Contents

1. Definition of CRM……………………………….3
(Customer relationship management)
2. History……………………………………………4
3. Introduction………………………………………7
4. Types of CRM…………………………………..10
 Analytical
 Collaborative
 Geographical
 Operational
 Sales intelligence CRM
5. Evaluation of CRM……………………………..13
6. Functionality……………………………………13
7. Implementation…………………………………14
8. Uses of CRM in industry………………………16
9. CRM circle in an organization………………...18
10.Best practices of CRM…………………………19
11.Case studies…………………………………….23
 Bradford collage
 Singh home builders
12.Benefits of CRM……………………………….29
13.Conclusion……………………………………..33
14.References……………………………………...35

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What is CRM (customer relationship management)?
CRM (customer relationship management) is an information industry term
for methodologies, software, and usually Internet capabilities that help an
enterprise manage customer relationships in an organized way.

For example, an enterprise might build a database about its customers that

described relationships in sufficient detail so that management, salespeople,
people providing service, and perhaps the customer directly could access
information, match customer needs with product plans and offerings, remind

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customers of service requirements, know what other products a customer
had purchased, and so forth.
The History of CRM

Customer relationship management is a concept that became very popular

during the 1990s. It offered long term changes and benefits to businesses
that chose to use it. The reason for this is because it allowed companies to
interact with their customers on a whole new level. While CRM is excellent
in the long term, those who are looking for short term results may not see
much progress.
One of the reasons for this is because it was difficult to effectively track
customers and their purchases. It is also important to realize that large
companies were responsible for processing tremendous amounts of data.
This data needed to be updated on a consistent basis. 

In the last few years, a number of changes have been made to Customer
relationship management that has allowed it to advance. These capabilities
have allowed CRM to become the system that was once envisioned by those
who created it. However, the biggest problem with these newer systems is
the price. A number of personalized Internet tools have been introduced to
the market, and these have driven down the cost of competition. While this
may be a bane for vendors who are selling expensive systems, it is a bonanza
for small companies that would otherwise not be able to afford CRM
programs. The foundation for CRM was laid during the 1980s. 

During this time, it was referred to as being database marketing. The term
"database marketing" was used to refer to the procedure of creating customer
focus groups that could be used to speak to some of the customers of the
company. The clients who were extremely valued were pivotal in
communicating with the firm, but the process became quite repetitive, and
the information that was collected via surveys did not give the company a
great of information. Even though the company could collect data through
surveys, they did not have efficient methods of processing and analyzing the
information. As time went on, companies begin to realize that all they really
needed was basic information. They needed to know what their customer
purchased, how much they spent, and what did with the products they
purchased. 

The 1990s saw the introduction of a number of advances in this system. It

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was during this time that term Customer relationship management was
introduced. Unlike previous customer relationship systems, CRM was a dual
system. Instead of merely gathering information for the purpose of using for
their own benefit, companies started giving back to the customers they
served. Many companies would begin giving their customers gifts in the
form of discounts, perks, or even money. The companies believed that doing
this would allow them to build a sense of loyalty in those who brought their
products. 

Customer relationship management is the system that is responsible for

introducing things such as frequent flyer gifts and credit card points. Before
CRM, this was rarely done. Customers would simply by from the company,
and little was done to maintain their relationship. Before the introduction of
CRM, many companies, especially those that were in the Fortune 500
category, didn't feel the need to cater to the company. In the minds of the
executives, they have tremendous resources and could replaces customers
whenever it became necessary. While this may have worked prior to the
1980s, the introduction of the Information Age allowed people to make
better decisions about which companies they would buy from, and global
competition made it easier for them to switch if they were not happy with
the service they were getting.

CRM, s Historical journey

1980s Database Marketing Emerges
1980s Database Marketing helped larger
Organizations rather than smaller organizations.
1990s CRM appears as a two way communication
Device
2000s Internet age CRM revolution CRM expands
From stagnant storage to ready to use information
Storage
2000s used most frequently in financial services, high
Tech corporations and telecommunications industry

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 The History of CRM Software

CRM, or Customer Relationship Management, is a way for businesses to

find potential customers. While the first iterations of CRM were used in the
1980s, it wasn't until the 2000s that it really began to shine. CRM software
helps businesses identify and categorize existing customers. This allows
them to see the specific demographics their products appeal to, in turn
allowing them to market their products more effectively

Before CRM
1. Before CRM, businesses did very little to retain customers after the
purchase, Many companies, especially larger ones, didn't feel any need to
cater to the customers. Executives and higher-ups had the mentality that they
could easily replace their customers. Though this may have been partially
true in the past, upon entering the Information Age, everything changed.
Beginning in the 1980's, customers began to become more aware of the
products they buy, their alternative choices and the companies from which
they bought.

In the Beginning
2. Businesses in the 1980's began using databases to track existing and
potential customers. This is what eventually led to the creation of CRM
software. Referred to as "database marketing," this method entailed sending
out surveys to customers and holding focus groups. However, many
drawbacks existed with this particular method. For instance, while
companies could collect the data, processing, analyzing and interpreting it
was a very difficult and time-consuming task.

The 1990s
3. In the 1990s, the term "Customer Relationship Management" was first
coined. The 90s truly saw CRM technology and software evolve out of
simple database marketing. Unlike in the past, companies were beginning to
use CRM as a means to also give back to the customer. For example, many
credit card and airline companies offered incentives such as reward points or
frequent flyer miles. These programs were designed, not only to get new
customers, but to improve customer loyalty by giving back to the customer.

The Early 2000s

4. While the 90s saw an evolution in the concept of CRM itself, the early
2000s are when CRM as software really evolved. In the first few years of the

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 21st century software companies began releasing improved, easier-to-use
and more affordable CRM software solutions. Often customizable, this
newer CRM software applied to many fields, as each could modify it to for
their specific needs. This newer software also helped CRM mature, as
companies could then collect more varied levels of information and process
it much faster and more efficiently than in the past.

CRM Today
5. CRM software is now primarily used in the customer service and
technology industries, Financial institutions, technological businesses and
the telecommunications industry typically use CRM software more than
other industries and fields. Unlike CRM software in the past, which offered
static, or no changing, information, newer CRM software's information is
dynamic, able to adjust and change as customers and their needs do, which
is important when you consider that the world and people in it are,
themselves, dynamic.

CRM Introduction

CRM, refers to Customer Relationship Management, has it origin in the

Contact Management in 1980s. The aim is to establish a management
mechanism to improve the relationship between enterprise and customer. As
a business strategy, CRM effectively organize the enterprise resource in the
department of marketing, sales and support; as the customer-centered
management strategy with the information technology, the system intends to
redesign the business function, recombine the work flow, and upgrade the
satisfaction degree to appeal the customer, in order to gain profit. CRM
exists as the management system in early times, but as the mature idea and
technology in the management mechanism, it merges and rises in recent
years. CRM software which supports this management mechanism became
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the sunrise industry in the software market and regard as the emerging
technology which improve the enterprise management after ERP. The
enterprises all over the world undergo a profound conversion because of
CRM, which related to the communication and interaction between
enterprise and customer or potential customer. Information technology and
Internet not only change the management and operating mode but also
impact the competitive capability. If ERP help the enterprise to optimize the
internal management flow and other resources, CRM make the external
resource especially the customer resource to be fully utilized, in order to
boost the enterprise development.
The origin and development of CRM inspired by three aspects: pull the
demand, promote the information technology and renovate the management
idea. In the aspect of demand, business flow reorganization (BRP) and ERP
achieve the goal of optimizing and automating the flow in the field of
production, inventory, finance and current of materials in 1980s. But the
field of sales, paying not much attention to the marketing and after-sales
service could result in the incomplete recognition of the customer and
dealing with them without unified information. On the other hand, it is
important for enterprise to keep regular customer and win new ones. This
gave birth to the inconsistent behavior between reality and demand.
The function of CRM could be reduced to three aspects: to base the business
flow of sales, marketing and customer service on information; to integrate
and automatically deal with the communication technology, (such as
telephone, fax, Internet and Email, etc.); to process data of the above aspects
and intelligent manage the customer, so as to offer support to the strategic
decision.

CRM, or Customer relationship management, is a number of strategies and

technologies that are used to build stronger relationships between companies
and their customers. A company will store information that is related to their
customers, and they will spend time analyzing it so that it can be used for
this purpose.
Some of the methods connected with CRM are automated, and the purpose
of this is to create marketing strategies which are targeted towards specific
customers. The strategies used will be dependent on the information that is
contained within the system. Customer relationship management is
commonly used by corporations, and they will focus on maintaining a strong
relationship with their clients. 

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There are a number of reasons why CRM has become so important in the
last 10 years. The competition in the global market has become highly
competitive, and it has become easier for customers to switch companies if
they are not happy with the service they receive. One of the primary goals of
CRM is to maintain clients. When it is used effectively, a company will be
able to build a relationship with their customers that can last a lifetime.
Customer relationship management tools will generally come in the form of
software. Each software program may vary in the way it approaches CRM. It
is important to realize that CRM is more than just a technology. 

Customer relationship management could be better defined as being a

methodology, an approach that a company will use to achieve their goals. It
should be directly connected to the philosophy of the company. It must
guide all of its policies, and it must be an important part of customer service
and marketing. If this is not done, the CRM system will become a failure.
There are a number of things the ideal CRM system should have. It should
allow the company to find the factors that interest their customers the most.
A company must realize that it is impossible for them to succeed if they do
not cater to the desires and needs of their customers. Customer relationship
management is a powerful system that will allow them to do this. 

It is also important for the CRM system to foster a philosophy that is

oriented towards the customers. While this may sound like common sense,
there are a sizeable number of companies that have failed to do it, and their
businesses suffered as a result. With CRM, the customer is always right, and
they are the most important factor in the success of the company. It is also
important for the company to use measures that are dependent on their
customers. This will greatly tip the odds of success in their favor. While
CRM should not be viewed as a technology, it is important to realize that
there are end to end processes that must be created so that customers can be
properly served. In many cases, these processes will use computers and
software. 

Customer support is directly connected to CRM. If a company fails to

provide quality customer support, they have also failed with their CRM
system. When a customer makes complaints, they must be handled quickly
and efficiently. The company should also seek to make sure those mistakes
are not repeated. When sales are made, they should be tracked so that the
company can analyze them from various aspects. It is also important to
understand the architecture of Customer relationship management. The
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architecture of CRM can be broken down into three categories, and these are
collaborative, operational, and analytical. The collaborative aspect of CRM
deals with communication between companies and their clients.

Types of CRM are:

I. Analytical
II. Collaborative
III. Operational
IV. Geographic
V. Sales intelligence

 Analytical CRM
o In analytical CRM, data gathered within operational CRM
and/or other sources are analyzed to
Segment customers or to identify potential to enhance client
relationship.

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 o Analysis of Customer data may relate to one or more of the
following analyses:
1. Contact channel optimization
2. Contact Optimization
3. Customer Segmentation
4.Customer Satisfaction Measurement / Increase
5. Sales Coverage Optimization

 Collaborative CRM

Collaborative CRM facilitates interactions with customers

through all channels (personal, letter, fax, phone, web, e-mail) and
supports co-ordination of employee teams and channels. It is a
solution that brings people; processes and data together so companies
can better serve and retain their customers.

 Operational CRM

Operational CRM means supporting the so-called "front office"

business processes, which include customer contact (sales, marketing
and service). Tasks resulting from these processes are forwarded to
employees responsible for them, as well as the information necessary
for carrying out the tasks and interfaces to back-end applications are
being provided and activities with customers are being documented
for further reference

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  Geographic CRM

Geographic CRM (GCRM) is a customer relation management

information system which collaborates geographic information system and
traditional CRM.

GCRM combines data collected from route of movement, types of residence,

ambient trading areas and other customer and marketing information which
are matched with relevant road conditions, building formations, and a
floating population. Such data are conformed to a map and is regionally
analyzed with OLAP (On-Line Analytical Processing) for visualization. This
enables a company to examine potential customers and manage existing
customers in the region.

 Sales Intelligence CRM

Sales Intelligence CRM is very similar to Analytical CRM, but it is

intended as a more direct sales tool. Features include the delivery of "alerts"
to sales people based on analysis of such factors as:

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  Cross-sell/Up-sell/Switch-sell opportunities
 Customer Drift
 Sales performance, good and bad
 Customer trends
 Customer margins

Customer Relationship Management evaluation:

When talking about relationship management in the context of software

solutions, most people think of customer relationship management (CRM).
However, relationships also exist between companies and their vendors,
companies and their customers, vendors and their suppliers, employees,
different departments of the same company, and so on. The Relationship
Management Evaluation Center concentrates on CRM and supplier
relationship management (SRM), as software and information and
communication technology (ICT) play a major role in facilitating effective
relationship management among all parties involved.

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Functionality:

CRM is to achieve the goal of customer management, sales, and market

analysis to enterprise, family and individual.
A. Customer management refers to the overall events with the customers,
including the activity and deal of at a time and look at customer credit and
information, etc.

How to implement CRM

Customer relationship management (“CRM”) is a term that refers to two
things:

 A company’s strategy for managing leads and customer data

 Software that manages that data

The implementation of a customer relationship management (CRM) strategy

is best treated as a six-stage process, moving from collecting information
about your customers and processing it to using that information to improve
your marketing and the customer experience.

Stage 1 - Collecting information

The priority should be to capture the information you need to identify your
customers and categories their behavior. Those businesses with a website
and online customer service have an advantage as customers can enter and
maintain their own details when they buy.

Stage 2 - Storing information

The most effective way to store and manage your customer information is in
a relational database - a centralized customer database that will allow you to
run all your systems from the same source, ensuring that everyone uses up-
to-date information.

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Stage 3 - Accessing information

With information collected and stored centrally, the next stage is to make
this information available to staff in the most useful format.

Stage 4 - Analyzing customer behavior

Using data mining tools in spreadsheet programs, which analyze data to

identify patterns or relationships, you can begin to profile customers and
develop sales strategies.

Stage 5 - Marketing more effectively

Many businesses find that a small percentage of their customers generate a

high percentage of their profits. Using CRM to gain a better understanding
of your customers' needs, desires and self-perception, you can reward and
target your most valuable customers.

Stage 6 - Enhancing the customer experience

Just as a small group of customers are the most profitable, a small number of
complaining customers often take up a disproportionate amount of staff
time. If their problems can be identified and resolved quickly, your staff will
have more time for other customers.

If you are collecting, using and processing personal information covered by

the Data Protection Act you must comply with the data protection principles.
See our guide on privacy and data protection in direct marketing.

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Uses of CRM in industry:

According to one industry view, CRM consists of:

 Helping an enterprise to enable its marketing departments to identify

and target their best customers, manage marketing campaigns and
generate quality leads for the sales team.
 Assisting the organization to improve telesales, account, and sales
management by optimizing information shared by multiple employees,
and streamlining existing processes (for example, taking orders using
mobile devices)
 Allowing the formation of individualized relationships with
customers, with the aim of improving customer satisfaction and
maximizing profits; identifying the most profitable customers and
providing them the highest level of service.
 Providing employees with the information and processes necessary to
know their customers understand and identify customer needs and
effectively build relationships between the company, its customer base,
and distribution partners.

Many organizations turn to CRM software to help them manage their

customer relationships. CRM technology is offered on-premise, on-demand
or through Software as a Service (SaaS) CRM, depending on the vendor.
Recently, mobile CRM and the open source CRM software model have also
become more popular.

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Use OF CRM:
Here are three examples of how different companies can use CRM:

MID-MARKET SMALL COMPANY

ENTERPRISE CRM
CRM CRM

Company A is a Company B’s 60 Company C has four

national insurance employees use CRM to sales reps, two account
company that sells manage 1,200 managers and a
direct to consumers customer records and marketing manager.
and uses a single CRM thousands of prospects. They use a web-based
system. Thousands of The system links to the system and pay per
sales reps across the “request information” user per month. They
country log in, enter form on the company’s started with a simple
prospect data and use website; leads are version and upgraded
the system to manage intelligently routed when they needed
their sales activities. At directly to the sales rep more functionality.
regional and corporate for that territory. The Their system tracks
offices, many CRM links to the leads by campaign,
departments use the company’s accounting assigns leads to sales
data to run-real time software. When orders reps, tracks activity,
reports – revenue appear in the CRM estimates revenue,
projections, sales system, they also launches and measures

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 metrics, customer appear in the
growth, customer appropriate financial
marketing campaigns,
satisfaction, and ROI reports. The operations
and stores templates
for marketing team uses the system
for sales letters, emails
campaigns – to to fulfill orders and
and presentations.
effectively manage the track shipping and
business. service history.

Every company needs to store this information somewhere, and there are
CRM products with very simple functionality and complex multimillion-
dollar versions. When you use the right CRM system, you gain knowledge
and power to keep your team on track and measure progress against goals..

CRM circle in Organization:

There is a universal, underlying cycle of activity that should drive all CRM
initiatives and infrastructure development. All initiatives and infrastructure
development should somehow be tied to this core cycle of activity.
As a cycle, the stages are interdependent and continuous. As you move from
one stage to the next, you gain insight and understanding that enhances your
subsequent efforts. You become increasingly sophisticated in your
implementation of CRM processes and, over time, become increasingly
profitable by doing so.
As shown in the Figure 1, for any organization, business starts with the
acquisition of customers. However, any successful CRM initiative is highly
dependent on a solid understanding of customers. Thus, our discussion will
start there.

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 Figure 1: CRM Cycle
Understand and Differentiate
We cannot have a relationship with customers unless we understand them
what they value, what types of service are important to them, how and when
they like to interact, and what they want to buy. True understanding is based
on a combination of detailed analysis and interaction. Several activities are
important:
 Profiling to understand demographics, purchase patterns and channel
preference.
 Segmentation to identify logical unique groups of customers that tend
to look alike and behave in a similar fashion. While the promise of "one-
to-one" marketing sounds good, we have not seen many organizations that
have mastered the art of treating each customer uniquely. Identification of
actionable segments is a practical place to start.
 Primary research to capture needs and attitudes.
 Customer valuation to understand profitability, as well as lifetime
value or long-term potential. Value may also be based on the customer's
ability or inclination to refer other profitable customers.
Analysis and research alone, however, are insufficient. To create and foster a
relationship, we have to act on what we learn about customers. Customers

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 need to see that we are differentiating our service and communications based
both on what we've learned independently and on what they've told us.
At the same time, differentiation should be based on the value customers are
expected to deliver.
Develop and Customize
In the product-oriented world of yesterday, companies developed products
and services and expected customers to buy them. In a customer-focused
world, product and channel development have to follow the customer's lead.
Organizations are increasingly developing products and services, and even
new channels, based on customer needs and service expectations.
Most organizations today are not able to cost-effectively customize products
for individual customers. However, products, services, channels and media
can be customized based on the needs of quantitative customer segments.
The extent of customization should be based on the potential value delivered
by the customer segment.
Interact and Deliver
Interaction is also a critical component of a successful CRM initiative. It is
important to remember that interaction doesn't just occur through marketing
and sales channels and media; customers interact in many different ways
with many different areas of the organization including distribution and
shipping, customer service and online.
To foster relationships, organizations need to insure that:
 All areas of the organization have easy access to relevant, actionable
customer information.
 All areas are trained how to use customer information to tailor
interactions based on both customer needs and potential customer value.
With access to information and appropriate training, organizations will be
prepared to steadily increase the value they deliver to customers. Delivering
value is a cornerstone of the relationship. And remember, value is not just
based on the price of the product or the discounts offered. In fact, customer
perceptions of value are based on a number of factors including the quality
of products and services, convenience, speed, ease of use, responsiveness
and service excellence.
Acquire and Retain
The more we learn about customers, the easier it is to pinpoint those that are
producing the greatest value for the organization. Those are the customers

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and customer segments that we want to clone in our prospecting and
acquisition efforts. And, because we continue to learn about what is valuable
to each segment, we'll be much more likely to score a "win" with the right
channel, right media, right product, right offer, right timing and most
relevant message.
Successful customer retention basically involves getting it "right" on an
ongoing basis.
Successful customer retention is based very simply on the organization's
ability to constantly deliver on three principles:
 Maintain interaction; never stop listening.
 Continue to deliver on the customer's definition of value.
 Remember that customers change as they move through differing life
stages; be alert for the changes and be prepared to modify the service and
value proposition as they change.
And so the cycle continues. As you move from one stage to the next, you
gain insight and understanding that enhances your subsequent efforts. Your
development initiatives simultaneously become increasingly sophisticated as
does your implementation of CRM processes.

 
CRM Best Practices
 
With the support of technology, the goal of CRM is to have a 360-degree
view of the customer which will enable you to improve the quality and
satisfaction of each customer interaction and maximize the profitability of
your customer relationships... a win/win for both you and your customers.
Depending on how you look at it, CRM can be practiced in companies at
different levels. It can be practiced at the organizational level (ideally). It
can be practiced at a customer facing level - anything that has to do with
interactions with customers, marketing, sales and service. Or It can be
practiced at the very functional level, like in a call center within a sales
force, etc. While we can look at CRM on many different levels, our
definition of CRM is at a strategic level i.e. an organizational level.
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CRM is similar to customer loyalty and relationship marketing in that the
goal is to move your customer from a transactional interaction to an
emotional relationship. The two components most often missing from
loyalty and relationship marketing being: a) technology and b) the
management of relationships with other members of the business network:
affiliates, branches, employees etc. - i.e. recognizing your customer as a
customer through any channel.
 
The term CRM, arguably, was first put into the public domain around 1993,
when Tom Siebel came up with it. So it is closely connected to Siebel
Systems - an IT company. Hence the problem. Many executives are under
the misconception that CRM is principally an IT implementation... which
explains many of its failures -- and there have been many of them. If
technology is applied to a faulty business strategy, all that is going to happen
is that the company is going to become more efficient at doing the wrong
things. If the core business strategy isn't put right first, you'll have failure.
As we view CRM more as a strategy than a process... get the business
strategy right first. Decide which customers or segments to target. Develop
sensible customer acquisition, retention and development plans. Sort out the
channel strategy first (direct or indirect) then sort out which products,
services, bundles of value to offer the chosen customers. Once that's in
position, then start looking for IT to support it -- but not until then.
 
We spoke earlier about putting your customer at the heart of your business.
Part of that process involves developing a "relationship" with your customer.
How your customers define that relationship will vary. As the CRM
marketer, it is up to you to find out what's important to that customer. At the
end of the day, you want to be able to answer the question: "What’s the “one
thing” that is distinctive about my customer relationships?
 
As we are in a business of one sort or another, our goal as marketers, is to
have CRM help us acquire, grow and retain profitable customer relationships
to create a sustainable competitive advantage.
 
Without a doubt, customer loyalty is a key driver of profitability. Creating
customer loyalty must be an integral part of your organization's strategy -
particularly in a time of industry consolidation. Understanding customers'
requirements is fundamental to business success.

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The most important basis for strategy development, however, is a
comprehensive understanding of what drives customer loyalty and how
strong those drivers are. The key to understanding what drives your
customers' loyalty lies in finding answers to the following questions:

 How does our business define customer loyalty? 

 Are our customers loyal? To what extent or intensity? 
 How do we create, build or earn customer loyalty? 
 How can we use customer loyalty strategically and tactically for
positioning?

The first step in answering these questions is to measure both customer

satisfaction and customer loyalty. In working toward a thorough
understanding of your customer, begin by looking at why your customers
leave. Profitable CRM projects start by understanding customer needs.

Case study

1)Goldmine Premium Edition CRM software Bradford

College CRM Case Study

As CRM in the Education sector becomes more and more popular,

so does making sure you choose a business partner that understands
the needs of educational institutions.
Bradford College appointed Concentrix as their new CRM business
partner to help improve employer engagement, streamline internal
processes and provide a solid, reliable CRM system.
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Summary
This case study describes how the Concentrix CRM solution enabled
Bradford College to:

 Use technology to support employer engagement, the Train to Gain

initiative, and help them achieve the Training Quality Standard
 Provide users with a solid, reliable system which they could extend
throughout the organization
 More effectively engage with local employers and compete with
other training providers
 Reduce silos of information through a central database

 Efficiently capture, store and report on accurate, relevant data

Bradford College is one of the largest Further Education Colleges in the

UK, and the largest provider of higher education outside of the
university sector in England. The college has been delivering quality
education and training for over 175 years. It's earned a national
reputation in a variety of areas and offers a wide range of educational
courses.

As well as receiving the TQS Part A certification, Bradford College has

also received TQS Part B's in Healthcare and Beauty and
Complimentary Therapy demonstrating they have expertise delivering in
these sectors. The College is also working towards securing the Part B in
Building Services Engineering.

Key Strategy
One of Bradford College's key strategies is to engage with the local
business community to provide training for employees. By developing
its employer facing unit, Total Training Solutions, Bradford College
offers services to business to help them improve productivity and
competitiveness by ensuring staff have the right skills to do the best job.
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Total Training Solutions specialize in the design and delivery of cost
effective, tailored training solutions to meet the needs of individual
businesses. It offers a range of training services to employers, including
Train to Gain.

Objectives
For organizations in the education sector, an effective CRM system is a
vital component in a successful employer engagement strategy, as well
as helping towards a variety of quality standards and accreditations. To
support the Colleges Employer Engagement Strategy, the Train to Gain
initiative, and to help achieve the Training Quality Standard, Bradford
College approached Concentrix.

Before approaching Concentrix, Bradford College had had a rocky start

with CRM. The college had invested in a CRM system with another
business partner (unrelated to Concentrix). Unfortunately, the other
business partner had not managed the project well, leaving the software
poorly configured and staff inadequately trained, with limited in-house
system administration and insufficient support. The results were an
ineffective CRM system that was largely unused.

Getting CRM Right

Concentrix has a long list of satisfied clients in the education sector. It
was through strong recommendation from another academic institution
that Bradford College decided to contact Concentrix.

To ensure the colleges CRM project was successful, the first stage of the
project was Concentrix undertaking a full scoping exercise. This
included an analysis of the college's database, their existing systems,
software and IT infrastructure, the objectives of their CRM strategy and
potential future requirements.

Recommendations
Bradford College's previous CRM business partner had installed an old
version of the popular CRM system GoldMine from FrontRange
Solutions (GoldMine Corporate Edition). As an independent CRM
specialist, Concentrix was able to take an unbiased view of the CRM

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software Bradford College was using, along with its implementation,
configuration and design.

Although Concentrix had successfully implemented GoldMine

Corporate Edition in many organizations throughout the UK, after
investigating the college's requirements fully, Concentrix recommended
they upgrade to a later, more advanced version: GoldMine Premium
Edition. Concentrix also recommended that they build a new database
for the College, which Concentrix would design and configure
specifically to the college's requirements.

The CRM Solution

GoldMine Premium Edition has an easy to use, intuitive interface. It's a
fully functional CRM solution built specifically to provide users with the
information they need quickly and easily, while boosting productivity
and providing a fully comprehensive view of the customer.

Because the College had previously purchased an older version of

GoldMine, Concentrix could provide significant discounts on upgrade
licences. So, rather than move to completely new CRM software,
Concentrix recommended GoldMine Premium Edition as the sensible
solution for the employer engagement team at Bradford College.

Concentrix deployed the new system using their proven CRM project
methodology. Before implementing GoldMine Premium and building a
new database, Concentrix produced a scoping document and deployment
plan, and archived the existing database. Configuring the new system
included adding a number of new fields specifically to help Goldmine
support the College's Employer Engagement Strategy more effectively.

During the project, Concentrix paid special attention to user training,

ensuring all of the staff who was to use the system was not only
comfortable and fully competent with the software, but were also fully
aware of the benefits it would deliver. In this way Concentrix worked
with Bradford College to achieve buy-in from the users; an essential
component in the success of any CRM project.

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Concentrix also delivered administrator training, which meant the
college would no longer be dependent on a third party for the day to day
running of the system.

The Results
Concentrix implemented the system on time and on-budget, completing
the project in plenty of time for the College wide TQS inspection. Above
all, through comprehensive training and well-executed change
management, all users 'bought in' to the system. The new CRM system
soon became an integral part of user’s daily working life.
As well as having a centralized source of information, the new system
has delivered greatly improved business processes increasing the
efficiency throughout the department. Because Concentrix configured
the software and database so it captures the correct data, users can
quickly and easily enter and rely on the information for comprehensive
and accurate reporting.

The redesigned, reconfigured, redeployed and upgraded CRM system

now provides the tools the employer engagement team needs to achieve
their goals. In fact, Bradford College has been so successful it was
awarded the Training Quality Standard - the highest training accolade
possible and endorsement of its excellent work with employers.

The Future
Just eight months after implementing the system for the college's
employer engagement team, Bradford College contacted Concentrix to
extend the system to its Health and Safety department. This included
specific configuration of GoldMine Premium to the department's
particular requirements, including screens that only users within that
department could access.

Today, Bradford College is talking to Concentrix about potentially

extending the use of GoldMine Premium to other departments, making
the system web-accessible, and streamlining processes within the
organization even further.

2nd Case study

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2) Michigan's leading new home builder chooses Lasso for sales and
marketing software solution.

Lasso Data Systems, the leading provider of Customer Relationship

Management (CRM) solutions for the home building industry, is delighted
to announce that Singh Homes, a Michigan-based real estate developer, has
selected Lasso for their real estate sales and marketing technology solution.
Lasso software is specifically designed for homebuilders and developers.

“We researched CRM systems and Lasso was the clear leader; it’s easy to
use and it has a great interface with extensive reporting capabilities,” said
Cathy Doig, Principal, Decision Real Estate, the company responsible for
sales and marketing of Singh Homes, “Lasso addresses all our homebuilder
needs in terms of data collection, easy linkage of registrants to one another
and various detailed reports,” added Doig. “We also really appreciate the
enthusiastic support and training from the Lasso Client Services team. The
Lasso team took the time to show us every aspect of Lasso CRM.”

At any one time, Singh Homes is selling homes in multiple communities

accommodating first time buyers as well as empty-nesters and senior-living
options. Real estate CRM software, such as Lasso, has become a
requirement for homebuilders and developers as they develop and enhance
their online marketing presence and define their sales processes for new
home prospects.

“We are extremely pleased to have Singh Homes select Lasso as their CRM
solution and we are excited to work with their team to maximize the benefits
of technology,” stated Dave Clements, Lasso Data Systems CEO. “Our goal
is to deliver great value, make decision‐making easy and offer a simple setup
process so our clients can quickly get going with Lasso in days, rather than
weeks or months.”

About Singh Homes:

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Singh is a nationally ranked builder/developer that provides exceptional
residential housing and commercial properties. The business venture began
in southeast Michigan in 1973 with the development of a first home
subdivision and apartment community. Today, Singh has become a
multifaceted business by successfully developing and building upscale
apartment communities, luxury single family subdivisions and homes,
Walton wood senior living communities and premier commercial properties.
Singh Homes has three corporate offices in Michigan, North Carolina, and in
India. Singh's strategy is to design, build and market high quality real estate
developments, as well as manage and retain ownership of revenue producing
properties in premier locations. The company's success comes from
thoughtfully conceived developments, careful planning, hands-on
management, quality construction and astute marketing

About Lasso Data Systems:

Lasso Data Systems is the leading developer of innovative "on-demand"

home builder CRM software for builders and developers. Lasso,
deployed on over 1,200 projects globally, equips real estate developers,
builders and sales agencies to convert prospects to purchasers and to sell
their developments faster and easier. The company's software manages
potential homebuyers online from interest list to occupancy including
marketing, sales, inventory and contract management. Lasso works
equally well for diverse developments from urban high-rise to suburban
townhomes, single and master planned communities, golf, mountain and
ocean resorts and condo-hotels. Lasso is designed for ease of use, rapid
deployment and pay by usage, project by project to maximize each
client's ROI and reduce their technology and financial risk. Lasso is a
privately held company headquartered in Vancouver

BENEFITS OF CRM SYSTEM:

Customer relationships are becoming even more important for banks as

market conditions get harder. Competition is increasing, margins are
eroding, customers are becoming more demanding and the life-cycles of
products and services are shortening dramatically. All these forces make it
necessary for banks to intensify the relationship with their customers and
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offer them the services they need via the channels they prefer. CRM helps
banks to provide lot of benefits to their customers; some key benefits are as
follow.

 Service provisioning throughout the entire life cycle of the corporate

customer, from the initial stages to the establishment of a close, long-
term relationship with profitable clients,
 Optimization of the use of bank resources, such as alternative
channels of distribution (internet and home banking),
 Significant reduction in and limitation of operational costs through
system automation and standardization,
 Low maintenance and expansion costs owing to the use of modern
administration tools which allow bank employees to make a wide
range of modifications to the system.
 CRM permits businesses to leverage information from their databases
to achieve customer retention and to cross-sell new products and
services to existing customers.
 Companies that implement CRM make better relationships with their
customers, achieve loyal customers and a substantial payback,
increased revenue and reduced cost.
 CRM when successfully deployed can have a dramatic effect on
bottom-line performance.

According to a study conducted in the sector of banking, convenience of

location, price, recommendations from others and advertising are not
important selection criteria for banks. From customers’ point of view,
important criteria are: account and transaction accuracy and carefulness,
efficiency in correcting mistakes and friendliness and helpfulness of
personnel. Thus, CRM, high-quality attributes of the product / service and
differentiation proved to be the most important factors for customers.

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Another study conducted in a European bank shows that with CRM, the
bank was able to focus on profitable clients through efficient segmentation
according to individual behavior. Information about ‘who buys what and
how much’ enabled the bank to have a commercial approach based on the
client and not solely on the product. Thus, the bank was able to better satisfy
and retain its customers. Lindgreen and Antioco , ( 2005 )
Eventually, CRM results both in higher revenues and lower costs, making
companies more effective and efficient: effective in targeting the right
customer base with the right services via the right channels, and efficient in
doing this at the lowest costs. For example, those banks that are moving
transactions from the more expensive channels to a less costly channel – like
the call centre or Internet are therefore able to save money.

Give customer-facing employees the best tools available

Give your sales and service professionals the chance to deliver stellar
customer service every time they are in a call or at a customer site. With
optimally configured software solutions from Microsoft Business Solutions,
they can find information quickly, answer customer questions satisfactorily,
and ensure that your business fulfills or exceeds customer commitments.

Deliver high-quality service at all times

Happy customers generate return business, referrals, and excellent visibility
for your business. You want to make doing business with your company
efficient and rewarding for them—track customer preferences, be aware of
their account histories, and resolve any issues promptly. Microsoft Business
Solutions can empower your people to streamline customer communications
and interactions, offer timely, reliable information, and demonstrate your
Organization’s accountability.
Boost sales and service performance

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Automation of business tasks can go a long way towards streamlining sales
and customer service processes, shortening sales cycles, and maintaining
consistent quality and productivity on your sales and service teams. In
addition, Microsoft Business Solutions offerings allow you to review and
enhance the performance of individual sales and service employees as well
as entire teams, forecast and plan sales activity, and act on new business
opportunities

SALES FORCE AUTOMATION

Sales Force Automation is a technique of using software to automate the
business tasks of sales, including order processing, contact management,
information sharing, inventory monitoring and control, order tracking,
customer management, sales forecast analysis and employee performance
evaluation.
SFA is often used interchangeably with CRM; however, CRM does not
necessarily imply
Automation of sales tasks.
Sales Force Automation offers you the most powerful and advanced CRM
solution to empower your sales force team. Combined with major e-
Marketing features for today’s highly competitive
E-Business marketplace, this powerful sales automation tool will give your
team
a strong edge over competitors.

With Sales Force Automation you can get quick responses from your
customers, find out their interests and anticipate their future demand for your
product and/or services, which will greatly enhance your CRM.

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Sales Force Automation is a low cost template-based online solution. Follow
our step-by-step guide to complete your program just in a few clicks. Don't
wait, start today and experience the power for yourself.

BENEFITS OF SALES FORCE AUTOMATION

Manage all sales opportunities

Immediately create a new opportunity list and turn every lead into a hot
prospect. Follow-up
using the sales management tool and maximize the number of closed deals.
Forecast revenues accurately
Because the sales information is being continuously updated in real time,
everyone on your team, including your outside sales force team will have a
clear understanding of future events, and can appropriately forecast product
needs and better understands customer demand.
Close more deals
Sales Force Automation will help company enhance the efficiency of sales
process and give
Sales team the tool to collaborate and transform sales prospects into
profitable customers.
Interactive and consistent customer leads and deal management
Secure team-wide access to detailed account data will provide easy
collaboration among sales
Force, customer service & support teams, and marketing personnel.
Better understanding of customer needs and long term demands
Analyze current and archived sales data, which can allow company to
immediately see changes in customer demands and future needs. Anticipate
customers' demands before they happen and be ready for a successful future

Conclusion:
For any business, successful Customer Relationship
Management navigation is becoming increasingly important in today’s
competitive business world. Customer expectations are always
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increasing, and business services must increase along with these
expectations. CRM is the method through which businesses can connect
with their customers and therefore serve them better. Businesses with
successful CRM strategy and applications will notice a large increase in
sales, customer satisfaction, and simply the overall success of the
business.

o CRM is- to listen and learn, not tell and sell.

o ECRM boosts the energy in company.
o Strongest tool in retaining the customers

Today, CRM systems often present information in terms of maps, charts and
graphs that are generated by report writers and visual profiling programs.
Tomorrow, there will be voice-activated and speech-feedback tools, as well
as other more elaborate visual aids using 3-D and CAD-style graphics.
Armed with their own calculators and self-help systems, front-line workers
will be able to quickly find answers to assist customers in their purchase
decisions. The use of knowledge databases and artificial intelligence (AI)
will make a comeback to allow the front line to focus on assessing the
problem and quickly communicating a solution.

In our opinion, the idea of CRM is outstanding. Sales reps

need access to real time data and real time order entry capabilities to better
serve their customers. However the implementation of these ideas does not
necessarily have to be costly. we’ve seen that it is the sales force that is
driving the purchase of CRM systems, not the back office accounting folks.
If the back office accounting folks are the key promoters of CRM, you can
usually trace their enthusiasm back to pressure from the sales team. Our
advice is to definitely use a contact management system of some kind, but
give some consideration to accomplishing what you need by providing
everyone in your organization with password protected and limited access to
the data that is already contained in your accounting system.

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References:

 http://www.exforsys.com/tutorials/crm/crm-introduction.html
 http://www.concentrix.co.uk/software/crm/case-
studies/goldmine-premium-bradford-college/
 http://www.zeelabs.com/CRM.htm

 http://www.crmnewz.com/

 http://www.microsoft.com/crm

 http://www.crystaldecisions.com/

 Merchantos.com.

 CRM-Software-Guide.com

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