Sales Force Marketing - Salesforce.com CRM:
Is Customer Relationship Management Right for your Small to Mid-sized Business?

Customer Relationship Management has been a holy grail for Big Business for the past ten years. So what about Small to Mid-sized Business (SMB) applications? If you talk to CRM software vendors they will claim that CRM systems help SMBs become more efficient, drive more sales (your ROI) and increase the accuracy of your forecast.

A few consultants have an alternative view: they see CRM as a process rather than a software product. A CRM process allows you to effectively manage your customer interactions (get to know your customers). This way you actually get to use the nice shiny tools that the CRM software vendors offer.

While I tend to agree with the latter, my experience with databases is as my algebra teacher used to say: GIGO! (Garbage-In Garbage-Out).

Regardless of which view you take, you’re going to need to do a lot of research and soul-searching within your organization in order to get the most from your CRM. Here is what you need to think about to get started:

What is Customer Relationship Management?

Well...the answer depends not only on who you talk to, but also on who you are.

If you are a sales rep, CRM simply means effectively using Outlook or Act or some other contact manager to track potential customers as they move through your sales cycle.

If you're a business owner or CEO then it means tracking all of your customer's information as they touch your organization at key points. This is how you know when they'll need to buy your widget or have their new widget serviced or whether they'll want to know about an upgrade to a particular line of widgets.

As the owner, CRM means you will be able to provide your employees with access to customer information at all levels of your organization from a centrally managed location. This improves service and aids in customer retention.

The big idea here is to keep vital knowledge about your customers within your organization, even if your employees change.

Is CRM Right for You?

It depends on who you are, and how you apply it.

If you're a Big Company CEO then you've probably already sunk millions into a strategic alliance (bought their product) with Oracle or SAP. Then you paid their developers millions more to automate your broken business processes. This generates tons of overtime hours from overworked employees as they fix customer issues "in the back office". Fortunately, your stock went up anyway because you talked big to Wall Street analysts about your million dollar magic database system which makes your organization appear more efficient. Operational inefficiencies are quietly choking this organization, but your golden parachute will probably open out as soon as the fan begins to blow your way.

HOWEVER, in all likelihood if you are reading this you're probably not a Big Company CEO. Perhaps instead you run a mid-sized private company with multiple regional locations. In this case you may have several different systems that require your employees to spend their time faxing documents back and forth between departments. Despite this your customers are pretty happy because they get to speak with Sally (their favorite customer service rep) everyday and the product gets out the door.

OR you’re a small business owner that knows almost all of his customers by name because you’ve managed to enter MOST of them into your Outlook address folder. SOMEDAY you’ll be able to find the rest of those business cards from last year’s convention. Anyway, you’ve managed hire a few key employees that remember the rest of your customer’s names, what they’ve ordered and when they’ll need to re-order new stock. Because of this you can usually come close to a forecast of next month’s sales.

Now for the nitty gritty:

So, what can CRM do for a Small to Mid-sized Business?

Properly applied, CRM can:

Make every customer count - The cost associated with finding a customer means that you need to make every customer count. While it’s important to secure new business, it’s your repeat business that means long term success.

Help you know your customers - When you're a small business knowing your customer means
knowing what they need now and what they may need 30/60/90 days from now. This
knowledge is often the key to survival.

Generate cross-selling (making suggestions) of product enhancements or alternatives.

Target marketing communications to your customer’s specific needs.

Increase customer retention and repeat business. Repeat business from existing customers means reduction in overall cost of sales.

Okay. So you’ve decided that you’re sold on CRM and you want to buy a system to bring in those customers, get inside their heads and bring ‘em back for more. Now you’re going to need to know your CRM options in terms of software systems.

Pros and Cons of ASP vs. Boxed Software:

There are two models for CRM. Application Service Provider model and software based. There are a number of advantages to both the ASP and software models.

Application Service Providers

ASPs offer web-based CRM services. The ASP model is a decent option if you want to implement a solution quickly and your organization lacks the in-house talent or resources to customize an existing application or build from the ground. ASPs are good bet if you’re an internet based business or small business that needs a fast and low-cost start-up solution.

Pros
No software updates to manage or install
No servers to support or purchase
No back-ups of critical customer information required
Generally low start up cost (hardware, software and training included)

Cons
ASP's can go out of business, taking critical customer information with them
High-speed internet connection required
Internet connection outage means critical customer information is not available
Boxed or Off-the-shelf software

Several software manufacturers produce CRM solutions that work with existing packages (Lotus, Outlook). Often these companies offer stripped down or basic versions of their packages targeted to small businesses. This can be low-cost solution if you’ve already invested in standard Microsoft business applications and can deal with most of the standard modules they offer. If you’re flexible and willing trade some functionality for convenience and price then boxed software may work for you.

Pros
Application is theoretically available on a 24/7 basis
No high-speed internet connection required
Business critical information is securely stored on company servers and back-ups are easily accessible
Business is not immediately interrupted due to a change in the developers business situation

Cons
Generally high-start-up costs (server hardware, software and training)
On-going support required: Back-ups, updates and service packs etc.
Data can often be stored in a proprietary format that will require conversion in to new format
Other CRM Solutions:
Custom Development

If you’ve the budget, time and patience then a gaggle of consultants, CRM solution providers and software engineers will beat down your doors to develop a custom CRM system that works flawlessly with your existing systems. I’d recommend this option only if you’re spending other people’s money, get a big bonus and then are able to leave the company before it falls apart. If you do select this path, carefully work through your specifications with your “partners” and good luck!

Managed Solutions
ASPs offer to create a customized brand-version web of their web CRM applications. These are usually on a dedicated server and often sell for a flat development fee PLUS lots of other customized options. It can be solid choice if you’ve got the budget and are willing to be flexible with some of the functionality.

Who Are The Players?
Unfortunately, in the CRM market the question is more like who isn't a player. Using the broadest terms you can call a Rolodex a CRM system. The important thing is to define CRM for your organization.

Regardless, here’s a quick list:

Product Name: Sage CRM Solutions
Software: Sage Solutions Features: Customer Care, Marketing Automation, Microsoft Outlook Integration, Offline Synchronization, Sales Automation, Wireless PDA Access, Customer Care, Marketing Automation, Microsoft Outlook Integration, Offline Synchronization, Sales Automation, Why On-Demand CRM
Microsoft Windows, Microsoft SQL; Oracle DBMS'.

Product Name: Microsoft Dynamics CRM 3.0
Company: Microsoft
Price: $5,000 to $50,000
Features: Sales, Customer Service, CRM Mobile, Marketing, Suns Legacy Partners, Hutchinson and Blood good, Kindermusik International
Microsoft Windows; Microsoft SQL. ASP/Web interface environment; Microsoft .NET Framework

Product Name: SAP Business One CRM
Company: SAP America, Inc.
Price: $11,250+
Features: Sales Opportunity Management, Business Partner Management, Service Management
built-in reporting, internal workflow and alerts, highly customizable, embedded CRM.

Product Name: Oncontact V
Company: Oncontact Software
Price: $1,000-$1,500/user
Features: CRM Account Management, Sales, Marketing, Customer Service, Toolkits
Microsoft C#; Microsoft .NET platform.

Product Name: Entellium CRM
Company: Entellium
Price: $50 per user / month
eSalesForce, eCustomerCenter, eMobile, My*Entellium ASP

Product: Neocase
Company: Neocase Software, Inc.
Price: www.netmarketingassociates.com).

Is Customer Relationship Management Right for your Small to Mid-sized Business?

Source: Jason Baselice link 

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