In the beginning, business functions used to be housed on separate collection repositories, but the emergence of ERP (enterprise resource planning) software with the capability to integrate all business data into one system changed all that.  Centralized data is at the core of ERP software. In time, many supplementary applications were added to traditional ERP solutions. CRM, or Customer Relationship Management, was one of these. Later, both CRM and ERP became available as web based software. Today, it is possible to integrate CRM into an ERP solution or to utilize it as a separate application.

ERP System

Web based software is a system that requires only a web-browser to use. A web based solution can be built using open source combinations coded in a browser supported language such as PHP, mySQL, HTML, aSP.net or SQL server. As a rule, the solutions are easy to setup, cost effective, and ideal for businesses that employ a workforce in more than one location.  To use web based software, all it takes is Internet browsing capabilities.

Web-based CRM

Web based ERP software has the ability to coordinate business information from one end of the company to the other. Web based software also has as a core function the ability to input a change or entry one time, and have that entry be reflected across all departments and functions. With much lower costs than the expense of implementing a traditional ERP system, plus the capacity to link up an Internet order all the way through sales, customer service, order fulfillment, and billing, Web based ERP software provides a widely distributed enterprise with control. Some businesses prefer a web based program because the data about operations, inventory, sales, customers, and accounting can be accessed without the need to be in any specific location.

Web based CRM works in much the same way.  It allows companies to take advantage of the benefits of traditional CRM software without the hassles of implementation or the huge expense. Web based CRM software increases customer satisfaction, boosts sales, yields more productivity, allows for pay as you go pricing, is easy to set up, and there is no additional software or hardware required.

Customer relationships are the key to any marketing strategy. Using CRM software improves customer relations and increases the bottom line. That is a given.  But is traditional CRM software the only choice?  Are Web-based CRM solution systems any good?

Written by :

Amy Cruz