Week Twelve

Article Summaries:

The first article is about how CRM, analytics, and big data apply to the sales team. The author says the sales team must monitor the company’s CRM system and identify opportunities using metrics such as the stage that prospects seem to get stuck in. The author encourages sales teams to be data-centric and use metrics like prospects moved along and how many prospects they’ve talked to in order to prove their worth to the company.

The second article talks about CRM adoption rates. Now that the CRM system is in place it must be actively maintained to ensure its effectiveness. Monitoring login attempts in a great start but users must be engaged with actively updating information to keep it accurate. Data quality is very critical for adoption as well. If important feeds are not filled out or are filled out incorrectly it will hinder the firm's ability to quickly and accurately retrieve the data as well. Lastly, you must ensure that the usage of the CRM reflects the organization’s process.

Key Takeaways:

• Sales success is as much about process as it is about your people
• Social media listening is a good starting point in figuring out trends in the industry
• Sales operations teams need a 360 degree view of the process
• Key things to take into consideration while monitoring adoption are usage, data quality, and organizational effectiveness
• Login rates are basic success indicators
• Strategic support and direction ensure successful CRM adoption

Articles Used:

Claveria, KC. "How Analytics and Data Can Help You Succeed as a Sales Pro." Business 2 Community. N.p., 12 Nov. 2015. Web. 14 Nov. 2015.

Schmidt, Alicia. “Measuring Adoption: Is your CRM solution healthy and growing?” Salesforce.org. Nov 13. 2011. Web. Nov 16. 2015

Week Eleven

Summaries:

The first article provides an in-depth description of big data. The author says that because of big data, there is an abundance of information available to businesses which is a curse and a blessing because it’s hard to sift through all the data to find information that actually matters.

The second article talks about six important metrics for success when using Facebook. Six key metrics are fanreach, organic reach, engagement, storytellers, click-through rate, and negative feedback. These metrics are give insight on your page is performing and the best parts is that they are built in and free to use.

Takeaways:

• You should pick one or two key metrics to monitor customer health, the rest of the data should be used to refine the company’s approach
• Pick metrics based on your company’s area of concern: revenue growth, profitability, customer management, operational efficiency, and risk/fraud
• The negative feedback metric in Facebook is a great tool to utilize. By finding out who unsubscribed or hide content for your page you can compile the data to notice a trend and correct the action
• The engagement metric is also as equally important as the negative feedback, by seeing who, and how many people are responding to your posts it displays how effective your content was
• Viral reach can drastically increase content exposure

Works Cited

Taylor, Nicole Fallon. "Big Data: What Does Your Business Really Need?" Business News Daily. Purch, 05 Nov. 2015. Web. 07 Nov. 2015.

Post, Guest. “The Six Metrics That Determine Your Success On Facebook.” Duct Tape Marketing. 01 Nov. 2015. Web. 09 Nov. 2015

Week Ten

Article Summaries:

The first article states that a common problem with marketing metrics is that they are not properly linked to financial metrics. The author gives a five step approach to remedy this: Determine your source of truth, get on the same page with finance, build the historical model, reverse the model, and broadcast.

The second article discusses five major areas of importance when dealing with metrics. Help desk KPI’s, Action’s per engagement, response time indicators, conversion rates, relationship freshness, and funnel drop off rates. Out of all of these metrics the funnel drop off rate is most important. With this metric it allows you to find out how often prospects opt out of newsletters/emails ect and by understanding how often potential buyers opt out of your subscription marketing you can make tweaks to correct the behavior.

Key Takeaways:

• Make sure you can clearly articulate what you need from your CRM database
• Use the historical model as a guide for how to plan future investments
• Even if you think your CRM is clean, it’s worth it to invest in a data hygiene project
• Keeping  up with customer relationship management allows a firm to achieve maximum results
• Tracking KPI’s (Key Performance Indicators) makes its easier to retain customers
• Using the funnel drop off rate a struggling advertising campaign can be reinvigorated
• Customer freshness is very important. By keeping notes of where your conversation with clients left off

Sources:

Berke, Adam. "How to Tie Your Marketing Metrics to Real Business Results (5 steps)." VentureBeat. VentureBeat, 31 Oct. 2015. Web. 31 Oct. 2015.

Taylor, Michael. “5 CRM KPI’s You Must Track.” CRM Simplified. 23 Oct. 2015. Web 01 Nov. 2015.

Week Nine

 Article Summaries:

The first article says that metrics are important but not the only thing that should be focused on. The author uses three examples. Surveys can hide customer problems based on the groups that take the survey. Firms should also avoid thinking of productivity as a measure of customer satisfaction. Lastly, the article says that revenues are a good metric, but they don’t tell the whole story.

The second article is how to avoid four very common perils of CRM. By having a fast CRM system it is easy to keep customers information accurate and updated. Implementing CRM systems before having a customer strategy is a huge mistake. A firm must have its marketing goals established before it starts collecting information, otherwise what is it even collecting information on? Rolling out CRM before your organization is ready for it is also futile. Don’t always assume more the more CRM technology the better. Last but not least, customers must be managed properly. Properly use the data gathered on them to realize what is effective and what is not.

Takeaways:

• Surveys are helpful, but you need to dive deep into the data to make sure get the whole picture
• Don’t equate productivity with customer satisfaction
• Even if your revenues are currently good, take measures to make sure they stay good in the future
• Data should be augmented with a customer-level view
• Having a slow CRM system can cost you your customers and your sales force's reputation
• 55% of CRM systems are failures and do not produce effective results
• If the organization is not fully committed to the CRM change it will not have the support it needs to survive.
• Costly technologies are not required for successful CRM implementation
• If a customer is being annoyed by marketing tactics, learn from it and change strategies

Works Cited:

Toister, Jeff. "How Metrics Hide Serious Customer Experience Problems." Business 2 Community. N.p., 22 Oct. 2015. Web. 24 Oct. 2015.

Rigby, Darrell; Reichheld, Frederick; Schefter, Rick. “Avoid the Four Perils of CRM.” HBR. 26 Oct. 2015. Web. Feb 01. 2002.

Week Eight

Article Summaries:

The first article is about how modern CRM should be viewed as more than just a sales tool. Modern CRM can make it easy for sales and marketing teams to work together and make sure their goals are aligned properly. The article says the sales team should mainly use metrics in order to figure out which segment they should focus on.

The second article discusses customer acquisition costs and metrics. The CAC metric is extremely valuable to investors and business’ alike. By finding the cost per customer acquired it will show whether the company is doing well or needs to reevaluate its marketing choices. CAC can also be spread across many marketing channels, by doing this you can find the weakest link and make improvements.

Managerial Takeaways:

• The metrics you choose should provide a 360-degree view of potential and existing customers
• To gain customer loyalty, organizations need to learn about customers’ habits through an increasing number of channels, including e-mail, social media, and and e-commerce.
• CAC is calculated by dividing all costs spent on acquiring more customers by number of customers acquired in that period
• CAC allow for highly targeted marketing
• CAC can be used over multiple marketing channels 

Sources:

Lyle, Billy. "Modern CRM – So Much More Than A Sales Tool." Business 2 Community. N.p., 12 Oct. 2015. Web. 17 Oct. 2015.

Hughes, Chase. “Customer Acquisition Cost: The One Metric That Can Determine Your Company's Fate.” Kissmetrics. 1 Sept. 2015. Web. 18 Oct. 2015.

Week Seven

Article Summaries:

The first article is about the launch of a new version of Onyx, a CRM tool designed for businesses with dedicated call centers. The software is designed to improve metrics such as times to resolve ticket, number of cases closed, and first contact resolution. It also allows users to combine several metrics to create key performance indicators.

The second article is about how to manage key accounts. The most important metrics for key account managers is customer lifetime value. A good key accounts manager will continually review their key accounts and notice any changes in habits or behavior. If a company lost a key account it could be a large hit on potential revenues. Tradition sales metrics such as time spent with the customer as not as important with KAM. Instead, key account managers spend a large amount of their time in the supplier's company managing things for the customer.

Key Takeaways:

• In order to be successful, call centers must keep up to date with the latest in CRM technology
• A good CRM platform should allow users to get a detailed look at what drives their business success
• Do not have a static key accounts program; continually refresh it
• KAM is an organization change, not a sales technique
• The ideal amount of key accounts is between 5-25
  
  
  
  

Article References:

Floyd, Melissa. "Aptean Launches Onyx 7.7 CRM With Improved Mobility and New Analytics Capabilities." GlobeNewswire News Room. GlobeNewswire, 7 Oct. 2015. Web. 10 Oct. 2015.

Ryals, Lynette. “How to Succeed at Key Account Management.” Harvard Business Review. HBR, 13 Jul. 2012. Web. 11 Oct 2015.

 

Week Six

Summary:

The first article is a list of 5 CRM metrics that the author believes are the most beneficial to track. They are direct customer feedback, comprehensive view of the customer, engagement levels, escalation response efficiencies, and customer lifetime value. She also notes that companies will likely need metrics beyond these five.

The second article is about customer experience metrics and how to measure happiness. Firms are beginning to shy away from a “one size fits all” strategy for metrics. Zappos once had a ten hour phone call with a woman from Las Vegas, NV making one sale of Ugg Boots. Zappos is one example of a company that has heavily focused on customer needs and satisfaction, by making the customer happy the odds of them returning are very good. Three main building blocks for customer loyalty metrics are customer satisfaction, engagement, and loyalty.

Key Takeaways:

• In addition to direct customer feedback, businesses can now track indirect feedback as well through social media
• CRM metrics are the most useful when they reflect key performance indicators
• Customer satisfaction essentially boils down to two things: satisfaction with the product and satisfaction with the problem solution
• Happy sales agents make happy customers
• By measuring customer satisfaction and engagement it is much easier to get an accurate measurement on customer loyalty
• Learn from your data, i.e if surveyed customers feel they are waiting too long speak with a customer service rep, hire more reps
• Keeping the customer happy is key

Article Citations: 

Baker, Pam. "The Best 5 CRM Analytics." CRMsearch. CRMsearch, n.d. Web. 03 Oct. 2015.

Weiner, Lena. “Customer experience metrics: How do you measure happy?” SearchCRM. 01 Oct. 2015. Web. 04 Oct. 2015.