The trend I’ve noticed in all the successful businesses I’ve encountered is that there are a system and process for everything that they do. The systems for business that I specialize in are digitally based and help speed up your day to day workflow. I mean the name of my business is Digitally Optimized Systems to Marketing because of how important systems are for successful marketing campaigns. Marketing is at a point now where we have to consider every aspect of how a customer experiences your business. Digital-based systems for business help ensure you’re always delivering customer satisfaction at every point of the customer journey.
A CRM – One Of The Most Necessary Systems For Managing Your Sales
So many clients have no idea what a CRM is when I mention it to them. A CRM is a customer relationship management tool that helps track all your leads and customers and stores information about them. Think of it as the list of contacts on your phone but instead of just putting the name and number in; you’re filling out all the details like their workplace, address, etc. The reason I say this is one of the most necessary systems for managing your sales is that it keeps track of everything and helps deliver custom reports.
The CRM I use in my own business is HubSpot. They offer an exceptional free plan that is easily upgradeable for the future if you ever feel like you need the features offered. There is a variety of CRM’s to choose from but this seems to be the best free option in my opinion.
Storing Information
It’s impossible to remember the name of every lead/customer you’ve ever spoken to, every interaction you had with them, and all their contact information. The most basic point of CRMs is to store all this information. For example, my CRM Hubspot connects to my phone and email account so that way any and all interactions I have with my clients get stored with their profile. This is unbelievably helpful when months pass and I need to figure out what was that little detail they mentioned in our initial conversation right before their project starts.
Additionally, this helps me keep track of all the proposals and sales that have to go on in my business. I am able to set stages to a deal and see what proposals have been paid for, which ones I’m working on, and those that need follow-ups. They even have a useful tool to help set reminders or tasks specific to a certain client or deal.
Custom Reporting
I used to work with a business that built their own CRM using Google Sheets and I’ll admit it worked. However, for any report, they wanted to generate there was so much manual work that had to be done to enter in all the data for what they were looking for. This business taught me a lot of the importance of systems for business and eventually replaced their Google Sheets with a paid Hubspot account. Using a CRM helps with generating custom reports like:
- How many leads/sales are coming from a particular source
- What day or week generated the most leads or sales
- How many leads or how much revenue you generated in a week, month, or quarter
- What team member is generating the most clients or revenue
- How many emails are you sending to potential leads
- How much work is generated from new clients compared to return clients
The options are endless with custom reporting features. These custom reports help give you insight into how your business is performing and where your attention should be focused on. None of these systems for business will speed up your day-to-day compared to a good CRM. An additional benefit is custom templates to send, which in itself saves time finding a previous email to copy and paste.
Google Analytics – One Of The Best Systems For Business To Track Website Performance
Google Analytics is one of the best systems for businesses to track website performance. I don’t know much time you spend analyzing your website to know if this will speed up your day to day but what I do know is that it makes analyzing extremely more efficient and effective. So many clients will tell me, I don’t think this is working. A quick check-in Google Analytics will tell me if that assumption is true or not.
For example, I had a client tell me that the popup we installed on their home page was distracting and they were getting results from it. After a quick inspection in Google Analytics, we noticed that after the popup was installed the number of inquiries doubled afterward. I’ll admit correlation doesn’t always mean causation so it’s important to be skeptical of the data. I like to try and prove myself wrong when I look at the data. However, a more detailed inspection found that people were going straight from the home page to the sign-up page specifically from this popup’s button.
Another reason why I recommend Google Analytics as one of the best systems for business is because of how much demographic data is provided on your website. You can verify what age groups, genders, locations, and device types generate the most amount of goals you want. This helps you solidify your target audience and make sure you’re effectively communicating to the right people in your advertising campaigns.
Additionally, if you’re attempting any digital strategy, Google analytics will provide insight into which one is working the best or if there are any improvements to be made. In my article 1 Of The Best Tips For An Effective Digital Marketing Strategy, I stress the importance of trying everything out and A/B testing as much as possible. Google Analytics is how you see the data of these strategies and what is working best for your landing pages.
Google Analytics is free and should be installed on your website as it’s one of the best systems for business. Too often though I see no analytics tag installed on a website and it’s a wasted opportunity. The sooner you can collect data the better advantage you will have in the long run for your business.
Calendar Scheduling – One Of The Most Underrated Systems To Cut Unnecessary Emails
I feel like this one of those systems for business that is pretty popular nowadays but unfortunately, I see too few people utilizing it. Think about how much messaging it takes going back and forth to find a time that works best for two people. You can skip this waste of a conversation by simply sending over your calendar link and letting them choose a time that works best for them.
There are so many calendar schedulers out there that sync with Google Calendars that it’s easy to find one that works best for you. I utilize three different calendars each for a different purpose. My Calendly is one I give out freely because it has the most time restrictions on it and collects the most information I need. For those who are already in my CRM, I send my CRM’s calendar link because it helps keeps everything organized with their profile.
I also use an Acuity calendar for the purpose of my strategy sessions because I like free systems. Admittedly, I could pay a monthly subscription to get more calendar links in Calendly or Hubspot but I find this perfectly fine and I don’t have to spend the extra money on it.
Do You Need Help Setting Up Your Own Systems For Business?
If you’re looking for more assistance coming up with customized digital systems, DOS-M can help. We specialize in systems as well as many other digital services. Please visit our contact page to get in touch or schedule a free discovery call (see no email to send to schedule something). If you’re curious what other free systems I utilize in my own business you can find more on my Free Resources page.
