4 signs you need a workflow automation software

The health of a business depends on how well the goals are achieved. However, goals appear like an unachievable star when you’re stuck in the busy trap. There are a series of activities that need to be done in a day, but unfortunately, due to lack of time, you often procrastinate this work.

Did you know, 45% of day-to-day activities can be automated?

Yes, most of the tasks that are consuming your precious hours can be eliminated with a smart workflow automation software.

This smart technology is revolutionizing businesses and helping them in being faster, smarter and more productive. Despite its enormous potential, most of the companies hesitate in taking this smart path. They think they’ll manage the work manually. But sadly, due to this, most of the tasks are left unattended.  

Are you too amongst those businesses who are wondering if you need this technology?

Well, let’s find it out. But before we do that, let’s mull over the basics.

What is workflow automation?

Workflow automation is the wiser way of handling and completing most of the sales activities. With the aid of the right technology, you substitute manual work with rule-based logic.

All you need to do is create a process by setting a few conditions, and the actions will be triggered based on those predefined automation rules. Workflow automation increases efficiency and prevents everyday tasks from slipping through the cracks.

Here are a few workflow statistics that need your attention:

• 20% of CEOs’ time is spent on work that could be automated.
• 60% of occupations could have 30 percent or more of their constituent activities automated.
• Only 4% of common workplace activities involve human creativity, and only 29% require a human ability to sense and respond to emotion.

Four signs your company is ready for implementing workflow automation software

If your workflow has multiple steps that require input from a wide number of people, then you should surely consider automating it with workflow automation software. By doing this, you can save a lot of time and ensure consistency in your work.

When more people are involved, the complexities in any work process increases. There are more chances of delays or failures. But with automation software, this can be avoided as it creates ownership for each step of the work process. This increases accountability and decreases loopholes in the process.

Here are signs that speak volumes about your company’s need for workflow automation software.

1. Deals aren’t reaching the representatives on time

Opportunities won’t stay in your pipeline for long if they don’t get real-time attention. Your marketing team put in efforts and generate leads. But it is pointless if the sales teams aren’t approaching and converting them.

79% of marketing leads never convert into sales

This mostly happens because the sales managers don’t distribute the deals on time. They are so tied up with their work that they often forget to assign the deals to the right sales representative. Moreover, a lot can go wrong when a high volume of deals need to be distributed.

The same lead could be assigned to multiple sales reps, or many leads could be assigned to one sales representative. There are even chances that the leads could be assigned to the wrong personnel.

Such delays and mistakes often result to deal loss. Customers expect timely response and interactions. If they don’t receive it, they will instantly explore other solutions available in the market.

“If you are not taking care of your customers, your competitors will”
– Bob Hooey 

Quit missing out on opportunities, get this cumbersome task of assigning leads automated with the best automation software. Set intelligent workflows like when a new deal is created add a specific sales rep to that deal. The sales rep will be notified, and he can instantly start working on the deal.

If at all you have multiple sales pipelines, then you can state it while defining the rule. By automating this task of assigning leads, sales managers get more time for planning new strategies, providing feedback, solving problems and training their team.

Companies that have at least one automated distribution method see an 87% higher conversion rate than those who manually distribute leads.
(information source)

2. Your process is prone to errors

There is a vast difference in terms of quality between the work that is handled manually and the one that is done with the help of technology. The biggest benefit of using a workflow automation software is that it decreases errors.

Mistakes in sales can hamper your efforts. So, eliminate them and improve your results. Besides with workflow automation, you can reduce late actions as everything is addressed at the right time.

Workflow automation establishes an organized structure. You don’t need to worry about misplacing vital information. If your process begins with a website contact form, you can apply automation and get the information automatically streamlined in one place.

For instance, you set a rule that when a website visitor fills up the online form, contact will be created in the workflow automation system. Each time a visitor enters his basic details the action will be triggered creating a new contact in the system.

3. You are wasting a large amount of precious time on repetitive tasks

Time is the soul of a business; therefore you cannot afford to waste it. There are many tasks that you need to do regularly like engage customers by sending informative newsletters or update records. Why repeat the same thing when you can automate it in software.

A workflow automation tool is the best way to cut down on repetitive activities that are consuming your selling hours. Nearly two-thirds (64.8%) of reps’ time, on average, is spent on non-revenue generating activities, leaving only 35.2% for functions related to selling.

Using automated workflows, you can keep your processes in motion with little human efforts. It increases the pace of your work and ensures it is completed in the right way.

4. Unable to follow-up the prospects on time

Follow-up is a crucial task for nurturing a deal. Some sales professionals focus on a few deals due to which they are not able to follow-up with other prospects. Every deal needs equal attention. Therefore, you need to automate this task of follow-up to ensure no deal is ignored.

By setting some simple rules in your workflow automation software, you can easily automate your follow-up emails. For instance, you can set a workflow that ‘send a product walkthrough after four days of sending an introductory email’.

The automation tool makes your work as easier as possible. Like instantly while drafting emails you can set a condition-based reminder for sending automated follow-up emails at a certain time and date.

Wrapping up

Workflow automation software is the best way to get your work done faster in an efficient manner. You can build workflows and get things done automatically in real-time. It doesn’t only reduce human error but also increases productive hours. You can choose to invest in an individual workflow automation tool, or you can use it within a CRM.

By using workflow automation within a CRM, you will get access to many other features that will help you in improving your sales and revenue. Salesmate is one such feature-rich small business CRM that doesn’t only help you in automating your workflow but also aids in managing all aspects of your business sales.