For most businesses, their customers are the most important asset for functionality. 74% of companies say converting leads into customers is their top priority. You run advertisements, campaigns, emails, even calls, spending countless hours and dollars getting enquiries about your products or services. But, what happens when you do finally see some interest? Every inquiry should be taken seriously, but this is nearly impossible without a strong enquiry management system in place.
Every enquiry you receive is an opportunity to make a good impression and convert your customer, and the last thing you want to do is botch it with a bad experience.
That’s why many businesses are using inquiry management systems to create a consistent approach to every inquiry they receive — and never miss an opportunity to make a good first impression.
What is an Enquiry Management System?
In the early days, a lot of companies would store information about their incoming customers in files. Who they are, where did they come from, how they interacted with your organization — everything was spread in different places and brains. The CEO’s table, the records of the sales tracking team, the accountant’s invoices, etc.
But as the business grows, it becomes increasingly difficult if this information is not stored in a central system. It will be difficult for your teams to figure out where your customers are coming from, how you should get in touch with them, and what content is encouraging them to contact you. Everyone on your team needs to understand the needs, wants and current status to align with the conversation that goes on with them. These are the problems an enquire management system is designed to solve.
In simple terms, an enquiry management system is an automated software that works on your front line so that every new enquiry is handled with the care it deserves. Enquires are logged, tracked, and managed systematically so that sales teams can take action. It also gives management a bird’s eye view of how inquiries are handled so they can better predict sales performance.
As a result, it not only ensures you put your best foot forward every time but also eliminates the chance of inquiries falling through the cracks. This way, you can properly handle and follow up with everyone who requests more information, giving you more chances to sell and grow your business.
Let’s look at five ways that an enquiry management system enables sales growth:
1. Never Miss a Lead
When you receive inquiries, your inquiry management software goes to work in collecting the information you need and putting it into a usable format. Each lead follows the same systematic process and receives a consistent experience, so you don’t have to worry about making a poor first impression.
Best of all, leads are tracked and stored in an easy-to-access place rather than being shuffled around in inboxes and spam folders so that you never miss a chance to connect with a potential customer.
2. Pair Leads with the Right Salesperson
According to a study, 78% of customers buy from the company that responds to their inquiry first. Therefore, you need to find and assign a sales rep fast. That is where sales automation plays a major role.
One of the major benefits of sales lead automation software is the ability to pair leads with the salesperson that’s in the best position to convert the lead. The inquiry management software can identify and classify each lead and route them to the right person for the next step.
Lead distribution is essential to sales teams that want to deliver an optimal experience. It’s easier on the potential customer because they can work with a salesperson that understands their needs from the start. Plus, salespeople can spend more time working with leads they’re qualified to handle rather than wasting time killing potential deals.
3. Provide Better Customer Service
The customer experience is arguably the most critical piece of the sales journey. Even with a great product, customers may lose confidence in a company that seems disorganized or not in tune with the customer’s needs.
Daniel Lemin, the author of Talk Triggers and a top-rated speaker on marketing strategy, says a good customer experience can lead to greater trust and increase the likelihood the customer will recommend you to a friend or family member.
A great benefit of handling enquiries is that it gives you access to valuable information pertaining to your customers. 48% of businesses say most of their leads require “long cycle” nurturing with many influencers. This shows how much work you have to put for nurturing your leads. Their preferences, their habits, etc. You can determine what type of communication you must use to contact them, what links they could follow, and what product they might be interested in. This will help you understand them better and you would be able to create better targeting campaigns, marketing strategies, in all, a great customer experience.
Also, properly handling enquiries can help to avoid poor customer experience by providing timely responses and never overlooking an important lead. You can also track your lead interactions and know exactly where a lead stands in the sales process for even more visibility into your sales funnel.
Creating a personalized service for your customers would be key to a long-term relationship with them. Useful customer data will give you a better understanding of your clients so you’ll be able to better meet their demands and requirements.
4. Track Leads for Improved Sales Projection
Sales leaders aren’t just concerned with deals that are closing, they also want to know what else is in the sales pipeline. Forecasting is essential when making business decisions, especially when budget needs are concerned. Knowing how many enquiries come in each day, their status in the funnel, and how much each one might be worth can help to set future expectations, make purchasing decisions, and even communicate with investors.
What is even more crucial is finding out where these leads are coming from. You need comprehensive reporting tools to identify what campaign or ads are receiving the most interactions, ads around which keywords, with what kind of images, and which platform is getting more engagement. This would help you identify the places where you need to put in more money and where you should stop investing.
5. Increase Sales Efficiency
As a Sales Director, you would want to establish a general approach to lead engagement in your company. Now, this general process shouldn’t be an arbitrary method but the one which has already been working best for your company. Check what your best sales reps are doing and create an automated strategy for every rep in your system accordingly. This will increase the chances of converting a potential customer, in turn, helping your business. It will also help you keep a check on your sales team’s performance.
Enquiry management systems are completely automated, giving your sales teams fewer hands-on tasks so they can focus solely on selling. Interfaces are typically user-friendly to keep productivity at its peak. Plus, they can identify their most important leads and enquiries without the guesswork so they always know where their best opportunities lie.
Could your business benefit from an inquiry management system? The best way to find out is to try it yourself!
Take LeadSquared for a free demo to see how our enquiry management system works and what it can do to help you grow your business!
FAQs
Enquiry management systems can route leads to the salesperson who is best qualified to handle them, based on factors such as the salesperson’s expertise and experience. This can help to improve the chances of converting leads into sales.
Enquiry management systems capture all leads in one place and ensure that they are followed up with promptly. This eliminates the risk of leads getting lost in inboxes or forgotten about.
Enquiry management systems can improve customer service by ensuring that all inquiries are responded to promptly and by giving businesses a clear picture of where each lead is in the sales process. This allows businesses to provide more personalized service to their customers.
