he started the process with his current mortgage company. He had assumed there would be a little paperwork involved, the yanking of some documents, maybe a few phone calls, you know. He provided his mortgage company with all the necessary documentation they needed to make this refinance happen. Then he just waited. And waited. I can only assume this finance company was either not using Dynamics 365 or was having some major process issues.
Three months later, my friend was talking to his neighbor and mentioned how his slow-moving refinance had been in limbo for nearly 90 days. The neighbor responded that he had a great mortgage company contact – who my friend ultimately contacted and who had him refinanced and sitting pretty in less than two weeks.
Not long after the closing, my friend’s old bank called telling him they were ready to move forward with his refinance, to which he responded that it was too late and that he had closed with the competition. Imagine how the guy at the other end of the phone felt. Now multiply that lost refinance by what I can only assume were plenty of others who were also waiting for the paint to dry. I can only guess that the numbers are staggering.
If you are a lending institution or any business with a slow-moving closing process, this story should shake you to your core. Your competition is aggressive in closing business and, if you want to stay in the game, you must be too. The longer it takes to move a loan or lead through your pipe, the more likely it is that the competition will swoop in and steal that customer. With one slow snap of a sluggish finger, inefficiencies will lose your organization money, customers and overall brand loyalty.
So is it time for folks with a lethargic pipeline to get a new CRM? Probably not. you should always take care of the importance of being on time.
IF YOUR CRM DEVELOPERS TELL YOU ITS ABOUT THE TECHNOLOGY, THEY ARE LYING.
Here’s the thing. In all likeliness, my friend’s first lender had no malintent or ulterior motives in its ridiculously long close time. And they most certainly have a CRM that they assume is all the technology they need to get things done. And they are probably right. I can almost guarantee you that their problem – particularly if they are using Dynamics 365 CE – is not with the technology itself. Their problem is with poorly developed and executed process design.
Dynamics 365 CE is not a technology; it is a business strategy. And while pretty much any CRM development company knows the nuts and bolts around the technology itself, the most successful implementations are entirely dependent on the success of process development. An implementation partner’s ability to understand an organization’s pain points, assess current processes and then implement the process design is essential to the long-term health of the business. Anything less keeps your customers waiting and your competition ready to pounce.
THE VALUE OF STREAMLINING YOUR CRM PROCESSES
If your customer acquisition and closing processes are losing your organization customers, time and money, it is imperative that you retain a Dynamics 365 implementation partner that truly specializes in process assessment, development and implementation. On many occasions, my firm has acquired financial industry clients (as well as other sectors) based almost entirely on our abilities and expertise in process assessment and reengineering.
A better sales process would have kept my friend a loyal client of his initial lender – and kept money out of the competition’s hands.
It’s simple. When it comes to Dynamics 365 Customer Engagement and the success of your business, process is everything. So, you cannot ignore the importance of being on time for a success of business.
Christopher Smith is the founder of Empellor CRM and is widely considered a thought leader in Dynamics 365 Customer Service process assessment and re-engineering. Click here to contact.
