Customer Relationship management

INTRODUCTION Customer relationship management (CRM) is a model for managing a companys interactions with current and future customers. It involves using technology to organize, automate, and Synchronize sales, marketing, customer service, and technical support. DEFINITION Customer Relationship Management (CRM) is specific software that allows a company to measure and control contacts with customers. CRM can be used for controlling contacts with a customer either by phone, fax, mail and email. The data collected can be used for research and analysis of the customer relationship. TYPES OF CRM Sales force automation Sales force automation (SFA) uses software to streamline the sales process. The core of SFA is a contact management system for tracking and recording every stage in the sales process for each prospective client, from initial contact to final disposition. Many SFA applications also include insights into opportunities, territories, sales forecasts and workflow automation. Marketing CRM systems for marketing track and measure campaigns over multiple channels, such as email, search, social media, telephone and direct mail. These systems track clicks, responses, leads and deals. Customer service and support CRMs can be used to create, assign and manage requests made by customers, such as call center software which help direct customers to agents. CRM software can also be used to identify and reward loyal customers. Appointments Appointment CRMs automatically provide suitable appointment times to customers via e-mail or the web, which are then synchronized with the representative or agent's calendar. Small business For small businesses a CRM may simply consist of a contact manager system which integrates emails, documents, jobs, faxes, and scheduling for

individual accounts. CRMs available for specific markets for professional markets (legal, finance) are frequently touted for their event management and relationship tracking opposed to financial return on investment (ROI). Non-profit and membership-based Systems for non-profit and membership-based organizations help track constituents, fund-raising, demographics, membership levels, membership directories, volunteering and communications with individuals Objectives of CRM CRM, the technology, along with human resources of the company, enables the company to analyze the behavior of customers and their value. The main areas of focus are as the name suggests: customer ,relationship , and the management of relationship and the main objectives to implement CRM in the business strategy are:

To simplify marketing and sales process To make call centers more efficient To provide better customer service To discover new customers and increase customer revenue To cross sell products more effectively

The CRM processes should fully support the basic steps of customer life cycle . The basic steps are:

Attracting present and new customers Acquiring new customers Serving the customers Finally, retaining the customers

IMPORTANCE OF CRM

A CRM system consists of a historical view and analysis of all the acquired or to be acquired customers. This helps in reduced searching and correlating customers and to foresee customer needs effectively and increase business. CRM contains each and every bit of details of a customer, hence it is very easy for track a customer accordingly and can be used to determine which customer can be profitable and which not. In CRM system, customers are grouped according to different aspects according to the type of business they do or according to physical location and are allocated to different customer managers often called as account managers. This helps in focusing and concentrating on each and every customer separately.

A CRM system is not only used to deal with the existing customers but is also useful in acquiring new customers. The process first starts with identifying a customer and maintaining all the corresponding details into the CRM system which is also called an Opportunity of Business. The Sales and Field representatives then try getting business out of these customers by sophistically following up with them and converting them into a winning deal. All this is very easily and efficiently done by an integrated CRM system. The strongest aspect of Customer Relationship Management is that it is very cost-effective. The advantage of decently implemented CRM system is that there is very less need of paper and manual work which requires lesser staff to manage and lesser resources to deal with. The technologies used in implementing a CRM system are also very cheap and smooth as compared to the traditional way of business. All the details in CRM system is kept centralized which is available anytime on fingertips. This reduces the process time and increases productivity. Efficiently dealing with all the customers and providing them what they actually need increases the customer satisfaction. This increases the chance of getting more business which ultimately enhances turnover and profit. If the customer is satisfied they will always be loyal to you and will remain in business forever resulting in increasing customer base and ultimately enhancing net growth of business.

Aims of CRM

The CRM is a new technique in marketing where the marketer tries to develop long term relationship with the customers to develop them as life time customers. CRM aims to make the customer climb up the ladder of loyalty. The company first tries to determine who are likely prospects i.e. the people who have a strong potential interest in the product and ability to pay for it. The company hopes to convert many of its qualified prospect into first time customers and then to convert those first time customers into repeat customers. Then the company tries to convert these repeat customers into clients they are those people who buy only from the company in the relevant product categories. The next challenge for the company is to convert these client into advocates. Advocates are those clients who praise the company and encourage others to buy from it.

The ultimate challenge is to convert these advocates into partners where the customers and the clients work actively together to discover ways of getting mutual benefit. Thus in CRM the key performance figure is not just current market share but share of life time value by converting customers into partners. In CRM the company tries to identify that small percentage (20%) of key account holders whos contribution to the company revenues is high (80%). So from this point of view, CRM is also known as KEY ACCOUNT MANAGEMENT.

Benefits The following are the benefits of adopting CRM processes:

Develop better communication channels Collect customer related data Create detailed profiles of individual customers Increased customer satisfaction Access to customer account history, order information, and customer information at all touch points Identify new selling opportunities Increased market share and profit margin Increased revenues More effective reach and marketing Improved customer service and support Improved response time to customer requests for information Enhanced customer loyalty Improved ability to meet customer requirements Improved quality communication and networking Reduced costs of buying and using product and services Better stand against global competition

Eight ways to keep customers for life 1. Every part of the companys marketing effort should be geared towards building lifetime relationships 2. 2. People want to do business with friendly people. To have effective relations a friendly attitude must permeate in the organization. 3. 3. Information technology developments should be positively used to serve the customers.

4. 4. The company should always be flexible to bend its rules and procedures in the clients favour 5. .5. The company should communicate with its customers even when it is not trying to sell something 6. 6. The company can communicate and develop stronger customer bonding by providing financial and social benefits 7. 7. The company should try to know all its customers including their lifestyles, hobbies, likes and dislikes etc. 8. The company should make it a point to deliver more than what is promised. CRM Apps and Customer Interaction A CRM apps primary function is to provide marketers and their companies with customer engagement data from a mixture of different social channels, such as social media and email and present this information on a singular platform. According to the infographic there are seven key components of a successful CRM application:

Real-time Feed: With this tool, information about customer engagement is presented in a newsfeed-like fashion. Email: In order to be worthwhile, a CRM application must give marketers the option of responding to customers as quickly as possible. A good CRM app will effectively collect and synchronize engagement and trend data with a users preferred email client. Leads: Its not enough to convert a customer, a business has to make sure that this person becomes a repeat customer. This is where leads come in, as they give marketers the chance to organize data into a singular platform, manage and track social channels and manage lead conversion making sure that a business is up to date on what their current and potential customers are doing. Social Media: In recent years, social media sites have become advertisement and promotional platforms, so a CRM tool should not only be able to monitor as many channels as possible and find out relevant personal data about a customer, such as their location, but track a customers social media interactions by looking for questions they may have, conversations they are having and other relevant information.

Task Management: Being organized is a key to being successful and this doesn't change when it comes to CRM. According to the infographic, a CRM app should enable users to quickly and easily organize and add or delete tasks. Performance: Not only should a CRM app allow users to track customer data, but give a business the tools to monitor their own performance by being able to compare customer data with sales projections and manage client information and adjust it accordingly when changes are needed.

Effective CRM in Six Practical Steps Companies can ensure the success of Commercial Off-the-Shelf (COTS) package-based Customer Relationship Management (CRM) transformation through judicious use of business drivers for a phased implementation program. The costs and risks of a CRM transformation can be minimized by integrating it with the enterprise IT strategy and mapping its dependence with operational systems, according to Infosys' experts. In an article on CRM Buyer, our experts propose a Release Planning Framework and 6-step planning process for a rapid transformation. It can be combined with a Benefit Complexity Matrix to:

Identify the least-resistant path to transformation Assess the levels of COTS customization and interfacing to enhance business processes Prioritize business processes for a phased transformation,Plan releases and address implementation challenges

METHODOLOGY Customer relationship management (CRM) is a customer-focused business strategy that dynamically integrates sales, marketing and customer care service in order to create and add value for the company and its customers. This change towards a customer-focused strategy is leading to a strong demand for CRM solutions by companies. However, in spite of companies interest in this new management model, many CRM implementations fail. One of the main reasons for this lack of success is that the existing methodologies being used to approach a CRM project are not adequate, since they do not satisfactorily integrate and complement the strategic and technological aspects of CRM.

This describes a formal methodology for directing the process of developing and implementing a CRM System that considers and integrates various aspects, such as defining a customer strategy, re-engineering customer-oriented business processes, human resources management, the computer system, management of change and continuous improvement.
CRM in the Textile industry In textile industry one company sell its product to another company. For example a yarn manufacturing company sell to fabric manufacturing company. A fabric manufacturing company sell fabric to apparel company. The main customers of the companies in the textile industry are the wholesalers. And the final product is sold to the wholesalers and retailers. In this industry the customers are few and profit margins are high. So CRM is very much necessary and relevant in this industry. There is a high degree of uncertainty on the part of the buyers, the likelihood of customers seeking a relationship is increased. If the firm loses its customer it would be major loss to the firm. The product in the textile industry is complex and quality is an important factor. One of the major values the customer expects from vendors is quality. No customer will tolerate average quality. According to GEs chairman John quality is the best assurance of customer allegiance and strongest defense against competition and the only path to sustained growth and earnings. If the product is not of good quality the customer will not be satisfied and the firm may lose its customer. Moreover there is a scope of customization in the product. The seller has to customize the product according to the need of the customer. Customization is changing the product according to the need of the customer in order to satisfy him.

How to introduce CRM in the company There are four key steps for putting one to one marketing program to work Step 1 : Identify your customers To launch a one to one initiative the company must be able to locate and contact a fair number of customers or at least a substantial portion of its valuable customers. It is crucial to know the customer details as much as possible, not just their names or address, but their habits, preferences and so forth.

Step 2 : Differentiating your customers Customers are different in two principal ways, they represent different levels of value and have different needs. Once the company identifies its customers differentiating them will help the company to focus its efforts to gain the most advantage with the most valuable customers. Step 3 : Interacting with the customer Interaction is also a crucial component of a successful CRM initiative. It is important to remember that interaction just not occur through marketing and sales channels, customer interact in many different ways with many different areas of the organization so to foster relationship all the areas of the organization must be accessible to the customer. Step 4 : Customize your enterprises behavior Ultimately to lock a customer into a relationship a company must adapt some aspect of its behavior to meet customers individually expressed needs this might mean mass customizing a manufactured product or it might involve tailoring some aspect of the service surrounding the product. CRM STRATEGY Customer relationship management (CRM) practices have traditionally included sales activities, marketing, customer care and even technical support. However, these same organizations handle collections the way they did 20 years ago with separate customer care and accounts receivable functions. This reactive strategy stalls collection activity -- and payment -- until the customer is well past due Here are the seven key steps to establish and manage a preventive collections strategy alongside your current customer relationship management practices: 1. Choose the right people Screen agents for collections, with a customer care skill sets up-front. Identify individuals capable of serving as universal agents, able to handle virtually any issue from standard customer care issues to past-due collections. Then, match top performers in each area to specific clients. Universal agents can easily be identified by their customer service skills and a thick skin required for past-due collections. Simply put, you can teach a

collections agent how to handle customer care, but customer care agents rarely have the skills needed to manage collections calls. 2. Provide up-front and ongoing training Once identified, universal agents should receive special training. They must have the empathy, bridging and negotiation skills needed to open and close a customer care issue and negotiate and resolve a past-due billing issue often during the same call. A certain amount of ongoing training is required. Agents must be kept abreast of the latest client offers. They must know how to change a customers payment due date, offer credits, or waive a service fee. If the customer recently lost a job, the universal agent must be able to show empathy and offer payment alternatives. 3. Control customer service quality and performance With customer data and payment habits on their screen the moment the call comes in, universal agents can deliver a quality customer experience by offering empathy and sympathy while remaining firm enough to meet the clients collection targets. Statistics prove that empathy and the ability to offer alternative arrangements as opposed to the traditional, bottom-line collections call enhances customer satisfaction/loyalty and increases the likelihood of receiving payment. 4. Leverage customer data to build prevention strategies When a customer gets his or her paycheck, every company wants to be paid first. By having the individuals payment history on -screen at the outset, the universal agent is better able to negotiate. They may offer suggestions like: Can we change the due date to better fit your needs? After incorporating a more conversational, sympathetic approach, our clients experienced a twelve percent lift in payments. Though a friendly, caring approach increased the handle time, it also delivered superior financial results. 5. Provide access to all customer contact channels More and more consumers and business people are using non-traditional means for communications. Communicate in the medium of their choice. Employing a multi-channel approach, the preventive collections program can

leverage or combine voice communications with other direct contact channels, including direct mail, chat and email. 6. Deliver global consistency Implement and enforce a set of operating standards for all customer care and collection interactions throughout your operation. This will ensure equally trained agents with reliable service to your clients around the world. This program is derived from a set of highly defined standards developed from global call center experience over the past 20-plus years. It delivers universal agents with consistent skill levels, regardless of where theyre located. 7. Provide motivation and incentives Every client has different needs. When it comes to motivating and incenting universal agents, there are a variety of client-specific compensation models. Earnings and incentives can be based on cure, liquidation and collection rate measurements. With this strategy, agents are able to engage late-paying customers and gradually move them away from the collections process, in some cases permanently. Identifying and resolving past-due issues before the customer reaches the collections stage is a proven way to enhance the bottom line. Implementing CRM CRM is a corporate level strategy, focusing on creating and maintaining relationships with customers. Several commercial CRM software packages are available which vary in their approach to CRM. However, CRM is not a technology itself, but rather a holistic approach to an organizations philosophy, placing the emphasis firmly on the customer. CRM governs an organizations philosophy at all levels, including policies and processes, front of house customer service, employee training, marketing, systems and information management. CRM systems are integrated end-to-end across Marketing, Sales and Service. A CRM system should:

Identify factors important to clients Promote a customer-oriented philosophy Adopt customer-based measures Develop end-to-end processes to serve customers

Provide successful customer support Handle customer complaints Track all aspects of sales Automate marketing planning and execution.

Improving Customer Relationship CRM applications often track customer interests and requirements, as well as their buying habits. This information can be used to target customer selectively. Furthermore, the products a customer have purchased can be tracked throughout the products life cycle, allowing customers to receive information concerning a product or to target customer with information on alternative products once a product begins to be phased out. Repeat purchase rely on customer satisfactions, which in turn comes from a deeper understanding of each customer and individual needs. CRM is an alternative to the one size fits all approach. In industrial markets, the technology can be used to coordinate the conflicting and changing purchase criteria of the sector. CONCLUSION CRM implementation requires a great deal of research, documentation, planning, and evaluation. The idea, that successful customer relationship management is a journey and not a destination, cannot be emphasised enough. Organisations need to be constantly aware of their environment, the competition and their changing customers' needs and wants. Without this awareness and constant attention to detail, complacency will set in and that can be the beginning of a dangerous, downward spiral. WEB RESOURCES http://www.mediapost.com/publications/article/170917/newstrategies-for-customer-relationshipmanagemen.html#ixzz2P5K4Z1LI http://www.mediapost.com/publications/article/170917/newstrategies-for-customer-relationshipmanagemen.html#ixzz2P5JU1BxH

P.S.R.ENGINEERING COLLEGE, SIVAKASI ASSIGNMENT

Submitted To

: Mr.R.Kasi Raman.,AP/MBA : S.Vigneswari.,1st year MBA.,

Submitted By

Subject

: Marketing Management

Roll No

: 1222054

Submitted On : 1.4.2013

Subject code

: 12BA23