55 CRM stories and life-lessons if you seek
Despite what some would have you believe, the notion of “Customer Relationship Management” is no product or list of products that will establish a system for your business to more effectively deal with clients. If anything, modern CRM is a philosophical mission statement of interpersonal dynamics upon which software is used to facilitate.
You could probably go back and trace the “roots” of the CRM philosophy back to, um, maybe the origins of philosophy (certainly CRM principles show up earlier in time than Adam Smith’s tomes), but there’s no need to do show.
Just as you may not realize you’re using CRM in the workplace every day, without or with a shiny new lot of Microsoft products you’ll work overtime to install, the realities of CRM can even be found in daily life. Think of the simplest common wisdom, and some kernel of CRM philosophy is no doubt contained within.
Following are just fifty-five ways in which, if you’re not careful, CRM might apply to real-life situations.
According to the dictionary definition (okay, the wikipedia definition), “the general purpose of CRM is to enable organizations to better manage their customers through the introduction of reliable systems, processes and procedures.” But the cosmic reality is the “holistic change” necessary in the corporate philosophy, which “places emphasis on the customer.” Everybody appreciates being emphasized, right?
2. Think green
The truth is that environmental problems are the one issue that is a reality for every human being on the planet. CRM has always addressed paper waste problems by its very nature (so to speak). And now serving the customer in environmentally friendly fashion can be profitable, too. Imagine that.
3. Always keep a sense of humor
Very very specialty niche store Billable Hour Company, the inventors of the clock marked in six-minute increments, has applied on-demand technology to create the world’s only online greeting card store featuring humorous customizable printed greeting cards for folks in the legal sphere. This is the ultimate for anyone happy with someone in the legal system…um, hello? Anyone?
4. Sometimes you need a weatherman to know which way the wind blows
The Weather Channel is a 24-hour weather network with hypnotic maps and tons of meteorological information. Its website reaches more than 30 million unique users per month, and ranks no. 11 among hit counts from the U.S. And thanks to its brand spankin’ new CRM system, they can take your calls and register your opinions.
5. Tradition and technology can co-exist, or The Show Must Go On
No less than the Nederlander Organization, Broadway’s largest theater owner and show producer, is playing the CRM game now, having recently deployed the first centralized customer management and loyalty programs for theatre fans. Welcome to the 21st century, then, Mr. Brecht.
6. Just say no
And demand to see the e-pedigree, too. The e-pedigree system is a way to ensure that prescription medication is safe, legal, and good. An entire niche industry within a niche industry is developing programs to defend your drugs.
7. Dude, you can find your car
Could customer management systems be improving honesty in car dealerships? Research conducted by the University of Maryland’s Robert H. Smith School of Business shows that CRM-using automotive dealers do 23 percent better than their competition.
Software technology develops apace, and CRM follows with every player and expert sure that something is happening. Theories and conspiracies abound, but one thing is for certain: Change. SAP bigwig Shai Agassi recently waxed nostradamically on the excellent industry news outlet, ZDNet.
The Che Guevara of the CRM world is also the one who has captured the imagination of the industry with his apocalyptic views of software giant Oracle burning due to its dependence on actual – gasp! – software.
10. So adapt to the new paradigm.
The authors of “Collaborative Customer Relationship Management: Taking CRM to the Next Level” see collaborative CRM as the natural evolution in the dominant philosophy of “efficient consumer response.” Hey, these guys are from Harvard Business School.
11. Democracy requires eternal vigilance
Yes, even sometimes the best laid plans, etc. etc. And when those best-laid plans of the seemingly most insignificant mice and men can literally change history. Ever wonder how certain elections turned out with surprising results? Ever wonder about those stories regarding faulty voting systems? The state of Alaska isn’t, after the August election in which returns were delayed and results disputed.
12. Speak authoritatively and carry a big stick.
They’re big, they’re influential and they’re to be reckoned with. By taking the CRM concept seriously from its very origins, Gartner Analysts show that, with a little foresight and attentiveness, you too can become a dominant force in a niche market.
13. You standards aren’t too high
And from Gartner is blogger / “Principal Research Analyst” Jim Davies who mused in July if CRM analysts’ standards are too high. No, he concluded, because the customers’ aren’t, either.
14. Googling is the wave of the future
At least some biggies think so. Both NetSuite, Inc. and Salesforce have released products based on the Google search engine, and more are sure to follow. Whoever thought “to google” would become so popular in modern English usage?
You’d think that the simple acquisition of customers is the be-all and end-all of big business strategy. Apparently, this isn’t the case. It’s all about the risk management, according to Accenture’s annual study.
16. CRM means jobs
In a world where business travel habitually takes people around the globe, jobs on the low-tech end of the high-end sector, too, often take flight. But a call-centre firm like BeCogent can bring in a whole mess of jobs: The firm will soon be employing 2,150 in Scotland.
17. CRM can be sexy
Hey, Miss Idaho uses it. Just think, you could be one click away…
18. Believe it or not, the kids’ computer can be used as more than a video game.
To think that once the PC was about education and that only now are methods like CRM being applied to actual – oh my! – literary programs and the like.
19. Chinese walls may be necessary or, don’t put all your eggs in one basket.
Ah, that basket ‘n’ eggs … amazing, how, even with high-tech in place, it can all come back to the farm. As one expert puts it, “I am passionate about the importance of Chinese walls in marketing services. Parts of the marketing services industry should be kept separate because of inevitable conflicts of interest.” Luckily, much of the industry emphasis is switching from one-system systems to more backbones and mashups, letting each organization build unique CRM structure. As great as that fancy-schmancy CRM system may be, well, remember the eggs.
20. We need the eggs
From Woody Allen’s Annie Hall: “this guy goes to a psychiatrist and says, ‘Doc, uh, my brother’s crazy; he thinks he’s a chicken.’ And, uh, the doctor says, ‘Well, why don’t you turn him in?’ The guy says, ‘I would, but I need the eggs.’ Well, I guess that’s pretty much now how I feel about relationships; y’know, they’re totally irrational, and crazy, and absurd, and… but, uh, I guess we keep goin’ through it because, uh, most of us… need the eggs.” If you’re in business, yes that new CRM may be crazy and absurd at first, but, uh, don’t you need the eggs?
21. Everything is all about the customer.
The catch-all phrase for CRM product hawkers is “CRM is all about the customer.” Of course, just about any front-office software application is, isn’t it? Particularly in the days of e-business, don’tcha think? What separate the CRM you choose, then, had better be more than rhetoric.
Some estimates claim the failure rate of CRM implementation to be as high as eighty percent. What can you do to reduce the odds? Think about the future. As in life, it’s rarely properly just to make it up as you go along.
23. You don’t need the software at all
If CRM is all about streamlining, the evermore popular software as a service streamlines even further. Clean out your building of all the unnecessary hardware and give yourself time that you might otherwise have to used fiddling with some user’s manual. Then maybe you can go home and clean out the attic, eh?
Ah, an oldie but a goody. Just as in any other product, don’t be dazzled by geegaws and doodads. Make sure your CRM system works, and works simply. (See #26 for further emphasis on this.)
You already knew this, but did you know that most smaller CRM tools are available for at least a free thirty day trial? About how many industries can you say that free samples are still the norm?
OpenDocument&pub=Computerworld Put another way, it is better to be simple and correct than complicated and incorrect. And if you’re spending thousands to millions, wellllll….
Over in the U.K., where folks know their beer, a CRM solution actually made mainstream newspaper headlines earlier this year when Aspective assisted £50 million services company Innserve with a new system the maximizes the beer brewing and shipping potential, even factoring in weather conditions. Some folks still appreciate the finer things.
28. Sport is important, part I.
Like skiing? Like British Columbia? So do 30,000 visitors to Whistler from September to April. Now that the town’s new customer service system is in place, you’ll be able to amp up that skiing ability. Just watch out for that tree.
29. Sport is important, part II
How important is it? For World Cup 2006, the event’s CRM provider Avaya estimated some six terabytes of information passed through the Avaya centers in week one of the World Cup alone. Avaya used 30,000 monitoring devices and 45,000 network connections spread over seventy locations for the event.
30. A true friend sticks around in times of thick and thin
In Canada, some farmers were pleased to find out that CRM did their business good; even when hit with a case of bovine spongiform encephalopathy.
31. Change is good.
Sometimes, even if it ain’t exactly broke, you have to fix it. The bolded, “must do” reality is that “companies must tweak their operations to realize future CRM benefits.”
32. High-tech still reveals old-fashioned values
Getting more folksy about the CRM philosophy implied that improving relationships with customers improves profit. Sentimentally speaking, the 21st century is really trying to recreate capitalist values of the 19th century, treating each customer individually and referring to them by first name, even.
33. Privacy is at a premium… Even though the federal government’s Total/Terrorist Information Awareness program is dead and buried, customer profiling data working its way into everyday life may constantly put your personal information at risk.
34. …so it’s best to stay beyond the radar in criminal situations.
One of the bad guys in the industry’s own little Enron, Comverse, was nabbing in rather insidious fashion. Former CEO Jacob Alexander was found in Sri Lanka after evading American federal authorities for weeks. How? He made the mistake of making a call via Skype VoIP. A useful story to remember if you’re ever on the lam.
35. Anything – even CRM – can be hip.
Okay, it’s an exaggeration. But when a company called Neolane recently scored big with an agreement to do up a CRM system for Virgin Megastores, they opened themselves up for a whole market of cutting-edge consumers, some of whom will remember the Neolane name. For fifteen minutes, at least.
36. Sometimes your best just isn’t enough
Sad but true. Even with the slickest system in place, bad things still happen to good companies. When it really hits the fan, it’ll all be about grace under pressure…
37. Life is too short to listen to uninteresting music.
Perhaps the best blog out there on the industry, TMCNet scribe David Sims lives out his boyhood fantasy of sitting in the disc jockey’s chair while cranking out the CRM news daily. Usually informative, always amusing.
38. “There is no escape from marketing!”
We’re less than six years into this decade and it’s clear that this truth holds. Adapt to your customers’ needs or die trying (not to).
39. Marketing options have never been broader
In contrast to lesson no. 38 above (or perhaps as supplement), at no time in history have so many creative minds been ready to sell your product. And thanks to e-commerce and CRM, never have so many been neatly placed at your disposal. Now what are you waiting for?
40. Lean is better
CRM is supposed to be like a diet drink, right? It can help you thin out, but not on its own. While installing a new CRM system may get rid of dozens of spreadsheet programs, there’s no point in getting bogged down in a whole new way, is there? Think lean, man, lean.
41. Make sure you get what you pay for
How can a city government sign a contract calling for a twelve-month $7 million deal, get a three-year $18 million debacle and have absolutely nothing to show for it? The notorious “Project Ocean” scandal in Philadelphia just demonstrates what can happen when no one’s paying attention.
42. Don’t forget the human factor (a.k.a. sales and marketing). “Expertise in industrial CRM is more significant than whether fully integrated in an ERP system or stand alone industrial CRM; vendor experience in industrial sales and marketing trumps the selection of technology.”
43. There’s no time like the present
As ubiquitous as software as a service appears to be right now, we’re just getting started. Interested in designing systems? Now may be your time. In one insider’s opinion, “For the next several years, the industry will look much like the PC industry of the 1980s, with a large number of players competing in niches.”
44. Corporate America wants your attention
And for the time being, savvy consumers may have the upper hand. Heavy hitters at Destination CRM Conference 2006 stated emphatically that corporate America will soon be moving into user communities (e.g. Friendster, MySpace) to be close to widdle you. Aw.
45. Processing power will increase
I sound pretty certain? This guy at TechRepublic.com says, “Just like death and taxes, one thing we can count on is that tomorrow’s operating systems and applications will require more processing power than today’s.”
Apparently, even CRM suffered a mid-life crisis. You’re not alone.
47. Go offshore, young man, go offshore.
The world is growing smaller thanks to that screen you’re staring at right now, and CRM is shrinking it like a wool sweater in a tub of tea. You can live in Europe and have bosses in America and India, say…and with socialist European tax rates, who wouldn’t seek to “deploy” cash elsewhere? It’s cyberreality.
48. CRM is coming to China. Not since Marco Polo’s trips have merchants entering China been perceived of as this crucial. But CRM is reflecting the reality of the 21st century economy. CRM’s in China now, and being in China is always important.
49. Sport is important, part III (Or CRM is coming to China, part II) Year 2008 brings the Olympic Games to Beijing and Beijing into your homes. This will be one of the largest single-event CRM / telecom / e-commerce installations ever. China is important.
Yes, software will solve your customer relationship problems, but so will a little common sense. Remember the middle word in “customer relationship management” is “relationship,” something humans did for millennia before the computer was conceived of.
According to a recent study of e-government IT heads, the single biggest hurdle in implementing CRM is altering employee culture. But remember the words of the optimistic analyst: “Everyone has to go through acclimatisation processes to get the end result of better customer service.”
52. Buy low, sell high … except for Microsoft. While changes in this field come and go like the calendar pages turn, Microsoft gains remain steady. Investors who want a no-brainer investment need not fear these guys being technologically scooped. Maybe.
53. National security is everybody’s business.
Whether you like it or not.
Thanks to the ability of CRM systems to allow real-time data entry from a remote location, would-be freelance writers / househusbands like me can take on easy jobs in an office where i can always choose the music – my flat! CRM should cause the telecommuting work sector to continue its increase in North America and most likely throughout Europe. Get in on the gig; it’s a good one. Just make sure to dress properly.
55. CRM’s been here for awhile
Sure, the vocabulary may be all new, but the CRM concept has been around for some time. Why, just recently Office Max signed a multi-million dollar deal to get real insight into customer behavior. The partnering firm was none other than AC Nielsen. You may remember them: They’re the ones who provide the official viewing stats in America. Candid camera, indeed.
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