How To Take Charge Of Your Database Woes

database management software

11 Aug How To Take Charge Of Your Database Woes

What in the world does a database do, anyhow? To somebody with less technological knowledge, it can sound intimidating. But to an IT expert, it’s about as simple and functional as a big filing cabinet. The majority of data management software available will contain a database of some form or another. Often they function at the centre of software which can, for example, map trends, track sales, help you follow up on leads or customers that have been ordering with for you for years. Other examples we may see are tracking tenders, storing estimates and/or quotes for later reference, or analysis, timesheets, asset tracking, maintenance historyNames, email addresses, preferences, previous purchases, it’s really just a matter of keeping the information you need. You probably already keep information pertinent to your business, databases just help you keep more of it, all in the same place.Database software is also great for marketing and customer management: you can send personalised emails and offer targeted messages because you know exactly who you are dealing with and what they like to order.

Are You Suffering From A Poorly Performing Database?

The problem for many businesses is they choose a packaged database program or off-the-shelf software because it was bundled with other programs or because they think it will be the cheapest solution, or perceive it as a quick, or temporary solution. More often than not however, these database programs fail to provide the features and functions you really need to streamline your business processes. Database needs are often very particular to a business and it can be difficult to find an off-the-shelf solution to fit these needs perfectly.  So you 1) adopt spreadsheets that become too large and too complex, 2) or a staff member has a try with Microsoft Access till it becomes too mission critical to leave as is (or the employee leaves the company), or 3) you had a solo developer that is no longer available.The upshot of all this? More time spent on staff training, bringing in I.T Support to bring the system back online and restore your valuable data, and worse of all, a sense of poor customer service because a lack of customer data means you are failing to meet expectations.Sound familiar? Custom solutions may sound like the expensive option, but what they give you in return for that investment will quickly translate to your bottom line. Efficiency, productivity, insight, CRM, growth…..the list of benefits is long, so we have outlined just a few of them below.Whether you are looking at installing data management software for your company or more ways to make your current option work better for you, we’ve got some easy ways that databases can help.

It Pays To Plan Ahead

As with any kind of custom software, the key to easing your fears about data management software is careful planning. You need to look at what your company actually needs to keep track of. Fortunately, with a custom option, you will be able to keep track of exactly what you need, what you might want, and you can keep out the rest. The best part is, it will be wrapped up in a package that makes it easy to use. There’s no point in having a database of information if you can’t access it or if your employees don’t add to it. In order to get the features you need, though, you have to define them. You know a database program can help your company, and but it is important to determine the exact information you need stored.

Keep The Clients You Have

There’s no definitive answer, but the general school of thought is that [tweet_box design=”default”]it costs between 4 and 10 times more to get a new client than it does to retain an existing one[/tweet_box].Nobody wants to get rid of their clients. That’s where the money comes from! It’s easier to focus on pleasing the customers that you do have than it is to find new ones. Database software can be designed to do just that. It allows you to keep track of how often your clients order products or services, specifically what they order, and when they should be ready to order again. It’s not about pressuring your clients to keep ordering, instead it’s about being ready to supply them when they are ready to order.A great example of this comes from the insurance industry. Insurance operates on renewable policies databases, which are a great way of keeping track when policies are about to expire. These databases also tell the providers what prices people paid and how their rates might change.

Use Databases For A Personal Touch

As your client base grows, your staff likely will too. But until you’ve got enough staff, you might have less time to spend on particular clients. You want to keep the personal touch, and despite being a cold and unfeeling program, custom databases are actually perfect for this. With everything kept in one place, you and your employees will spend less time searching for information that seemed trivial at the time it was given, and yet always seems to be needed somewhere down the line. It will all get kept in the same, easily accessible place. This will make employees more productive because they will be able to spend less time searching.Not to mention the benefit of knowing exactly who your clients are and their habits. Maybe you have a few clients right now, maybe you have hundreds. Being able to keep all of the relevant information accessible means making a more personal connection with your customers, and that improves your retention rates.

Move Into The Cloud

If you want, you can keep your database online using cloud-based storage. This offers its own complete set of advantages. For one, you can access it from anywhere you like as long as you are connected to the internet. Many databases, such as a SharePoint based database, can even be accessed from mobile devices. The fact that everything is stored online means you can keep your physical hardware costs and space requirements down. Plus, in the event of a system crash, your information won’t be lost, because it will be saved in the cloud.

Make Your Company More Sustainable

Everybody likes to talk about going green. But it sounds expensive, right? Well, if the state of the environment is something that really concerns you, a database can help.Maybe you’ve hear of Corporate Social Responsibility, or CSR. If you haven’t, it’s basically what it sounds like – it’s a management concept in which companies include both environmental and social interests in with the rest of their business operations. It sounds complicated, but it doesn’t have to be. The vast majority of companies in the U.S. for example are using Excel as their application of choice when it comes to CSR, and they could be making a bigger difference – both in their CSR and their profits – just by switching to better data management software. According to Sustainable Brands, it’s the lowest performing option and ends up costing more annually in time and errors.Switching to a custom database solution can make an impact on the environment! Who would have thought? More importantly though, it will make an impact on the productivity of your employees, on the happiness of your customers, on your organisation, and on your bottom line. If you already have a database, hopefully we’ve given you a few ideas about how to better utilise it. If you think a database system is right for your company, you can check out our services here.sharepoint