Every week, we recount some of the best buzz around CRM and data integration. We’ll review our favorite articles and share the most pressing findings or key takeaways from each.
The Rise of the Chief Customer Data Officer
By: Peter Chase (@peterrchase)
CMOs and CIOs are working more closely than ever before, as the CMO must ensure alignment with IT to enjoy access to the customer data needed to drive the bottom line. To speed data integration, improve marketing successes, and keep customer data ownership firmly in marketers’ hands, marketers must prioritize integration by following five basic steps; they must look at integration as a continuous cycle, redefine and broaden their definition of integrated marketing, prioritize strategic business outcomes, dive into the details like discreet use cases and start integrating in small, manageable pieces with high-value, low-effort initiatives. As companies continue collecting more data than ever before, these tips will help the winners connect and cull insights from that data to break ahead of the competition.
CRM Musings, Miscellany and Doings
By: Paul Greenberg (@pgreenbe)
In this article, Paul ranges from providing thoughts on previous CRM Idol winner BPMonline, comedic respite with The Onion’s parody of HP’s cloud offering, missed Salesforce acquisition news, and much more. He also links to a slew of solid analysis regarding Oracle’s new partnerships and gives his own take on what it means to focus on long-term customer relationships rather than short-term customer experiences. These represent only a portion of Paul’s blog post — read the full article for more details, including the framework for Paul’s upcoming community-based website.
5 CRM Essentials IT Must Manage
By: Adam Honig (@adamhonig)
As CRM moves increasing out from under the purview of IT, tech professionals must still manage five critical components to position themselves as part of a value-center for business users. These include helping users select the right vendor through matching capabilities to desired business outcomes, focusing on the subset of the 360-degree customer view that actually matters for the business and engaging in rapid deployment of CRM solutions. One of the most important value-adds IT can provide is integrating CRM with other systems to ensure access to crucial customer data — and making sure to pick the right integration provider, as the easier and more repeatable the process, the faster CRM systems will reach their full potential. Finally, IT personnel must guide data migration and management to ensure everything runs smoothly, meaning IT should continue to provide business value long after the initial CRM selection and implementation.
Enterprise Demand For Mobile CRM Applications Has More Than Tripled Since 2007, Research Finds
By: Fred Donovan
The popularity of mobile CRM has grown tremendously in recent years, and according to the Yankee Group, this growth has been in progress since 2007. In fact, mobile CRM demand has more than tripled since 2007, likely due to the increase in the number and power of mobile devices, along with the surge of cloud applications empowering users to connect on-the-go. This growth opens up major potential in the world of CRM, and Sheryl Kingstone of the Yankee Group advises businesses to create a mobile app that integrates traditionally siloed areas to enable workers to complete their entire day using one mobile app, creating a truly empowered on-the-go workforce.
Microsoft Switches up CRM Online Licensing Model, Aims at Salesforce.com
By: Chris Kanaracus (@chriskanaracus)
In a move to compete with Salesforce, Microsoft is switching up their CRM Online licensing policy. The CRM Online pricing will move from a single option of $44/month per user to offer three pricing options, with customers paying $65/month for the Dynamics CRM Professional edition, $30/month for the Basic edition and just $15/month for the Essential version. With this move, Microsoft will bring its CRM Online offering up to par with its on-premise version, underscoring their belief in the importance of the cloud and flexible customer choices. The move also brings Microsoft’s options and pricing in line with those of Salesforce to compete more directly.
We hope you had a great week! We’ll see you again soon with a roundup of all the movers and shakers in CRM and data integration news.