Ryun Keul Lee’s Blog 2008-12-22 01:22:46

Practitioners of CRM are often heard to say that “CRM is a journey, not a destination.” The process of learning about the customer is never ending; so are the marketing activities that make use of customer knowledge. In addition, there will undoubtedly be more technologies to add to the menu of CRM program program options. Not only is CRM one of the most important aspects of contemporary marketing, it is also one of the most challenging. The discipline of relationship marketing focuses on customer retention and the reactivation of lapsed customers on the premise that it is less expensive to maintain existing customers than it is to acquire new ones. True CRM is based on the three disciplines of sales force automation, marketing, and customer service. However, the term, along with e-CRM, is universally used to describe relational marketing in B2C as well as B2B markets. Specific CRM techniques range from segmentation approaches to highly personalized one-to-one programs. Different approaches may be appropriate for different businesses because of the nature of their products and target segments. Whichever specific approach is used, it is important to remember the value of building trust over time and of respecting the privacy of the customer. Opt-in permission marketing techniques are essential elements of relational marketing process. To implement CRM programs on the Web, a substantial amount of customer knowledge is necessary. This knowledge is embedded in profiles of individual customers or visitors to the Web site. Profiling is done either anonymously or for identified customers. Although anonymous profiling has obvious relevance in the early stages of a potential customer relationship, it also has important privacy implications that should not be overlooked by the marketer. One way to avoid privacy issues is to develop value-added programs, such as frequent customer reward plans, that deepen relationships over time and lead to willing revelation of additional information on the part of loyal customers. Identified profiles can be developed when the visitor or customer provide personal information, usually through registration on a site or making a purchase from it. Marketers have a menu of options in terms of the channels they will use and the technologies they will implement. The CRM vision is to integrate the chosen channels and technologies in such a way that the customer can make contact whenever he pleases, through whatever channel he prefers at that particular time (the customer touch point), and receive the information or service he desires without delay, errors, or being transferred from one enterprise agent to another. This is the “seamless customer experience.” It represents both the opportunity and the challenging facing CRM programs of all types.