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Wholesale distributors need to up their customer service levels
Wholesale distributors are not flush with the resources to match companies such as Amazon in terms of pricing their items. It is nice in theory to remain competitive on this front, but just not realistic in the long run. So what can these smaller firms do to set themselves apart from larger rivals with seemingly endless assets? The answer is an obvious, yet often overlooked one.
Customer service has perhaps never been more important to the prosperity of businesses, regardless of their industry. Achieving this feat, however, is not so simple, especially for wholesale distributors that rely on outdated record-keeping and lack a proper foundation for their sales and marketing campaigns. Companies that do not have timely access to valuable data will never be able to develop a more personal relationship with clients – one that sets themselves apart from the competition.
Enter Microsoft Dynamics CRM powered by CRM for Distribution – a suite that allows wholesale distributors to upgrade their operations from older and less capable methods such as relying on written notes and Excel spreadsheets to view customer information to a way to view data anywhere at any time. The software allows employees, whether they are based in the office or in the field attending face-to-face meetings, to create their own dashboards and sales goals to perform their jobs more effectively than these other techniques. Personnel can pull up sales histories through their mobile devices to make sure they are always informed before conversing with a business.
CRM for Distribution also gives staff members a roadmap to view where prospects are in the buying process. Using this information makes it easier to convert these businesses into customers by analyzing year-over-year stats for sales pipelines on the vendor, supplier and item levels. The solution also makes it easy for users to run queries, which are important for passing along information such as emails sent directly to companies about price increases for products.
Learn from the competition
Wholesale distributors that truly want to gain greater market share from their rivals can benefit greatly from a Microsoft Dynamics CRM implementation. This is because the solution enables firms to view what products prospects are purchasing and create a strategy to persuade these customers to consider buying directly from themselves instead.
Having timely and updated data is exactly how wholesale distributors can gain insight into not only current customers but prospects as well. This data tells the story of how businesses can provide a more detailed and personal service – a capability that is all the more necessary in today’s market.
Adopting a CRM suite for the first time, however, is not without its own set of challenges. Wholesale distributors that want to use customer data to their advantage need to not only achieve a successful initial deployment, but maintain efficiency afterwards and down the road.
This is where we at Beringer Associates come into play. We have helped clients maximize their investments in IT products for more than 20 years. Our services are different from other IT providers on the market because we have a long-term implementation strategy that follows best practices and support to help companies grow. If there are any issues with the software, we are available 24/7 to fix the problem so it will not impact your business.
If your distribution company wants to finally leverage up-to-date data to enhance your customer service, contact Beringer Associates today.