The Deloitte Access Economics report, ‘Small business imperatives for the digital age’, found that only 30 per cent of small businesses use customer relationship management (CRM) software.
Those businesses earn 28 per cent more revenue on average than those businesses using spreadsheets, paper or no system.
Further, it found that when the CRM system was introduced in the business life cycle was not a factor in the amount of revenue earned.
“We did not find evidence of a difference in average revenue between these two groups,” the report said.
“A more important factor is whether the CRM is used effectively and digital tools like CRM system form part of the business’ overall growth strategy.
“In fact, 94Â per cent of SMEs that have invested in CRM systems experienced some form of benefits.”
The most common factors holding back small businesses from adopting CRM systems are due to the businesses believing that their existing system of managing and analysing customer interactions is good enough, the report said.
Other notable reasons from small businesses include that it’s too expensive, they don’t have the time or they lacked the required staff to operate the CRM.
The report also noted other studies that suggest businesses benefit more from adopting technology when it forms a core part of their strategy for expansion rather than using technology to solve particular issues.
“For instance, CRM software can be used to share important customer information to all employees rather than relying on the owner or a few key staff members,” the report said.
“This can be a more important factor for successful technological investment rather than when a business decides to upgrade.”
