Son of CRM: cloud sales, marketing and service in 2013
Summary:Innovation at the edge of the enterprise is transforming the profile of CRM, bringing cloud, social and mobile to the fore.
The name's the same, but this is not the CRM your forefathers knew. Back in the client-server era, enterprise computing focused almost exclusively on automating internal systems. Today, all the innovation is happening at the edge of the enterprise, automating external interactions with prospects, customers, partners and more in the quest for what I've called frictionless enterprise.
No wonder Gartner says the typical CMO will soon be spending more on IT than the CIO. It's not that the CIO is spending less. It's simply that the CMO has so much that could never before be automated and now, suddenly, all of it and more has to be automated in double-quick time, just to stay competitive.
This transformation is a gift to cloud providers because all these interactions are happening on their territory, beyond the enterprise firewall, where traditional enterprise software is fearful to tread. The proliferation of smart devices and online interaction has extended CRM processes out into the hands (literally) of prospects and customers.
Nowadays buyers intensively research the market before they ever speak to a single salesperson and the moment they do make contact, they expect a personalized, responsive relationship, delivered direct to their Web browser or mobile app. The trend of consumerization makes this true no matter whether they're shopping for a designer purse for their own use or a satellite launch system for their employer.
Any enterprise that's not tracking online interactions, mobile apps and social media buzz and using in-depth analytics to maximize its understanding of online and offline interactions risks appearing ill-equipped and out-of-touch.
Redefinition of CRM
This is my second blog post in a series on how the old, established categories of enterprise software are being recalibrated and replaced to match modern needs. My last post was on the death of conventional ERP . Upcoming posts will look at collaboration, HR, spend management and more. Today's deals with the redefinition of CRM.
This is a huge topic. The expansion of CRM beyond the confines of the enterprise means that today it encompasses digital and social marketing, website management and mobile apps. It has to join up across sales interactions, service calls, invoice queries and warranty claims. It has to collect and act upon a bevy of external social media and information resources. It must deliver a great customer experience across multiple direct and indirect touchpoints.
An overview of this massively expanding field can barely do it justice. For far more detailed and knowledgeable analysis, the pre-eminent authority in this field is my ZDNet fellow-blogger and Enterprise Irregulars luminary Paul Greenberg. He has just announced the 2013 finalists of his celebrated CRM Watchlist. Over the next few weeks he will be revealing the winners and reviewing them in characteristic and inimitable detail. Two more must-follow experts in the field are Brent Leary and Denis Pombriant.
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Son of CRM: cloud sales, marketing and service in 2013