The art of managing the organization’s relationship

with the customers and prospective clients refer to

customer relationship management.
 Customer relationship management includes various
strategies and techniques to maintain healthy relationship
with the organization’s existing as well as potential
customers. Organizations must ensure customers are
satisfied with their products and services for higher customer
retention. Remember one satisfied customer brings ten new
customers with him where as one dissatisfied customer takes
away ten customers along with him.
 CRM systems are divided based on their
prominent characteristics. There are four
basic types of CRM systems −
 Strategic CRM
 Operational CRM
 Analytical CRM
 Collaborative CRM
 Strategic CRM is a type of CRM in which the business puts
the customers first. It collects, segregates, and applies
information about customers and market trends to come
up with better value proposition for the customer.
 The business considers the customers’ voice important for
its survival. In contrast to Product-Centric CRM (where the
business assumes customer requirements and focuses on
developing the product that may sometimes lead to over-
engineering), here the business constantly keeps learning
about the customer requirements and adapting to them.
 These businesses know the buying behaviour of the
customer that happy customers buy more frequently than
rest of the customers. If any business is not considering
this type of CRM, then it risks losing the market share to
those businesses, which excel at strategic CRM.
 Operational CRM is oriented towards customer-centric
business processes such as marketing, selling, and
services. It includes the following automations: Sales
Force Automation, Marketing Automation, and Service
Automation.
 SFA is the application of technology to manage selling
activities. It standardizes a sales cycle and common
terminology for sales issues among all the sales
employees of a business. It includes the following
modules −
 Product Configuration − It enables salespersons or
customers themselves to automatically design the
product and decide the price for a customized product.
It is based on if-then-else structure.
 Quotation and Proposal Management − The salesperson
can generate a quotation of the product prices and
proposal for the customer by entering details such as
customer name, delivery requirements, product code,
number of pieces, etc.
 Accounts Management − It manages inward entries,
credit and debit amounts for various transactions, and
stores transaction details as records.
 Lead Management − It lets the users qualify leads and
assigns them to appropriate salespersons.
 Contact Management − It is enabled with the features
such as customers’ contact details, salespersons’
calendar, and automatic dialling numbers. These all
are stored in the form of computerized records.
Using this application, a user can communicate
effectively with the customers.
 Opportunity Management − It lets the users identify
and follow leads from lead status to closure and
beyond closure.
For example, in August, 2000, Oracle released a CRM
software package, OracleSalesOnline.com, which
makes contacts, schedules and performance tracking
available online so that a customer's information is
easily accessible for all employees working at the
office or remotely.
 Marketing automation involves market segmentation,
campaigns management, event-based marketing, and
promotions. The campaign modules of Marketing Automation
enable the marketing force to access customer-related data
for designing, executing and evaluating targeted offers, and
communications.
 Event-based (trigger) marketing is all about messaging and
presenting offers at a particular time. For example, a
customer calls the customer care number and asks about the
rate of interest for credit card payment. This event is read by
CRM as the customer is comparing interest rates and can be
diverted to another business for a better deal. In such cases,
a customized offer is triggered to retain the customer.
Service automation is the part of the CRM
system that focuses on direct customer
service technology. Through service
automation, customers are supported
through multiple channels such as phone,
email, knowledge bases, ticketing portals,
FAQs, and more. For example, Microsoft's
Dynamics CRM Software tracks call times, call
resolution and more in order to improve the
efficiency of customer service within a
business.
Analytical CRM is based on capturing,
interpreting, segregating, storing, modifying,
processing, and reporting customer-related
data. It also contains internal business-wide
data such as Sales Data (products, volume,
purchasing history), Finance Data (purchase
history, credit score) and Marketing Data
(response to campaign figures, customer
loyalty schemes data). Base CRM is an
example of analytical CRM. It provides
detailed analytics and customized reports.
Collaborative CRM is an approach to customer
relationship management in which the various
departments of a company, such as sales, technical
support, and marketing, share any information they
collect from interactions with customers. For
example, customer feedback gathered from a
technical support session could inform marketing
staff about products and services that might be of
interest to the customer. The purpose of
collaboration is to improve the quality of customer
service, and, as a result, increase customer
satisfaction and loyalty.
 Customer Relationship Management leads to satisfied
customers and eventually higher business every time.

 Customer Relationship Management goes a long way in

retaining existing customers.

 Customer relationship management ensures customers

return back home with a smile.

 Customer relationship management improves the

relationship between the organization and customers.
Such activities strengthen the bond between the sales
representatives and customers.
 It is essential for the sales representatives to understand the
needs, interest as well as budget of the customers. Don’t
suggest anything which would burn a hole in their pockets.

 Never tell lies to the customers. Convey them only what your
product offers. Don’t cook fake stories or ever try to fool
them.

 It is a sin to make customers waiting. Sales professionals

should reach meetings on or before time. Make sure you are
there at the venue before the customer reaches.
 A sales professional should think from the customer’s
perspective. Don’t only think about your own targets and
incentives. Suggest only what is right for the customer. Don’t
sell an expensive mobile to a customer who earns rupees five
thousand per month. He would never come back to you and
your organization would lose one of its esteemed customers.

 Don’t oversell. Being pushy does not work in sales. It a

customer needs something; he would definitely purchase the
same. Never irritate the customer or make his life hell. Don’t
call him more than twice in a single day.
 An individual needs time to develop trust in you and your product.
Give him time to think and decide.

 Never be rude to customers. Handle the customers with patience

and care. One should never ever get hyper with the customers.

 Attend sales meeting with a cool mind. Greet the customers with a
smile and try to solve their queries at the earliest.

 Keep in touch with the customers even after the deal. Devise
customer loyalty programs for them to return to your organization.
Give them bonus points or gifts on every second purchase.

 The sales manger must provide necessary training to the sales team
to teach them how to interact with the customers. Remember
customers are the assets of every business and it is important to
keep them happy and satisfied for successful functioning of
organization.
 Technology plays a pivotal role in CRM.
 Technological approaches involving the use of
databases, data mining and one-to-one marketing
can assist organisations to increase customer value
and their own profitability.
 This type of technology can be used to keep a record
of customers names and contact details in addition to
their history of buying products or using services.
 This information can be used to target customers in a
personalised way and offer them services to meet
their specific needs.
 This personalised communication provides value for
the customer and increases customers loyalty to the
provider.
 Phone calls, emails, mobile phone text messages, or
WAP services:
Having access to customers contact details and their
service or purchase preferences through databases
etc can enable organisations to alert customers to
new, similar or alternative services or products
Example- When products are purchased online via
Flipkart, the website retains the customers details
and their purchase history. The website regularly
send emails to previous customers to inform them of
similar products or special discounts. This helps to
ensure that customers will continue to purchase
tickets from Flipkart in the future.
 Cookies
“A “cookie” is a parcel of text sent by a server to a
web browser and then sent back unchanged by the
browser each time it accesses that server. HTTP
cookies are used for authenticating, tracking, and
maintaining specific information about users, such as
site preferences and the contents of their electronic
shopping carts”.
Example- The online store, Amazon, uses “cookies”
to provide a personalised service for its customers.
Amazon requires customers to register with the
service when they purchase items. When registered
customers log in to Amazon at a later time, they are
‘greeted’ with a welcome message which uses their
name (for e.g. “Hello Nidhi”). In addition, their
previous purchases are highlighted and a list of
similar items that the customer may wish to purchase
are also highlighted.
 Loyalty cards
“The primary role of a retailer loyalty card is to gather data
about customers. This in turn leads to customer
comprehension and cost insights (e.g. customer retention
rates at different spending levels, response rates to offers,
new customer conversion rates, and where money is being
wasted on circulars), followed by appropriate marketing
action and follow-up analysis” (6)
Example- The supermarket chain, Tescos, offers loyalty cards
to its customers. When customers use the loyalty cards
during pay transactions for goods, details of the purchases
are stored in a database which enables Tescos to keep track
of all the purchases that their customers make. At regular
intervals, Tescos sends its customers money saving coupons
by post for the products that the customers have bought in
the past. The aim of this is to encourage customers to
continually return to Tescos to do their shopping.
 CRM software- “Front office” solutions :
Many call centres use CRM software to store
all of their customer's details. When a
customer calls, the system can be used to
retrieve and store information relevant to the
customer. By serving the customer quickly
and efficiently, and also keeping all
information on a customer in one place, a
company aims to make cost savings, and also
encourage new customers .
 Customer can receive personal treatment – If you use CRM,
and you start making a personalized but non intrusive
approach towards the customer, then you become their
favourite. Over a period of time, the customer himself
becomes loyal to your establishment and becomes as close as
a family member. You remember his birth dates, his
anniversaries, his last orders etc and he is sure to remember
you in return.
 Operations are easy – In any small or large business
organizations, operations depends on the inflow and outflow
of goods. Because you have a CRM, and you would know the
expected orders, operations becomes much easier.
Furthermore, making invoices, following up for payments and
other such small operational work becomes easier as well
because of having a CRM.
 Sales is easy – For most organizations, Sales is brought
directly from the market and a lot of expenses are made to
attract and convert customers to your organization. However,
when you have a CRM, sales becomes relatively cheaper and
faster because you can retain your existing customers by
calling them at the right time. As the CRM mentions the last
date of purchase of the customer, you can accordingly call
the customer for renewal and keep extracting value from the
same customer. Thus, benefits of CRM also includes
increased sales. Besides repeat sales, CRM can also drive a
hot sales pipeline where the manager will always know the
leads which are being pursued by his executives.
 Strategies can be made with CRM support – A good CRM
software can show you the type of customers buying from
your organization and the products that they buy. One of the
core benefits of CRM is that it can help you strategize. By
finding out your most “in demand” products, you can find out
the type of customers who buy them. Accordingly you can
plan your marketing strategy. Similarly, the second best
selling product can also be promoted to bring up its sales
numbers. Thus CRM can help in strategies as well.
 Investment in promotions is controlled – Because of
the above reason, the CRM can show which products
to advertise and which people to target. Thus
marketing becomes easier and cheaper. You do not
spend too much money on targeting the wrong
customers. Similarly a trend nowadays in retail
showroom is to capture the mobile numbers and
email id’s of customers walking in. A simple sms or
email showing the latest offers is enough to get these
customers back to your store. Thus, Marketing due to
CRM becomes cheaper.
 Inventory management can be easier – This point is
possible if you have the inventory linked with your
CRM system. Thus, if at all times you know your
stock, and what is the rate at which stock is moving,
as well as future orders which are likely to come,
inventory management will become easier. Imagine
an alternate scenario, where you do not have this
information at one spot. This will result in unused
inventory lying in your warehouse, or worse still, no
inventory when the customer needs the product.
 Brand and Reputation receive a boost
– People talk about you, promote your
services, push your brand when they know
they are going to be remembered by you.
The first concept promotes the last concept
– if you take care of your customers, your
customers will take care of you. A good
CRM, and therefore a good service, will
always result in word of mouth promotions.
And there is not a single promotion type
more powerful then word of mouth.
CRM strategies and implementation can deliver great
benefits - but only if companies do it right..

Customer centricity is the key to success in any business

today. Building lasting customer relationships is a
strategic advantage. While these facts seem simple,
businesses around the world have struggled with them.
The key element of this crisis is the need to get a 360
degree view of customers, leading to massive
investments in CRM solutions. If done right, these
investments can help businesses increase their sales
effectiveness, drive customer satisfaction, streamline
business processes, identify & resolve bottlenecks; all
contributing directly to increased bottom line revenues.
Set a destination
More than anything else, your CRM should help your company
achieve its goals. As such, your first step in implementing a
CRM strategy is to identify those goals. Once you know what
you are trying to accomplish, your next step is to determine
how you plan on reaching your objectives. Break your goals
down into smaller, achievable objectives, and then map out
how and when you plan to complete these steps. 
Prioritize your Customers
It is common for businesses to want to treat all of their
customers equally. The problem is that the business world is not
a democracy; for a company to be successful, it must be willing
to prioritize customers based upon how profitable (or how likely
to become profitable) they are. For example, returning customers
are often much more valuable, spending on average nearly
double what new customers spend. Your organization may have
its own definition of what makes a customer valuable, so it is up
to you to identify the traits that you most look for in a buyer, so
that can segment your accounts to increase metric-effectiveness.
Communicate with your employees

Your CRM may be designed to handle large amounts of data,

and to facilitate communication between various groups, but
it is your staff that will determine whether or not your goals
are met. Involve your employee in every step of the strategic
process. This will help them not only internalize the
objectives, but will also give them personal ownership over
the direction that the company takes. Invested employees will
be better able to integrate new policies and technologies in a
way that will benefit everyone involved.
Stagger your changes
If some aspect of your business isn’t working the way it should,
you might feel pressured to implement new policies and
technologies as quickly as possible in an effort to minimize any
damage. The problem with this mentality is that too many
changes all at once can have a negative impact on your
employee’s productivity. Keep your workforce in mind, and
whenever possible, introduce your new CRM policies gradually .
Start tracking your customers before first contact
The CRM framework makes it possible for businesses to capture data
at every stage of the customer journey. Despite this, many
businesses fail to put their CRM to work until after the first few steps
have been made. Instead, prepare for initial contact with your lead
by using your CRM to catalogue what kind of information your
prospective customer shares across social media channels. This will
give you an edge in understanding what your customer wants, how
they expect you to deliver on those wants, and what they are likely
to want in the future.
Sync everything to your CRM
Many CRMs have their own built-in programs that mimic
the functionality of other, often-used applications. When
this is the case, then it is a simple matter for your system
to sync together, so that any notes or appointments made
throughout the system are automatically tracked through
the rest of the CRM. However, for times when outside
applications are necessary, be sure sync your CRM with
whatever other programs are being utilized. The best
CRMs will do this automatically, importing client-related
appointments from your calendar, updating cancellations
and other changes, and sending reminders when
appropriate. Syncing everything together will help
guarantee that you’re utilizing your CRM to its full ability.
 When your organization is responsible for keeping track of
the money and property of approximately 70 million
 individuals, you can be sure that customer service is going to
be one of your most pressing concerns. Such is the case with
Well’s Fargo, one of the “Big Four” banks in the United States.
 Wells Fargo realises that many of their
customers use multiple banks, so they know
that they need to go above and beyond when it
comes to connecting with clients. They do this
by taking advantage of CRM social media
connectivity, so that they can always remain in
touch and accessible to those who need them.
They also use CRM to ensure that those who
come to them with concerns are quickly
connected with someone who can provide a
solution.
 With Sales force technology, Wells Fargo can use social channels to
hear what customers are saying, more quickly respond to customer
questions and issues, and offer customers more insight into the
bank's products and services. The result: Customer satisfaction
skyrockets.
 A lot of banks talk about making better customer connections—
Wells Fargo put its money where its mouth is, and it's paying off.
“They are a people business. If I can use social, mobile tools to help
link our people inside the company and provide a better experience
to our customers, you know that's an advantage that our
competitors will have a hard time mimicking."
 Activision has been a leading publisher in the American video
game market for over three decades. The company’s 2011
release of Modern Warfare 3 was at the time the largest and
most successful entertainment launch in history, bringing in
over $400 million in the first 24 hours. However, when you’re
providing entertainment, the amount of money that you bring
in is only one measure of success.
 Activision prides itself on providing a continued service to its
gamers, so that they can remain satisfied and enthralled long
after they’ve made their purchase. By using Marketing Cloud,
Activision is able to monitor social media conversations that
are relevant to their products. 
 Service Cloud then allows Activision to follow up on those
conversations. And, given that social media customer service
is significantly less expensive than conventional methods,
Activision found that it was able to decrease its annual
customer service operating expenses by 25%. As explained by
Tim Rondeau, Activision’s Senior Director of Customer Care,
“We’re reducing costs and increasing satisfaction at the same
time.”
 CRM can help you place your customer in the
forefront of your business focus. It may take
time, effort, and a few trips back to the
drawing board, but if you make it a point to
develop the right strategy, you’ll find that
CRM has the potential to perfect your
relationships with those who keep you in
business.