Are you contemplating a Customer Relationship Management (CRM) project? The process, people, and technology you choose to deploy your project will have a big effect on the success or failure of your overall plan. User adoption is one major key to success and here are a few ways to ensure failure.

 Just buy the first one you see or the one everyone else is using. Whatever! Don’t set goals or define objectives for a successful CRM project. Throw that “must-have” requirements list out the window. And don’t involve any other departments in the decision. They will love whatever you pick, right? And please don’t ask the vendor or salesperson to demonstrate how your data will perform in the proposed environment. He’s a busy guy!  Besides, that web demo was really flashy.

 Don’t worry about getting the executive team involved.  They like you so much they’ll agree with whatever you say, right? Sign those contracts! After all it’s only money and who cares about that fine print anyway. Everything will go smoothly and no one will question your decision. Oh and be sure to tell your sales department that the reason for the new CRM is to allow management to look over their shoulder and monitor their every move. It has nothing to do with making their job easier or helping them sell more. The sales team will be excited to jump in and get started. They LOVE change and especially rigid “big brotherish” accountability!

Pick the cheapest solution. Everyone knows that you’ll get a quick ROI with the cheapest CRM. Don’t ask questions or do research…and never ask for references. Don’t worry about contract lengths, service agreements, storage limits or data management. You get what you pay for and cheaper is always better!  Besides, it’s got that sweet new app that downloads ringtones. It doesn’t matter if the tool enables you to better serve your customers.  And don’t worry if you need to change your business model to fit the tool.  Remember… people love change and price should always trump features!

Tell everyone that this new CRM will solve every problem the company has ever had. Create hundreds of data entry fields and pick lists for your users. Sales reps love being data entry clerks! Don’t change any of your current processes or make improvements in your spreadsheet mentality.  That’s the way you have been doing it for decades.  Those forms are timeless and essential. Oh, and be sure to knock your team out with all the amazing features and promise them that nothing will go wrong. Let them know that this new CRM will be the panacea that fixes everything. Make sure the executive team has the absolute highest expectations of you and the CRM tool. You need a raise anyway, right?

Make sure the CRM you choose a really difficult to use. Everyone knows that difficult means superior and the more times you click through screens the better. All of your peers have amazing IT skills so they will appreciate your time-saving choice.  Besides, the user experience is totally overrated.  Oh yes, and be sure to “dump” all your old data into that shiny new tool. Everyone in your organization is a perfectionist and that data is clean as a whistle. Now… roll that thing out to the entire company all at once. You’ll get lots of positive feedback, I promise, and rollouts are more manageable without phases or trials.

While my list is ridiculous and no one would ever set out to sabotage their own project, there are some implementation truths to heed. Upper management can demand the use of a CRM tool, but the front end users can make or break your success.

The Simplesoft approach to CRM is unique, and we do invest the upfront time needed to listen and understand how our clients currently work with their customers. We take the time to help them define “best practices” and configure the tool to fit the personality of their business.  And, we understand that any investment in a software technology alone will be wasted unless the management, the end users, and the system administrator have a vision and understand how to implement the software properly to serve the customer better.

Consider joining us on June 8^th for the Heartland SalesLogix Users Group meeting. If you are in the Ohio area or a nearby state, it’s a free event and it is held quarterly. The topic this quarter is “Strengthening User Adoption”. Click here to sign up and learn more.