Customer Experience

Insurance and CRM: Big Barriers, Bigger Benefits
September 14, 2012

Back in my college days, I worked part-time for an insurance agent. It was an eye-opening job, and not just because it pointed out how many strange and silly ways people could get into car accidents (loose birthday balloons obstructing the driver's vision, concrete poured off an overpass into a brand-new convertible BMW, a catastrophic collision between a Saturn and some Canadian geese, etc.).

CE: Our Next Great Customer-Focused Buzzword
September 07, 2012

CRM is not itself a technology -- it's a discipline enabled by a technology. But the ideas are so completely enmeshed with technology today that it's almost impossible to talk CRM without lapsing into jargon. That's led to the abduction, abuse and expropriation of technical terms, which often results in confusion over what they actually mean.

Better Billing Means Happier Customers
September 06, 2012

The billing function conjures up many images, few of them positive. Essential to success of your business, yet often a burden for most organizations independent of size or market, billing is seen as a necessary evil to collect cash and enable organizations to stay alive.

Injecting That Personal Touch Into SMB Communications
August 18, 2012

In today's economy, there are many tools designed for sustaining small and mid-sized businesses. Web conferencing is a tool that an increasing number of companies find very useful. Over the last few years, Web conferencing and online meetings software have taken off as communication tools with several benefits, like reducing cost of travel and enabling long-distance meetings.

SAP Innovation Day - Setting a Standard for the Next 40 Years
August 14, 2012

When SAP's five founders launched the company in June 1972, it's unlikely they foresaw where the IT industry would travel in the decades to come. SAP's core business applications, including enterprise resource planning solutions, continue to support tens of thousands of companies globally -- but how those organizations and their employees work, communicate and collaborate is changing.

The Pitfalls of the Unmanaged Customer Experience
August 06, 2012

A company's reputation is based on the customer's experience. Fixing or preventing problems is half of the service equation; communicating with customers is the other half. Customer service is as important, if not more important than the immediate resolution of the problem. An integral part of the customer experience equation is people.

Good Social Customer Conversations: Start by Listening
July 30, 2012

Social media sites are all about having conversations, and that's true for businesses as well as individuals. The trick for businesses is knowing how and when to engage in these conversations -- and how to keep up with them. Like any conversation, listening is important, and it's one way that businesses can begin to engage their customers.

Pinning for Business: Pinterest as a CRM Tool
July 26, 2012

WORX, a power tool company, has a unique Pinterest board: one devoted entirely to tools that aid in zombie defense. The WORX JawSaw, for instance, has a pin that tells consumers to "accessorize before they rise, and protect yourself now!" The board's sense of humor makes it especially effective on the social pinning site.

Satisfaction Survey: Airlines, Fast-Food Joints Less Despised
June 21, 2012

One would almost think we have entered a stage of customer service nirvana: Two industry categories not ordinarily associated with high levels of customer service satisfaction -- airlines and fast food -- have garnered relatively good scores in a new American Customer Satisfaction Index report. The operative word here is "relative," though.

'No Results' = 'No Reason to Stay': 8 Ways to Improve Your Site Search
June 11, 2012

If a customer walked into one of your brick-and-mortar stores -- assuming, for this exercise, that you have brick-and-mortar stores -- and asked if you had any Sleepytime Pajamas, how would you want your sales associate to respond? Regardless of whether you carried the product or not, you'd never want the employee to say, "I'm sorry, we don't have that," and walk away.

Connectivity: The New Currency
May 29, 2012

The trend toward an "always on, always connected" lifestyle driven by the use of social networks and mobile technology has, if nothing else, groomed consumers to become demanding in their expectations of the online experience. Unfortunately, the e-commerce experience has changed little since early days and, until recently, continued to be a process more to be endured than enjoyed.

CRM Conference to Showcase the Retail Experience
May 14, 2012

CRM Conference is being held May 29 to 31 at the Chicago Hyatt Regency. This annual event offers a unique agenda for retailers, said Devon Wylie, CEO of CRMC. "It's specifically focused on case studies from topnotch multinational retailers. With this approach, attendees can get actionable learnings they can take home with them."

When Your Business Goofs, CRM Can Be Your Best Friend
May 10, 2012

There are three things certain in life. We all know the two cited by Benjamin Franklin, but there's a third certainty that we all face regularly and have to cope with constantly. That's the certainty that we'll make mistakes. Everyone makes them; if it hasn't happened to your business, you haven't been in business long.

E-Commerce Companies Pleasing Customers More Than Ever
May 09, 2012

E-tailers are getting better and better at making their customers happy, according to the annual E-Retail Satisfaction Index released by ForeSee. In this year's report, a record 36 online retailers out of 100 achieved the so-called "threshold for excellence," with scores of 80 or higher on the 100-point scale. That compares with 28 sites achieving this distinction in 2010 and 2011, and six reaching it in 2009.

Making Customers the Object of Devotion
May 07, 2012

The proliferation of customer service channels can be both a blessing and a curse. It can be a blessing in that companies now have more ways than ever to address customer needs and resolve customer issues, potentially leading to increased customer satisfaction, loyalty and retention. At the same time, the proliferation of customer service channels can be a curse.

How Outside Experts Can Refine the Customer Experience
April 17, 2012

When it comes to technologies that provide the foundation for customer experience management, there is no shortage of options. The marketplace today is deluged with platforms, including self-service solutions that offer multimodal and open response survey vehicles for soliciting customer feedback across multiple channels, including in-store, email, website and call center.

Halo Report Illuminates Angel Investor Trends
March 08, 2012

Now is a good time to be a startup looking for funding, suggests the Halo Report, which provides data and identifies trends affecting early stage entrepreneurs and investors. Angel Resource Institute, Silicon Valley Bank and CB Insights collaborated in the development of the report. Most notable among its findings: The median round size for angel group investments grew to $700,000, an increase of 40 percent over 2010.

Fee-Hungry Banks May Test Customers' Patience Again
March 02, 2012

Bank of America appears poised to ignite the wrath of its customer base once again by introducing a new fee structure for basic checking accounts. The company reportedly is readying changes that will require users of basic checking accounts to pay a monthly fee. If the customers agreed to bank online or, buy more products, or maintain a certain balance, the fee may be waived.

Retail Autopsy: What Killed Borders, Circuit City and Hollywood Video
January 24, 2012

The Borders near me closed the other month. Wasn't surprising. Ditto for Circuit City. Gone. A few years prior to that it was Hollywood Video that rolled its end credits. The problem is, none of them had to go. They each died of self-inflicted wounds. Sure, a lot of their CEOs came out and blamed Iraq, the economy, e-commerce, etc., for their failures.

It's Showtime for CRM
January 23, 2012

CSC and Infovisionix announced a new agreement at Retail's BIG Show 2012 in New York City. Under the agreement, Infovisionix's suite of retail reporting and analysis tools will be incorporated in CSC's Retail Enterprise Intelligence offering. The new capabilities will help retailers understand and improve key operational and customer performance metrics.