CRM tools do not equal CRM (yes…I know…I’ve said it twice…but it IS important).

For the geeks out there, let me spell it out for you too – CRM tools != CRM. Or perhaps if you know your FORTRAN 77 (I taught it for 3 years…ugh) – CRM tools .NE. CRM.

Ok…now that we’ve gotten that out there…let’s take a second to look at the world of CRM.

Customer Relationship Management – CRM

According to the all-knowing wikipedia, Customer Relationship Management is defined as:

Customer relationship management (CRM) is a broadly recognized, widely-implemented strategy for managing and nurturing a company’s interactions with customers, clients and sales prospects. It involves using technology to organize, automate, and synchronize business processes—principally sales activities, but also those for marketing, customer service, and technical support

Emphasis mine.

To put it more succinctly, CRM is a strategy for managing the relationship with customers using technology to automate & organize the interactions. Love it.

I’m a big fan of CRM. I think the idea has helped many organizations build stronger relationships…and CRM tools have helped drive customers away too.

A tool is a tool

Imagine you’re a project manager. Is the whole of your job wrapped up in the tool you use to manage projects? Can anyone grab a copy of Microsoft project and start managing projects?

Sure…they can build gantt charts and make schedules…but Microsoft Project is not Project Management.

The same is true for any organization using CRM tools. Sure, the tools are available and anyone can use them…but just because you use them, doesn’t mean you are actually ‘doing’ CRM.

True CRM is wrapped around strategic thought. True CRM is looking at methods to truly connect with your customer(s). True CRM requires a ‘think; do’ mentality (i.e.,  think about it first, then do it).

I’m always amazed when I see an organization using CRM without having put any real thought into the tool and the context in which the tool is used.

Let’s look at an example.

Using CRM – A Good & Bad (and worst?) Example

I’ve recently looked into getting a loan to refinance my mortgage. Our current mortgage is a 30 year fixed mortgage with a 5.875% rate. Not bad…but with rates as low as 4.5% these days, it makes sense to look at refinancing at a lower rate…and perhaps move from a 30 year note (with ~23 years left on the note) to a 15 year note. At current rates, the move to a 15 year note would keep my payments basically equivalent.

So…I decided to see what type of rates I could get. I contacted three mortgage brokers via email and got three completely different responses.

Initial Response

Broker #1 responded quickly to my initial request in a very personal and direct manner. He told me what information he would need from me and what the process would look like. He also said he’d be calling me later in the day to chat.

Broker #2 also responded quickly via phone. I happened to be busy when he called so he got my voicemail. He left a message stating that he’d call me back. I then received an email stating the same but in a very ‘automatic email’ voice. And then 5 minutes later I received another call from him. And another email similar in vein to the first. I emailed him back and told him I’d prefer that he call me later in the day. I received an automated response that was exactly the same as the first email I received. More on Broker #2 in a moment.

Broker #3 didn’t respond to my email.

Follow Up

Broker #1 called me when he said he would. We talked about my situation and what I was trying to do and he told me he’d get some quotes to me via email later in the day. About 20 minutes after the call, I received a nice email from the broker thanking me for the time on the phone and reiterating what we spoke about. This email was obviously from a CRM tool but was personalized to me and our conversation.

Broker #2 called me later in the day and put the full force sales pitch on me. This guy is the guy you think about when you think of a salesman. You know the guy…he doesn’t listen, cuts you off and just generally makes an ass of himself. After 15 minutes of him telling me how good he is, he told me he’d get me a few quotes for new loan options.

Broker #3 never called.

Follow Through

I received the quotes from Broker #1 and Broker #2. They were basically the same in terms of rates. I told them both that I’d need a few days to look them over and think about what I wanted to do.

Broker #1 responded to my email with a “thanks…let me know how you want to proceed.”

Broker #2 responded to my email with another canned response.

Over the next 2 days, I received 3 emails and 2 phone calls from Broker #2. Each email was the same and the phone calls were received at the same time of the day.

I finally called Broker #3. BTW – some background on this broker….they are all over the airwaves in Dallas about being DFW’s #1 mortgage broker. When I called them….I got a person on the phone who couldn’t answer any of my questions, didn’t seem interested in talking to me and when I asked if I could use a system online to fill out any forms he said yes…he would email me the info. I received an email from him the following day with a PDF attached asking me to fill out the information and fax it back.

Outcome

Its been 2 weeks since that first email to the three brokers. I’ve decided not to do anything just yet (we are thinking about moving next year and it doesn’t make financial sense to spend the money to refinance right now).

Broker #1 took the news in stride and said ‘call me when you want me to help with the new mortgage’.

Broker #2 didn’t respond directly but continued to send me canned emails generated from his CRM tool. These emails tell me what a great service he offers, what low rates I can get and how much he values his customers.

Broker #3 just called me back. 4 phone calls in 4 hours. Yikes.

So…the point of my story?

Broker #1 used a CRM tool…but he had a strategy for using it. It was a tool to allow him to manage the relationship.  He will get my business in the future.  If you need a mortgage in Texas…definitely call Brian Palmer at Pinnacle Financial Group at 972-529-6845.

Broker #2 used a CRM tool…but he saw it more as an advertising and marketing tool to ‘blast’ his customers. He hasn’t figured out that CRM is concerned with the relationship.

Broker #3 is an idiot, obviously.

In Closing

CRM, like most other things in life, requires some thought be put into the approach.  Just because you are using a CRM tool, doesn’t mean you are managing the customer relationship…it could just mean you are pissing off your potential customers.

Take a page from Broker #1′s playbook…figure out how you want to interact with your customers then implement a CRM strategy & platform to meet your needs.

Related articles by Zemanta

• Social CRM: What Is It And Where Is It Going? [10 Links] (newcommbiz.com)
• Making customers No. 1 (theglobeandmail.com)
• The Action, Reaction, Management, Process (ARM) for Social CRM (jmorganmarketing.com)
• CRM Software and how CRM Benefits Businesses (customer-relations.suite101.com)

CRM tools do not equal CRM is a post from: Eric D. Brown.
About Eric Eric D. Brown is a Dallas based Technology Consultant, and Entrepreneur focused on helping businesses and non-profits merge business, marketing and technology. He writes extensively about technology, strategy, people and projects at ericbrown.com. Eric is also an amateur Photographer and shares his photography work at Photography Minute and on his flickr photostream.
Read more about Eric...

Related posts:

1. Customer Service Defined
2. How to drive customers away
3. The perils of buying a Saturn
4. Saturn Aura Problem – Update #2
5. Blu Domain: Poor Service Defined

Well…today I’m going to praise PortfolioSitez, a Blu Domain competitor.    In our search for a web host for my wife’s photography business, a moment to keep photography, we ran across quite a few services.  Blu Domain was of course one of the worst customer service experiences ever…..and Portfoliositez has been the best!

Prior to signing up with Portfoliositez, we asked for access to a demo site to check out there service…we were provide a demo login and got a play around with the front end and back end system.  Its a great administration system and very very simple to use.

We decided to go ahead and sign up with Portfoliositez and within a day we had our system setup and ready to go.  My wife spent a few days getting the site setup and laid out the way she wanted it while I setup the blog (wordpress of course!) and client proofing system (PhotoCart).

We turned the new system live and we were running wonderfully…for about 3 weeks.  The day that she posted a new set of pictures from a recent wedding, the site went down hard.  I took a look at the system and could see that the webserver wasn’t responding…so I had to contact Portfoliositez customer service.

I submitted a trouble ticket at 8:45AM on Monday and called the helpdesk phone number and left a voicemail (their office hours are 9AM to 5PM M-F).

I received a phone call at 9:01 and was told that it appeared that the webserver was having issues (Apache was down…which is something that doesn’t happen much).  Over the next hour, I received three emails from Portfoliositez and within 45 minutes the site was back up and running perfectly.

Now….in situations like this, you really get a chance to test an organization/person.  Portfoliositez came through with flying colors.  With some organizations, we may have been offline for a few hours or days…with this wonderful bunch of folks, we were offline for less than an hour.

If you or someone you know are looking for a portfolio site for your photography work I’d strongly recommend Portfoliositez.

Great Customer Service: Portfoliositez.com is a post from: Eric D. Brown.
About Eric Eric D. Brown is a Dallas based Technology Consultant, and Entrepreneur focused on helping businesses and non-profits merge business, marketing and technology. He writes extensively about technology, strategy, people and projects at ericbrown.com. Eric is also an amateur Photographer and shares his photography work at Photography Minute and on his flickr photostream.
Read more about Eric...

Related posts:

1. Customer Service Defined
2. Is Great Customer Service Enough?
3. Customer Service – Yahoo Style
4. Customer Service – GoDaddy Style
5. Godaddy Customer Service – An Update

offshoring of front office processes that interface directly with the customer has a negative association with customer satisfaction, customer loyalty, perceived quality and customer expectations. On the other hand, we find that offshoring back office processes that do not interface directly with the customer has a positive association with customer loyalty.

Well…I could have told you that myself…and many of you probably could have guessed this was the case.  It is good to have some academic research to back up my ‘gut’ feeling.  I’m still reading through the article, but so far the research methods seem fair and sound.

Hat tip to ArsTechnica for the link to this research.

BTW – You can download the paper in its entirety at http://papers.ssrn.com/sol3/papers.cfm?abstract_id=1010457

Related articles by Zemanta

• Study: outsourcing can lead to plummeting customer loyalty

Does Outsourcing affect Customer Loyalty? is a post from: Eric D. Brown.
About Eric Eric D. Brown is a Dallas based Technology Consultant, and Entrepreneur focused on helping businesses and non-profits merge business, marketing and technology. He writes extensively about technology, strategy, people and projects at ericbrown.com. Eric is also an amateur Photographer and shares his photography work at Photography Minute and on his flickr photostream.
Read more about Eric...

Related posts:

1. Innovation and Outsourcing – Do they go together?
2. Five Customer Retention Tips That Really Work (Guest Post)
3. Improving Customer Service
4. Great Customer Service: Portfoliositez.com
5. Exavault – Customer Service Done Right

But…that streak has been broken.

A new definition for poor customer service has been set by a company called “Blu Domain“, specifically by “Aundrea”. My wife and I purchased a website from them on April 25, 2008. They told us that the site would be ‘delivered’ within 24 to 48 hours. It is now May 14th and we have yet to see a working website.

Blu Domain purportedly provides turn-key websites and back-end management solutions for photographers. The web designs and functionality seem to be top-notch…but their client service is horrible (try googling ‘Blu Domain Service‘ or “BluDomain Service“).

It started out nicely with an email from “Aundrea” stating that she’d have the website delivered within 24 to 48 hours and that she never misses a deadline. She asked for information about our hosting platform and we responded within 30 minutes with all the required information. Funny note: in her email to us, it states “if you don’t hear from me within 3 days, contact me because i probably didn’t receive your email”. Now…why would anyone say that? Why is it on the shoulders of the customer to contact the service provider to check to see if they received our email??

3 days went by with no response so we contacted them again and Aundrea told us that she didn’t receive an email from us…we resent it. Another 3 days passed with nothing.

We emailed them again (3 times actually) prior to getting a response. The response asked for more information. We provided that information….and waited another 3 days with no response.

Finally, we threatened to call our credit card company for a refund if they didn’t respond. Funny how threatening them actually worked….but their response was to blame us for not giving them information…even though the information that they requested was contained the email that she replied to.

We’ve given them until the end of today to get the website up and running or the credit card company will take over this negotiation and we’ll go somewhere else.

I should have known better to use a company that doesn’t provide any means of communicating directly with them. They have no phone number, no email address nor any other contact method on their website (other than the ‘Contact us’ form).  Another learning opportunity I guess.

Seems as if we aren’t the only ones having this problem. Check out the following:

• Blu Domain !!!!!, Blu Domain hasn’t sent me a website after I paid..
• Keep away from BluDomain – disgusting service
• Update: A month later and still NOTHING.

Blu Domain: Poor Service Defined is a post from: Eric D. Brown.
About Eric Eric D. Brown is a Dallas based Technology Consultant, and Entrepreneur focused on helping businesses and non-profits merge business, marketing and technology. He writes extensively about technology, strategy, people and projects at ericbrown.com. Eric is also an amateur Photographer and shares his photography work at Photography Minute and on his flickr photostream.
Read more about Eric...

Related posts:

1. Customer Service Defined
2. Customer Service – Yahoo Style
3. Great Customer Service: Portfoliositez.com
4. Customer Service – GoDaddy Style
5. Exavault – Customer Service Done Right

Although employee engagement might be the buzzword around the office, customer retention is obviously important as well. Managers can become so focused on marketing that they lose sight of the customers they already have. It is cheaper to retain your current customers than to seek new ones, so heed the following tips in order to boost your bottom line.

1. Value Your Customers – Customer service must be sincere in order to be effective. Make your customers the number one priority and ensure that every employee is trained to do the same. By consistently treating all customers with respect and honesty, they will see you as a dependable company to do business with.
2. Offer Specials - Customers like to feel as if they are being awarded perks for choosing your company. Not only should there be company-wide specials throughout the year, you should give exclusive discounts to your most valued repeat customers.
3. Address Problems Immediately – Never let a customer complaint go stale. If someone contacts your business with a complaint or a cancellation, ensure that they receive top priority. Troubleshoot this issue with the customer and try to reach a satisfactory agreement for everyone.
4. Empathize - You must always display empathy with your customers, whether indirectly or directly. If you are following rule number one, “value your customers,” then this empathy will be sincere and most effective. You truly do want the best for your customers, as that is largely what is best for the company.
5. Socialize - Your business should actively socialize with their customers and gather feedback. This can easily be done through a company Web site and corporate blog. Make the customers feel as if you are involving them with every step and always value their input.

Customer turnover could be the largest financial drain on your company. In fact, it is estimated that acquiring new customers is five times more expensive than keeping the ones you already have. By following the five tips above, you should increase your chances of making every customer a long-term customer.

By-line:

This article is contributed by Heather Johnson, who regularly writes on the topic of career exploration. She invites your questions and writing job opportunities at her personal email address: heatherjohnson2323@gmail.com.

Five Customer Retention Tips That Really Work (Guest Post) is a post from: Eric D. Brown.
About Eric Eric D. Brown is a Dallas based Technology Consultant, and Entrepreneur focused on helping businesses and non-profits merge business, marketing and technology. He writes extensively about technology, strategy, people and projects at ericbrown.com. Eric is also an amateur Photographer and shares his photography work at Photography Minute and on his flickr photostream.
Read more about Eric...

Related posts:

1. Guest Post: This is Why You Should Change Careers
2. Does Outsourcing affect Customer Loyalty?
3. Exavault – Customer Service Done Right
4. Guest Post: The Cost of Employee Disengagement
5. Improving Customer Service

The last update I provided (here), I was in the process of picking out a car. Well…I picked out a Saab 9-3 2.0T and drove it off the lot Jan 31 (I’m really late in providing this update). Surprisingly, the process was very smooth once GM decided to replace the car. I found the car I wanted, gave GM the VIN and signed some paperwork and I was good to go.

I can’t say enough good things about Sewell Saab of Plano and the person I worked with there (Bryan Barton). If you are in the Dallas area, I’d highly recommend looking into the Sewell family for your automobile needs….if you aren’t in Dallas, I’d still recommend giving them a call…best car dealership I’ve ever dealt with.

Here’s a pic of the new car:

From 2008-New Saab

Saturn Aura Final Update is a post from: Eric D. Brown.
About Eric Eric D. Brown is a Dallas based Technology Consultant, and Entrepreneur focused on helping businesses and non-profits merge business, marketing and technology. He writes extensively about technology, strategy, people and projects at ericbrown.com. Eric is also an amateur Photographer and shares his photography work at Photography Minute and on his flickr photostream.
Read more about Eric...

Related posts:

1. Saturn Aura – Final Update??
2. Saturn Aura Problem – Update #4
3. Saturn Aura Problem – Update #3
4. Saturn Aura Problem – Update #5
5. Saturn Aura Problem – Update #2

I can select from any GM product and have settled on a Saab 93.   We’ll see how the process goes- but so far it has been very easy.   It has looked like this:

1. Pick out car with same/close MSRP
2. Find dealership willing to get involved
3. Find exact car you want & get VIN
4. Provide GM with the VIN #
5. Paperwork is completed.
6. Surrender old car, sign for new car.

I’ve been working with Sewell Saab in Plano and have to say…absolutely first rate organization so far.  I think I may stick with the Sewell family for all my vehicle shopping in the future.

[tags] Customer Service, Saturn Aura Problem, Saturn of Plano, Sewell [/tags]

GM is replacing my car is a post from: Eric D. Brown.
About Eric Eric D. Brown is a Dallas based Technology Consultant, and Entrepreneur focused on helping businesses and non-profits merge business, marketing and technology. He writes extensively about technology, strategy, people and projects at ericbrown.com. Eric is also an amateur Photographer and shares his photography work at Photography Minute and on his flickr photostream.
Read more about Eric...

Related posts:

1. Saturn Aura Problem – Update #4
2. Saturn Aura Problem – Update #3
3. Saturn Aura Problem – Update #5
4. Saturn Aura Problem – Update #2
5. Saturn Aura – Final Update??

Just received a call from Saturn’s National Assistance Center and was told that they will replace my car and that the paperwork is getting prepared now.

I hope to have a reliable car soon!

Technorati Tags: Customer Service, Saturn Aura Problem, Saturn of Plano

Saturn Aura – Final Update?? is a post from: Eric D. Brown.
About Eric Eric D. Brown is a Dallas based Technology Consultant, and Entrepreneur focused on helping businesses and non-profits merge business, marketing and technology. He writes extensively about technology, strategy, people and projects at ericbrown.com. Eric is also an amateur Photographer and shares his photography work at Photography Minute and on his flickr photostream.
Read more about Eric...

Related posts:

1. Saturn Aura Problem – Update #4
2. Saturn Aura Problem – Update #3
3. Saturn Aura Problem – Update #2
4. Saturn Aura Problem – Update #5
5. Saturn Aura Final Update

Car has been in the shop for a week now with no response from the dealership. Saturn National Assistance has called me twice and both times have said that they can’t get the dealer’s service department on the line.

My letter demanding Saturn fix this car within 30 days (as per the requirement of Texas Lemon Law) is being mailed today.

Technorati Tags: Customer Service, Saturn Aura Problem, Saturn of Plano

Saturn Aura Problem – Update #5 is a post from: Eric D. Brown.
About Eric Eric D. Brown is a Dallas based Technology Consultant, and Entrepreneur focused on helping businesses and non-profits merge business, marketing and technology. He writes extensively about technology, strategy, people and projects at ericbrown.com. Eric is also an amateur Photographer and shares his photography work at Photography Minute and on his flickr photostream.
Read more about Eric...

Related posts:

1. Saturn Aura Problem – Update #4
2. Saturn Aura Problem – Update #3
3. Saturn Aura Problem – Update #2
4. Saturn Aura – Final Update??
5. Saturn Aura Problem – Update

The car is back in the shop….waiting to hear from the dealership on the prognosis.

FYI – I’m filing the Texas Lemon Law complaint form very soon.

[tags] Customer Service, Saturn Aura Problem, Saturn of Plano [/tags]

Saturn Aura Problem – Update #4 is a post from: Eric D. Brown.
About Eric Eric D. Brown is a Dallas based Technology Consultant, and Entrepreneur focused on helping businesses and non-profits merge business, marketing and technology. He writes extensively about technology, strategy, people and projects at ericbrown.com. Eric is also an amateur Photographer and shares his photography work at Photography Minute and on his flickr photostream.
Read more about Eric...

Related posts:

1. Saturn Aura Problem – Update #3
2. Saturn Aura Problem – Update #2
3. Saturn Aura Problem – Update #5
4. Saturn Aura – Final Update??
5. Saturn Aura Problem – Update