eCRM

eCRM has moved swiftly away from the more traditional CRM methods, as the demand and necessity of the web increases. It has become the latest paridigm in the world of Customer Related Management. Companies are being forced to move away from the traditional methods, and evolve with the market to ensure client satisfaction.

Despite this though, a recent survey suggests that on-line customers visit companies’websites with low expectations. Perhaps a backlash as a result of consistent and familiar methods involved with the traditional CRM expectations.

As mentioned before, I believe the ‘golden minute’ expresses its importance at this stage. The company wants to profit from the client, and of course in order for that to be achieved, the client needs to be actively engaged and impressed with the company.  Clients want to feel like they are welcomed; they want to be convinced that they are investing in the right product. eCRM offers fantastic opportunities in order for that to happen, and it starts with the golden minute- that immediate impression on the company. I believe the image the company gives off, whether it be by its website or the social media campaigns, acts as the entry point to fulfill the potential quality of the service with which the company offers.  Investing in eCRM solutions will give companies the tools they need to create, maintain and extend a competitive advantage in their market spaces.

Sustaining clients over an extended period of time can also be a challenge online, especially when information to rival companies is so readily available and easily accessible. According to statistics, a 10% gain in repeat clients can add about 10% to the company’s profits, so it is essential that clients are sustained. eCRM can be used effectively in ensuring this.

Efficiency is the key here, and an efficient eCRM system lets a company communicate with its customers using a single and consistent voice, regardless of the communication channel. A vital trend in eCRM is personalization. Personalization software tools generate real-time profiles for each customer using data from many sources including customer databases, clickstream data and transaction systems. The tool selects the best offer each time a particular customer shops the company’s web site based on what it “knows” about that customer. As an individual accepts or declines an offer, the personalization engine builds this knowledge of the customer into his/her profile, making it available for better informed future offers.

Amazon is a good example of this. It directs you to products similar to ones you have looked at or bought before, and it even directs you to people who appear to have similar interests, allowing you to have a look at what they have bought and what they are interested in. Even youtube is an example of this, as it gives you the option of viewing things that other people, who have previously watched the same things as you, have watched.

A successfully driven eCRM service can detect and take note of service orders, customer service agreements, proven solutions and best practices and product-related information. SharePoint for instance, is a Microsoft programme that acts as an efficient programme to take note of these trends.