Information Integrity for CRM in a Virtual World

Abstract

As the Internet explosion has opened the doors to unprecedented avenues of e-Business for companies big and small, Customer Relationship Management (CRM) has taken a new meaning altogether, especially for virtual or e-customers. Virtual means of customer interactions via the Web, chat, e-mail, phone, fax and interactive voice recognition (IVR) systems are getting increasingly popular due to cost effectiveness as well as convenience. Companies no longer can rely on face-to-face interaction of their associates with their customers to know them better. As the customer is hidden behind the veil of IP addresses and Internet routers, it becomes increasingly apparent that companies lose the personal touch of yore in its customer interactions. The onus is on the company to provide all interaction capability that the e-customer demands and to “know” the customer by not only tracking and remembering all interactions across multiple touch points, but also be able to analyze customer interaction information to offer additional services such as personalization, security and communities of interest to attract and retain them. The quality and accuracy of data (i.e., customer, market, competitor, product and supplier data) in the CRM system will impact a consistent, error-free way to enhance the customer experience (Goldenberg, 2003). Challenges in understanding and formulating strategies for today’s virtual customers and prospects get accentuated when the quality of data collected and used is circumspect. Be it customer identity, customer preferences, privacy or misconstrued sales practices, these data issues can make or break the company’s future. Let’s take a closer look at the business scenarios for some of these.