Customer relationship management (CRM) and enterprise resource planning (ERP) are working hand-in-hand today in the quest for better customer relations. Companies are increasingly realizing that keeping a sharp eye on the customer, is the key to growing their businesses. They are also making an assessment of the CRM cost as they roll out services.  There is also a lot of talk these days about using software to manage customer relations. Some do it better than others. Customers, after all, are about more than sales and marketing, purchasing patterns and order history. It’s also about how well the customer is being served. That goes beyond marketing scenarios and statistics. For some, it seems that CRM has been relegated to just another means of manipulating the customer.  That’s why many are reevaluating the cost relative to managing the relationship.

CRM Software

Figuring the CRM Cost 

Determining the cost of customer management varies according to the size and nature of the business as well as the number of customers. The best systems have been those that have extended the relation with the customer beyond just facts and figures. A CRM system will keep you informed of all contacts and interactions with the customer, but this is generally in the realm of pure business - product or service purchasing, consultations or repairs, monitoring and tracking. Customers want to know that they are being well served, but CRM software can only do so much for mutually benefitting the relationship, because it is basically a tool for managing the business affairs of the customer. The costs are dependent upon the extent to which a business goes towards managing that relationship and what it will cost them to do so.

Customer retention and lifetime customer value relate to customer relationship marketing; thus, having the ability to manage customer relations has become part of a major strategic game plan to win and maintain customer relationships. The cost is relative. Good customer management typically results in the acquisition of new customers, often through positive word-of-mouth referrals. But, the best CRM goes beyond the data recorded. It incorporates a broader platform of customer appreciation, to include contacts that go beyond the commercial relationship. Within this scenario, costs are not so much a consideration, as are the beneficial returns gained from being customer centric without considering CRM cost in just dollars and sense.

Interesting enough, customers want to play more of a role in how they are serviced. And that presents a great opportunity for creative businesses. Just take a look at the top CRM enterprise software vendor, Salesforce.com. This company has set the standard for CRM online. But it has gone further with its Chatter social networking tool and Radian6 monitoring application which keeps you informed about what is being said about your business on social networks, reports and brings you into the conversation. This is what customer relationship management is evolving into and what businesses will have to monitor more closely, as they work to determine costs relative to customer relations.

Customer service is taking on a new meaning. Make sure your business determines the right CRM cost

Written by :

pamelarichards