Develop Your Project Plan

Provided courtesy of www.GrowthPanel.com

Note – This is one from a sequence of exercises from the Customer Relationship Management subject
outlined in the Strategic Marketing Process eBook. Download the free e-book
www.growthpanel.com/marketing-tools/index.html and subscribe to this subject at
www.growthpanel.com/versions/get-started.html to download from Growth Panel’s Intelligent Marketing
Platform.

Some of the graphics in this PDF might not display properly.

When you start to look at software options, it’s important to outline your needs up front. You’ll have an
easier time finding the appropriate software vendors and they’ll be able to better match their product to
your needs.

CRM STAKEHOLDERS

Who would use the CRM system (“stakeholders”)? They should all participate in the decisionmaking process.

First, identify the likely users in your company. Here are typical benefits and challenges that each group faces
during a CRM implementation.

Will you involve this

Department /
Challenges that CRM can department in the
Users Major benefits of CRM
cause decisionmaking
process?
Lead Generation They can transition qualified They have to learn new data Yes
leads to sales reps more entry and management No
quickly and easily system, which is more N/A
difficult at first than current
system

Sales CRM can help them shorten Learning a new system is Yes
the sales cycle, give them frustrating and challenging – No
the ability to work more salespeople prefer to sell, N/A
prospects at a time, and can not enter data
help them access important
product/customer data in
real time

Sales Management Better sales management, Getting sales reps to use it Yes
more accurate reporting and can be a challenge No
forecasting. CRM coupled N/A

Develop Your Project Plan page 1 of 12 www.GrowthPanel.com

 Will you involve this
Department /
Challenges that CRM can department in the
Users Major benefits of CRM
cause decisionmaking
process?
with a good sales process
[Sales Process can help]
makes it easier to improve
reps’ performance

Finance More accurate sales Getting accurate data into Yes

forecasts provide more time the system No
for cash flow management N/A
decisions

Senior Better management of sales, Pain of user adoption Yes

Management better forecasting No
N/A
Customer Service Real-time access to Challenging to learn Yes
customer information; No
seeing service history can N/A
make service easier

Marketing Some CRM software can Justifying cost and Yes

automate electronic challenging to use No
marketing campaigns and N/A
metrics. Most CRM
marketing software can
provide ROI measurement
for specific campaigns

IT Centralized system housing Upfront work in installation, Yes

customer data. Simplified integrating, and debugging No
management requirements N/A

Add any additional benefits/challenges you foresee in your situation.

DEPARTMENT BENEFITS CRM COULD PROVIDE CHALLENGES

Lead Generation

Sales

Sales Management

Finance

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 DEPARTMENT BENEFITS CRM COULD PROVIDE CHALLENGES
Upper Management

Customer Service

Marketing

IT

Other

From the tables above, choose your selection and CRM teams as well as the final decisionmaker.

CRM SELECTION TEAM

NAME ROLE NOTES

Final Decisionmaker

Decisionmaker
Influencer
Decisionmaker
Influencer
Decisionmaker
Influencer
Decisionmaker
Influencer
Decisionmaker
Influencer

DOCUMENT YOUR SOFTWARE NEEDS

Now that you’ve identified the users, benefits and challenges, document the rest of the information that
software vendors will ask you before recommending a product.

BACKGROUND INFORMATION YOUR RESPONSE

# of employees

# employees in sales and marketing

# customer service reps

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 BACKGROUND INFORMATION YOUR RESPONSE
# of departments involved

# other employees that access customer

information

# of customers

Approximate annual revenue

Who is your typical customer?

Do you have budget available?

YOUR SALES PROCESS YOUR RESPONSE

How do you currently manage customer data?

What are your lead sources (website, referrals,

email, mailing, partner channel, cold calling)

How many steps are in your sales process? (Refer

to Sales Process section)

How long is your typical sales cycle (length in

days/months)?

What types of activities do your reps engage in

during the sales process? (phone calls, personal
visits, emails, quotes, demos, etc)

Typically, how many different contacts at a

prospect company does a sales rep deal with?

# active leads per sales rep (estimate)

Do your reps need to access detailed product

information? If so, where is it stored?

If you prepare quotes for prospects, who creates

them? If yes, are they stored electronically?

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 SOFTWARE INTEGRATION YOUR RESPONSE
What programs/applications are currently
integrated with your existing CRM?

What programs would be beneficial to be

integrated with your existing CRM?

CUSTOMER SERVICE YOUR RESPONSE

How do customers contact you? (phone, face to
face, email)

Who handles customer service? (# employees) Are

they dedicated reps?

What issues do the reps handle? Billing questions?

Order tracking? Payments? Others?

REPORTING YOUR RESPONSE

Do you have accurate revenue forecasting tools in
place? [Sales Process can help]

What types of reports would be beneficial?

How could you improve your existing reporting?

IT DEPARTMENT

IT plays an important role in CRM implementations. Any organization installing CRM software for multiple
users must involve IT resources. In large organizations, the IT department plays an integral role in CRM
selection and implementation.

TECHNOLOGY QUESTIONS YOUR RESPONSE

# of computers

Do you have a network? If so, what type?

Who manages IT?

What are your average computer specifications?

(year purchased, processor speed, memory, disk

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 TECHNOLOGY QUESTIONS YOUR RESPONSE
capacity, operating system)

Do you have a high-speed internet connection? If

yes, what type and speed? Are all users connected?

Do you have an automated ERP/ accounting

package in place? If so, what? Specify vendor and
version.

Is there value to integrating your CRM package to

your ERP/accounting package? If so, what is it?
Can you qualify it in money earned/saved or
productivity gains?

Do you need additional IT resources to launch a

CRM initiative?

IDENTIFY VENDORS

Since CRM is such a broad category of software, there are hundreds of options from which to choose. Here
are eight leading vendors that provide CRM solutions that cover most of the general functionality that small-
to medium-sized businesses need.

Please note that software products are continually updated and improved. Use this only as a high-level
reference guide. Information may change with updated releases, product add-ons and customization.

Some software vendors provide single user copies of the software. Most CRM software implementations require
multiple users to be effective. In the # users category, “single” means you can purchase an individual copy.

# users/ Data Ease of use/

Company, Target Cost per user Notes
scalability location integration
ACT! Single; 5 to 20+ if $200 to $300 On Easy to use All but the newest
sharing data. Can premise (over 5 MM version of the product
www.act.com have thousands users) and a are built around a
of users if they popular contact record instead
Small to medium keep data program of an account record.
businesses separate. Not /unable to Limited workflow
scalable beyond integrate with capabilities to
30 users for most programs incorporate unique
sharing data. without business process and

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 # users/ Data Ease of use/
Company, Target Cost per user Notes
scalability location integration
extensive CRM best practices.
integration
costs.

GoldMine Single; 5 to 20s. $300 - $600 per On Clunky user Contact centric.
Not scalable user with a premise interface. Implementation
www.goldmine.com beyond 50 users. server cost and Unable to delivered through
maintenance integrate with channel partners who
Small to medium and support most programs understand CRM. .net
businesses (20%) without architecture. Good
extensive workflow. Large user
integration base
costs.

SalesNet 10 to 1,000s $70 per user Hosted / Process driven Little marketing,
per month open web so better suited support and contact
www.salesnet.com services for companies center functionality.
API with Small company.
Small to medium established Strong data center.
businesses workflow
procedures.
Unable to
connect to
most programs
without
extensive
integration
costs.
Right Now 10 to 1,000s Varies Hosted Right Now has Contact center, self
Technologies depending on and on scored well in service and
www.rightnow.com version premise usability knowledgebase is
selected. studies. Lots of their core
Small to medium flexibility competence. Publicly-
businesses integrating traded company.
with other
systems.
Siebel CRM 10 to 1,000s $70 per user Hosted + Great user Contact center is the
OnDemand per month on- interface. best in the business.
premise Integration Heavy duty data
www.siebel.com hybrid with other warehousing and
model / programs is analytics engine.
Small to medium and open web cost effective Strong sales and
mid-enterprise services marketing

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 # users/ Data Ease of use/
Company, Target Cost per user Notes
scalability location integration
businesses API automation.

Salesforce. Single; 5 to $60 - $120 per Hosted / User interface Sales and marketing
Com 1,000s can share user per month open web can be hard to automation; fast-
data services navigate. growing hosted CRM
www.salesforce.com API Application vendor.
allows for
Small to medium and extensive
mid-enterprise customization
businesses around
workflow and
business
processes.
Microsoft 10 to 1,000s $70 per user Hosted Easy to use. New product.
Business per month for and on- Great Microsoft is serious
Solutions CRM hosted and premise integration about being number
$600 - $1,000 /open web with Outlook one in CRM space.
www.microsoft.com per user for on services and Office Delivered through
premise with API (built by same partner channel but
Small to medium and server costs & company). some partners are still
mid-enterprise maintenance & learning about the
businesses support (18%) software.

Sage 10 to 1,000s $70 per user Hosted Easy to use and .net architecture.
SalesLogix per month for and on customize. Leader in
hosted and premise Strong customizable CRM.
www.saleslogix.com $600 - $1000 workflow Biggest customer base
per user for on engine and and user base in the
Medium and mid- premise with easy to industry.
enterprise businesses server costs & integrate
maintenance
and support
(20%)

NARROW YOUR POTENTIAL VENDORS

Now compare your needs to the vendors in the previous table. Enter your basic needs, then reference the
table above to see which vendors match your needs in that area.

NEED YOUR RESPONSE POTENTIAL VENDOR MATCHES

Estimated # of users ACT! Goldmine
SalesNet RightNow

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 NEED YOUR RESPONSE POTENTIAL VENDOR MATCHES
Siebel CRM OnDemand
Salesforce.com
Microsoft CRM
Sage Saleslogix

Data location ACT! Goldmine

SalesNet RightNow
Siebel CRM OnDemand
Salesforce.com
Microsoft CRM
Sage Saleslogix

Do you need to integrate with other ACT! Goldmine

software? If so, what? SalesNet RightNow
Siebel CRM OnDemand
Salesforce.com
Microsoft CRM
Sage Saleslogix

Do you need the ability to scale the ACT! Goldmine

software (i.e. expand)? SalesNet RightNow
Siebel CRM OnDemand
If your # of users will increase by 50- Salesforce.com
100% in one to two years, and/or you Microsoft CRM
will need more integration with other Sage Saleslogix
programs and functionality, you will
need CRM to grow with you.

Budget per user ACT! Goldmine

SalesNet RightNow
Siebel CRM OnDemand
Salesforce.com
Microsoft CRM
Sage Saleslogix

IT resources you have available ACT! Goldmine

SalesNet RightNow
Siebel CRM OnDemand
Salesforce.com
Microsoft CRM
Sage Saleslogix

How important is ease of use? ACT! Goldmine

SalesNet RightNow
Siebel CRM OnDemand
Salesforce.com
Microsoft CRM

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 NEED YOUR RESPONSE POTENTIAL VENDOR MATCHES
Sage Saleslogix

Which vendors did you select most often? Contact them and start the evaluation process.

CONTACT DATE OF INITIAL

VENDOR NEXT STEPS
INFORMATION CONTACT

Some vendors sell through a business partner channel, sometimes called “integrators”. These partners are
knowledgeable about the products and can usually install them at your location and customize them to fit your needs.

Make sure to share the information below with your chosen vendors. This information helps them
recommend the right solution for you more quickly than they could otherwise.

MAJOR SOFTWARE NEEDS

# users + ability to grow

Data Location

Cost/User

Integration with other

programs
IT requirements

Functionality/other
modules
Ease of use

Notes

Make sure your sales rep answers all of your questions before you make your final decision. Involve all your
stakeholders in the decisionmaking process; it’s important for everyone to have a say in the decision.

Develop Your Project Plan page 10 of 12 www.GrowthPanel.com

 CRITERIA VENDOR A VENDOR B VENDOR C
# users + ability to grow

Data Location

Cost/User

Integration with other

programs
IT requirements

Functionality/other
modules
Ease of use

Notes

Positives

Negatives

What are the

implementation
requirements?

Other

Other

Vendor

Additional notes

Vendor

Additional notes

Develop Your Project Plan page 11 of 12 www.GrowthPanel.com

 Vendor

Additional notes

When you select a system, create an implementation plan to ensure that your setup & training process runs
smoothly. [Exercise 333]

Develop Your Project Plan page 12 of 12 www.GrowthPanel.com