Office Telephone – CRM Integration

For some businesses a CRM or Client Relationship Management system is a must have and an office telephone solution should work hand in hand with system. Not only that it will facilitate convenience and efficiency in carrying out your business processes through phone it will also help improve productivity and the overall all performance of your staffs and your business.

Why Integrate a CRM

There are many benefits of integrating a CRM to your office telephone system. The obvious benefit is the convenience. A CRM will serve as a central place of recording our customer’s details such as contact information, requirements, orders, quotes, important notes and previous invoices. Your staff can then utilize this information to follow up on a client and directly dial from the CRM. If you business process involves tele-prospecting your sales representative or appointment setter can have an improvement of about 20 to 30% just by directly dialing from the CRM and having all information in one place. 

Additionally a CRM that is integrated with your office telephone system can also work like an automated dialer. This will reduce time wastage from dialing a number and avoid mistyped numbers, therefore reducing wrong number calls. Some advance CRMs even have the ability to automatically dial in a number on a specified date and time to ensure continuous customer follow up.

Things to Consider

The most important factor to consider is if the CRM you are looking to acquire is compatible with a TAPI or Telephony Application Programming Interface which is an application or software that allows computers to utilize telephony services. Bear in mind that there are different versions of TAPI indicated for different computer operating systems. Make sure that you have a compatible version of your CRM, operating system and TAPI for a successful deployment.

A TAPI is originally used to control computer hardware such as modems and printers, but its revolutionizing diversity has paved way to control even business telephony equipments or PBXs. Additional cost may range from $8 to $12 per handset depending on the version and or software developer.  Be sure to purchase a license for such application to allow legal access and full control of the software.

Lastly be sure to download or request for a driver from your PBX manufacturer as you may need it to support such integration. It is also advisable to discuss it with your office telephone provider and ask for the things you need to consider and requirements that you might need beforehand.