Customer Relationship Management

CUSTOMER RELATIONSHIP MANAGEMENT
PROJECT REPORT SUBMITTED IN PARTIAL FULFILLMENT OF THE

REQUIREMENT FOR THE AWARD OF DEGREE OF BACHELOR OF
MANAGEMENT STUDIES
MUMBAI UNIVERSITY
SUBMITTED BY:
SANEET R. GURAV
THIRD YEAR BACHELOR OF MANAGEMENT STUDIES
(SEMESTER-V)
ROLL NO. : 17
SEAT NO. : 3678
UNDER THE GUIDANCE OF:
PROF. HEMA MEHTA
TOLANI COLLEGE OF COMMERCE

150-151, SHER-E-PUNJAB SOCIETY,
ANDHERI (E), MUMBAI-93.
UNIVERSITY OF MUMBAI
IN THE ACADEMIC YEAR 2009-2010
Customer Relationship Management
DECLARATION
I, Saneet R. Gurav, student of Bachelor of Management Studies

(BMS) at the University of Mumbai declare that the work done on the
project entitled Customer Relationship Management is original and
to the best of my knowledge. Any reference used in this project have
been duly Acknowledged.
Place: Mumbai
Date:
Author
(Saneet R. Gurav)
SANEET R. GURAV
TYBMS
Tolani College of Commerce
CERTIFICATE
I, Prof. Hema Mehta, hereby certify that Saneet R. Gurav, of

TYBMS has completed his project, titled Customer Relationship
Management in the academic year 2009-2010.The information
submitted therein is true and to the best of my knowledge.
PROJECT GUIDE
Prof. Hema Mehta
BMS CO-ORDINATOR
PRINCIPAL
Prof. HEMA MEHTA
Dr. SHEELA PUROHIT
SANEET R. GURAV
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ACKNOWLEDGEMENT
The project that lies before us is not the result of my preparation alone. It marks the
efforts of number of people without whom the project would not have been what it is today.
Firstly I would like to thank my parents for immense support and constant
encouragement I receive at home.
I would like to express my gratitude to Prof. Hema Mehta, who has not only been
my project guide but has been inspiration and muse of sorts and gave this project the much
needed focus.
Our BMS Co-ordinator, Prof. Hema Mehta, has always encouraged and motivated
us in all our endeavors. I would like to thank her for the motivation she gave me and for
always being there.
I would like to thank our Principle, Dr. Sheela Purohit for providing us with all the
facilities that have made working on our projects much easier than what it would have
been otherwise.
One of significant contribution towards this project has been that of ICICI Bank
by agreeing to share with me there intrinsic knowledge. They had an insiders perspective
to the project without which this project would have a mere theoretical study.
I would also like to thank my college library and the staff, which provided me with
an exhaustive collection of books on retention and utmost co-operation.
The internet is a valuable treasure trove of information and it sure did open up a
whole new world of information for me to explore.
My friends have made the making of this project a fun and memorable experience
while being unforgettably helpful.
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TABLE OF CONTENT
Serial No.
Topics
Executive Summary
Nature & Scope of CRM
1.
Birth of Customer Relationship Management
2.
3.
4.
Role of Marketing in Customer Relationship Management

CRM to ICRM (Integrated Customer Relationship
Management)
5.
6.
7.
8.
9.
10.
11.
12.
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CRM Implementation
E-CRM
CRM in India
Case Example: Air India
CRM in Select Services
Conclusion
Bibliography
Annexure
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Page Nos.
6
7
11
14
17
21
29
34
42
44
46
48
57
Executive Summary
Customer Relationship Management (CRM) can be widely defined as company
activities related to developing and retaining customers. It is a blend of internal business
processes: sales, marketing and customer support with technology and data capturing techniques.
Customer Relationship Management is all about building long-term business relationships with
customers. As the name implies, CRM means Customer Relationship Management. In todays
economy, there is no single undisputed definition of CRM.
Most CRM initiatives begin with a strategic need to manage the process of handling
customer related information more effectively. However, as organizations mature in their CRM
initiatives, they begin to look at CRM as tool to acquire strategic differentiators. Despite the
immense benefits that the CRM solutions can deliver, they are not entirely without their share of
problems. Many organizations have burned their fingers trying to implement the technology and
manage costs.
Many companies are turning to customer-relationship management systems to
better understand customer wants and needs. CRM applications, used in conjunction with data
warehousing, E-commerce applications, and call centers, allow companies to gather and access
information about customers' buying histories, preferences, complaints, and other data so they
can better anticipate what customers will want and how to best retain them. The adoption of
CRM is being fuelled by recognition that long-term relationships with customers are one of the
most important assets of an organization, providing competitive advantage and improved
profitability.
CRM is a strategy, not a specific software or hardware; but it encompasses the
technology and strategy needed to completely integrate a business in order to get a holistic view
of customers and their relationship to the entire enterprise. The software that links the back office
to the front office, the technology needed to make the call centre customer-friendly, and
integrating each component seamlessly with the customers' point of contact, web-based or other
means, are all part of CRM.
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1. NATURE AND SCOPE OF CRM

The Customer is King! This credo is more powerful, relevant and true today than ever before.
In a truly customer driven economy, success depends on a company's ability to be with the customer
on a round the clock basis satisfying all their product and service specific needs. Simply stated,
Customer Relationship Management (CRM) is about finding, getting, and retaining customers.
Customer Relationship Management is one of the hottest and most talked about topics in the
industry today and for good reason.
CRM is all about building long term business relationships with customers. It is best
described as the blending of internal business processes: Sales, Marketing and Customer support
with technology. CRM solutions empower businesses to more efficiently and effectively manage the
activities that affect their relationship with their customers. The ultimate goal of CRM is to meet and
exceed customer expectations, create a positive customer experience and build customer loyalty.
CRM changes all of this and represents a continuing evolution in managing front office
operations. With CRM, traditional departmental applications for sales, marketing and customer
service are consolidated into a single unified system capable of managing the entire customer
life cycle. This approach allows employees throughout an organization to have immediate access to a
complete profile of important customer information. Organizations who are implementing CRM
solutions feel confident that providing access to this level of information will assist their sales and
support staff in better understanding the needs and buying patterns of their customers.
CRM is at the core of any customer-focused business strategy and includes the people,
processes, and technology questions associated with marketing, sales, and service. In today's hypercompetitive world, organizations looking to implement successful CRM strategies to focus on a
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common view of the customer using integrated information systems and contact center
implementations that allow the customer to communicate via any desired communication channel.
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What exactly is the definition of Customer Relationship Management?
CRM is used to learn more about your key customers needs in order to develop a stronger
relationship with them.
Customer Relationship Management can be defined as a companys activities related to

increasing the customer base by acquiring new customers and meeting the needs of the existing
customers. CRM is about building partnerships with your customers. It uses internal business
processes from Sales, Customer Service and Marketing.
The philosophy of CRM is the recognition that your long-term relationships with your customers
can be one of the most important assets of an organization, providing competitive advantage and
improved profitability
The most important part of CRM is the "Customer-Focus".
CRM uses technology, strategic planning and personal marketing techniques to build a
relationship that increases profit margins and productivity. It uses a business strategy that puts
the customer at the core of a companys processes and practices. It requires this customer
focused business philosophy to support effective sales, marketing, customer service and order
fulfillment.
Regardless of companys size or industry, businesses have begun to recognize the value
and importance of customer retention and are embracing new technology for automating
customer service and support. For the new millennium, it seems that the customer has finally
become King!!!
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WHY CRM
Keeping in mind the pace at which technology is changing today, any company which is
a step ahead of others because of some web product or service will not be able to hold on to that
advantage for long. Key to stability in today's dynamic marketplace is forging long-term
relationships with the customers.
Customers can be divided into three zones:
1.
Zone of defection where customers are extremely hostile and have the lowest level of
satisfaction.
2.
Zone of indifference where customers are not sure. They have a medium level of
satisfaction and loyalty towards the company.
3.
The third level of customers is in the zone of affection described as "Apostles". CRM
focuses on bringing customers from level 1 to level 3 and retaining apostle customers.
Customers demand for customization is increasing with every passing day. This has
made companies shift their focus from "mass production" to "mass customization". The present
scenario of companies using "poorly implemented" multi channel strategies for living upto the
expectations of customers is bringing both customer satisfaction and customer loyalty down the
ladder.
Today any company can copy products or services offered by other companies. If the new
entrant adds features like less order turnaround time and direct communication then established
players are bound to have sleepless nights. Organizations that implement CRM and turn their
business into e-businesses will find their competitors' customers ready to welcome them with a
"Smile".
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Take the example of a small enterprise. Here hard work reaps high quality service and
over the years develops a database of loyal customers. In this enterprise computers are optional.
Then why is the CRM industry attracting investments of millions and billions of dollars? The
reason is simple. The concept of "Seller's Customer" has just rotated 180 degrees to become
"Customer's Seller". This simply states that, now the customer is more powerful than the seller.
Options for customers have increased with the cycle of innovation-to-production-toobsolescence gaining momentum. On the other hand companies are finding it difficult to
differentiate them in the marketplace. These factors are pushing companies into taking a closer
look at their customer relationships.
Organizing business to satisfy customer demands organizes/simplifies internal

functioning of the organization. Implementing CRM brings to the front the "pits" that the
organization had dug over the years, passing work from one pit to another. Workflows are
reduced, cycle times become shorter, information flow of non-productive things gets eliminated
and the most important thing - "pits" get covered automatically with all the positive features.
Compact sized organizations get into a position of making more money. This in turn enables
them to please more customers.
For large enterprises, CRM has become a strategic initiative because of its potential for
increased revenues and improved customer service. Smaller businesses are forging ahead as well,
and are using CRM solutions to capture and share customer information across multiple
departments and job functions.
The Top Four Reasons for implementing CRM are:
Gaining customer confidence and loyalty
Providing personalized service to customers
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Acquiring better knowledge of customers and their buying habits
Differentiating themselves from the competition
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2. BIRTH OF CUSTOMER RELATIONSHIP MANAGEMENT

Throughout the 90s businesses were focused on improving internal operations. CEOs
tried to distinguish their company through operational excellence and product innovation. Middle
management focused on automating departmental functions such as sales and help desk support.
They believed that automation and better management of their sales and customer service
process would lead to increased revenue and customer satisfaction. Vendors were all to happy to
support this belief and raced to the scene with independent solutions for sales force automation,
help desk and customer service functions. While many of these applications provided increased
productivity, the approach of using independent solutions to address departmental needs served
only to created islands of information and database duplication. Furthermore, the lack of system
integration and workflow between these departments meant that vital customer information was
unavailable to sales and support personnel without jumping from system to system.
By the time customers walk into business - or log-on to website or call sales center - most
already know what they want and how much they're willing to pay. With easy access to
mountains of information, today's customers do their homework, and they now have the upper
hand in most purchase transactions.
In response, sellers are bending over backwards to improve offerings and services.
However, rather than adopting a streamlined "you-want-it-we've-got-it" approach, sellers have
created a marketplace where products and services are sold, serviced and marketed in an
increasingly fragmented and ultimately frustrating way.
You can please some of the people most of the time and most of the people some of the
time, but you can't please all of the people all of the time. It wasn't supposed to be this way.
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Customer Relationship Management (CRM), which swept through the business landscape in the
early 1990s, brought the promise of helping sellers please most of the people most of the time.
Riding the coattails of customer satisfaction would have increased organizational efficiency and,
better still, increased revenues.
Yes, companies have implemented call centers and sales force automation software and
customer sales representative training. However, while improving the sales and service
components of customer transactions, companies have largely ignored the very piece required to
attract customers in the first place. It's the piece that ensures sales and service efforts are
effective and integrated. It's the piece that allows sellers to segment and analyze their customer
information in order to create a more personalized, long-term relationship. It's the piece called
"Marketing".
Figure 2.1 - Completing the CRM vision
Its not like that the last decade's investment in CRM has been wasted. Quite the contrary:
what began as a solution for providing more efficient customer transactions evolved into a
process by which companies could foster more meaningful customer interactions? This was the
right direction to take. However, companies haven't reached the end of the CRM road. Today, the
challenge is to take this evolution one step further - to focus on building lasting and profitable
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customer dialogues at all interaction and transaction touch points to build customer and brand
value.
Figure 2.2: Evolution of CRM
As CRM evolved, many companies assumed that just bolting on new technology (e.g.,
client/server, call centers, sales force automation software, data warehouses, etc.) or adding new
services would enhance customer relationships. This assumption was as pernicious as it was
false. After all, you can't sell what people don't want to buy, no matter how efficient and serviceoriented your sales channel. And as for gathering customer insights, company has to be careful
what it wishes for. Many companies faced the unsettling paradox of having advanced data
availability and analytic techniques that quickly outpaced their ability to absorb and apply the
information.
The belief is that the third wave of CRM will bring about the ultimate transformation of
customer experiences - not just by strengthening sales and service or even promoting interactions
with customers - but by creating a series of "intelligent conversations" that build over time into a
long-term, meaningful dialogue.
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In this next evolutionary phase of CRM, information will be exchanged and acted on in
real time. Consumer history will be recorded (and remembered) and the expectations of both
parties will be met. Naturally, not every conversation will be profitable. But the series of
conversations and the ongoing knowledge transfer will continue to grow, creating a memorable
and differentiated customer experience, and, in the long run, a profitable relationship.
3. ROLE OF MARKETING IN CRM

To continuously attract and retain the most valuable customers, companies must act
aggressively to increase the economic value of both their brand and customer relationships. In
addition, they must sustain bottom-line performance in the face of skyrocketing marketing costs.
To realize these goals, companies must continue their efforts to maximize their investments in
the sales and service technologies that help reach, understand and interact intelligently with
customers. But they must also extend this traditional scope of CRM to reach a higher standard of
excellence in three distinct disciplines: analytical, creative and operational marketing.
Figure 3.1 -The revitalization of marketing
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Once these improved marketing processes are linked with core CRM capabilities,
companies will be able to drive seamless, consistent and real-time response across marketing,
sales and customer service. The result will be a sustainable process that not only enables lasting
customer relationships but also harnesses that elusive construct: superior brand value.
Analytical Marketing drives market segmentation and identifies your most profitable
customers. Information from each customer interaction channel is collected, analyzed and used
to develop predictions of your individual customer's behaviors.
Analytical marketing utilizes those processes and sophisticated technologies that allow
businesses to direct their overall marketing investment across the brand and customer. In a sense,
analytical marketing tools are the "nuts and bolts" of the marketing engine.
Specifically, analytical marketing converts customer data, gathered at various touch

points, into relevant insights that direct market segmentation activities and feed into more
effective campaign design. Through predictive modeling, analytics lead to a more robust
understanding of customers and markets and an improved ability to make strategic and
operational decisions about customer treatment. The ultimate outcome is increased profitability,
based on customer differentiation, and more informed decisions related to the development of
product, pricing, promotion, packaging, and channels.
Without analytics, companies will keep investing in CRM without ever knowing where
their money is having the greatest impact. In short, analytical marketing puts customer insights to
work for the organization and prevents the company from delivering the wrong content to the
wrong person at the wrong time.
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Creative Marketing relies on analytical tools and customer insight capabilities to
improve marketing programs optimize the overall marketing investment and deliver the brand
promise. As the number of customer channels has exploded, so has the need for creative
marketing, which involves all the activities associated with building and sustaining a compelling
brand and ensuring that customer interactions reflect a satisfying brand experience.
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In the past, creative marketing efforts have been applied to CRM efforts in much the
same way as technology. It's been far too easy for companies to develop a host of messages from ad campaigns to customer service representative scripts - that are unintentionally
inconsistent. Such inconsistent messages delivered via a number of different channels - when
coupled with poor understanding of why brand and message consistency is so critical to the
customer experience - often produce fragmented experiences that frustrate the customer who
probably won't come back.
Fortunately, companies are changing the way they approach creative marketing. By
integrating its processes with those of analytical and operational marketing, and by focusing on
the total customer experience, creative marketing can now be used to build a unified brand across
all of a company's online and offline channels. In other words, creative marketing is no longer
considered an "afterthought".
Operational Marketing relies on customer insight information to personalize

interactions, differentiate sales and service across segments, drive continuous improvement
across customer interaction processes and generate revenue lift.
When these marketing disciplines work in tandem with your existing sales and service
capabilities, your entire CRM effort becomes revitalized. Information becomes dynamic. Insights
become powerful barometers of customers' likes and dislikes. Comprehensive marketing
campaigns become targeted and compelling. The result is a customer base that is pleased with
the unique and personalized interactions you provide. Customer loyalty rises, as does your brand
value and, ultimately, your revenue.
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Its efforts encompass all the activities of data mining and data warehousing, which
continuously harvest customer information from a variety of contact points. Leveraged by
creative and analytical marketing capabilities, this information is assessed and converted into
meaningful insights that drive ongoing, personalized marketing efforts. The goal of operational
marketing is to enable ongoing "conversations" with individual customers across all channels.
4. CRM TO ICRM
(Integrated Customer Relationship Management)
Customer Relationship Management (CRM) is developing into a major element of
corporate strategy for many organizations. CRM, also known by other terms such as relationship
marketing and customer management, is concerned with the creation, development and
enhancement of individualized customer relationships with carefully targeted customers and
customer groups resulting in maximizing their total customer life-time value.
Industry leaders are now addressing how to transform their approach to customer
management. Narrow functionally-based traditional marketing is being replaced by a new form
of cross functional marketing - CRM. The traditional approach to marketing has been
increasingly questioned in recent years. This approach emphasized management of the key
marketing mix elements such as product, price, promotion and place within the functional
context of the marketing department.
The new CRM approach, whilst recognizing these key elements still need to be addressed,
reflects the need to create an integrated cross-functional focus on marketing - one which
emphasizes
keeping as well as winning customers. Thus the focus is shifting from customer
acquisition to customer retention and ensuring the appropriate amounts of time, money and
managerial resources are directed at both of these key tasks. The new CRM paradigm reflects a
change from traditional marketing to what is now being described as customer management.
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The adoption of CRM is being fuelled by a recognition that long-term relationships with
customers are one of the most important assets of an organization and that information-enabled
systems must be developed that will give them 'customer ownership'. Successful customer
ownership will create competitive advantage and result in improved customer retention and
profitability for the company.
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In many companies there is still confusion as to what CRM is all about. To some it is
about a loyalty scheme, to some it is about a help desk. To others it is about a relational data base
for key account management and for others it is about mass profiling the customer base without
undertaking detailed segmentation. Relatively few organizations have implemented an integrated
approach, which addresses all the key strategic elements of CRM. Only a small number of
businesses have a clear idea what should be done with information technology in order to
successfully implement CRM.
INTEGRATED CUSTOMER RELATIONSHIP MANAGEMENT (ICRM)
The development of the Customer Relationship Management (CRM) marketing practice

has made more and more people realize the importance of strong customer relationship in
building sustainable competitive advantages in their market competitions and in generating
sustainable profits in the long run.
However, the currently popular CRM marketing practice often produces disappointing
outcomes. Surveys after surveys, a surprisingly high rate of failure have been reported for CRM
practices. The failure rate of CRM systems ranges from 50% to over 80%. The major CRM
system developers received much lower Customer Satisfaction scores than companies in other
industries did. The more popular this marketing practice gets the more people who realize that
the current CRM practice hardly manages customer relationship.
The current CRM practice was originated from a combination of database technologies
and database marketing (analytical techniques), so unavoidably, it inherits database as its only
focus. When it gets into the spotlight and becomes a major marketing practice, its inherited
characteristics become its limitations. It incorrectly defines customer purchase and contact
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behaviors as customer relationship, restricts its marketing scope within a company's database and
ignores customers needs by focusing on purchase correlation in a companys database.
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Any good customer relationship management practice should start by answering the
following 6 critical questions:
1.
What is customer relationship?
2.
What drives customer relationship?
3.
How to measure customer relationship?
4.
Which customers should you build relationship with?
5.
How to improve customer relationship?
6.
How to develop effective customer relationship management strategies?
However, no existing CRM system is able to answer (or is designed to answer) these
questions. Without clear answers to these critical questions, how could a company know what
customer relationship it needs to manage? How could it know if it has a strong relationship with
its customers under market competitions and how could it know with which customers it needs
to build strong relationship?
To effectively manage customer relationship, one should follow the following rules:
Rule 1: Building strong customer relationship should be set as the primary goal of a
companys marketing practice and all marketing functions should serve to the enhancement of a
companys customer relationship;
Rule 2: Customer relationship should be defined and constructed based on customers
basic needs. In the Customer Centric customer relationship management practice, needs
construct value and value determines customer relationship;
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Rule 3: Customer relationship should be measured and improved under market
competitions. Customer relationship is competitive and a company should manage its
Competitive Customer Relationship.
Rule 4: Customer relationship management practice should not be a sub-function of a
companys IT department. Customer relationship management should be an INTEGRATED part
of a companys marketing practices.
Integrated Customer Relationship Management (ICRM) is the latest marketing strategy,
which has developed to meet the challenges raised from our daily marketing consulting services.
It is our solution to overcome the limitations of the current CRM practice. ICRM provides a
theoretical framework to define and to construct customer relationship based on customers
needs under market competitions. ICRM also provides a practical guideline of a standard process
for effective customer relationship management.
ICRM is based on the very fact that by building a strong customer relationship, a
company can build sustainable competitive advantages in the long run. Therefore, in ICRM
practice, building strong customer relationship is set as the primary goal of a companys
marketing practices and it requires all marketing functions in a company to serve to the
enhancement of its customer relationship.
ICRM puts customer needs in the center of marketing practices and defines customer
relationship based on customers basic needs under market competitions. It integrates all major
marketing functions in the process of building strong customer relationship.
ICRM manages Competitive Customer Relationship.
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5. CRM
IMPLEMENTATION
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STEP I: Needs Analysis
This phase of the implementation consists of reviewing the strategic objectives of the
CRM implementation and gaining management acceptance and commitment to the project.
During this phase you will define the policies and procedures for managing customer interaction.
Authority: Top management.
Duration: 12 - 16 hours per person.
Schedule: 15 days.
Concerned dept: Marketing, EDP (IT), finance, HR.
STEP II: Project Planning
The implementation plan will be created and finalized during this phase. A system
administrator will be selected, as well as team members from each department, who will work in
conjunction with the vendor or system integrator managing the implementation process.
Authority: Middle management.
Schedule: One month.
Concerned authority: Marketing, EDP (IT), Customer Support.
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STEP III: Implementation
It is during this phase that the software implementation will begin. System configuration
and administration will be completed and customization will be identified.
Authority: middle / lower level mgmt
Duration: 8 - 12 hours per person
Schedule: 15 days
Concerned authority: Marketing, EDP (IT), Customer Support, Corporate communication
STEP IV: Testing & Quality Assurance
An operational prototype of the system is up and running at this time. Operational issues
are identified and resolved and basic modifications will be made.
Authority: lower level mgmt.
Schedule: 15 days.
Concerned authority: EDP (IT), Quality Control, Marketing.
STEP V: Deployment & Training
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During this phase the CRM system will be completely operational. There are no
additional installation activities. Training will begin for all end users. The system administrator
should provide ongoing support with telephone assistance from the vendor or system integrator.
Authority: Middle & lower level managers.
Duration: 24 - 40 hours.
Schedule: 8 days.
Concerned authority: EDP (IT), Marketing, Call center operators, HR.
One of the most important aspects of implementing a customer relationship

management (CRM) system is ensuring that it meets the expectations of a variety of
audiences within company.
More than 65% of CRM projects fail to meet expectations, so all of these concerns are
valid. To make sure failure isn't the outcome of companys hard work in building a CRM system,
think through the consequences of the system from every angle. Here are some ways to do just
that.
Starting with a clean slate, as if designing and selecting first system
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Don't try to fit current system to new needs. If done, company will end up with quick
fixes rather than true solutions. When designing system, think about what will make the most
difference in your organization. What's missing now? Whether organization is looking for speed,
ease of use or low maintenance costs?
CRM systems track sales contacts and potential sales schedule appointments and calls so
they don't fall through the cracks, keep notes and print out reports. They can also play a part in
product development, targeting the right audience and shortening the sales cycle, and they can
help your salespeople give dynamite presentations. Identify the most important of these features
and priorities for new system.
Writing down exactly what organization want its system to do for it
Write down a list from the perspectives of everyone affected by the system -- salespeople,
sales managers, the CEO and the IT department. Look at organizations sales processes as well as
the technology.
Take time to put yourself in the shoes of people in your organization
In order to design organizations new system from the perspectives of everyone affected,
you need to get their input. Live a day in the life of several of organizations salespeople. Go with
them for a whole day, if possible. Watch them work. Ask questions. Choose at least one sales
star, someone who's been there a long time and one new salesperson. Do the same for
organizations sales managers, regional managers, CEO, CIO, customer service people and
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telemarketing people. Ask them their ideas, and take them seriously. You may want to ask the
following questions:
What do you want the system to do for you that the current one doesn't do?
What are the top three challenges you face in your work?
What are the top challenges your customers face?
Be as complete and detailed as you can. Then, after making notes about employees
answers call in organizations CRM team and compare notes. Only after completion of homework
organization can call in consulting and software companies for sales presentations.
Getting everyone's perspectives is important also because organization will be "selling"

them the new system, software, consulting company and its implementation plan at some point.
Sales are a major component in CRM system implementation and project management.
Developers job is to sell the system throughout its implementation. A workshop, course or
refresher in selling skills will give developer tremendous payoffs as he/she go ahead with
organizations new CRM system.
Before developer speak with them, list the reasons these same people won't want a new
system. What will cause resistance? For example, a new system means change. People are
usually more comfortable with the way things currently are, even though they can see in their
minds that there may be better ways to do their work.
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Identifying the success criteria for the project
Define exactly what the system and the implementation will be measured on. For
example, developer might write:
Do salespeople like and use the system?
Is management getting the reports they want?
Are there increased sales? By how much? How will these happen?
Will there be more calls and more meetings?

Developer has to be careful here. "Increased sales" is too vague. To build success into
CRM implementation, developer has to include specific, measurable goals. For example,
developer could decide one criterion should be "Sales should increase by XX% one year after
implementation," or "Salespeople should contact twice as many people as they did last year."
Identifying the project killers
List them so organization will be more aware if these red flags appear. To carry through
with example, if salespeople liking and using the system is important, a project killer would be
that the salespeople aren't using the system. There could be other project killers that aren't part of
organizations success criteria, too: There might be interdepartmental synchronization problems
(i.e., projects not done on time or according to plan.)
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Once developer has designed his/her "ideal" system on paper, find out how other
companies managed their projects
Learn from their experiences. Look for descriptions of successful projects. Look for
companies in similar businesses or companies that have solved some of the challenges you want
to solve with your system. Call them up and ask questions such as:
What advice would they give as you start your project?
What would they have done differently?
What were their key reasons for selecting the system, software and consulting company?
What were they most satisfied with?
Who did they include on their implementation team?
Ask to visit and see exactly how their systems work. Talk about their projects and how
they made their decisions. Ask their advice.
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CRM Implementation Issues
One of the most interesting aspects of CRM development is the multitude of customer
interfaces that a company has to manage in todays context. Until recently, a companys direct
interface with the customers, if any was primarily through sales people or service agents. In
todays environment most companies interface with their customers through a variety of channels
including sales people, service personnel, call centers, Internet websites, marketing departments,
fulfillment houses, market and business development agents, etc. For large customers it also
includes cross-functional teams that may include personnel from various functional departments.
While each of these units could operate independently, they still need to share information about
individual customers and their interactions with the company on a real time basis. For example, a
customer who just placed an order on the Internet and subsequently calls the call centre for order
verification expects the call centre staff to know the details of his or her order history. Similarly a
customer approached by a sales person unaware that she has recently complained about
dissatisfactory customer service, is not likely to be treated kindly by the customer.
Therefore effective CRM requires a front-line information system that shares relevant
customer information across all interface units. Relational databases, data warehousing and data
mining tools are thus very valuable for CRM systems and solutions.
However, the challenge is to develop and integrated CRM platform that collects relevant
data input at each customer interface and simultaneously provides knowledge output about the
strategy and tactics suitable to win customer loyalty and support. If a call centre personnel cannot
identify or differentiate a high value customer and does not know what to up-sell or cross sell to
him then it would be a tremendous loss of opportunity for the company. Although most CRM
software solutions based on relational databases are helping share customer information, they
still do not provide knowledge output to the front line personnel. As shown in Figure.6, CRM
solutions platform needs to be based on interactive technology and processes.
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It should assist the company in developing and enhancing customer interactions and one-toone marketing through the help of suitable intelligent agents that help develop front-line
relationship with customers. Such a system would identify appropriate data inputs at each
customer interaction site and use analytical platforms to generate appropriate knowledge output
for front-line staff during customer interactions.
In addition, implementation tools to support interactive solutions for customer profitability

analysis,
customer
segmentation,
demand
generation,
account
planning,
opportunity
management, contact management, integrated marketing communication, customer care

strategies, customer problem solving, virtual team management of large global accounts, and
measuring CRM performance would be the next level of solution sought by most enterprises.
Unique
CRM
benefits
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6. E-CRM
The rules of the game have changed for CRM. Customer demand for increased value,
greater convenience, and more control over products and services, along with heightened
pressure from competitors, have increased customer acquisition costs and decreased customer
and brand loyalty. At the same time, advancements in technology have enabled the cost-effective
distribution of huge amounts of customer data, the delivery of customized products, and the
efficient use of interactive channels. These technology developments are creating major
opportunities to collect and use customer information to gain a better understanding of customer
needs and to strengthen customer relationships. To take advantage of these opportunities and
address the escalating demands of customers, companies are shifting the focus of their efforts to
adopt a customer-centric approach. Product excellence, innovation, and operational efficiency
are still important; however, successful companies are building on these existing business
strengths as they shift their attention to their customers.
E-CRM refers to the set of activities that enable a firm to utilize the power of the Internet
and the electronic medium to implement CRM. Firms all around the world have realized the
potential of the Internet as a medium for CRM and have been actively pursuing e-CRM
strategies.
The following statistics highlight the importance and potential of the e-CRM industry:
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General Motors (GM) receive about 100,000 emails from its customers, every day.
Jupiter Communications survey of companies who have implemented eCRM solutions found
that, on average, companies were able to recover their investments in seven months. Even more
impressive, the average return after one year was 300%.
Cisco Systems automated customer interactions with its one-to-one website, saving $270 million
in annual operating expenses and significantly reducing the time required to place an order.
Amazon.com was able to achieve a repeat purchase rate of 78%, more than double the industry
average, by building one-to-one relationships with its customers and targeting their individual
needs. This customer loyalty has enabled Amazon to remain a viable e-commerce company at a
time when so many other dot-coms have failed.
Sears demonstrated the cross-channel benefits of eCRM by increasing Web shoppers' subsequent
offline purchases by 27%.
The volume of customer related email traffic is so much that almost 42% of the queries never get
answered by the companies.
To achieve positive results like these from their eCRM efforts, companies must develop a
comprehensive strategy for managing and utilizing customer knowledge. This strategy should
include three key objectives:
Know Your Customer
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Reach Your Customer
Grow Your Customer
Changing Needs
Figure 6.1 - Key Aspects of e-CRM
Know Your Customer
Know Your Customer is about understanding your individual customer's value and
needs. This understanding comes only from collecting information that customers provide in
their interactions with your company, and developing a 360-degree view of customer behavior
across all touch points. As you begin a dialogue with individual customers, you create a learning
relationship with your customers; each interaction becomes an opportunity to build and extend
your relationship with that customer. The more extensive the learning relationship, the more
invested the customer becomes in the relationship and the more difficult it will be for the
customer to switch to a competitor.
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Reach Your Customer
Reach Your Customer is about reaching the right customers with the right offer at the
right time through the right channel. Based on your knowledge of each customer, you are able
to reach specific customers with targeted offers, information, products, and services. You reach
each customer with a personalized message based on his or her needs, behaviors, and value.
Grow Your Customer
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Grow Your Customer refers to your company's ability to effectively execute Marketing
strategies based on your knowledge of customer share and customer lifetime value. You must
use scarce investment dollars to target your efforts to your best, most valuable customers.
Increasing the total value of your customer base by retaining and growing your best customers, is
significantly less expensive than trying to generate the same amount of value by acquiring new
customers. Focusing on your best customers requires you to re-examine and re-allocate total
Marketing and sales investments from less profitable customers and the acquisition of new
customers.
Complete e-CRM architecture would comprise of the following components:

1. Sales Force Automation (SFA)
2. E-Mail Management System (EMS)
3. Interactive Voice Response (IVR)
4. Knowledge Management (KM)
5. Call Centers
6. Instant online querying through Chat
Managing a full range of customer relationship involves two related objectives:

1. Provide the firm and its customer-dealing personnel, a complete singular view of each and
every customer.
2. To provide the customer with the same singular uniform level of service in every interaction
with the company through every channel.
The above-mentioned proposition can be illustrated with a simple example. A person
dealing with a bank should be able to get the same level of service whether he contacts the bank
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through phone, the Internet or in person. This implies that all details about the person and his
past transactions need to be consistent and available vis--vis every channel.
Additionally, IT is expected to support the selection and implementation of the best
management tools that not only provide an integrated solution, but also leverage prior and future
IT investments. For both IT and Marketing, resource constraints make it critical that the
technology solution enables Marketing to manage its increased responsibilities with minimal
intervention and assistance from IT.
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7. CRM IN INDIA
In India, CRM satisfies three basic objectives for companies that are keen on retaining
customers and increasing market share.
1. It offers a 360-degree view a company should have a clear understanding of clients and their
needs. It means that whoever the company speaks to, irrespective of whether the communication
is from operations, sales, systems, finance or support, the company is aware of the interaction.
This is one of the key steps in a CRM implementation. CRM give a complete set of tools that are
required to improve efficiency. There are numerous channels of communication e-mail (eCRM),
fax, telephone, Personal Data Assessments and many other wireless devices. In order to get a
complete picture these must be integrated and tracked.
2. CRM optimizes processes and functions related to the customer All operations can be
optimized and systematized to enhance efficiency and effectiveness. It is a matter of continuous
improvement. This is why sales force automation became important and critical. Corporate
began to realize that in the face of increasing competition, sales force automation is critical.
The problem lay in convincing the sales guy who believed in his personal abilities. Sales
automation results in more accurate predictions as well. Sales operations have to be organized to
make customer-facing systems efficient and effective.
3. To learn from integration-The learning process should be focused on bettering marketing, sales
and any other function that interacts with the customer. The interaction will help an
organization to bring out better products that target potential and existing customers. The
whole idea is that if you know your customer better, you can target them better. Their
operations are aimed at getting the right customer and then retaining them by giving them the
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service they require. Some customers have preferred channels of communicating. Some
customers may not like to transact over the Net and may prefer physical transaction. This varies
from customer to customer. All these differences lead to the importance and need for CRM.
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Survey report on Indian CRM market
The need for improved customer service and high global adoption shall drive the Indian CRM
market
The high cost of implementation and low awareness of benefits is going to prove a major
deterrent
The next two charts indicate the factors which will drive acceptance of CRM in India,
and the factors that will hold back acceptance:
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Observations and Inferences
A need for improved Customer Service shall be the main driver for Industry sectors that depend
on the quality of their customer interactions to retain existing customers and win new ones.
High Global adoption is likely to drive the MNCs to adopt CRM first in line with Global
implementations.
While the first hurdle holding back the market is a lack of awareness, respondents have put high
cost of implementation as the main inhibitor. Complete and comprehensive CRM packages such
as those of Siebel and Oracle costing in the range of Rs. 1 to 2.5 Crore (and more) are too
expensive for most Indian firms. However, with software vendors bringing down prices and
offering relatively affordable packages bundled with integration and consulting services, this
could soon change.
In the Indian context, lack of customer orientation and poor existing IT infrastructure can
prove major factors. Firms need to evolve their customer thinking by a significant extent before
they accept CRM as the strategic imperative it is, and internal systems and database management
practices need to be upgraded before CRM software can be used to any effect.
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Another major inhibitor indicated by respondents was that Indian firms lack the skills
and strategic vision required to successfully implement CRM.
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Factors favorable for CRM in INDIA

In order to meet the growing international demand for cost-effective, customer-interaction
centers, many organizations worldwide are outsourcing these services from locations like India.
India has intrinsic strengths which have made it a major success as an outsourcing
destination for CRM.
A booming IT industry, with IT strengths recognized all over the world (65% of the
CMM level5 companies are in India).
The largest English-speaking population after the USA.
A vast workforce of educated, English-speaking, tech-savvy personnel: A boon in a high-growth

industry faced with a shortage of skilled workers.
Cost-effective manpower: In a call interaction center operation, manpower typically accounts for
55 to 60 percent of the total cost. In India, the manpower cost is approximately one-tenth of
what it is overseas. Per agent cost in USA is approximately $40,000 while in India it is only
$5,000.
Technical support: India graduates about 100,000 engineers each year. These can be used in
call centers for troubleshooting/tech support as the salaries are dramatically lower than in
Europe or the US.
The Government of India has recognized the potential of IT-enabled services and has taken
positive steps by providing numerous incentives like Software Technology Park (STP), under
this scheme Ministry of information and Technology gave 10 year of tax holiday on
software product and subsequent technology required for CRM.
The presence of most international technology vendors and solutions would enable creation of
most advanced set-ups in this technology- intensive segment.
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IT is a major thrust area for the Government of India
IT is one of the Government of India's top five priorities.
The National IT Task Force submitted its 108 point Action Plan to promote IT in the country.
The Government of India has approved the plan and is in the process of implementing it.
A separate Ministry of Information Technology is set up to expedite swift approval and
implementation of IT projects and to streamline the regulatory process.
Information Technology Act 2000: The Information Technology Bill that was passed in the
Indian Parliament in May 2000 has now been notified as the IT Act 2000. The IT Bill brings Ecommerce within the purview of law and accords stringent punishments to "cyber criminals".
With this, India joins a select band of 12 nations that have cyber laws.
As India emerges as a global outsourcing hub, the industry is forecast to explode at

exponential rates - from 23,000 people and $ 10 million pa in 1998 to over a million people
and revenues in excess of $ 20 billion by 2008. Pivotal segments are going to be back office
operations, medical transcriptions, insurance claims processing, customer interaction centers
and content development. Current trends suggest that the country is well on course for
achieving the above target.
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Some Outsourcing Success Stories of India:
American Express processes internal financial transactions for all of Asia and employs 600
people - in country finance organization has shrunk by 60%.
GE
-
Capital
Manages
employs
global
10,000
payroll,
call
people
and
centers,
is
expected
mortgage
and
to
have
insurance
20,000.
claims.
- Call center makes inbound and outbound calls for credit card collections and response to
customer queries.
British Airways employs 750 people to handle an array of back office applications.
Strategy for small Indian companies who find CRM is good, but its expensive
too
There is an inherent imbalance in the scheme of things in the world. And this imbalance
is captured very well by 80/20 principle. Ever wondered why you wear only 20% of the clothes
80% of the time or why people spend 80% of their time with just 20% of their friends? Or the
more popular example of unequal distribution of income across the world- 20% of the world
population holds 80% of the wealth. This is where 80/20 principle comes to play.
But this rule has extreme relevance in business. Most business would agree that 20% of
their products bring in 80% of the revenues, 80% of the organizations salary budget goes to20%
of the executives, 80% of the quality problems can be assigned to 20% of the causes and 20% of
the customers bring in 80% of the revenues.
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The 80 and 20 are not a hard and fast set of numbers but the basic idea is to understand
the imbalance between the things and that to your advantage.
80%
20%
Revenues
Customers
Figure7.1-80\20 principle
One ready application to this rule is Customer Relationship Management:
Everybody knows how difficult it is to get a new customer than to retain an existing one.
Wireless companies in US are spending more in finding new customers but 40% of their
customers defect every year this has made business extremely difficult for them. Not only do
they have to replace the defected 40% but also add more to show some growth.
Another example of expensive customer service is in the banking industry. Most

customers cost more than the returns on their deposits. Banks are figuring out how to serve their
more valuable customers and retain them and cut the cost of serving the less valuable ones. CRM
deployment is exorbitant and prohibitive for a small company.
The 80/20 principle is a solid start for any company. One look at the customer file would
separate your customers into the most valuable 20% and the other 80%. Most companies do not
understand this imbalance and pay equal attention to every customer.
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This way they do disservice to those who deserve most attention and waste excessive
time on less value-adding customer. This is not discrimination against certain set of customers. It
is just proportional distribution of organizational effort. Companies are better able to retain their
customers.
Small companies dont have resources to invest in CRM solutions and then to maintain
them. What they need is a simple but yet effective ways just to differentiate between their values
adding so that they know where to concentrate their limited resources and energy. Identifying the
most revenue generating 20% customers would immediately reduce the task to a more
manageable level.
Companies can further know more about what they buy, where they buy, how much they
pay, etc. Based on these answers, companies can then decide on their distribution, product
development and pricing strategies.
Companies consider in advertising and distributing equally to all the market. This has
also created incentive issues with sales people who get assigned to the less valuable 80%
customers. This has helped them to retain their profitable clients. There are standard services
available to the other 80% customers.
There is no technology investment required for some basic analysis on customer file
which can unravel tons of knowledge about customers. Simple mean and standard deviation of a
normally distributed set of customer data would give important on pricing strategies.
It would seem that big companies already analyze their customer files and use data for
customer service. But surprisingly thats not the case. Multi-million dollar companies often fail
to do this simple analysis. But they have money to spend on CRM products.
For small Indian companies who need a simple but effective substitute to CRM
intelligence, the 80/20 principle is the way to go.
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Companies should think beyond merely selling products or services to their customers.
They need to play the role of a customers consultant, problem-solver, coach, motivator and
partner. Every company no matter what it sells must adopt proven strategies and best practices to
differentiate its selling efforts..
Nowadays, customers are demanding more while paying less for products and services.
All companies are facing new and ambitious competitors. Moreover they are being challenged
unusually to differentiate their products in a commodity market.
The relationship between buyers and sellers is constantly changing. Sales personnel
assume that lowering prices is the only way to attract customers. However, what customers are
actually looking for is better value, better solutions to their problems, rather than doing business
with the low cost provider. Smart companies must offer competitive prices and focus more on
their value-added services to win and retain customers.
8. Case Example: Air India

Worlds largest DIRECT MARKETING ASSOCIATION recognizes AIR INDIA as first
airline to use a unique database-driven CRM approach that set new sales and profit records in the
air travel market.
On June 5, 2002; at world headquarters in New York, Charles A. Prescott, Vice President
of International Development for the United States-based Direct Marketing Association,
approved the addition of Air Indias database-driven Direct Marketing program to DMAs Web
site. Entitled Test of Advanced CRM Approach in India sets new sales records for an Airline it
instantly became one of the most visited parts of the DMA Web site.
Why? Because Air India created an intensely personal dialogue with each individual
customer in a way no airline ever had in the past. Personal dialogues, which created
relationships, which produced record gains in Share of Customer, and overall Share of Market as
well as revenue and profits. When Abeer Chakravarty and his DM agency colleagues tested Dick
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Shavers unique Database-Loading Research Process (developed in the early 1990s in the USA)
for Indian Airlines in 1998, 58,000 customers answered extremely detailed questions about
themselves. Everything from their specific air travel habits, business and personal travel wants
and needs, services they expected to get from an airline and services they would like to receive
from an airline in addition to crucial information about their air travel destinations, frequency
and airlines flown as well as all their personal demographics and psychographics. In short,
everything airline marketers worldwide had always wanted to know about their customers, but
really never thought possible to get.
Indian Airlines immediately computerized each customers detailed answers in order to

begin the Consumer Guided dialogues they had told customers about. Within days, every
responder received a personal letter based on what each different customer had told IA. This new
ability to write always-relevant, customer-specific letters rapidly expanded, in a few months, to
22 different individualized letter versions.
Airline customers in India loved being treated as individuals in the late 1990s and early
2,000s just as much as pharmaceutical and telephone customers in the United States had loved
being treated that way in the early and mid-1990s. Not only did Database-Loading Research put
them in total control of their personal information and hence their privacy it also insured they
would never again be bothered by irrelevant contacts while, at the same time, they would never
miss out on any offers that fit their specific interests which they really did want to know about.
In each country and each different market health care and long distance
communication in the States, air travel in India after their initial surprise at being listened to
and then responded to based on what each one of them had said, customer satisfaction soared to
historic highs. New highs in satisfaction that produced multi-year, multi-billion dollar industry
records in customer retention and acquisition for Marion Merrell Dow and MCI in the USA and
multi-year, multi-billion rupee gains for Indian Airlines across its proportionately smaller
market in India.
All of which reflects the simple fact that this new CRM approach, called Consumer
Guided Marketing, can produce unprecedented gains in any market and any country in the world,
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because the gains it generates are rooted in human nature: due to Quantum Leaps in customer
trust and satisfaction. A new level of trust and satisfaction evidenced in the tens of thousands of
unsolicited letters from customers that essentially said, Ive been filling out questionnaires for
years, but nothing ever happened! But you actually read what I said and then wrote me back
based on what I told you. I love it!
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9. CRM in Select Services
1) Taj Air Caterers & Singapore Airlines

Taj actively participates in product designs and influences service design, wherever
necessary. This has evolved after getting an insight into Singapore Airlines customer profile and
their needs. The product is designed to reflect their passengers preferences, which are quite
different in Delhi and Mumbai, and on different sectors ex-Mumbai. TAJ Chefs conduct an
annual workshop on Indian Cuisine for Singapore Airlines caterers worldwide. Taj staff gets
trained at Singapore Airlines catering subsidiary, SATS. Taj Caterers share a lot of information
and can access technology issues with Singapore Airlines.
2) Taj Air Caterers & GE Capital Services

There is e-mail connectivity between the service provider i.e. Taj and GE (for canteen and
food supply). Taj customer relations respond within a stipulated time frame directly to GE
employees and analyses their satisfaction. Also on cards is a fitness program where Tajs
experts will share information of food nutrition, exercise, etc with GE staff. Similarly, a loyalty
program is being designed where in for purchases snacks and confectionery, GE employees can
obtain attractive discounts at Taj outlets/hotels. With another company Taj is involved in
cafeteria design and selection of equipment.
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3) Titan Watch Repair Services

What did Titan Do?
The Titan Signet CRM initiative was undertaken in May 1995 to provide that extra touch
to its special customers at the exclusive World of Titan stores.
Its mission was to create a sense of belonging of the customer to the store and vice versa by:
Building a special relationship with high life time value Titan customers
Recognizing and rewarding his/her loyalty to Titan
Providing a platform for direct feedback from these valued customers to the company
Where?
It initially started in 6 showrooms in Bangalore. Today the titan Signet has been extended
to 102 World of Titan showrooms across 59 cities all over India
Behind The Scenes
While the program has taken customer bonding one step further in Titan, there are many
behind-the-scene activities that ensure that the program is run efficiently, effectively and with the
level of enthusiastic participation. These are:
Showroom Personnel are trained not only in the preparation of the program at the
showroom but also in the finer details of CRM.
Enrolments in the program are tracked on a monthly basis for each showroom, along with
data on purchases made by Signet members who have returned to the showroom to buy again.
Signet operations form a part of the quarterly appraisal for their showrooms, thereby
ensuring that they earn more marks on their efficient and effective performance.
A grievance redressal system is in place to ensure that our valued customers are
responded to within stipulated time frame.
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10. CONCLUSION
It used to be that one could think of marketing as totally separate from the rest of the
business enterprise. But with the advent of CRM or one-to-one marketing or loyalty marketing,
the dynamics have changed. CRM involves knowing your customers individually and having
some mechanism for interacting with them or hearing from them, and customizing your business
for them. This is an inherently integrative operation. If a company is going to treat a customer
differently on what he is, then the back-end of the enterprise has to be capable of modifying its
behavior on what the front end finds out about what the customer wants. So back end functions,
such as product or service delivery, must be integrated with front-office functions such as sales,
marketing, and customer service.
One of the benefits of CRM is that it would make a companys customers more loyal.
Every time a company interacts with a customer, the company customizes its service to be a bit
more closely suited to the customers needs. The company is getting a little higher up on the
customers learning curve. Moreover the company is making the product more and more
valuable to the customer. The relationship with the customer is developing in its own context.
The future requires a new mindset. It will take nontraditional thinking for you to look at
the way in which your company does business with your customer. Traditionally, customers have
had to do all the work to get their problems solved. In many companies, the business units
designed to serve the same customers rarely interact, and when they do, they seem at odds about
how to handle problems or complaints.
To remedy this lack of agreement, you need to look for ways to improve cross-functional
communication. Some assign customer accounts to teams of employees from various areas
where contact with customers is paramount--for example, sales, marketing, product design,
customer service and accounts receivable. A single company contact might have responsibility
for all inquiries regarding credit, purchasing and order fulfillment.
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One of the major challenges in implementing CRM is resistance to change. Change does
not occur in isolation. Only committed people implement CRM successfully. For a collection of
people cutting across organizational boundaries to create the coordinated set of actions necessary
to implement CRM, they must feel connected to each other. Building relationships across
functions increases trust, and when trust is increased relationships are increased. This is a
mutually reinforcing pattern. If the people that impact the customer improve their relationships
by working effectively across functions, they learn how to do that with the customer too.
Ultimately every organization must address what it's going to do differently so it can
respond more effectively to its customers. This understanding cannot be spoon-fed. It occurs
when people are actively engaged. It is seen repeatedly that as people come to understand the
issues that are affecting them, they become excited about the possibilities for doing things
differently. Creating this environment equalizes power. That's what makes CRM work. If you
want to implement CRM successfully, you have to create this environment. There are no "ifs,"
"ands," or "buts."
To implement CRM successfully, you'll have to reorganize your customer and change
your organizational mindset. There are three important criteria:
First, it is necessary to have a good design interface. It has to be easier for a customer to
give a company its information and for the company to capture that information. Second, is to
have a good memory. The company has to remember what the customer told them so that they
dont need to ask the customer same question again. And, Third the company has to have the
ability to integrate the information into the way it handles that customer. These three criteria
apply both on and off the Web.
In the end, it is more than just technology. With CRM, one is operating in a different
dimension of competition finding products and services for customers, as opposed to finding
customers for the products and services the company sells. The technology is crucial, but its also
important to have managers with the vision to imagine what this technology enables the
enterprise to accomplish ..
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11. BIBLIOGRAPHY
Books:1. Customer Relationship Management

By Robert-Phelps, Graham.
2. Customer Relationship Management Essentials
By Gosney, John W.
3. Customer Relationship Management in Indian
Banking Industry
By Uppal, R.K.
4. Customer Relationship Management: Getting it Right

By Kincaid, Judith W.
Newspaper:1. The Times of India.

2. The Economic Times.
3. Daily News Analysis (DNA)
Websites:1. http://www.crmguru.com
2. http://www.crmsearch.com
3. http://www.crmindia.com
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4. http://www.wikipedia.com
5. http://www.crm2day.com
12. ANNEXURE
Annex: 1) Questionnaire and brief analysis of data (ICICI bank account holders)
Annex: 2) DNA Article (Customer-driven approach will be the game-changer for

banks)
Annex: 3) Times of India Article (Big Bazaar or Bad Bazaar)
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Annex: 1
Questionnaire and brief analysis of data
(ICICI bank account holders)
Name:
Age:
Occupation:
Qualification:
Are you aware of the services of ICICI bank?

Ans. Most of the respondents are aware of services such as ATM, internet banking, phone
banking, call centers, etc.
Are you able to make use of these services?

Ans. Most cases the answer was yes. But only the highly literate people are making use of this
service. The students group is attracted towards these services. The professionals are also
making use of these services. But some of the uneducated businessmen are not able to make
use of these services.
Do the call centers of ICICI bank provide all the information that you require?
Ans. A very positive response was provided which showed the efficiency of the call center.
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What type of information you require the most?

Ans. Most required information was about the balance in their account.
Secondly, whether their cheques are cleared or not.
Next were the interest rates.
Information about the other services.
Do you get the updated information regularly?

Ans. Yes in most cases
What sense of belongingness the bank shows towards you?

Ans. Mostly they send greetings on Diwali or any other festival.
Informs about any new scheme suiting to customer needs.
Are you satisfied with the services of the ICICI bank?

Ans. In almost 99% cases yes
Are the charges very high compared to public sector bank & Do you justify the charges with
the service?
Ans.Yes, in many cases yes but compared to the services it is very much justifiable.
Is the bank able to satisfy you all the time?

Ans.Yes, in most of the cases
Should the public sector banks improve their services on the lines of ICICI?
Ans. Most of the respondents were in favor of this proposal, as this would benefit the existing
account holders in the public sector banks. Thereof change in attitude towards customers is
very essential.
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CONCULSION
ICICI bank is one of the private sector bank which is providing the customer value added
services. They are not only able to satisfy the customer but they are successful in building a
never-ending relationship with the customer. They are able to retain them and carry business with
them to benefit both the organization and the customer. Customer preferences and needs are very
well understood by this bank. With the help of technology they are able to develop brand equity
in the market and differentiate themselves from the competitors.
ICICI bank is a live example for the public sector banks to understand the needs of the
customer and change themselves to satisfy most of the customer most of the time. It is very
necessary to integrate the needs of the customer with the technology and continuously monitor
the same. It is also necessary to upgrade the system from time to time.
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Annex: 2
Customer-driven approach will be the game-changer for banks
DNA
Tuesday, December 1, 2009 1:48 IST
Mumbai: People changing banks were a concept unheard of until recently. Indeed, the
trend in India has long been of a committed, often inherited, relationship between a customer and
his/her bank.
Until a few years back, the marketing activities of banks were designed as per the
traditional approach, keeping in mind relationships with existing customers. With little
competition going, such strategies worked well in tandem with the overall organizational
approach.
However, as the markets disintegrate into heterogeneous segments, a more precisely
targeted marketing technique is required, which creates a dialogue by clustering customers based
on individual needs. Intense competition, together with high level of growth in gross domestic
product and per capita income, diverse cultures and advent of technology, has resulted in
marketing becoming a 'game breaker' or 'game changer'.
As the economy matures on the lifecycle front, demographic changes result in rapid shifts
in needs and wants, and the buying behavior pattern seems to undergo a change. In the same
way, the Indian consumer has undergone a significant change on an overall basis. The changes
are pronounced, and would significantly affect the way business is done. This impact would be
felt by every business, more so by banks.
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The growth of retail banking has undoubtedly been stunning and it would be a key area of
banks' profitability going forward. But an affluent population with an age profile skewed to the
younger side would require banks to focus on customer profitability and not chase traditional
marketing metrics.
This sector is one of the most fiercely competed for and customer-sensitive by nature and
would only get more so in the time to come. It faces the threat of customer migration, what with
informed customers switching to banks where they find better services and products. Banks are
finding it tough to not only find new customers, but also to hold on to old ones.
Switching cost being nil, product differentiation blunted and technological advancement
available to all, the two key drivers left for customer acquisition, retention and overall
profitability are customer understanding and service. In order to take on competition, banks need
to get their customer relationship functionalities ready.
The structured approach to customer relationship management (CRM) provides various
benefits to the bank, viz., a consistent distinctive customer experience, clear identification of the
organizational, technological and process-related capabilities and prioritization of these
capabilities.
Some tangible benefits for banks implementing CRM are as follows:
Database marketing: Banks usually have a huge database, which can be put to good use
by using CRM. Database recording minute details of a customer can help in customer
segmentation and can be marketed.
Lead and opportunity management: Organizations can use CRM to effectively manage
leads and opportunities and track the leads through deal closure, the required follow-up and
interaction with the prospects.
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Business intelligence: Banks need to monitor the customer trends regularly to uncover
any major behavioral change, track seasonality and discover the true business value of
customers. CRM functionalities would help banks significantly in managing and calculating
customer life time value, optimizing revenue cost management and maximizing revenue per
customer, and help profitability.
Efficient marketing resources: Customer segmentation coupled with behavioral trends
would throw up robust data, which would help banks use their marketing resources effectively
and also make the marketing activity more return on investment driven. Money could chase the
best of customers from the marketing resource kitty and also drive revenue for the organization.
Cross-selling opportunities: Today, most banks have a portfolio of products. Behavioral
trends tracked by CRM functionalities would give the sales team robust wherewithal to cross-sell
products to a certain set of customers and even move sets of customers to higher levels of the
revenue grid.
Removal of operational inefficiencies: CRM can help in strategy formulation to eliminate
current operational inefficiencies. An effective CRM solution supports all channels of customer
interaction including telephone, fax, e-mail, online portals, wireless devices, ATMs and face-toface contact with bank personnel. It also links these customer touch points to an operations
centre and connects the operations centre with the relevant internal and external business
partners.
As mentioned earlier, retail banking is undergoing rapid changes, which would demand
extraordinary steps to stem competition. The ability to mass-customize and yet acquire and retain
old sets of customers would be a big challenge. Consolidation would take shape. Technological
developments are significant, but the success of banks would also depend upon the adoption
curve of available technology. As the competition heat develops and erupts, banks will have to
get their CRM functionalities right to survive the war.
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Annex: 3
Big Bazaar or Bad Bazaar

Times of India
14 June 2003, 12:36am IST
Big Bazaar has recently opened its second store at R-Mall, which covers an area of
70,000 sq. feet. The store has everything available under one roof, from electronic goods, fresh
vegetables, groceries, branded cookware, branded stationery items, clothes, plastic goods,
cosmetics at a very reasonable price.
Big Bazaar is based on the western style departmental stores. They have a bar code label
on all products. If the label of the particular product scans at the time of billing, then the
transaction ends smoothly.
On May 28, 2003, at about 4 pm, a lady customer Mrs. Sujata was checking out the
security counter after finishing the process of purchase and payment of the materials. Suddenly,
the security gadget at the exit started beeping. Immediately she was taken into custody and the
security started checking all her personal belongings, and emptied her handbag several times.
They did not even spare her empty lunch box and a money pouch. She was taken into a
glass room for the checking. The mob was watching the act unknowingly, and she felt insulted in
front of them. Nevertheless, the management insisted that they have to check her handbag in
some other place, where she would not be present.
As her handbag contained some credit cards, important documents and house keys, she
requested them to check the bag in her presence. The management and the security were harsh
and did not listen to her explanations.
After checking her bag several times, they found that a bar code label was stuck inside her
handbag, which was not removed properly.
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Mrs. Sujata had purchased that handbag on May 25, 2003, but the concerned cashier had
failed to do his duty properly, by not removing the label as soon as the payment was made. The
security gadget also did not give an alarm while she walked off the checking counter on May 25,
2003.
On May 25 evening Big-Bazaar had a problem with their security alarm bell, which was
not working on that particular evening. She was asked to produce the bill of that particular
handbag.
Mrs. Sujata says, Fortunately we have the tendency to preserve bills against any purchase
for a few months.
She is the resident of Mulund since last 23 years and is involved in various social and
public activities. Her husband says, My wife was tortured and harassed for no fault of hers. Her
image and credibility was tarnished because of the negligence of Big Bazaar management. They
should have first ensured that all their security gadgets were functioning properly.
The next day Mr. Shashichand from Big Bazaar visited her house to apologize on this
matter. Nevertheless, he was not ready to give a written apology to them.
One is forced to wonder then, if the other customers of Big Bazaar have to worry that they
would be pulled up and harassed the next time they walk in to do shopping, for no fault of theirs.
A bad case on customer relationship for store which is yet to win the hearts of Mulundkars.
SANEET R. GURAV
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