CRM Software Managers Can Learn from Sears' Mistakes

CRM systems give marketers unparalleled insight into consumers' decision making process. Used ethically and effectively, CRM software can help sales professionals anticipate ordering opportunities or shorten sales cycles. When blended with targeted research, companies can use CRM applications to identify their most valuable customers over time--even when those customers' spending habits keep them under the radar. However, CRM software's ability to scale with storage and processing power raises concern for privacy advocates, who worry that companies can risk legal action if they learn too much about their customers.

Colin Beasty from CRM Outsiders cites a recent case in which the Federal Trade Commission outed Sears for failing to inform certain customers about how their web surfing habits would be monitored and analyzed against their purchasing history. Although customers willingly signed up for a promotional program, they didn't learn about the extent of the CRM system's tracking details until being alerted by FTC agents. By failing to disclose the extent of the information collected by their CRM software, officials at Sears risked their company's reputation without ever achieving the project's goals.

Beasty and other CRM experts warn companies to begin crafting clear customer privacy and ethics guidelines that can shape the future selection and deployment of CRM applications. CIOs, sales leaders, and other company officials can lay the groundwork now for successful CRM deployments that don't put customer information at risk. Furthermore, a growing number of consumers demand to know how their information will be used by retailers and vendors. A clear CRM systems policy that emphasizes service and security can become a selling point in itself, as well as an effective tool to grow sales.

Can Netbooks Rejuvenate Your Small Business CRM Implementation

When small business CRM implementations fail, it's often because members of a small sales team prefer to use their existing tools instead of switching to collaborative CRM systems. Frequent push-back from sales professionals can include:

• A preference for paper instead of computers.
• The inability to bring computers outside the office.
• Incompatibilities with company mobile phones.

For some sales professionals, a small notebook or a stack of index cards saves space when compared to a laptop. Unfortunately, copying information back into CRM software feels like processing the same data twice. Although many of today's leading CRM applications offer mobile phone versions, a generation of sales professionals who didn't grow up on text messaging often wrestle with chiclet keys and touch screens.

That's why many sales leaders and CIOs have grown so passionate about netbooks. Small, networked notebooks with screen sizes ranging from 7" to about 10" have taken the business world by storm over the past two years. With many models priced between $250 and $500, these systems are robust enough to access web-based CRM applications. Many models run versions of Windows, enabling some CRM software to operate in offline mode. Their light weight and scaled-down keyboards make netbooks less intimidating for sales professionals who prefer not to lug a laptop onto a plane or into the field.

While some technology journalists wonder whether the netbook phenomenon has been overstated, these smaller computers work exceptionally well for low intensity tasks like data collection and quick hosted CRM lookups. While they won't replace the machines on which you prepare proposals and marketing material, they can provide a competitive edge for field sales professionals.

Small Business CRM Advice Roundup

There's lots of great advice for small business CRM users this month:

• First, envision the end result of your small business CRM implementation. As Stephen Covey would say, begin with the end in mind. Are you buying CRM software just because you feel you need to, or are there specific customer challenges that you hope you can solve with technology.

• Second, choose expandable CRM systems. CRM applications designed for enterprise organizations might be too big or too expensive to justify in a small business. Many of today's most popular CRM applications offer modular options, like seat licenses for web-based apps or feature-based pricing that allows you to enable more functionality as needed.

• Third, select CRM applications that invite customers to engage with you on their terms. Lead generation tools that offer interaction on websites as well as through mobile phone applications can cultivate relationships effectively -- even when you're not directly involved.

• Fourth, focus on CRM comparisons that build on the strengths of your current team. Most failed small business CRM implementations involve techniques or technology that existing sales professionals find painful to integrate into their workflows. A fantastic automated funneling lead generator won't do much for your organization if your team has their own way of doing things. Either invest in successful teams -- or build new teams.

• Finally, don't let your small business CRM project hide you from your customer. Many small business owners get so lost in the bells and whistles of new CRM systems that they forget what attracted customers to the relationship in the first place. Small businesses that leverage personal service and prompt attention won't get far if CRM tools get in the way of human interaction.

With more companies rolling out small business CRM products every quarter, entrepreneurs can leverage their size and flexibility to attract clients -- as long as they don't let the wrong CRM software lock them in to an ineffective process.

How CRM Software Can Adapt to a 140-Character World

Rick Cook from Inside CRM posted a primer for "Tweeting with Customers," in which he analyzes the ways that corporate customer service agents will have to adapt their communication to become more direct and relevant for social networking users. For example, Twitter limits communications to 140 characters each. Longer messages require URL shortening services, which can add a layer of complexity for users. Alternately, users can string longer messages across a series of tweets, risking a loss of context for users. With many CRM applications including support for Twitter and Facebook messaging, agents may require a crash course in succinct communication.

CRM software developers have already started to develop solutions that allow customer service teams to respond through a single Twitter account or through a series of individual agent accounts. Company leaders will soon find themselves answering questions about social networking usage, such as:

• When is it appropriate to push service alerts via CRM software through Twitter or Facebook?
• Should CRM software communicate exclusively via social networking tools, or should it alert customers to messages pending on a company's own internal system?
• What risks might connections between CRM software and social networks pose to customer privacy?

CRM systems in most organizations already coordinate communications where an e-mail is typically answered with an e-mail, and a phone call is typically answered with a phone call. Early corporate adopters of social media-enabled CRM systems have enjoyed success by proactively hunting for customers who use Twitter and Facebook to complain about products and services. Now, the challenge will be to determine how to serve customers who expect rapid communication on their preferred platforms.