With both customers and resources tight, one’s company has to make the right decision; there is little room for error. With January being the month that budgets become replenished this is the time to begin looking for the right CRM product.

CRM solutions firm Soffront points out in a recent blog that buying CRM software can get overwhelming though, what with the amount of different CRM solutions available today. It’s a challenge it says “to identify the right one from so many options, especially when most of them offer similar functions, resolve similar business problems, and are competitively priced. It’s also difficult to foresee how well [one’s] CRM solution will fit into [one’s] business environment.”

“We tend to make the decision easy by selecting cost as the most important factor in our decision-making process,” says the blog. “While this seems logical in our current economy, it unfortunately may turn out to be a disaster.”

To assist buyers’ Soffront has come out with eight simple CRM shopping tips:

1.         Have a clear understanding of your business needs. This is often the hardest part of finding the right CRM solution. Document the business problems that must be resolved by your CRM, and verify that the system you’ve chosen will actually address these issues

2.         Keep in mind that your business strategy may change over time. This requires flexibility in the CRM, allowing for it to be fine-tuned easily with built-in tools and without external consultants

3.         Consider the fact that no solution will be able to cater to all of your requirements right out of the box. Figure out the gap and figure out the cost of bridging that gap

4.         Consider the user friendliness of the CRM solution. It’s easy to confuse colorful, attractive user interface with friendliness. Don’t be fooled—true user friendliness is about how convenient and efficient the solution is to use. This can be easily evaluated by counting the number of clicks, steps, or drilldowns are needed to accomplish simple tasks which could otherwise be performed using spreadsheets or other office automation software. This is critical, since a business solution should never become an operating problem for users.

5.         Understand the scalability and reliability of the CRM software to accommodate your growing business

6.         Check for availability of services like customer support and professional services, in case you need help in the future

7.         If you are using “implementation partners” to implement your CRM, make sure your CRM vendor is also responsible for successful implementation

8.         Understand the pricing and evaluate benefits versus cost. The best solution may not always be the most costly

“You don’t have to be a ‘CRM Guru’ to choose the right solution and feel confident that it will suit your business,” says Soffront. “Follow these eight simple tips when shopping for your perfect customer relationship management solution and you’ll find the best fit for your business.”