| Experts
Archive |
 How can I better define which inbound leads are more likely to convert so I can prioritize them more effectively?
Paul McConville, Director of Consumer-Facing Services , TARGUSinfo |  |
What’s Next for Speech?
John P. Joseph, VP Corporate Marketing, Envox Worldwide | |
How can I show measurable value from my monitoring and recording system?
Gerry Johnsen, Product Manager, Calabrio, Inc. | |
There has been a certain amount of scepticism surrounding CRM in the past, but now it seems like everyone is doing it. Is this the case?
Andy Wood, MD, GI Insight | |
Communicating intelligently with existing customers is critical, and marketing spend is heavily weighted towards this pool. But businesses cannot afford to neglect prospecting activity. So, what techniques can businesses adopt to ensure that the search for new customers is both targeted and cost-efficient ?
David Jefferies, Marketing Director, Pitney Bowes | |
|
|
| Experts Panel |  Meet some of the leading gurus in the marketplace that have joined the Experts Panel of CRM2day.
Learn more about their fields of expertise. |
|
| Ask the Experts |  Are you a member of CRM2day and want to share your questions with our Experts Panel, regarding any current hot CRM issues?
Take this challenge and ask them for free! |
|
|
|
 | Scott Walters, Financial Services CRM Strategy, IBM Business Consulting Services You Asked
What are the main weaknesses in the Financial Sector concerning the application of CRM services? | | |
The Expert's Answer
The financial services sector has been perceived by many as leading the adoption of CRM, and defining many leading practices, and there are certainly case studies to support this notion. However, while financial services companies, have pioneered in some cases, in others they have fallen victim to common mistakes in there approach to CRM investments. I would generally categorize these short comings as relating to “how” they went about applying CRM services to their CRM program, and on “what” objectives they focused these activities.
The “How”:
A recently published global survey (conducted by IBM Business Consulting Services in conjunction with The Economist Intelligence Unit) revealed the primary culprits responsible for under performing CRM programs. The study was able to statistically define 79% of the difference between success and failure, and of this percentage, 70% of the difference between high performing and low performing CRM initiatives were attributable to how well, or badly they executed in the below five dimensions of a typical CRM project approach:
• CRM strategy and value prop development (22%)
• Budget process management (20%)
• Process change (12%)
• Governance (9%)
• Change management (7.1%)
What immediately jumps out of this analysis is that project execution in areas like “IT implementation”, and “customer data integration and data ownership” had a much lower impact on success or failure of the initiative, yet, most would agree that these were the precise areas where most of the CRM services investment was made.
Yes, the projects were usually chartered with all, or most of the above dimensions represented, but when push came to shove, the executive and service provider behavior remained “get the technology in, train the staff, and give us metrics to ensure usage compliance”. It sounds so obvious, but the data proves that it is how a company executes in these “softer” areas of a CRM project that very likely determines its’ success.
The “What”
So, one might conclude that shoring up the services effort in the “softer” project dimensions would make CRM the sustainable competitive advantage it was promised to be. Unfortunately, emerging research suggests that this will not be enough, and that competitive advantage depends increasingly on “what” the company defines as the ultimate aims of the CRM program.
Most of the CRM investments to date have focused on improving internal measures of customer management success such as cross sell conversion rates, and sales force productivity. To be sure, these are worthy goals, and have delivered much in terms of the efficiency and reliability of customer facing operations. One might call these the “hygiene” aims. Over time, however, these efforts have become “table stakes” in how a company interacts with a customer, and have proven to be easily replicable by competitors, therefore producing little sustainable competitive advantage.
So to move ahead of the pack again, leading financial sector companies are beginning to direct attention, and CRM services effort to gaining deeper insight into what motivates a customer to become a true advocate of the company and its services. This goes beyond just historical, behavioral understanding, and explores the higher order relationship attributes that create a deeper, sustainable link to the brand.
These are often referred to as the “emotive” attributes of the customer relationship. New customer insight techniques, enterprise communications frameworks, and human performance programs are the means to this end. Understanding and applying CRM services investments to these areas are where the financial sector will gain real competitive advantage.
|
|
|
|
|
|
by Document Type
