CRM and ERP integration & why it matters.

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Companies of all sizes understand the importance of CRM and ERP integration. The two systems work in their respective manner, but as a matter of fact, they both have very different functionalities. Both systems are responsible for increasing the productivity and revenue flow of a company, therefore, it is best considered to integrate them both for the best results.

For instance, an integration between Salesforce & NetSuite ERP.

Customer Relationship Management (CRM)

A CRM software is meant to contain customer profiles with information like a number of transactions, interactions, order status and more. As an example, if a sales rep creates a lead with a valid work order, the warehouse team can start the fulfillment process based on the work order created by that particular sales rep.

In summary, a CRM improves company reliability by enhancing the customer’s buying experience which ultimately strengthens customer relations.

Enterprise Resource Planning (ERP)

An ERP like NetSuite predominantly handles the business operations that happen in the back end. Departments like manufacturing, Financing, Sales etc. benefit when they are synchronized with one another. As an example: The Warehouse team will be notified regarding the new work order as the sales rep punches it through.

With the help of an ERP system, an organization can offer a seamless pipeline where every department will be in sync with one another. Any issues or updates in a project will notify all associates that are concerned with that piece of information.

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Automated Inventory Management

Companies can now avoid further customer dissatisfaction and avoid reshipping the product back to the customer. In 2021.1 NetSuite now introduces NetSuite Pack Station, a new touchscreen-based packing solution to be used for consolidated shipments, packing multiple cartons, managing multi-level packaging, scanning weights etc. NetSuite Pack Station provides an additional verification to ensure the correct order gets shipped to the customer.
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So why the need for CRM and ERP integration?

Both CRM and ERP systems are tailored to increase the efficiency of an organization while improving the customer experience. Since every enterprise needs to enhance its customer relations, opting for a CRM system is a no-brainer. By making use of an ERP system, departments can understand all the updates happening around them in real-time. Integration between the ERP and CRM system will establish a single database; resulting in better and constant responses to any issue that may go out of hand.

So, without further ado, here are 5 benefits of CRM and ERP integration.

A transparent customer buying experience

Many businesses struggle to understand their customers, and often end up spending a great sum of money with little to no results. One of the biggest advantages of this integration is that it would allow brands to develop a fully transparent view of their customers. It can assist organizations in recognizing potential growth, forecasting and even strengthening customer loyalty.

For instance, when your ERP is integrated with your CRM, your Finance department can immediately create an invoice as soon as they are notified of the order fulfillment. This process automation saves time, as the Warehouse team now doesn’t need to notify the Finance team, as NetSuite automated this process entirely.

Important information stays available at all times.

Data duplicity is one of the major concerns of businesses that operate on varied business management systems. On the other hand, when brands have a single database, they tend to run operations much more efficiently as their data is well protected by stringent data security measures which modern ERP like NetSuite offers.

For E.g. When the finance department has access to customer order data, they don’t need to stay reliant on the sales team, allowing them to accelerate their invoicing & billing processes.

Added work efficiency:

Having access to the right customer information is crucial to accelerate work productivity. With an integration between your CRM and ERP system, sales rep can compare products, prices and interactions to tailor the next meeting as per requirement. A sales rep can create customer profiles with data like preferred currency, product ETA and so on and update it on the CRM for the rest of the departments.


With proper integration, every department will be able to find crucial information quickly, leading to a better-established system, improved efficiency and faster order fulfillment.

With NetSuite, you can even create self-service portals which can be used by customers to find the status of their order, helping you strengthen customer relations.

Reduced IT maintenance & Training cost

When a brand uses multiple business management systems, they need to spend resources on ensuring that the chosen system works well all year round. Using 2 systems means spending twice as much on its maintenance which is not advisable. A system like NetSuite is reliable as it can handle your entire business operations \spanning across sales, warehouse management, SCM, HCM & more while eliminating the need to run 2 unique business management systems.

Conclusion

Whether you’re a distributing business or manufacturing or customer service, an integration between the CRM and ERP system will help at all levels. ERP Buddies Inc. specializes in providing customized ERP & CRM integration solutions to our clients.
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