CUSTOMER RELATIONSHIP MANAGEMENT
CONCEPTS AND TECHNOLOGIES
Chapter 1: Introduction to CRM
Selected definitions of CRM 1
CRM is an information industry term for
methodologies, software, and usually Internet
capabilities that help an enterprise manage customer
relationships in an organized way.
CRM is the process of managing all aspects of
interaction a company has with its customers,
including prospecting, sales, and service. CRM
applications attempt to provide insight into and
improve the company/customer relationship by
combining all these views of customer interaction into
one picture.
Selected definitions of CRM 2
CRM is an integrated approach to identifying,
acquiring, and retaining customers. By enabling
organizations to manage and coordinate customer
interactions across multiple channels, departments,
lines of business, and geographies, CRM helps
organizations maximize the value of every customer
interaction and drive superior corporate performance.
Selected definitions of CRM 3
CRM is an integrated information system that is used
to plan, schedule and control the pre-sales and post-
sales activities in an organization. CRM embraces all
aspects of dealing with prospects and customers,
including the call center, sales force, marketing,
technical support and field service. The primary goal
of CRM is to improve long-term growth and
profitability through a better understanding of
customer behaviour. CRM aims to provide more
effective feedback and improved integration to better
gauge the return on investment (ROI) in these areas.
Selected definitions of CRM 4
CRM is a business strategy that maximizes
profitability, revenue and customer satisfaction by
organizing around customer segments, fostering
behaviour that satisfies customers, and implementing
customer-centric processes.“
Four types of CRM
Type of CRM Dominant characteristic
Strategic CRM is a core customer-centric business
Strategic strategy that aims at winning and keeping profitable
customers.
Operational CRM focuses on the automation of
Operational customer-facing processes such as selling, marketing
and customer service.
Analytical CRM focuses on the intelligent mining of
Analytical customer-related data for strategic or tactical
purposes.
Collaborative CRM applies technology across
Collaborative organizational boundaries with a view to optimizing
company, partner and customer value.
Customer centricity and other business logics 1
1. Product-oriented businesses believe that
customers choose products with the best quality,
performance, design or features.
2. Production-oriented businesses believe that
customers choose low-price products.
3. Sales-oriented businesses make the assumption
that if they invest enough in advertising, selling,
public relations (PR) and sales promotion,
customers will be persuaded to buy.
Customer centricity and other business logics 2
4. A customer or market-oriented company shares a
set of beliefs about putting the customer first. It
collects, disseminates and uses customer and
competitive information to develop better value
propositions for customers. A customer-centric firm
is a learning firm that constantly adapts to customer
requirements and competitive conditions.
Operational CRM
Marketing automation
Market segmentation
Campaign management
Event-based (trigger) marketing
Sales force automation
Account management
Lead management
Opportunity management
Pipeline management
Contact management
Quotation and proposal generation
Product configuration
Service automation
Case ( incident or issue) management
Inbound communications management
Queuing and routing
Service level management
Sources of customer-related data for analytical CRM
Internal sources
● Sales data (purchase history), financial data (payment
history, credit score), marketing data (campaign response,
loyalty scheme data) and service data.
External sources
● Geo-demographic and life-style data from business
intelligence organisations, for example.
Beneficiaries of analytical CRM
Customer
● Analytical CRM can deliver timely, customized, solutions to
the customer’s problems, thereby enhancing customer
satisfaction.
Company
● Analytical CRM offers the prospect of more powerful cross-
selling and up-selling programs, and more effective
customer retention and customer acquisition programs.
Misunderstandings about CRM
1. CRM is database marketing
2. CRM is a marketing process
3. CRM is an IT issue
4. CRM is about loyalty schemes
5. CRM can be implemented by any company
Core definition of CRM
CRM is the core business strategy that integrates
internal processes and functions, and external
networks, to create and deliver value to targeted
customers at a profit. It is grounded on high quality
customer-related data and enabled by information
technology.
CRM constituencies
1. Companies implementing CRM
2. Customers and partners of those companies
3. Vendors of CRM software
4. CRM application service providers (ASPs)
5. Vendors of CRM hardware and infrastructure
6. Management consultants
CRM challenges vary across context
1. Banks
2. Auto manufacturers
3. High tech companies
4. Consumer goods manufacturers
5. Not-for-profits
The IDIC model of CRM
Identify who your customers are and build a deep
understanding of them
Differentiate your customers to identify which
customers have most value now and which offer
most for the future.
Interact with customers to ensure that you
understand customer expectations and their
relationships with other suppliers or brands
Customize the offer and communications to ensure
that the expectations of customers are met.
The QCi model of CRM
The CRM Value Chain
The CRM Value Chain
Customer Customer Network Value Manage
Portfolio Intimacy Development Proposition The
Primary Analysis (SCOPE) Development Customer
stages Lifecycle
Leadership and culture
Supporting Data and information technology
conditions
People
Processes
Payne’s 5-process model of CRM
Gartner’s competency model of CRM
1. CRM Vision: Leadership, Social Worth, Value Proposition
2. CRM Strategy: Objectives, Segments, Effective Interaction
3. Valued Customer Experience 4. Organizational Collaboration
Culture and Structure
Understand Requirements Customer Understanding
Monitor Expectations People: Skills,Competencies
Satisfaction vs.Competition Incentives and Compensation
Collaboration and Feedback Employee Communications
Partners and Suppliers
5. CRM Processes: Customer Life Cycle, Knowledge Management
6. CRM Information: Data, Analysis, One View Across Channels
7. CRM Technology: Applications, Architecture, Infrastructure
8. CRM Metrics: Cost to Serve, Satisfaction, Loyalty, Social Costs
