If you’re in the world of business software, you’ve probably heard of CRM: customer relationship management. CRM software systems keep track of customers’ names, communication preferences, contacts at the company, and more. But have you ever thought about how these customers’ data are being managed?
Enter: CIM, or Client Information Management. CIM software systems manage customers’ or clients’ information in order to maintain high standards of compliance, security, ease of use, and the customer experience. After all, if you know that a client would rather be emailed than called on the phone, but you don’t know what information to include in the email, you’re back to square one.
CIM software solutions include document management systems. Document management systems, such as M-Files, that prioritize CIM connect all documents to the correct business context and customer, providing both employees and clients the information they need at the tips of their fingers.
Read on to find out more about why CIM is important for your business.
Compliance and Security
The first big advantages that a CIM system can provide are compliance and security. As cybersecurity becomes more and more important in today’s digital world, your responsibility to keep your clients’ information safe expands. What’s more, you must keep track of relevant compliance laws or leave yourself open to fines and worse. Companies that leave their customers’ information open to theft can face a huge PR backlash, lawsuits, and a precipitous drop in customer numbers. Don’t let your company become a cautionary tale!
By implementing a CIM system like M-Files, you can modernize secure information exchange, automate permissions management, and streamline compliance audits with revision histories and advanced search capabilities. Your employees won’t have to email endless copies of the same document back and forth, and you’ll be able to see exactly who has access to what documents at any given time.
Delivery and Ease of Use
In addition to the fundamental advantages of security and compliance, a CIM system improves file delivery and ease of use for your clients. By creating automated workflows, templates for standard documents like invoices, and a metadata-driven search function, M-Files allows you to provide your clients with a simple, streamlined experience with your company. This software will also benefit your employees, as they will be able to find important information in one place, create documents quickly and easily, and skip many error-prone manual data entry steps. A CIM improves collaboration between employees as well as between your business and your clients. What’s not to love?
A Practical Example
This may seem a little abstract, so we’d like to introduce you to First South Credit Union: a community-based cooperative that has provided financial services in Ireland for over 50 years. FSCU prioritizes customer relationships, and they found that manual, paper-based processes interfered with these relationships through errors and time wasted. They knew that they needed a new CIM solution. In consultation with Laminin, they chose M-Files and MFSQL Connector to meet their goals. Their customer relationships have flourished as a result.
To find out more about how FSCU partnered with Laminin, read the full success story here.
Enable Business Transformation with CIM
Are you ready to transform your business through CIM? Drawing upon decades of experience in the business software industry, the experts at Laminin are ready to help you take your company to the next level. We will work with you to determine your unique needs and goals, then provide you with a customized solution that integrates with your existing systems. Contact us today to get started.
