Lead Management Software has some common elements with Customer Relationship Management software. So companies that are looking at SaaS solutions for the first time sometimes ask, “Which one do I need? Which one will work for me?” It is a question that should be answered by looking at what each solution does best, making an honest and realistic appraisal of your business needs and capabilities, and finding what fits. And if you are scratching your head and asking, what’s with the honesty and realism? This is business, not couples counseling; I understand and I’ll speak to that briefly. The reason why it is called out explicitly to be honest and realistic about your business needs is because there is a tendency for prospective CRM buyers to get caught up in all of the possibilities of what CRM can do. In short, the promise of CRM is that it fully revolutionizes the way you work and delivers better results throughout your business. The reality of CRM is that it fully revolutionizes the way you work, but it’s a top down revolution that hits significant obstacles in terms of acceptance and use by rank and file employees.

What lead management does best, in a nutshell, is get sales reps on the phone with the leads more intelligently and more quickly than any other solution. What is meant here by “more intelligently” is that Lead Management Software distributes leads based on configurable rules that match sales rep to lead according to criteria of your choosing. Is licensure and issue? Do you want the biggest opportunities to go to your most effective rep? Leads are sorted automatically according to your rules. Lead Management Software can even help you identify soft skills in your reps that make them more likely to close leads based on lead information; as in, “Oh you’re from Missouri? So am I! Great to meet you!” As far as “more quickly” goes, with Lead Management Software, the moment a prospect submits his online inquiry it is posted to the lead management system and all the phones of eligible sales reps ring. The quickest rep wins the lead. There is no faster way to contact a prospect and the effect of speed to contact on close rates is well known.

Lead Management Software also prioritizes leads and automates follow up, making it easy for reps to reach out to the right lead at the right time. Lead Management Software also has simple but powerful reporting capabilities to make it easy to see what’s working and what isn’t. Which lead sources, marketing efforts, sales reps, sales messaging are making you money and which aren’t.

What CRM does best is manage customer relationships. If you need to manage ongoing orders and keep track of your all the interactions an existing customer has with your company, than CRM is the right solution.

If your business needs are that you are trying to gain more customers, grow your business, close more deals, then Lead Management Software fits the bill. When weighing your options between LMS and CRM, Your North Star should be this question: “Do I want a solution that helps me get new customers or manage existing customers?”

Tags: Lead Management