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The real reason your CRM isn’t delivering pipeline

By  Rob Fraser  ·  2 minute read

CRMs don’t create pipeline. They manage it.

But when B2B pipelines feel slow and spiky, blame often shifts to the CRM or other tools.

“It’s messy.”

“It’s complicated.”

“Reps don’t use it properly.”

“We need a new tool.”

But the CRM isn’t the issue. And before you rush off an invest in yet another tool, you need to understand the real problem.

It’s the inputs.

Why CRMs become graveyards for opportunities

Adopted with great hope and optimism, many CRMs languish as poorly utilised storage devices where leads go to die.

When it comes to your CRM, it’s only as good as what you put into it. To be a useful tool, your CRM needs a steady flow of:

  • Defined ICP prospects

  • Consistent nurture

  • Tracked engagement

  • Matched clear buying signals

  • Qualified hand-offs

Without proper tending and attention, your CRM is just an expensive storage unit. Not the dynamic and effective pipeline engine it could be.

No software can fix the problem of misguided or missing activity.

Rubbish in, rubbish out

The old saying rings true here. If your CRM is a dumping ground for unfiltered and unqualified contacts that remain untouched for months or even years, it’s as good as useless.

If, however, your CRM is full of warmed, nurtured and intent-rich opportunities that are constantly tended to and engaged, it will become an unstoppable revenue machine,

The difference isn’t the CRM or tool you use. It’s the system that feeds and supports it.

Why sales teams stop trusting the CRM

It doesn’t take much for mistrust of the CRM to spread through your organisation. With sales targets and revenue goals to hit, your sales team needs the CRM to guide them to success.

But they disengage when they see:

  • Stale contacts

  • Cold leads

  • Wrong-fit prospects

  • Outdated information

If they can’t rely on your CRM, salespeople go back to spreadsheets, notes and intuition. Anything but the CRM really.

To be effective, your systems and tools need the confidence of your people. You need to fix the inputs to ensure they re-engage with your CRM and use it to its full potential.

The missing piece of the puzzle – always-on demand

There’s no big secret to solid pipeline and strong growth. It comes from a consistent flow of the right activities directed towards the right prospects.

In our world, we focus on the four demand dials that compound your impact in the market with consistent execution that delivers more visibility and better meetings with more engaged prospects.

The demand dials that drive growth:

1. Attention

Ensuring you are visible to your audience and getting the attention of the people who matter to your business.

2. Identification

A clearly defined ICP, or the people who have the problem you can solve, become the focus of your activities.

3. Cultivation

This dial is critical during long B2B buying cycles, using creative and engaging nurture sequences to ensure you stay top of mind.

4. Qualification

Stay close to prospects to find those who are demonstrating purchase intent and making the right noises. These prospects are gold in the hands of your sales team.

If your CRM is the heart of your sales and growth engine, then these four dials are the lifeblood that keeps it pumping.

It’s a living, breathing growth ecosystem that remains fresh and relevant due to constant activity.

Or looked at another way, it’s a fresh and flowing stream that feeds a thriving ecosystem with constant fresh activity. Not a stagnant pond incapable of sustaining life.

Transforming CRM use and outcomes

With this always-on approach to demand gen activities, your CRM houses:

  • A well-defined ICP

  • A robust and growing TAM

  • Nurtured prospects

  • Tracked engagement

  • Intent signals and scores

  • High quality, conversation-ready prospects

This is a game-changer for CRM use. Sales reps want to open it. Managers trust it. Leaders make informed decisions from it.

Because your pipeline is real, reliable and ready.

Before you toss out one unused tool and replace it with another, make your focus building a better system to feed the CRM you have. You’ll be pleasantly surprised with the results.

If you need help building that consistent, always-on system, talk to the experts at The Demand Stream.