Assessing CRM Vendors Using a Matrix Tool

If your company decides to move forward with implementing a CRM program, the work is just beginning. At this point, you have to figure out which CRM vendor to more forward with.

In the current environment, there are a number of vendors who specialize in a particular field, so it can be difficult to narrow your choices down to one. Companies can use a CRM vendor assessment matrix to help simplify the process of vendor selection.

When your company uses a CRM vendor assessment matrix, it ranks the vendors based on the perimeters that your company is looking for. There are times when doing this eliminates a number of vendors on the list. The final list of potential vendors that your company can use for their CRM program will have how they rank in all of the different areas that you wanted them ranked in. The tool is customizable so you can change perimeters in order to coincide with your company's specific needs at the time. This customization creates a personally tailored report just for you.

A positive remark about using a vendor assessment matrix to evaluate the different CRM vendors on your list is that it presents the results in a clear visual format. This format makes it easier for you to present the findings at business meetings so everyone else who needs to know about it can be caught up. The tool is also very easy to work with and user-friendly. One does not need to be a computer or assessment expert in order to work the matrix tool and understand the results.

When it is time to select the vendor from the results list from the matrix tool, you will see that the decision is much easier than it would have been without using the tool. Instead of just seeing names of vendors, you will see all of the relevant information about the vendor that needs to be taken into consideration before you can decide which one to go with. This decreases the chances that your company will select the wrong CRM vendor and end up regretting the decision that was made.