What Is the Difference Between a Sales Engagement Platform and a CRM?
CRM and Sales Engagement Platforms serve unique functions that are integral to any business, though they differ in their functions. A CRM platform organizes your customers' contact information and interactions, while a sales platform executes sales activities with prospects. CRM platforms are proven to increase sales by 29% and productivity by 34% on a yearly basis. Therefore, 91% of businesses with 11 employees are considering adopting them. In contrast, companies prefer SEPs due to their ability to become a single cohesive digital interface.
To understand the benefits and differences of each platform, we'll dive into those specifics.
Sales Engagement Platform: What is it?
Using an engagement platform streamlines the sales process by analyzing detailed information at every stage.
In the conversion process from a lead to a customer, a sales representative employs several communication methods. Each touchpoint of the customer's lifecycle is monitored and tracked by sales engagement tools, which provide analytics. The sales team uses this insight to determine how to send emails, what communication methods prospects respond to the most, or even how many times the prospect has viewed an email and interacted with content.
In addition to providing sales managers with the data and reporting they need to build better sales strategies, sales engagement platforms also accelerate the sales cycle, thereby increasing revenues.
What are their purposes?
Business owners can improve their customer interaction and sales efficiency by using sales engagement software. Moreover, each call script has been optimized, enhancing the sales communication significantly. Also, you get the best outreach sales possible by combining the email templates with the other messaging assets.
What are their uses?
Automation and synchronization of marketing processes, emailing, calling, content management, business intelligence, and other processes is the main function of SEPs.
What is a CRM?
A customer relationship management system, or CRM, is used to improve business relationships by cultivating relationships with customers and interacting with them. In addition to storing customer and prospect information, CRMs also manage sales, productivity, and reporting, which are accessible to all team members.
It's easier for companies to make informed decisions about who their customers are, streamline processes, and improve profitability when they have access to all of their customer information in one place.
Why are they used?
Using a CRM software system improves the customer relationship considerably and focuses more on retaining customers. As a result, the entire team performs better. In addition to streamlining the process of handling customer information across various channels, CRM management ensures that the information gathered is synchronized and that the company is aware of the customer's history in full.
Where are they used?
Business units such as sales, marketing, customer service, and others use CRMs.
The difference between a Sales Engagement Platform and a CRM
As shown in the infographic above, CRM and sales engagement platforms have different functions.
A sales engagement platform represents the top of a marketing and sales funnel. A sales engagement platform is primarily used by SDRs and BDRs. It is where sales teams prospect, communicate, follow up, and manage leads' conversations. By combining all communications, data, and other essential components in one central platform, sales teams are able to streamline their sales processes.
A CRM is a tool designed specifically for maintaining and building on existing customer relationships from the middle to the top. CRMs are primarily used by account executives and customer success teams as a tool to provide insight into the entire customer journey (for example, renewing contracts and updating contact information).
Here are the key differences between CRM and Sales Engagement Platform:
- The CRM platform is an excellent tool for managing leads and contacts. SEP is a more popular option because of its high sales forecasting capabilities. On the other hand, it stores everything in a centralized, yet easily accessible database. Using it, sales trends and conversion likelihoods can be well predicted.
- SEPs, on the other hand, manage the daily workflows of the teams and campaigns. They also organize meetings and their schedules. CRM helps businesses integrate their marketing campaigns.
- CRMs integrate emails and contact points, and the entire team has access to all contacts through the central dashboard. However, the sales engagement platform allows tasks to be scheduled and progressed. In order to prevent team members from missing out on any upcoming calls or appointments, all upcoming calls and appointments are scheduled in advance.
- Using the CRM, teams can schedule and assign tasks to different departments with ease. Providing services, promoting products and services to customers and prospects are some of the tasks these teams complete. SEPs, on the other hand, help teams track their performance metrics. Sales funnels, forecasts, and strategic decisions around them are all based on the SEPs.
- It is common for sales teams to utilize CRM systems for intelligence and reporting. In addition to improving customer relations and business activities, professionals can generate standard and customized reports using CRM systems. Opportunity management is the primary purpose of SEPs. Order management, pipeline management, and quote management are some of the features that make SEPs popular.
Sendnow - A platform for agencies to engage with sales
Sendnow offers agencies a sales engagement platform that combines data and analytics to streamline their sales processes. Embedded click reporting, smart campaigns, multichannel analytics, and reporting capabilities are among the features. Monitor your clients' performance, view their individual performance, and collaborate better with them.
Click here to speak with a Sendnow Specialist about how Sendnow can enhance your sales process.
