Measuring the ROI of Your CRM

A CRM system is not only an integral part of the sales workflow, but is the lifeblood of the sales process, providing reps with the right information for the right customer at the right time.

The deep integration of CRM with the sales process has led some executives to take CRM for granted. Yet, these systems require huge yearly investments, and should be subject to the same scrutiny as any other investment. However, “How do you track the ROI of your CRM?” is a question no Sales Ops executive wants to, or can easily answer.

Such was the case when we took this question to four member organizations. Most of the conversations began with a laugh or a sigh as we proceeded to uncover the complexities of each members’ processes of tracking and reporting the various elements of their CRM. We asked four main questions:

What CRM do you use, since when, and why?
Does your organization formally track and report on the ongoing value of your CRM system?
In what informal ways does your organization measure the ongoing value of your CRM system?
What benefits has your organization realized from CRM implementation?

None of the companies we spoke with formally track the ROI of their CRM. While increases in business metrics could be seen parallel to a CRM implementation or enhancement, there was no proven correlation between CRM and business performance. Instead, the way companies sought to measure their CRM’s effectiveness was through tracking adoption and utilization metrics.

Only with high levels of adoption could any potential benefits or enhancements of the CRM be realized and applied to produce growth. These benefits can be largely subjective but ranged across business units to help with internal collaboration and visibility, sales process efficiency, and rep mobility.

SLC Members, check out the full report: Tracking the Ongoing ROI of a CRM system and use the profiles to validate or compare your organizations CRM processes and benefits. Also, review the CRM Topic Center for best-in-class practices on driving CRM adoption.