Do CRM in Three Months!

Gwynne Young
Managing Editor, CustomerThink
Member

Posted 27-Sep-2004 09:12 AM
[For Simon Robinson, simon_s_robinson@hotmail.com]

I have just read a download from CRMGuru prepared by Soffront which makes me mad. Hoping to read a little new insight into mid-market CRM (which I have been involved in for 8 years), I was suprised to find the download giving readers the very misleading idea that you can still "do CRM" in 3 months and then followed by trying to tell us that it must be web based. I can understand why software vendors try to tell us that it's cheap, quick and it's principally a technology solution, however I was suprised to find your web site supporting it. I have addressed this to you for comment as you are a GRMGuru panelist and as I have read one of your books. In my opinion, many mid sized companies don't take the matter any way near seriously enough and are then puzzled when their investment ends up providing almost no tangible business benefit. These kinds of articles just prolong the myth.

Gwynne Young
Managing Editor, CustomerThink
Member

Posted 27-Sep-2004 09:15 AM
[Posted for Jay Curry]

Thanks for your opinion about the Soffront download.

I am sorry if it made you mad, but I don't think you should expect a supplier of web-based CRM technology to spend money on a promotional piece saying that:

• CRM is slow and difficult to implement
• Technology matters less that the CRM strategy
• Web-based CRM technology is no good

I am sure if you downloaded or read any number of articles and white papers in the CRMGuru knowledge base you would find unbiased materials by consultants and users with real-world experience with Soffront—and other solutions.

I agree with you that many SMEs are unprepared for CRM, and that is why I have called upon the industry to put together a massive, unbiased training effort.

S.Reeves
Member Council
Member

Posted 30-Sep-2004 09:01 AM
Hi Jay,

Could you tell me more about your efforts with this? —-> ... and that is why I have called upon the industry to put together a massive, unbiased training effort.<—

I'm the founder of the CRM Assoc Northwest. Our chapter would be interested in participating. I agree with you and would like to help out.

thanks, Share Reeves
crma-northwest.org

Gwynne Young
Managing Editor, CustomerThink
Member

Posted 01-Oct-2004 10:41 AM
[Posted for Jay Curry]

Share,

Thanks for your offer of help.

I made this suggestion in a recent article for CRMGuru about CRM and SME's after training CRM business partners and end users around the world.

(The article is For SMEs and CRM, It's the Same Around the World)

I concluded that SMEs are largely ignorant about the benefits and nuts and bolts of CRM, mainly because they don't have the budgets for consultants and bright MBA-ers. And so I suggested that Microsoft, Best. Font Range, etc. put together a massive training effort for SMEs and share the costs (and promote their wares via booths).

To date, no response...

Regards,

Jay Curry

Cathy Allington
Member

Posted 07-Oct-2004 04:32 PM
Hi Jay and Simon:

You have both raised some interesting points.

Simon, you can implement CRM for an SME or mid-market company within 3 months—I have consistently done that here for a number of clients. The first key issue lies in getting the business planning and processes right first, then implementing the technology solution.

The second key issue lies in setting very specific objectives for the initial implementation—one key one for SME's/mid market is simply establishing a central database and common view. This in itself provides major benefits.

We work on the basis of 3 objectives:
1. Initial objectives on implementation
2. Mid-term objectives—eg integrating with accounting or other systems; implementing automated workflows for best practice with client communication.
3. Longer term "wishlist"—we train our clients to "take the blinkers off" and envisage what their ideal solution would be—eg, web interface, mobile portability etc etc.

If you try to be all things to an SME or mid-market company at once, the price and the scope will generally frighten them off.

Jay, my company, Client Relationship Marketing, also specilises in Microsoft CRM, in addition to a number of select other CRM solutions. There is an enormous need for education on CRM for SME's, starting from the basics up. My experience over the years with vendors however, is that it will be up to the CRM practitioners to implement CRM awareness programmes. We are currently doing this in South Australia and are expanding nationally. Would love to be involved in putting together an initiative.

Kind Regards
Cathy Allington
Managing Director,
Client Relationship Marketing Pty Ltd

www.gyob.net.au

Graham Hill
Guru
Member

Posted 08-Oct-2004 02:23 AM
This discussion raises a number of important questions.

Perhaps the key one is, "What exactly do we mean by CRM?". And related to that question is the next one, " Is it good practice to equate CRM with technology implementation, particularly for SMEs?".

Most of the recent independent studies show pretty unequivocally that CRM technology implementation is NOT a driver of success in CRM. For instance, the IBM 'CRM Done Right' study found that CRM technology contributed only 2% of the success of CRM initiatives. And the technology implementation part of that contibuted only 0.2%! Most of the success was contributed by the right sort of process change, organisational realignment around profitable customer management (with the associated staff attitude changes) and having the right value propositions and strategy. Together, these contributed almost 80% of the success of CRM initiatives.

In other words, the vast majority of successful CRM was achieved just by doing business basics better. This is a theme picked up by Patrick Barwise and Sean Meehan in their recent book, 'simply better: winning and keeping customers by delivering what matters most'. Doing business basics better may require some technology to make it work, but the key thing is to put in just enough technology to enable the business you want to be in over the next 3-5 years. There are plenty of examples of where this 'Lean CRM' approach has been very succesful.

If that is really the case, then I challenge whether the CRM industry, dominated by large-scale CRM vendors as it is, is really the right group to drive CRM awareness forward. Perhaps the real drivers should be independent organisations who do not have such an obvious stake in CRM infrastructure sales. And then in selling-on upgrade after expensive upgrade.

Ultimately, this all comes down to who can you trust to tell you the truth?. Now what was that about being beware of Greeks bearing gifts?

Graham Hill
Independent CRM Consultant

Resources:
You can download the IBM 'CRM Done Right' study at http://www-5.ibm.com/services/uk/e_strategy/esr_crmright.html
You can download an article on Barwise & Meehan's 'simply better' book at http://www.strategy-business.com/press/enewsarticle/enews093004?pg=0
You can read about Lean CRM on the CRMGuru website in the article, 'Let the Customer Drive Your Business with "Lean CRM"'

Cathy Allington
Member

Posted 08-Oct-2004 07:42 AM
Graham—I take up your challenge.

You are entirely right. CRM is not about technology.

CRM is about customers. What is a business worth without customers?

When we first start out, we treasure the first new customers we have. As we become more successful, we forget about what we did to make those customers feel special. And yet we know we should be doing those same things that made us successful in the first place.

This is where I believe CRM technology is essential if your goal is to grow a business by focusing on your customers—you can set Best Practice guidelines and use IT to achieve that.

To me, that is what CRM is really all about. Building relationships—and the only way you can build relationships is through communication,—the objective of that communication can only be to build Trust. We work so hard to win our customer's initial business—as we become more successful, we forget about the customers who gave us so much loyalty, and, more importantly, what we did to gain their loyalty.

We all know what we should be doing, but we get so carried away with chasing new business, and running our business, that we ignore our existing customers. A business only exists beacause it has customers.

I don't know how an SME or mid market commpany would have the resources to focus on CRM, unless they first defined their business needs, and then evaluated how IT could help them achieve those needs. It may be that Outlook and Exchange Server can meet their needs! But until they define those needs, they will be open to any vendor who comes their way!

Graham, give me a better defintion of CRM other than Customers Really Matter.

And by the way, I am not Greek so I bear you no gifts! ;-)

www.gyob.net.au

Graham Hill
Guru
Member

Posted 11-Oct-2004 01:05 AM
Cathy

I read your comments with interest (and your many contributions to other on-line CRM portals too). And you know, I think you are right; Customer Really do Matter, particularly if you want to be in business over the longer-term.

As we both recognise, relationships with customers are based upon trust, mutual commitment, shared benefits and two-way dialogue. Communications (in the form of a two-way dialogue) are a key part of building these relationships, particularly during the discovery phase at the beginning. But communications alone are not enough to build and maintain a relationship over time. To do that you need to deliver against your promises too. During each and every contact with customers.

That was the point of my last comment; that CRM starts with understanding your customers' needs, wants and expectations. That CRM builds upon this insight by building a range of products, services & experiences that consistently deliver what customers want, at the right price, just how they want them. And only then does CRM close the circle by telling customers all about it through marketing communications. This is what Barwise & Meehan describe as being 'simply better'.

The IBM study showed clearly that the heart of being simply better is not IT, but changing your processes so that they concentrate on adding value to customers at each step. And changing your organisational focus away from products, functions or geographies towards customers. And managing the difficult individual, team and organisational changes that becoming simply better requires. If SMEs want to succeed, then they should be concentrating on getting these things right, not on the deceptively simple appeal of an out of the box IT solution for all of their problems. That doesn't mean that IT is not required, quite the contrary, but IT is an enabler of CRM success not the driver.

If companies want to gain the benefits of being simply better, it is time to get back to business basics.

Graham Hill
Independent CRM Consultant

PS. And you are wrong about your not bearing gifts. Your gift is the time and energy you have invested in contributing to the discussion at CRMGuru.

"You must give some time to your fellow men. Even if it's a little thing, do something for others—something for which you get no pay but the privilege of doing it"
Albert Schweitzer