Roofing customer relationship management, or CRM, systems are designed to help contractors streamline their processes and manage every aspect of their work more effectively. As these systems gain popularity and prevalence in the industry, many contractors wonder how to find the right roofing CRM for their business and what advantages it can bring. Especially during the busy summer months, roofing contractors are looking for technology that will help them gain an edge over their competitors.

Recently, AccuLynx Success Coach Matt Morrisson sat down with Adam Bensman of The Roof Strategist to talk about using a roofing CRM to increase sales, exercise greater control over business processes, and deliver top-notch customer service. Continue reading through these roofing sales interview questions for a condensed and edited summary of this interview, or watch the full interview on YouTube or Facebook.

Roofing Sales Interview Question #1: Why are CRMs so important for roofing companies to use?

Matt: If you use a roofing CRM correctly, what it really does is force your company to start working like a team. It allows for a greater level of collaboration, and a true central source of truth. CRMs create a workflow so everything you do helps the next person at the company—the production person, the bookkeeping people, and all down the line. Everything in the system helps them have what they need so that they can consistently provide the great experience that your company prides itself on. Unlike paper folders, which are really only easy for the person holding the folder, roofing CRMs are convenient for everyone and give everyone on your team what they need to provide that good customer experience.

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From a company culture and from a business process and scalability standpoint, another one of the things that a CRM gives you is accountability. Different people remember things differently and have different expectations, and maybe I’m a hundred percent convinced that I told you to do something when I actually didn’t. This can cause conflict within your team. Without accountability, you get lots of misunderstandings and drama. When you have the accountability of a CRM, you can stop playing the blame game and fix the customer’s problem more quickly.

Ultimately, there’s no downside to using a CRM to manage your business. Tech-savvy customers expect it, and old-school customers are impressed. No one’s going to be annoyed that you can answer their question or send them a text or shoot them an email with some information. There’s no downside there, there’s only upside potential.

Roofing Sales Interview Question #2: How do you choose which roofing CRM is right for you?

Matt: The first question to ask yourself is, “What do you want out of a CRM? What are you trying to accomplish?” If you’re using technology to manage your business right now, what do you want that your current CRM isn’t providing you? And if you’re still using pen and paper, what do you want to get out of using a CRM instead? Once you answer these questions, you’ll be able to find the CRM that works for you.

It’s also important to make sure that you’re choosing the roofing CRM that’s right for your business, not anyone else’s. At the end of the day, the reality is that there are different fits for different structures and different styles of doing business. So it’s important to take a look at how you do business, what your needs are, and what can help you meet those needs. What’s working with what you got? And what’s not working with what you got?

And ultimately, whatever one you pick, remember that the CRM that you use is better than the one that you don’t. Take the time to start using your CRM and put everything in place right from the start, and that will drive success and get you all the other benefits of using a roofing CRM. If you don’t roll out usage and set expectations, you’ll never get the benefits of the CRM.

Roofing Sales Interview Question #3: What new AccuLynx features in particular can benefit contractors and why?

Matt: This year our big focus has been on trying to lighten some of the workload for contractors, especially when it comes to some of the more menial things that are important but are kind of repetitive. This spring we rolled out our Automation Manager, which helps make things like sending emails and notifications easier. The way it works is that when a certain milestone is hit or a job is scheduled or an appointment is set, an email can automatically go out or a task can automatically be created to remind you to do something like sending an invoice or creating a supplement. Everything’s in AccuLynx, so that when you’re in that job file, you can see everything there, whether it’s a simple automated notification or a conversation.

Automations help people work as a team and present a consistent team front, with standardized messaging. Sales guys get busy and sometimes you just forget something—but if you can put automations in place, you don’t have to remember to keep in touch, it’s done for you. And then your customers are really impressed with how you’ve stayed in touch with them, and kept them informed, and they’re willing to tell their friends or neighbors about your business. So ultimately, the automations in AccuLynx can really help you grow.

Hear More About How Roofing CRMs Can Benefit Your Business

To hear more from this interview, visit The Roof Strategist page on YouTube or Facebook.