For CRM to work, a company must unleash people's commitment by giving them the freedom to try out their own ideas and make a difference to results. Many managers are uncomfortable about releasing control in this way. 5. The company needs to make sure that it has a process of continuous data- gathering at customer touch points (the Net, phone, direct mail, etc). That data has to be turned into knowledge to understand customers and predict their needs. This information should be available to all staff in customer- facing operations.
6. Data must be valued as a key business resource by all staff at all levels, e.g. a call handler needs to be able to recognise an implementer, a decision- maker, a regular contact or an occasional purchaser. John Cooper, a Royal Mail consultant, said: "If the caller is treated like a new customer every time, then your business is really missing a trick." 7. Indiscriminate data-gathering clogs the system. Data collected must be vital data. 8. Surveying customers' opinions is not enough. Good CRM tracks actions as well as words. 9. Andrew Greenyer of The Database Group says that successful CRM depends on the three C's: • correctness - is data used validated and clean? • clarity - the system must be easy to use, such as a windows-based system. • cost - the project must be manageable and geared to the size of the business. 10. Keep all options open -while companies need to allow customers to contact them by whatever method they prefer, research by Brann Contact shows that 86% of people still prefer to telephone a company rather than contact it via the Web.