CRM data is a valuable asset for any business, but it can also be overwhelming and complex to analyze and present. How can you make sure that your CRM data reports are clear, relevant, and actionable for senior management? Here are some tips to help you create effective CRM data reports that can inform strategic decisions and improve customer relationships.
Before you start creating your CRM data report, you need to understand who your audience is, what their goals are, and what questions they want to answer. Different senior managers may have different priorities and expectations, so you need to tailor your report to their specific needs and interests. For example, a sales director may want to see how CRM data impacts revenue, conversion rates, and customer retention, while a marketing director may want to see how CRM data influences customer segments, campaigns, and feedback. You can use surveys, interviews, or feedback forms to gather insights from your audience and align your report with their objectives.
1. Understand the Audience 2. Define Clear Objectives 3. Select Key Metrics 5. Provide Context 6. Highlight Success Stories 7. Use LinkedIn Posts or Articles 8. Engage Your Network 9. Regular Updates 10. Be Concise 11. Ask for Feedback 12. Follow Data Privacy Guidelines By following these steps, you can effectively report CRM data to senior management
Once you know your audience, you need to define the key metrics that will measure the performance and outcomes of your CRM data. Metrics are the quantitative indicators that show how well you are achieving your goals and addressing your challenges. You should select metrics that are relevant, reliable, and realistic for your CRM data report. For example, some common CRM metrics are customer lifetime value, customer satisfaction, customer churn rate, lead generation, and customer loyalty. You should also explain how you calculate and interpret each metric, and provide benchmarks or comparisons to show progress or gaps.
First thing that needs to be done is: read the room and know who you are talking to and for what reason. A meeting with executive leadership might require a different level of in-depth KPI then when discussing performance of AEs with their sales managers. The board might not need to see how many activities are being generated by each SDR, but the sales manager might wish/need to see that for their 1:1s. Usually, the further down you go, the more granular your KPIs need to be to drive the correct discussions at the right moments.
When defining your metrics it is important to know: ?? what data is in your CRM (i.e. do you track customer satisfaction?) ?? what is the definition of the metric (how is it calculated) ?? what are the actions taken on the metric. Do you therefore need to show additional information to reflect actions? I would always suggest have a meeting with the relevant audience to really understand what they are looking for and agree on what is required, before creating any reporting in the system.
The format of your CRM data report is the way you organize and present your data visually and verbally. You should choose a format that is easy to read, understand, and act on for your senior management. You can use different tools and techniques to create your CRM data report, such as dashboards, charts, graphs, tables, or infographics. You should also use clear and concise language, headings, subheadings, and bullet points to communicate your main points and recommendations. You should avoid jargon, acronyms, and technical terms that may confuse or distract your audience.
Having an idea of what metrics you want to showcase, goes a long way. A format with more graphs and charts is not only visually appealing but it is also easier to understand. Many CRM platforms have pre-set reporting dashboards designed keeping the above in mind, that you can use.
The most important part of your CRM data report is the insights that you derive from your data analysis. Insights are the meaningful and actionable conclusions that you draw from your metrics and data patterns. They show how your CRM data relates to your goals, challenges, and opportunities, and what you can do to improve or optimize your customer relationships. You should highlight the most relevant and impactful insights for your senior management, and provide evidence and examples to support them. You should also suggest specific actions or recommendations based on your insights, and show how they can benefit your business and customers.
Executives are typically looking for a hierarchy of information when it comes to reporting. First, what are our results? These should be the north start metrics defined from the outset. Second, what does that mean, is it good/bad, are we on track or offtrack, etc? And third, what do we do from here? What actions can we take to get back on track or what should we start doing. It's often helpful to include the high-level reports first, but also include the contextual reports for the ability to drill down and understand. I'd suggest limiting reports to 10 max. Anything over that means that you're probably drilling down too far for Senior Management.
After you create your CRM data report, you should not just send it to your senior management and forget about it. You should also solicit feedback from them to evaluate the effectiveness and usefulness of your report. Feedback can help you improve your CRM data reporting skills, identify areas of improvement or innovation, and build trust and collaboration with your senior management. You can use different methods to collect feedback, such as surveys, interviews, or meetings. You should also follow up on your feedback and show how you implement or incorporate it into your future CRM data reports.
Feedback loops are important not only for reporting, but across the board when dealing with multiple stakeholders about different subjects. As professionals, we might get stuck within the daily operations of our roles and forget that others are not, so broader context is needed as much as a walkthrough. It's incredible how many times a simple chat can solve a problem that 50 emails were not able to. Requesting feedback allows you to spot such issues and gives you the tools to manage expectations and further improve for the future.