A Home Run for CRM

It seems like we're always harping on CRM failures. That's why it was so refreshing to read about how the Seattle Mariners are capitalizing on CRM methods and technology to improve each visit to Safeco Field.

This article from Destination CRM, "CRM Hits One Out of the Ballpark", talks about how Hilary Harding, the database marketing manager for the Mariners, has implemented a CRM system, with excellent success.

"According to Harding, the Mariners demonstrate perhaps the most comprehensive use of a CRM system of any team in Major League Baseball. "Every sports venue has to manage ticket sales, seat relocation, site maintenance, event planning, marketing, and concessions," she says. "We did all those things well before...but the difference is that, today, we do them better and much more efficiently."

Tracking customer transactions is enhancing the fan experience and it is also positively impacting the Mariners' bottom line. Their CRM system has allowed the Mariners to enhance and improve their direct marketing programs, through superior data mining and matching the right offer to the right fan. The article cites examples of such programs including the launch of their "All-Star Club" (an elite club where businesses can take advantage of great seats, food/drinks without committing to an entire season purchase).

From the article: "It's really amazing how the data can build up over time," says Harding, who helped spearhead the Mariners' three-month CRM implementation in 2000. "All of a sudden, seven years later, we have a goldmine of information about our fans, and it has really opened up the floodgates for cross-selling opportunities as well as putting together special programs and events tailored to our fans' interests."

But the main reason (in my opinion) why the Mariners are doing CRM right is because they have the right philosophy. CRM can never solely be about realizing efficiencies and making money. For it to work right, it simply has to be about improving the customer experience. And, for the Mariners, it's doing exactly that.

"Despite the obvious benefits of mining accurate customer data, Harding cautioned that CRM is much more than data collection. "CRM is truly about creating the desired customer experience," she said."

My final take on this success--if a ballpark can realize the benefits of CRM, businesses that collect customer information as a natural part of doing business (telecom, financial services, etc) have no excuses for not getting this done correctly.

Enjoy your Labor Day. Go watch a ballgame. Eat a hotdog. Have fun!

Who Says Customer Service Excellence Doesn't Pay Off?

TMCNet recently reported that our good friends (and data partners) at TMone have been recognized on Inc Magazine's Inc 5000's esteemed list of important entrepreneurial companies to watch. Not only that, TMone's 28-year-old CEO, Anthony Marlowe, ranked 18th in this year's list of Top 25 Youngest CEO's. Very impressive!

In case you're not familiar with them, TMCNet reports that "TMone functions through two independent divisions — database marketing and contact center services, delivering state-of-the-art services to their respective industries. The database marketing division offers marketing intelligence for direct mail and calling campaigns, providing its clientele, ranging from small businesses to Fortune 500 giants, marketing lists, databases, phone appends, and data processing services. The company’s contact center division facilitates advanced in-bound and out-bound conversions, offering companies in communications, direct marketing, and financial services sectors, marketing campaigns incorporated with database and ancillary marketing channels for enhanced market penetration."

While the article gives us a viewpoint on why they believe that TMone has been so successful, we have our own opinion based upon the superior data and customer service that we've experienced when working with TMone. We work directly with Travis Wilming, Senior Sales Manager. Travis is as impressive as they come when it comes to flexibility, data and services knowledge, customer-focus, being proactive and possessing a sense of urgency. We love doing business with him and his company . . . and due to that, we try to find clients who can benefit from utilizing TMone's data and services in their direct marketing strategy.

You may ask why we are so passionate about working with TMone? Well, the answer is simple: They treat us like a valued customer. For those of you who operate in our high-stress, need-the-data-today direct marketing world, you know how terribly difficult it is to find a data partner who truly cares -- truly cares -- about your (or your client's) needs. It seems that many of the data vendors that we deal with (and you can count many of the big data compilers here) care only about the process (i.e., paperwork, pricing, how much they can charge to deliver the file, what are they going to have to do to process the file, etc). Oddly enough, at times, we've felt that it's more of a hassle to bring them a sale than it is a benefit to their bottom line. It's just plain strange.

So, we love working with TMone and will continue to bring our business to them whenever possible. We know that by working with them that we'll be happy, and more importantly, we will consistently exceed our client's expectations in terms of data quality, delivery and overall customer service and satisfaction.

Congratulations to TMone for this esteemed honor! And for those of you who have never worked with them before -- consider it. We can guarantee that you'll be pleased with the experience!

Know Thyself

Who knew that the ancient Greeks could give advice on CRM implementation? This article from searchCRM.com shows that the Greeks were, indeed, correct about the importance of self-understanding and self-awareness.

Titled "CRM will disappoint without an honest self-assessment," the article discusses the importance of a company truly understanding and articulating what they require from a CRM system before any tool is even contemplated, much less purchased.

From the article: "CRM is doomed to disappoint without a clear focus and self-assessment of a business's needs, according to a recent analyst report (Forrester Research).

History has taught that the "big bang" approach to CRM, massive implementations of technology deployed across sales, service and marketing all at once, has proven to be a failure. Instead, organizations looked to smaller, tactical deployments and are now deploying CRM tactically with an eye to long-term goals."

The article goes on to state that historically CRM purchases were made with a focus on techology, as opposed to developing the understanding that the chosen technology would meet business objectives. I know that we've seen many CRM teams headed by IT, as opposed to sales, marketing, finance or other key users. Now, I have nothing against IT--without them businesses cannot run and, more importantly, :) I can't get my hands on customer data that is so important to my database marketing programs. But, IT should not be the lead decision-maker in a CRM decision.

And, the lack of a focus on business needs when making CRM decisions is evidenced by the high failure rate experienced. "Forrester surveyed 94 business and IT executives responsible for CRM and found that less than 50% were fully satisfied that the benefits met expectations. That's usually due to a lack of focus on specific business capabilities, according to the firm."

So, the lesson learned: Take the time to perform a proper needs assessment. And, by the way, sometimes an outside perspective on this will ultimately save you time and money. An outside firm will have no pre-conceived notions of how the new CRM system 'should' work. They won't bias the process.

What does a CRM needs assessment include? Here are some important steps:

Interview key system users. Listen carefully to what they say. Understand how they perform their day-to-day functions. Understand what would be 'utopia' IF they had the right technology. Document what you learned.

And very important--understand where your leaders are coming from. Get on senior managements' calendars. Talk to your CEO/CMO/CFO about short- and long-term goals. Make sure that any recommended technology addresses these goals and then articulate how the CRM investment is going to take the business closer to meeting objectives. Get management to 'buy-in' to your system, even before you know what the system will look like.

The third component is to get your arms around existing technology and data structures that you'll have to integrate the new system with. Again, documentation is key here. Another benefit--if you have a clear understanding of the systems and data architecture, it will be much easier for your selected vendor(s) to provide you with an accurate view of how their tool will work--within YOUR environment. And, it will help them present an accurate price quote, too.

Finally, once you have developed an understanding of users needs, determined how the system will complement corporate goals and have a feeling how the new system can integrate with existing data and systems, NOW (and only now) is the time to research and interview vendors. We've seen the vendor selection process proceed the above three steps. That's a bad decision. You will be amazed at how much more focussed the decisionning process will be once you have a clear handle on today's environment and future goals.

So, yes, the Greeks were right. A company definitely must "Know Thyself" prior to making the significant investment in CRM technology.

Linking Together Sales and Marketing

You've heard our rants before on the importance of the integrated efforts of your sales and marketing teams. And, we've all seen companies where this isn't the case -- and how that negatively impacts everyone's results. You can probably imagine how happy we were to see this article on one of our favorite subjects, then! Especially one that starts out like this:

"As Benjamin Franklin said at the signing of the Declaration of Independence, “We must all hang together, or assuredly we shall all hang separately.” Neither marketing nor sales can succeed on their own. But together, working in unison, they create a powerful — almost irresistible — force."

We don't think that this can be said too much. Why? Because we are still talking to companies' sales and marketing divisions that continue to be intent on blaming one another for each other's less-than-stellar results. It may not be easy to accomplish this integration between sales and marketing -- but it is imperative to your success.

This very compelling article comes to us from the Greater Fort Wayne Business Weekly. As author, Paul Herbig, states, "Integrated marketing or collaborative selling is where all aspects of the organization — marketing, sales, support, customer service — are found within one umbrella organization, and all facets — databases, personnel, etc. — are integrated to optimize previously discrete business departments. The objective is to link all of the business processes among all these common elements into a smooth-flowing cooperative endeavor. If successful, the end result will be the creation of a customer-centric organization."

I repeat -- this may not be easy, but it is so very important.
As direct marketers, we hate to hear the grousing about how the leads that we carefully provide to the sales team are not resulting into closed sales. And, as sales people, we are tired of getting beat up for not meeting sales revenues due to our perception of "crappy" leads. Hence, the blaming begins. The only way to solve this conundrum is to fully embrace the concept of integrated marketing and selling. Herbig states, "Integration continues to gain ground, but it’s slow and painful. Necessity, not corporate vision, will continue to drive the process of improved marketing and sales integration. Silo-based management of sales and marketing resources promotes waste and thwarts results measurement. It also creates a procedural barrier to ensuring that organizational actions align with organizational goals related to sales and customer retention."

It may be a lot of work but it is definitely worth the effort. Try to begin with the desired end state in mind -- again, from the article, creating that powerful -- almost irresistible -- force. Then, start with baby steps. Create a team that bridges across both divisions and begin with consistent communication, feeding back to each whole team. Talk about what you are each measured on -- then try to determine how you can correlate those results metrics. Set goals that are common for both divisions. It is easier to work together when you are working to obtain the same end result. The systems stuff is definitely trickier -- and more cost sensitive -- but think about what you can accomplish by just communicating and collaborating across the two divisions. If nothing else, better understanding of each group's challenges will result. That alone can create a better working environment between sales and marketing.

If you have any success stories on how your company has been able to bridge this gap and work towards sales and marketing integration, please share! Or, if you have any horror stories on what has happened when this integration has not taken place . . . share that, too. We'd love to hear your thoughts!

Build Your Own Brand

Customization has long been a hallmark of direct marketing. For example, direct marketers have figured out a way to personalize almost every inch of a direct mail piece or e-mail creative. We've all received those mail pieces with our names slapped all over them. Studies repeatedly show that personalization improves open and response rates.

Other studies have proven that if we present a group of product offerings (i.e.: create a customized catalog version) tailored to a specific audience segment, we'll get more sales.

Well, this article made me think about customization in a whole new way. From The Economic Times (of India Times), the article discusses product customization "to enhance the terms of endearment with their consumers". It cites examples of brands that are introducing products that are easily and quickly customizable. One example:

"Wrangler Jeans has come out with its ‘Build Your Jeans’ kit last year that provides consumers to design the fit and accessorise jeans. “It made us differentiate from other jeans brands. Those who did not buy Wrangler, they also started purchasing one,” says Janani Subramaniam, business head of Wrangler. For the denim marketer, this move saw sales skyrocket by 30%."

Other examples from the article include travel agencies who offer customizable trip packages and auto manufacturers who are giving buyers more and more choices to make their car their own.

The article states: "Brands are banking on this concept to add value and build customer loyalty." I tend to agree with them. The concept of ultimate customization builds on a few key marketing premises:

1. Listen to your customers and give them what they want. What better way to serve your customers than to let them essentially build your product? You're changing the paradigm from one where you (as the seller) are pushing generic products out to your buyer to one where your buyer is purchasing exactly what he/she wants.

2. Engage your customers. An engaged customer is much more likely to purchase from you. And, what better method of engagement than to let a customer customize what they're purchasing? Once they've invested time with you (deciding on options, etc), they're much more likely to complete the purchase.

3. Grow value for each sale. The article discusses how customized products come at a premium price (the winning number seems to be 20-30% higher than off-the-shelf). Adding customizable options may allow you to increase your price, hence grow overall profit.

It may be time to review your product and positioning strategy, with an eye towards customization.

The Importance of Master Data Management

CRM has been a buzzword for years. As direct marketers, we've all heard it and know that it means a whole bunch of things to any given person or company. It seems to be customizable to the client problem. The bottom line is that it's all about managing your customer relationships (hence the name, right?), and doing it in a way that increases profitability while also increasing customer satisfaction.

Now there is a relatively new acronym out there -- MDM. In a recent article from TMCNet, Master Data Management is defined as "a strategic business driver as it enables organizations to unify and consolidate data about their customers, products and organizations; data that is often fragmented across different systems. By creating a centralized master data hub, organizations can deliver the most reliable, complete views of key business data within their existing business processes, and more importantly, leverage these data assets within operational business processes to remain in compliance, adhere to various privacy requirements and simplify reporting." Hmmm . . . sounds a lot like a description of CRM, doesn't it?

The difference with MDM is that it focuses on the data specifically, as opposed to the customer relationship. One could argue that these (CRM and MDM) are one and the same, however, the article's key point is about how the Pharma and Life Sciences industries are using MDM to mainly manage regulatory compliance (as opposed to customer relationships).

Why is this so important? MDM has become imperative "as hundreds of millions of dollars of penalties are faced by market-leading pharmaceutical companies related to kickbacks to physicians." And, these penalties "may signal the start of stricter enforcement of what had once been considered trivial legislation." The article argues that all of this could have been avoided if only these industries had put MDM practices into place earlier.

When it comes right down to it, any industry should practice good MDM. As privacy legislation continues to grow, managing your customer data is more important than ever. Not only that, we've always argued that the only way to effectively market to your customers is to effectively manage your customer relationships. It does increase profitability and customer satisfaction. However, it isn't always that easy to accomplish -- particularly as you bring in the technology vendors and they unveil their complex solutions and technologies to solve your business problem. As a matter of fact, it can be downright overwhelming.

This is a pet peeve of ours because we've lived through some of the presentations and the resulting implementations. Here's our advice: when looking for an effective way to manage your data, take a careful look at exactly what you are trying to accomplish first -- then make (force, cajole) the technology partner that you bring in address only those needs. Too often we see that companies are romanced into spending tons of dollars on technology that just isn't needed. Worse still, we see that technology sit there and gather dust as time goes on because it's so complex that nobody can ever figure out how to use it.

So, embrace MDM, CRM . . . whatever you want to label it. If you're embarking on a search to update your technology, read our white paper on Data Management Solutions first. It'll help you avoid some common pitfalls and make your data management initiative more successful.

Happy Friday!

Kudos to the Direct Marketing Association!

This week, Forbes reports that the Direct Marketing Association (DMA), has spent $350,000 for lobbying in just the first half of 2007. The DMA has been lobbying on "legislation involving consumer privacy and protection, the postal system, and a bill to make the moratorium on Internet access taxes permanent, according to a form posted online Aug. 6 by the Senate's public records office. Besides Congress, the association lobbied the Treasury Department, Federal Communications Commission, Federal Trade Commission and the Commerce Department." Phew! Well, now we know where our membership dues go, right?

It's nice to know that the organization that serves direct marketers is so fully involved with our lawmakers to ensure that we can continue to do the good work that we do -- while at the same time protecting the rights of consumers and businesses. The DMA has done an excellent job of balancing the need of the direct marketing industry to market effectively and the need of the public at large to be marketed to in an appropriate way.

As direct marketers, we are under fire more often than not. Even when we explain what we do for a living to relatives, we often get the snide remarks alluding to the fact that we are responsible for all of the unwanted mail and phone calls that they get. I know -- makes for uncomfortable dinner conversation. However, the legislation that has been put into place over the last few years in particular has given consumers the ability to be left alone if they prefer it (i.e., Do-Not-Solicit, Do-Not-Call, CAN SPAM Act, etc.). So, Uncle Herman, put that in your pipe and smoke it! : )

A lot of the reason for the negative press around direct marketing is that there are still those unscrupulous souls who don't pay any attention to the above-mentioned legislation. However, because of the hefty fines associated with all of these laws, the unscrupulous ones have definitely been on the decline (or have had to resort to being more sneaky, thus more easy to spot). So, the legislation has definitely worked to benefit the consumer (and that means all of us -- direct marketers or not).

Luckily, the DMA stays in tune with all of the legislative bodies to ensure that they don't go overboard in their protective stances. This is important -- we need to ensure that there is balance, otherwise, we will become unable to effectively market. Marketing is good -- not bad. But it needs to be done in a way that takes into consideration the desires of those to whom we market. As we work with our clients to create more profitable customer relationships, we need to keep this in mind. Let's face it, without marketing there is no commerce. As direct marketers, it is essential to ensure that we market correctly -- and it's imperative that our industry association -- the DMA -- continues to ensure that we are allowed to continue to do so.

So, a heartfelt thanks to the DMA -- keep up the good work!