Your organization really need CRM needs assessment (CNA) you? What kind of scope (and costs) do? And a lot of things, this is the case may be.
Just beginning to feel CRM CRM business opportunities linked to low fruit at hand, do not need to illustrate the analysis. Others want to reach the next level of business, you will find a structured needs assessment for optimizing their CRM investment is very important.
Determine the timing of the implementation of CRM
The purpose of CRM needs assessment is to determine the relevant CRM, time, work out plans and projects to take advantage of these opportunities, and for the implementation of the evaluation and identification of their 优先 sequence so that the delivery of CRM needs assessment is a prioritized, or a CRM project time line with the implementation of road map.
"The most important thing is you have to answer a predetermined question, for many organizations, the first is the problem may be, 'How can we improve the customer experience through access or save more money.'" Forrester vice president Erin Kinikin said .
Along those lines, CNA to answer another important question is "What are our customers really need and value of?" CRM and business preparation for the comprehensive research will investigate the level of the introduction of CAN's customer needs and drive demand to thorough analysis of customer interactions within the data, including historical records and records of customer service to begin very useful.
"In order to better understand your customers, do not neglect your own customer data, many organizations already have the raw data, but they have not studied." Kinikin said.
Analysis of historical records do not interact with information, external consultants and market research are often too busy to collect have been met and unmet customer needs, and their subsequent value. This finding should be the first stage of the internal customer-facing employees from collecting point of view, representative of the organization is a sales organization and customer service organizations.
The role of external consultants
"Internal investigation is necessary, but not enough done within the interviews, can not stop." Deloitte's head of John Powers said, the second step is to meet or investigation of several present, past and future (target market of potential customers ) customers.
The reasons for hiring outside consultants, including their experience and expertise, their objectivity and methodology of their authority. Other reasons include the ability to internal and external participants in the pressure of prejudice and find the root cause and driving force, rather than accepting the answer man.
For example, "give me a lower price" for an answer and a few major customers or the needs of the real line, to understand the deeper values and motivations requires constant communication. Internal staff are often effective guide the discovery phase of the customer feedback have too many defensive.
In the larger sample of customers and attention to quantitative results of the project, market research companies use, "we extracted 25% of our provisions to do this investigation." Powers said, they lower than the consultants because the money Application of investigators conducted a large survey sample size of customers.
Implementation of the CRM needs assessment to address identified opportunities and began to CRM-related projects and planning process and use their step. Depth in the first round of data collection, the information is necessary to put a large background. The next step in the CNA, to improve the analysis and evaluation of customer-related opportunities is the second part of the theme.
Plans for a major
"Customers understand the internal and external surveys to collect first-hand information gathered will make the management more eye-opening," Deloitte's senior partner Ralf said.
Taking into account customer needs to collect unbiased and value of information is very difficult to decide which opportunities to follow will be more difficult.
"It's not easy, but after sufficient effort, a big plan is to create out," Forrester vice president Kinikin said, "we do have every opportunity to compare with the competition rivals, its costs and profits, the company's organizational structure and culture and the company's strategic objectives.
Very similar, a number of sales opportunities generated by CAN investigate the cost is much higher than the interest they may, some may be too dispersed organization, asking for too much cultural change, and some are inconsistent with the company's overall strategy, and some can not be affected by it adequate to support the business units.
CNA investigation, analysis and prioritization of the end result will be the CRM project and possibly with a schedule table for each stage of the implementation plan. CNA's results should be regularly re-analysis in order to make effective and customer-driven re-confirm or re-identification of project priorities. According to the different business and target market, each to two years to conduct a new CNA.
Finally, results
CNA is often overlooked aspect of corporate culture, internal staff must be involved from the beginning on the assessment of alternatives. Challenging to find an access to all the inputs (what customers want, what competition, organizations are ready to do and what the organization's strategic objectives) of internal staff and handed over to him a plan, Kinikin said.
CNA team members at least 50% of internal staff, this part of the people to be at least 50% should come from the CNA opportunity to influence the business unit, Kinikin said that all of the CNA to the external consulting team is our frequent mistake.
To collect customer information entered CNA seem obvious, but many organizations, may reach 50%, failed to recognize this need, "We know what customers need," they said, but "we recommend our customers to do this survey "Deloitte John Powers stressed that" we are doing surveys often find some important, unexpected and unanticipated customer driven. "
Collection and analysis of customer information entered is indeed difficult, time-consuming and costly. Will result in the same senior partner of Deloitte's Christie Smith said the "quick impression of the time issue," she explained, for a long time the implementation of a series of client assessment, may be six months or a typical one to three months to get an accurate trend forecast.
Blow on the balance
Another common mistake, Kinikin said the chance to do too much too little of the collection and analysis and setting priorities.
"CNA CRM tend to generate a long-term project will form" rather than a short list, she noted, "For any organization, theory help the field of CRM activities are great, but, because of budget and corporate culture change can do some of the reasons is relatively small.
A thorough needs assessment of the costs of CRM is the CRM program to a small part (2% -5%), but if well, it will be the highest priority for the company and the largest revenue to provide the critical areas information.
Ye Kai views
Not all businesses need CRM, for cosmetic or other competitors to follow blindly for CRM is not desirable. Long-term planning starting from the enterprise, understand business needs and problems of their own true, this is the most critical. Many companies just ignore their own needs assessment of enterprises, in the absence of clearly defined and ready to grasp the real problems faced by enterprises and real demand, any matters related to CRM deployment is sloppy.
CRM goals and the establishment of a needs assessment, can the introduction of external consultants, internal point of view is not easy, after all, a comprehensive analysis of business needs a neutral, rational use of outside consultants can be avoided own charge of the situation. Based on comprehensive analysis of the data needs and to be able to adapt to a longer period, and to accurately grasp the trend prediction of CRM programs.
Need to see is the continuous development of enterprises, markets and business are constantly changing, therefore, needs assessment is a long ongoing process, and therefore need to introduce long-term management consulting services.