Ok workout aficionados, that analogy might not be right 100% of the time. However, most will see my point. We buy things and sign up for things with the intention to use them and then don’t follow through. Your CRM, like an occasionally or unused gym membership, will not yield results unless you work it. So how can you best leverage your CRM?

First, you and your team have to embrace the purpose of the CRM. It is not just a database, it is what its name defines it as, a customer relationship manager. The business of Real Estate requires that Relators® and Brokers build relationships to sell properties. A Real Estate specific IDX CRM will help you build the best and strongest relationship you can (make sure your CRM IDX feed is SSL secure).

Next, make sure you have the right IDX CRM. The right CRM is the one that will meet your needs now and will scale to meet your needs in the future. Most tools aren’t perfect right out of the box, so be sure it has some flexibility with customization. It is also the CRM that your team will actually use. If it takes too much time to learn or too much effort going back and forth between systems, then it might not be the one for you. Enthusiastic adoption is everything.

Now for the most important part. You have to build your contacts and leads and begin to cultivate those relationships. By leveraging your CRM to engage clients you will find that you are able to manage your time more efficiently and free yourself up to be out there networking, working on your marketing or doing other activities that will get you more contacts, more referrals and more RFPs (requests for proposals).

Finally, your CRM will help you track your success, and if you are a team manager it will provide specific insight into your team and individual performances. A recent study by Harvard Business Review found an 18% difference in revenue growth between companies that have a formalized sales process and those who don’t. For Real Estate that means, Brokers and Agents that have a formalized sales process tracked through IDX CRM will drive their business more effectively and have an increased ability to grow their revenue.

This is the 10,000 ft. view of leveraging a CRM. You don’t have to get the most expensive CRM solution that will charge thousands of dollars a month like a Boomtown or Commissions Inc. Don’t get caught-up in the hype of tools and services you don’t need. To take your view to ground level and see what your boots on the ground would look like with a powerful and robust SSL secure Real Estate IDX CRM solution (like the Buying Buddy IDX CRM Suite), contact us. We can show you how cost effective success and growth can be with a CRM.