Running a business isn't an easy task, and it becomes even trickier when you throw complex data protection laws into the mix. Shockingly, over half (52%) of businesses aren't GDPR compliant, putting them at risk of severe operational, financial and reputational damage.
For field service businesses, collecting customer data is a necessary part of the process. You couldn't send an engineer to a customer's home without knowing their address, for example. So, how do you ensure that you're managing sensitive information compliantly?
In this article, we'll break down the jargon to explain what GDPR is and how it affects field service businesses that need to store customer data. We'll then share how you can manage your clients' details compliantly and explore the benefits of using a cloud-based CRM (customer relationship management) system.
What is GDPR and How Does it Affect Field Service Businesses?
GDPR stands for General Data Protection Regulation, which is the strictest privacy law in the world. Although the European Union (EU) originally drafted and passed the regulation, it affects any organisation that targets or collects data related to people in Europe.
Ultimately, the regulation is designed to give people more control over their personal data.
Since GDPR came into effect on 25 May 2018, businesses have had to follow more stringent processes when obtaining and storing customer information to avoid the harsh penalties of non-compliance.
But, how do you ensure that your business isn't in breach of GDPR? Read on to find out more.
Customer Data Compliance: How Do I Ensure My Business is Not in Breach of GDPR?
Whether you're a large corporation or an SME (Small or Medium-Sized Enterprise), you are fully responsible for protecting your customers' data. As it stands, the maximum fine for infringements is £17.5 million or 4% of your annual turnover - whichever is greater.
Consequently, it's essential to put together a compliance strategy.
Below are five steps you can take towards ensuring that your company is GDPR-compliant. However, it's also essential to seek advice from a lawyer about legal requirements for your particular business.
1. Identify the Type of Data You're Collecting
The first step to managing customer data according to GDPR is identifying and categorising the type of information you're collecting. Here are some examples of personal data that field service organisations may need to keep a record of:
- Names
- Home addresses
- Email addresses
- Phone numbers
- Credit card or bank account details
Once you've figured out the type of data you'll be storing, you can determine the best method of processing it compliantly.
2. Process the Data Correctly
Any time you obtain, use, share or store a customer's data, you need to follow the seven GDPR principles, which are:
1. Lawfulness, Fairness and Transparency: You must process all personal data according to the law and ensure that you're transparent about the actions you're taking.
2. Purpose Limitation: You shouldn't collect or store customer data for anything other than its intended, legal purpose or without proper permission.
3. Data Minimisation: Only collect the minimum amount of personal data you need to deliver your service.
4. Accuracy: Never collect, store or use inaccurate or outdated details.
5. Storage Limitation: Only keep data for as long as necessary. Once you no longer require the details, you must dispose of them correctly. You may also anonymise data if you intend to use it for business reporting purposes (for example, how many customers visited your website over the last five years).
6. Integrity and Confidentiality: You must process all data in a manner that ensures appropriate security, including protection against unauthorised or unlawful processing and accidental loss, destruction or damage.
7. Accountability: You should be accountable for how you handle customer data.
Remember, the GDPR requires you to prove the nature of consent between you and your customers. As such, you should keep a comprehensive record of how clients joined your database and what permissions they provided.
3. Keep Customers' Information Secure
Regardless of how you choose to store your customers' details, you must adopt safety measures to secure the database. Unfortunately, if you rely on spreadsheets and legacy systems to defend sensitive information, you risk becoming the victim of a data breach.
Instead, you can ensure that your database is completely secure when you use a modern, cloud-based CRM system. Unlike in-house CRMs, which are vulnerable to hackers, cloud CRM providers encrypt customer data and create backups.
Cloud systems enable you to take immediate action whenever security threats are detected so you can prevent any issues before they become serious. Additionally, the backups ensure that you can restore your entire database if the system crashes due to a virus.
4. Listen to Your Customers and Action their Requests
58% of people in the UK said they are concerned that a company might sell their personal information to other companies. Naturally, your customers will want to protect their data and GDPR is designed to give them more control over the way businesses use their details.
Therefore, you must make provisions for clients to exercise their rights by allowing them to access their data and deleting or modifying their details when asked. Your responses should be prompt, and you will need to provide a genuine, logical reason if you wish to delay or refuse their requests.
5. Assess Your Database for Risks
Since field service businesses deal with a high volume of customer data and collect information such as home addresses and bank details, you should carry out a DPIA (Data Protection Impact Assessment).
Much like a standard impact assessment, a DPIA is designed to help you identify and minimise any data protection risks. Your DPIA must:
- Describe the nature, scope, context and purposes of the processing
- Assess necessity, proportionality and compliance measures
- Identify and assess risks to individuals
- Highlight any additional steps to mitigate risks
If you identify a high risk that you cannot mitigate, you must consult the ICO (Information Commissioner's Office) before you begin processing data.
To learn more about DPIA and when you should carry out an assessment, click here.
What are the Benefits of Using a Cloud-Based CRM System to Manage Customer Data?
Evidently, there is a lot to think about to ensure that you're operating compliantly. However, thanks to modern technology, customer data compliance needn't be a headache. In reality, using CRM software not only ensures that you're following the GDPR but also boasts a range of other benefits that your business will enjoy.
Here are four reasons why a cloud-based CRM system is a must-have for any field service management business:
1. More Straightforward for Your Team
A study conducted by Professor of Business, Raymond R. Panko showed that the probability of human error is between 18-40% when people manually enter data into simple spreadsheets. For complex spreadsheets, the possibility of error escalates to a staggering 100%. So it's not that people are lazy or incompetent, but that repetitive data entry directly causes mistakes.
But, when it comes to GDPR, there is no room for error.
If you're still relying on antiquated legacy systems, spreadsheets and other paper-based methods of managing customer data, you're increasing the likelihood that you'll be fined for non-compliance.
Luckily, modern CRM systems eliminate all the arduous manual processes and paperwork by keeping everything on one easy-to-use platform. Your team can find your customers' contact details directly in the system using Google Maps to ensure all the data is correct as it goes into the database.
Your back-office staff can then use the pre-populated information to communicate directly with customers, who will have the option to opt-in or out of marketing emails. Since the CRM stores all correspondence with customers, it will immediately record their preferences and sort them into categories. Your team then doesn't have to worry about remembering which customers don't want to be contacted each time they send out communications.
2. Lower Costs
Field service organisations that use paper-based documents and manual processes to manage their operations spend more money than needed. Gartner estimates that as much as 3% of a company's revenue is spent on paper, printing, filing and the costs to store and maintain files of information.
Therefore, going paperless and managing customer data on a CRM system isn't just great for the environment. It makes good business sense.
Instead of paying for additional storage or needing to hire people to manage the admin processes associated with paper files, your team can handle all your customers' information on one online platform. Subsequently, you can respond much more rapidly to clients' 'amend' or 'delete' requests, enabling you to meet the 30-day GDPR requirement.
3. Improved Communication with Your Customers
It may seem like GDPR is designed to stop companies from reaching out to their customers, but this isn't the case. In truth, the regulation has led to an increase in data quality, which is good news for the 64% of businesses that believe inaccurate data undermines their ability to provide an excellent customer experience.
When you use a cloud-based CRM system to manage customer data, you will be able to see the bigger picture and categorise your clients based on their preferences. As a result, you'll only be sending personalised marketing communications to customers that opted-in, meaning that click-throughs and engagement are likely to skyrocket.
With increased customer engagement, you can use the data the CRM collects to inform future marketing campaigns and tailor your services to client requirements.
4. Customers' Data is Protected
In today's digital world, protecting your clients' data is more critical than ever. In fact, failure to keep sensitive details safe could be detrimental to your organisation, with 71% of people saying they would take their business elsewhere after a data breach.
When you use a spreadsheet to store and handle customer information, you're inadvertently putting your organisation at risk of a data breach. Spreadsheets are easy to duplicate and share with others, meaning your database of sensitive customer data could end up in anyone's hands.
Even if you have protected your spreadsheets with passwords, you still can't guarantee that someone won't gain unlawful access to them. So, it can be challenging to prove that you have taken the proper precautions to secure customer information in the event of a breach.
In contrast, a cloud-based CRM system significantly lowers the possibility of a data breach. For example, BigChange's CRM secures all data in AWS (Amazon Web Services), which is the world's most comprehensive and widely-used cloud platform in the world.
As such, you can show customers that you take data privacy seriously, and they can rest assured that their information is in good hands.
Guarantee GDPR Compliance on BigChange's Cloud-Based CRM System
Managing data subject consent doesn't have to be time-consuming.
BigChange equips you with the tools you need to handle all customer data compliantly at the touch of a button, with our market leading Job Management Software.
Carry out GDPR-compliant management of an individuals’ data within the system, including opt-in preferences. Anonymise data, and add flags to segment contacts for financial or marketing purposes.
Want to find out more?
Discover how BigChange field service management software can make your business grow stronger here and arrange a freedemo today.
