Delighting customers at every stage of the buyer’s journey helps your business convert prospects, retain clients and build a stellar reputation.
A customer information system (CIS) provides a complete view. It gives customer-facing teams (marketing, sales and customer success) the information they need to wow customers and generate more revenue.
In this article, you’ll learn about customer information systems, why you need one and how to find the best solution for your company.
What is a customer information system?
A customer information system (CIS) is a digital platform that collects, stores and analyzes customer data such as:
Contact information
Customer interactions
Goals and aspirations
Contracts
Billing information
CIS solutions collect data from various sources, including your customer relationship management (CRM) system, communication channels (email, phone and messaging apps), website, customer information forms and marketing campaigns.
In most cases, businesses use a CIS to optimize the latter part of the customer relationship – everything that happens after the sale. Customer experience (CX) and support teams use the platform more than sales or marketing.
Specific industries have dedicated tools, such as customer information systems for utility company billing or call centers. However, any business can use this technology to centralize customer data.
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5 key CIS features
Customer information systems can be as pared-back or feature-rich as your team needs. However, every system should include these core features:
1. Contact management
Contact management is the management and storage of customer data. A CIS centralizes the data you generate at every point of the customer journey, from marketing to sales and customer support, allowing team members and stakeholders to find information quickly and easily.
As a result, every customer-facing department becomes more efficient and independent. For example, customer success teams can work without needing sales to run a handover meeting when a prospect converts.
Centralized contact data management also makes teams more effective. Marketing, for example, can use the data to discover the traits and demographics your best customers share. Customer success teams can use sales data to see end users’ subscription plans and goals. They can customize the onboarding process to meet their needs.
2. A record of customer interactions
As your business grows, tracking all customer conversations manually becomes more challenging, especially when sales reps and customer service agents speak to customers across channels.
A customer information system automates the process, becoming a source of truth for customer interactions. Centralizing customer engagement enables teams to implement an omnichannel workflow, connecting customer support requests across multiple channels.
A customer who reaches out via live chat and email before speaking to a rep on the phone can get a resolution faster because the rep can access every previous interaction.
Sales teams can use this data internally to track productivity (calls made, meetings booked) and find the most engaging sales channels.
3. Billing and payment information
A customer information system can double as revenue and accounting software by storing billing and account information like:
Subscription tier and add-ons
Payment terms
Contracts
Payment and order processing data
Renewal information
Keeping this data in a CIS helps customer success teams solve billing queries and send automated renewal reminders. Marketing can use revenue data to identify audience segments with the highest customer lifetime values and optimize campaigns accordingly.
Note: Given the sensitive nature of this data, it’s common for CISs to have tiered access that only allows administrators to access payment information.
4. Document management
Document management is the process of handling, storing and retrieving documents across the customer lifecycle.
Sales and customer success teams can use a customer information system to complete a range of document-related tasks:
Create and send trackable quotes
Send automated follow-up emails
Request eSignatures
Share documents with colleagues
Store documents in a centralized location
Good document management improves cross-department collaboration, reduces the administrative burden and makes your team more productive.
Customer success teams can access client contracts within the platform without asking for a copy from sales, for example. Sales teams can also get prospects’ signatures automatically.
5. Reports and insights
A CIS can turn customer information into action through built-in reports and insights software. It generates customizable self-service reports and dashboards that give different teams access to the information they need in real time:
Marketers measure the impact of campaigns through MQLs and MQL to SQL ratios
Sales reps track their performance against quotas by measuring sales metrics like calls made, meetings booked, deals created and win rates
Sales managers use forecasts to estimate future revenue and allocate resources accordingly
Customer service teams track response times, resolution rates and customer satisfaction scores
For instance, this dashboard shows how Pipedrive’s reporting and insights feature tracks sales rep and customer service agent success.
Dashboards like this do more than show performance, though. They also identify opportunities to improve your product and processes.
Product teams, for example, can use customer service reports to redesign features that receive the most complaints. Sales leaders can use pipeline reports to pinpoint bottlenecks and devise training programs or modules that help reps overcome common challenges.
Why use a CIS?
Implementing a customer information system brings multiple benefits to small businesses. It can improve customer care, make your sales team more productive and automate workflows.
Improve customer service
Access to all previous customer interactions lets teams provide faster, better and more personalized service.
Imagine calling a supplier with a question or complaint and speaking to someone who knows exactly who you are, how long you’ve been with the company and what you’re trying to achieve.
This level of knowledge makes an immediate impression on the customer, reassuring them that the rep understands who they are. It also helps reps provide personalized advice that solves problems quickly.
Reps can address support requests faster using a CIS that notifies them immediately and lets them respond using the same channel without leaving the platform.
A 2022 Gladly survey found that almost three-quarters (72%) of respondents would spend more on brands that deliver a great CX. Ultimately, customers get a positive experience that can encourage them to spend more with your company in the future.
Increase sales and marketing productivity
When using a customer information system, sales reps spend less time looking for data and more time speaking to prospects.
As with a CRM, reps can find pertinent customer information in a CIS without combing through multiple platforms or files. In some cases, they may be able to connect with a contact (via phone or email) without even leaving the CIS application.
Marketers are also more productive when using a CIS. It can help creative departments craft messages that resonate with target audiences or prioritize advertising channels that attract users with the highest customer lifetime value (CLV).
With customer data stored in a CIS, handovers between sales and marketing departments are more efficient. Since data isn’t siloed, switching between applications is unnecessary.
Customer success teams can generate an information sheet detailing what sales reps promised and what customers want to achieve, allowing them to personalize the onboarding experience.
Retain more customers
A centralized contact data record helps teams understand customer needs without talking to sales colleagues. They can use that information to highlight features or services that help new customers meet their goals and find value faster, increasing the chances of a subscription renewal.
Insights from customer purchase data can help sales reps upsell effectively. If you find customers purchase upgrades or different product tiers after a year, you could create a new subscription tier or product bundle that encourages new clients to buy immediately.
In a 2023 study by Hyken, almost half (48%) of the respondents said customer service was more important than price when deciding where to do business. Delivering exceptional customer service can help you fight churn and convert new prospects.
Streamline workflows and processes
With a CIS that uses customer data to automate internal business processes, customer-facing workflows become more streamlined and operational efficiency improves.
Marketing can use templates to personalize emails in bulk and create drip campaigns
Sales can use triggers to move deals through pipelines and transfer ownership between reps
Customer success can follow up on tickets and request customer feedback
Pipedrive’s State of Sales and Marketing report found that sales reps and marketers using automation tools are 22% more likely to be satisfied – so automation like this makes your team happier, too.
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What to look for in a CIS
Evaluate multiple factors when choosing a CIS for your small business. As you shortlist potential providers, look for systems with these four characteristics.
1. Great UX
While it’s best not to judge a book by its cover, the design of CIS solutions matters. Choose a platform with a good-looking and intuitive user interface your team will want to use every day.
A straightforward user experience will also accelerate your time to value if employees can use the software with little to no training.
In particular, look for:
A simple and consistent design
Easily navigable menus and a clear hierarchy
Built-in tips and suggestions
Microcopy and explanations
The platform’s website should give you an idea of what tools look like. Check out knowledge bases, too. The best way to see a CIS UX is through a product demo, so don’t make a purchase decision before completing a trial.
2. Automation
Choose a customer information system that automates repetitive tasks to remove time-intensive administrative work from your team members’ plates.
Tasks to automate include:
Updating contact information
Sending follow-up emails
Requesting eSignatures
Creating personalized content
Some customer information systems automate customer support delivery. Pipedrive, for example, offers a customizable chatbot and live chat functionality. The first option allows customers to help themselves, while the second ensures reps receive a notification when customers request to chat.
3. Integration
Find a customer information system that integrates with other tools in your tech stack, including CRMs and customer service platforms.
Connect your CIS to a service solution like Zendesk to sync customer information and access support tickets within the platform.
Alternatively, connect directly to messaging platforms like WhatsApp and Facebook Messenger, allowing reps to communicate with customers without leaving your platform.
Integrations also increase the number of tasks you can automate. Connecting your CIS with an eSignature tool like DocuSign, for example, will let you send customer signature request emails and reminders automatically.
Note: Pipedrive integrates with hundreds of third-party apps, allowing small businesses to consolidate tools and automate more of their workflows. The full range of integrations is available on Pipedrive’s Marketplace.
4. Security and data privacy
When collecting and storing sensitive customer data, you must follow your area’s data protection and privacy laws. A breach can cause vast financial and reputational damage.
Choosing a CIS with robust privacy and security safeguards is essential. Look for these features in particular:
Single sign-on (SSO) and multifactor authentication (MFA)
User permission levels
Soc 2, ISO 270001, GDPR and EU-US Data Privacy Framework compliance
SAS 70 type II hosting providers
Your customer information system’s features can decrease your threat landscape by minimizing duplicate data while encouraging better management, collection and storage processes.
CIS vs CRM vs CDP
Customer information systems, CRM software and customer data platforms (CDPs) sound similar but have different responsibilities and drive different outcomes.
A CIS collects data from across the customer journey. It helps customer-facing teams manage post-sale client relationships.
A CRM like Pipedrive tracks customer engagement before purchase, helping sales and marketing teams nurture and convert prospects.
A customer data platform creates comprehensive customer profiles from many sources, such as your CRM, website, social media, POS system and advertising campaigns. Marketing teams use CDPs to segment audiences and create personalized campaigns.
Here’s a table showing the differences between each platform:
Platform | Task and team |
CIS | Customer success teams store and organize customer data |
CRM | Sales teams manage pipeline and sales processes |
CDP | Marketing creates customer profiles |
Some platforms, like Pipedrive, have features that let teams use them as a CDP, CRM and CIS.
How Pipedrive helps you manage customer information
Small businesses don’t need to invest in multiple platforms to manage customer data. In most cases, choosing a single CIS, CRM or CDP will be enough since you won’t have enough data or employees to warrant multiple tools.
Put aside terminology and focus on features. For example, a CRM with contact management and customer service capabilities can be a CIS. If it has marketing automation features, it can also be a CDP.
Pipedrive can act as a single source of truth for marketing, sales and customer success, giving every customer-facing team the information they need to deliver the best experience:
Marketers use Pipedrive to segment audiences and automate marketing campaigns using pre-built email cadences
Sales reps use Pipedrive to track goals, manage deals and identify weaknesses
Customer success teams use the platform’s customer service features to monitor every interaction and respond to support requests within the platform
Pipedrive offers scalability alongside your growth. Its tiered offerings suit businesses of any size, from startups to enterprises. Hundreds of integrations help it fit with the rest of your tech stack, while add-ons like LeadBooster and Smart Docs mean you can integrate new capabilities anytime.
Final thoughts
A customer information system can improve the experience at every stage of the customer journey, streamline workflows and help you increase revenue.
If you want to stop tracking customers through spreadsheets or disparate communication platforms and start using a customer information system, Pipedrive is an excellent choice.
The customizable, award-winning CRM meets your team’s contact management and customer service needs while giving sales teams easy-to-use tools that track pipelines and close deals.
Best of all, it’s free to try for 14 days.
