Now that you’ve chosen Sage for your CRM system, the next step is Sage CRM training. Learning to use customer relationship management (CRM) systems is an important step to improve customer experience and satisfaction. Instead of simply showing users how to log in and find information, teaching teams to use Sage CRM to its fullest capacity can improve customer retention and loyalty through better service. Our step-by-step guide to effective Sage CRM training will show you how to accomplish this important task.
5 Steps for Effective Sage CRM Training
Before embarking on a training program, it’s important to understand the difference between teaching adults how to do something and teaching children how to perform a task.
Adults learn best through practical and immediate application of a new skill. So, when you are considering effective Sage CRM training, always view each task through this lens. Consider hands-on use of the system, common tasks, and frequent needs to guide you through the training itself.
Now, on to the steps for effective training:
Step 1: Select the Participants
Who should you invite to Sage CRM training? Just customer service, or other teams, too?
Consider creating several training groups and tailoring learning outcomes and training activities to the specific groups. For example, you may have three groups: management, customer service, and others (such as marketing). Each group may interact with the system differently, based on their needs.
Step 2: Build Excitement and Buy-In
If you thought the next step was training, pause for a minute. You need to generate excitement and enthusiasm among the participants! Let them know that not only are they going to experience new software, but they will be able to solve customer complaints and problems more quickly and easily with it. Share how the new system will help them do their jobs faster and better, and work with the company’s managers to generate buy-in among participants. The adoption of the new CRM system will go much more smoothly if you work to build up the excitement for its launch.
Step 3: Set Aside the Time for Training
Training should not be a once and done activity. Set aside plenty of uninterrupted time for the initial training, and for subsequent refreshers. People may listen attentively to the in-depth training but forget much of what they learned simply because they don’t use the skills or repeat them frequently after training. One in-depth training followed by many shorter refreshers is a better way for adults to learn and retain new skills.
Step 4: Utilize All Training Resources
This includes printed materials or PDFs, videos, and in-person conversations.
Most people have a dominant learning style: visual, audio, or kinesthetic (hands-on). By providing a variety of training resources—written, video, and in-person training—you’re teaching to all learning styles and allowing participants to absorb the knowledge in the manner that works best for them.
Step 5: Evaluate Training Results
As with any process, it’s important to evaluate the outcomes and results based upon the goals. So, what are your training goals, and how well did you accomplish them?
Completing a sequence of training sessions is one thing, but has it cut down on the number of calls and emails to the internal Sage CRM experts conducting the training? Is there any area of the system that seems to elicit the most confusion or calls, and can you schedule a refresher around that area to shore up peoples’ knowledge?
Logging training results, monitoring, and recording questions, and providing follow-up training sessions based on specific gaps all help to ensure successful Sage CRM training.
Support for Sage CRM Training
Some companies have dedicated training resources, while others delegate the task to human resources or the project champions. If you need additional support, we’re here to help. We are Sage expert consultants and can help you with Sage CRM training or other Sage training needs.
Whether you’re in the market for an ERP or interested in improving your current ERP strategy, Emerald TC is here to help. Our experts have years of experience implementing, customizing, and integrating the best business software out there. Contact us today to get started.