What Went Wrong With CRM - And Why Engagement Might Deliver on Its Promise
By Tom Chandler on Dec 5, 2006 in Business Blogging, Engagement Marketing
I recently received an e-mail from the CRMGuru newsletter.
Frighteningly titled “Humanizing the Digital Brand Experience” it contained the following two graphs of copy:
Emerging media channels reach broadly across all age, gender, income, and ethnic groups now that 79% of US households are online and 84% have mobile phones. These mainstream consumers have new – and higher – expectations for their digital experiences and will tune out when an offer isn’t relevant.
As a result, it is more important than ever for marketers to start with accurate customer data to leverage segmentation models that enable personalization and deliver relevant brand experiences.
Holy passive voice, batman.
Customer Relationship Management (CRM) was an interesting idea - one that fell short because the companies implementing seemingly fell in love with the technology instead of their customers. It suffered its meteoric rise and fall just as all the new media channel put customers firmly in control of the customer/business relationship.
Using data to drive the marketing experience? Good idea. But it crashed. Because the world had changed; no longer could you easily “manage” the relationship with your newly empowered, go-anywhere-on-the-Internet-24/7 customers - and you certainly couldn’t do it via impersonal marketing contacts.
They aren’t “mainstream consumers.” Hell, nobody is anymore…
If you need a clue as to why CRM suffered from poor ROI, look no farther than the last quoted sentence. What they’re describing is not a means of engaging customers.
In an age where a company or CEO can connect with their customers via a blog - sharing information, and connecting at the level of shared passions and values - can you really “deliver relevant brand experiences” via cold, impersonal marketing methods?
A blog or other online community truly delivers a “relevant brand experience.” It does so inexpensively, and without the risk of spooking customers, who - if you deliver a truly personal experience via a marketing channel - suddenly wonder just how much you know about their lives.
Engagement marketing is hardly the final step in the evolution of marketing. And it’s clearly only one part of the marketing food chain. But it works, and it doesn’t rely on expensive, enterprise-level technology and unwieldy data systems.
You simply talk to your customers. Look for areas of connection (typically passions and values), and let them tell you what they want.
Technorati Tags: engagement, CRM, marketing, segmentation, brand
I agree and would like to add to the concept of engagement. I believe that each customer buys with one of two buying personalities. Which one comes into play in a given circumstance depends the customer’s existing mindset and the business practices of the vendor. Traditional business practices court the “indifferent” personality which buys utility on the best trade-off between price and convenience. There is no inherent loyalty. CRM had potential but quickly became a tool to perfect this approach.
The engaged buying personality comes into play when the customer is emotionally and psychologically involved in the experience. They may derive utility but the compelling factors are emotional. This is not “delighting” customers, this is enabling them to derive more gratifying experiences. The reward, increased desire for the experience surrounding the product and accruing of strong relationship value to the company enabling the experience.
John I. Todor, Ph.D. author of Addicted Customers: How to Get Them Hooked on Your Company.
John I. Todor, Ph.D. | Dec 5, 2006 | Reply
Thanks for the post. It’s an interesting idea, and I’m going to devote a little thought to it. I immediately warmed to the idea that “traditional business practices court the “indifferent” personality…”
That, I’m afraid, is spot on.
Tom Chandler | Dec 5, 2006 | Reply