KSS January eKourier

FEATURE

CRM (CUSTOMER RELATIONSHIP MANAGEMNT) THE FINAL FRONTIER

CRM systems provide access to powerful analytics to help with identi- fying opportunities for training and development and continuous improve- ment through rich insights and signals. ‘ CRM platforms are powerful systems that connect all the data from your sales leads and customers in one place KSS and CRM Storman has been in place at KSS since 2003. Storman was designed more as a property management system and customer accounts platform for self storage (as were most of the early self storage software systems). It was never intended to be a powerful CRM centric tool. This is common throughout the industry both here in Australia and New Zealand and other parts of the world. For this reason, industries who sell a product or provide a service in a competi - tive environment are choosing to sit a sophisticated CRM tool on top of their current management systems, something known as augmentation. ‘

small, is critical to the ongoing sustain- ability of a successful business.

What is CRM?

Simply stated, CRM is a sales management tool for Salespeople. CRM systems help Salespeople manage and close more leads, log sales activity and store contact data using automation. Today, a CRM is typically a cloud base technology that captures, stores and organises potential customer information into a system that helps Salespeople stay connected, manage pipelines, and build relationships with those potential customers. CRM platforms are powerful systems that connect all the data from your sales leads and customers in one place. They improve and enhance customer service, drive sales, and increase revenue. When customer information is organised and managed by a CRM technology that information can be digitised and automated. This helps deliver a consistent and efficient sales cycle, that is timely and delivers a positive connected customer experi - ence. A fully integrated CRM platform increases collaboration across Teams, ensures the customer experience is contextual, targeted and consistent regardless of who the customer interacts with. Why Use a CRM Solution?

CRM and the systemisation of the sales pipeline presents the final frontier for our business. It is the last major gap remaining in our business systems suite and digital workplace. When you consider Storman, our website, Digital Agreements, Atlas, Compass, Houston and Revenue Management to name some of the key components in our ongoing digitisation strategy, CRM is our last remaining enterprise system to adopt. This is not to say that’s the end, we will always look to improve, change and add to our environment of systems, this is however considered to be a game changer offering tangible sophistication to the sales aspect of the business. KSS has been on a path of discovery to learn and understand what CRMs are out there and what would be suitable for our business. Like most major initiatives, the process and decision is always deeply considered. We will continue the research in the hope that this year we will have a CRM system in our own business that will help our Team Members manage their pipeline and convert more enquiries to storers. Jeff Xanthos Chief Information Officer

Realising the importance of a powerful CRM system for enterprises large and

12 Kennards Kourier Jan 2022