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How to Win the Game of Thrones with CRM Part 3: Managing Rapid Growth

Post Author: Joe D365 |

As the next season of Game of Thrones approaches, we can’t help but wonder what would happen if CRM (Customer Relationship Management) software existed in Westeros. In this three-part blog series, we examine the ways Microsoft Dynamics CRM could help you change your fate in the dangerous quest for the Iron Throne. In last week’s installment, we talked about how CRM can help you maintain good relationships with your customers. In this post, we’re going to discuss how CRM can help you manage rapid growth by using some more fun Game of Thrones examples.

Help with Rapid Growth

Everyone wants their business to grow—that’s the ultimate goal, right? Well, growth does not come without its struggles and strain. Rapid growth in a business can break existing modes of operations and cause problems for your employees and your customers. The key to riding this wave of growth and ensuring it leads to more success and even more growth is having the ability to manage and analyze data, modify processes, and pinpoint trends to find new opportunities.

A good Westeros example of the common rapid growth issue is our favorite Khaleesi, Daenerys Targaryen. Over the seasons of Game of Thrones, we have watched her go from leading a small group of loyal khalasar to building up a formidable army in the Free Cities of the East. Now Daenerys is Queen of Meereen and has an even larger number of followers to look after. This rapid growth has been difficult for her team to manage and she has had to endure some pretty serious battles and the loss of several of her friends and advisors. Let’s look at the ways Daenerys could use CRM to help her mitigate some of the pains of rapid growth.

Manage and Analyze Your Data

When you’re in the midst of rapid growth it can become harder to maintain relationships with customers and deliver the same level of personalized service. CRM is a great tool for centralizing your customer data and keeping it accurate and consistent. This allows you to manage things like interactions, orders, and account history much more efficiently.

Once Daenerys Targaryen freed the slaves of Astapor, Yunkai, and Meereen, she had many more people to provide for, listen to, and manage. Daenerys could address this by adding all of these new contacts to CRM—making it much easier for her to track their needs and send them tailored communications. She could also send out automated surveys every time a new contact is added to discover more information about them (such as their aspirations and skillsets) as a way to help them start new lives.

By setting up automated alerts in CRM, Daenerys and her team would always be informed if there were a conflict that needed to be addressed. This would allow her to manage any grievances in a more efficient and proactive manner instead of having to wait for each day’s supplicants to come forward. Daenerys would be able to address issues much faster and perhaps avoid her troubles with groups like the Sons of the Harpy.

HBO

 Modify or Eliminate Old Processes

As your business grows, you’re going to have to modify your processes, procedures, and operations to fit that growth. With CRM, you have the ability to evaluate what processes may be causing inefficiencies or may no longer work for your organization. In order to maintain the same level of service your customers have to come to expect it’s imperative to stay on top of your processes and to modify your operations as your team grows.

With CRM, Daenerys could figure out what processes were no longer going to fit her much larger operations out of Meereen. Instead of leaving a small and disconnected council to manage Astapor and Yunkai, she could have used CRM to provide these people with instant access to the same centralized database and resources that she has in Meereen. By streamlining operations across the three cities she liberated, Daenerys could have freed up her resources, avoided the coup attempts, and maintained her control.

HBO

HBO

 Pinpoint Trends to Find New Opportunities

To continue growth in your business you need to be able to recognize good opportunities and pinpoint the right time to capitalize on trends. CRM gives you a holistic view of your data and is a great tool for developing new strategies and for forecasting. By examining current customer data you can find new customer segments to target and see what strategies or communications have been most effective.

Daenerys has done a pretty good job of recognizing new opportunities when they present themselves, but with CRM she could take her strategy to the next level. With her sights set on reclaiming the Iron Throne, she could use CRM to determine where the best opportunities are in Westeros instead of having to rely on guesswork and assumptions. She could then send out targeted communications to potential leads to gauge interest in a new Targaryen rule, find out what issues important to them, and to see what trends might help her cause.

HBO

HBO

 

As we’ve learned from Game of Thrones, the effects of rapid growth can get out of hand if you’re not prepared. To take control of your growth and use it to propel your business forward, you need the right system in place. With CRM, you will be better equipped to maintain expected levels of services, address changes within your operations, and stay on top of new opportunities. If you’re struggling with addressing the impact of rapid growth within your organization, you’re not alone! Learn more about how CRM can help you manage rapid growth on our Why CRM site.

Happy CRM’ing!

How to Win the Game of Thrones with CRM Part 1: Better Data = Better Decisions

How to Win the Game of Thrones with CRM Part 2: Stop Losing Customers

Joe CRM
By Joe D365
Joe D365 is a Microsoft Dynamics 365 superhero who runs on pure Dynamics adrenaline. As the face of PowerObjects, Joe D365’s mission is to reveal innovative ways to use Dynamics 365 and bring the application to more businesses and organizations around the world.

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