Are you being strategic about CRM?

In an article in CRM Magazine, Woody Driggs of Accenture made the point that successful CRM starts with strategy.

I agree.

Too frequently, we at Navint see companies getting caught up in the software and technology aspects of CRM: e-mail marketing, workflow, dashboards, fancy reports, and all the other bells and whistles that make CRM "cool."

The one thing they forget about is their strategy for competing in the marketplace, and how it drives their CRM strategy and tactics.

What good is e-mail marketing if you are targeting the wrong people or have an ineffective message? Or perhaps you are communicating with people who don't have e-mail and prefer fax?

What good is workflow if you are automating processes that shouldn't even exist or that deliver bad data?

What good are dashboards and reports if they are reporting information that does not help you create or maintain a decisive advantage in the marketplace?

So what should you do to ensure a successful CRM implementation?

First of all, don't make the mistake of thinking that CRM is just software and that it will solve all your problems. CRM is just one aspect of your overall strategy, and it includes not only technology and software, but people and processes, too. And whenever people are involved, significant effort in change management is required.

If you are at the beginning of a CRM implementation, then be sure to start with your overall business strategy, as well as your marketing strategy, and consider the following questions as a starting point:

1. What is your competitive advantage? How can you strengthen it?

2. How do you acquire new customers? How can you do it better?

3. How do you service existing customers? How can you do it better?

4. How do you market to and grow the revenues from existing customers? How can you do it better?

5. What are the best ways to communicate with prospects and customers in your industry and market?

6. What do you need from your employees to ensure a successful implementation? What do you need to do to help them?

If you have already implemented CRM, and want to get more out of it, then revisit your strategy on a regular basis - at least annually, if not more frequently - and consider the questions above and how they relate to your CRM implementation. Make any necessary adjustments.

Finally, be sure you have the right implementation partners and advisors as you embark on your CRM journey. If the partners you are considering don't bring up the issue of your strategy near the beginning of your relationship, then it might be smart to look for somebody who does.

Because without the strategy, you've got nothing but an expensive contact manager with some silver bells and golden whistles.