Which Business Processes Can Be Automated with a CRM?

Easily Automatable

• Capturing and Assigning Inquiries – A form, email, or phone note automatically becomes a record for the responsible person.
• Follow-ups – No offer is left unattended because the system reminds after a specified period.
• Offers and Order Confirmations generated from templates with the data of the transaction.
• Status Updates to customers upon defined events.
• Evaluations that someone else compiles manually each month.
• Data Synchronization between CRM, accounting, and newsletter systems.

Better Not to Automate

Anything that requires discretion: discounts, rejections, complaint responses, credit decisions. Such steps can be prepared by a system – approval should be given by a person.

The reason is not only legal. Automated decisions without a review step only become apparent when they have been wrong for weeks.

Order of Implementation

Start with the step that occurs most frequently and takes the most time – not with the technically most appealing one. An automated process that occurs ten times a day is more beneficial than five that run once a quarter.

Data Protection

If personal data is processed during automation, a legal basis under GDPR is required. For purely automated decisions with significant effects on the affected person, Article 22 GDPR applies – then a human review step is usually mandatory.