CRM is (Almost) Dead.

•  
  jvinch02/22/08 Report as spam
  1

  What's that about lipstick on a pig?

  CRM/SFA or whatever you call it is powerful. Unfortunately, it got a really bad
  start from which it never really recovered.
  
  Here's the problem - to most salespeople CRM isn't anything more than a
  stick that their management uses to beat them. It's a fairly large
  administrative burden on folks people who don't see the benefit, people who
  don't really experience how it helps them sell.
  
  So you can call it what you want, really, but as long it's just "busy work" for
  many salespeople - the problem won't go away.

•  
  Jim71102/22/08 Report as spam
  2

  RE: CRM is (Almost) Dead.

  Love that last one ???Sales Productivity Improvement Tools.??? S.P.I.T

•  
  NU Girl02/23/08 Report as spam
  3

  RE: CRM is (Almost) Dead.

  all I can say, I use the name of our "system" as a swear word!

•  
  TheCRMDilemma02/23/08 Report as spam
  4

  RE: CRM is (Almost) Dead.

  It really doesn't matter what it's called. After being a sales rep for almost twenty years, I was asked to lead the North American CRM implementation at our company. I have now conducted extensive research on what I have termed "The CRM Dilemma" that has determined that any system that involves activity controls will fail. The quote that sums it up is from Douglas Hartle - "It is a rare dog that will carry the stick with which it is to be beaten." Feel free to have a look at my research that is informally presented on my blog called "The CRM Dilemma."

•  
  upshift02/25/08 Report as spam
  5

  Blog location

  I would be very interested in finding the Blog on CRM. Would it be possible to get the location?
  
  Thank you.

•  
  Geoffrey James, Sales Machine02/25/08 Report as spam
  6

  I think it's here:

  http://thecrmdilemma.blogspot.com/

•  
  TheCRMDilemma02/29/08 Report as spam
  7

  My blog

  This is the correct address to my blog. Enjoy and I welcome your feedback on my research.

•  
  Aimee33302/25/08 Report as spam
  8

  I'm with you

  I used to be the National Sales Manager for a High End Post House. My Boss got real excited about a SFA/CRM. And Ofcourse I had to get excited. The fact of the matter is-I became a National Sales Manager of High End Crud! Like you said, great reports-bad performance.

•  
  jimdaley02/25/08 Report as spam
  9

  RE: CRM is (Almost) Dead.

  Are there really companies calling CRM ???Sales Productivity Improvement Tools??? The acronmym becomes SPIT!

•  
  andrew2wyatt02/27/08 Report as spam
  10

  CRM should become a sales and lead tool

  In order to avoid dead: CRM solutions should become sales tools for sales.
  
  Currently in B2B markets most leads will visit company website.
  And during the sales process prospects will re-visit the website.
  Even your customers will pay a visit to your website, when they need new products or solutions.
  
  In order to help Sales: just give them a tool for discovering and identifying the website visitors.
  The CRM should receive the constant inflow of visiting data, thus making the CRM interesting to be used by Sales. The CRM becomes a source of information instead of a data input battle (with sole purpose feeding the Sales & Marketing VP's or Directors).
  
  One such solution is LEADSExplorer (www.leadsexplorer.com): integrated website visitor identification and CRM with focus on prospecting and selling.

•  
  Geoffrey James, Sales Machine02/28/08 Report as spam
  11

  CRM or not CRM

  The functionality that you describe is EXACTLY the functionality of the product from one of the CEO who told me "NO WAY DO I WANT TO CALL THIS CRM!" The acronym is becoming toxic due to problems with the standard implementations.
  
  I agree, though, that monitoring website usage can be a very valuable technological tool in terms of developing a prospect.

•  
  john@...02/29/08 Report as spam
  12

  RE: CRM is (Almost) Dead.

  Dear Colleagues,
  As a management consultant with banks, insurance companies and trading houses in the Middle East and Europe I have moved from customer service, through crm into enhanced customer relationships and business before technology. We should use 'customer focus - customer choice' and recognise our own requirement to work harder to satisfy their needs rather than our own never ending waterfall of data we struggle to find time to read. Thanks, John Davis, john@scottdavismgt.fsbusiness.co.uk

•  
  Geoffrey James, Sales Machine02/29/08 Report as spam
  13

  Excellent

  Brilliant comment!

•  
  gemofaperson06/02/09 Report as spam
  14

  Customer Engagement and Fulfillment

  We can now call it CEF

•  
  darwin.com10/19/09 Report as spam
  15

  RE: CRM is (Almost) Dead.

  great post!
  
  Mike Chatha
  
  Darwin - CRM has evolved