Enough already! Post-it notes are not a solution. Modern customer management with the ticket system 2.0

In the age of the Internet and customer self-services, this procedure is no longer in keeping with the times. Rather, the primary goal should be to integrate customers and customer information (keyword: big data) into everyday business life. The basis for all information is usually contact with customers. In many cases, this contact no longer takes place solely by means of written letters, but via personal contact, email or even self-service solutions, such as Internet portals. Rigorous linking of these contacts allows you to determine the customer’s needs in a targeted manner and, ideally, to anticipate requirements in advance and thus influence purchasing decisions. This applies not only to in-store and online retail, but also in the rentals sector – assuming real estate managers view tenants as customers. Here the much-used buzzword “customer satisfaction” ignores the tenants’ requirements if the process focus of the individual application is not on the personal added value for the customer, and thus for the tenant. For example, customers are not necessarily satisfied with a property simply because they can live there and the property meets their individual demands. There are many more aspects relating to the rental object that influence the subjective perception of satisfaction – and this is precisely where customer-oriented service comes in.

Ending old communication patterns

The initial contact with a future tenant often begins via a third party. This puts the real estate portal or estate agent at the forefront when it comes to presenting the company, which certainly explains why real estate companies sometimes invest absurd amounts in their corporate identities. Although the major portals, such as Immobilienscout24, dominate the market and will continue to do so for the foreseeable future, it is more consistent to market your own offers in parallel on your own platforms (e.g., the homepage). This is not simply about presenting an offer in an advertisement; it is also an individual exchange of information. Many tenants view the exchange of tenants’ self-disclosures, creditworthiness checks and individual agreements in paper form as a burden and believe this should be a thing of the past. The consequence of this is a clean break away from old media and the familiar documentation of correspondence towards a highly integrated, future-oriented communication strategy with a standardised data basis for tenants and those providing tenant support. If tenants are able to take care of their individual queries with the real estate business service provider at any time, the this results in a more positive attitude towards the landlord and rental object, and thus inevitably in an increase in customer satisfaction. An automatically generated confirmation of receipt in reply to an email query is often enough to give customers the feeling that they have been noticed and, more importantly, are being taken seriously. The actual processing is secondary at this point.

Integrated CRM not stand-alone solutions

To ensure that subsequent processing is efficient and customer-oriented, there needs to be sufficient information available regarding the tenant, rental object and third parties, preferably ad hoc. Simple contract management does not suffice at this point and also contradicts the customer focus of the widely cited customer relationship management (CRM). If you rely on a software solution with this as the focus, you will quickly discover that such stand-alone solutions provide a wide range of functions, but completely neglect the integrative approach of CRM or can realise this only through complex interfaces to the ERP system. After all, contract management and business partner management as well as master data maintenance for the real estate are implemented in a solid, highly functional way in the ERP system and any mirroring of information leads to an increase in redundancy and complexity. A stand-alone solution always increases the administrative workload and makes it difficult to achieve a standardised data basis, the latter being a prerequisite for sound customer management. The most important factor when it comes to motivating employees, and thus the best basis for communication with the customer, is an application’s simplicity (as long as functionality is not compromised).

Ticket system 2.0

To achieve all these goals, an integrated communications solution is the only way to go. Whether tenants make contact by email, letter, in person or via the Internet, as customers, tenants now expect prompt responses and information. To allow you to meet these requirements, PROMOS provides the option of process-supported ticket processing. No matter which medium tenants use to communicate, an appropriate ticket is created automatically – or manually in when contact is in person – and assigned to the business partner, contract or another administrative unit. In this way, every enquiry is documented as the first step, thus ensuring that no enquiries are overlooked. The subsequent processing of the various issues can be performed in a very differentiated manner or through a universal process schema. Technical support is provided at all times. These two aspects support the standardisation of complex processing and documentation as a basis for information, for example if a tenant has queries.

Seamless status tracking is now standard and a key quality criterion for mail order companies and their parcel delivery services. You can go online at any time and track when and where the parcel was processed. Customers – who are also tenants – consequently view this as a legitimate requirement for all correspondence with the real estate company. Of course, this requires tenants to have access to an information and communication portal. A tenants’ portal is therefore no longer just a “nice-to-have”; it is essential for a forward-looking real estate company.  

Furthermore, the integration of various means of communication and master data management enables a holistic evaluation approach right up to forecasts and the resulting plans for action and management planning. Within the agreed scope, the standardised data basis results in a common understanding and thus creates added value for tenants and customer advisors, as well as for third parties involved in the business communication with one another. And this is precisely what is meant by the partnership approach of customer orientation and customer satisfaction: customers who are satisfied with the service provided.