Customer Relationship Management Heads to the Cloud

1. What types of companies are most like to adopt cloud-based CRM software service? Why? What companies might not be well-suited for this type of software?

Basically, companies which normally want to cut IT staff cost are like to adopt cloud-based CRM software service such as  Siemens, the Wall street Journal, Pitney Bowes, and Starbucks. This is because CRM software service able to track field activities for more than 10000 accounts, with automated reports and dashboards monitoring key performance indicators, sales calls, and sales volume. However, there are some of the companies that are not well- suited for this type of software such as Nikon. This due to the availability assurances and service level agreements are not always available.

2. What are the advantages and disadvantages of using cloud-based enterprise applications?

     Advantages

·         It able to follow up customer satisfaction surveys.

·         Demand system has many capabilities, including embedded tools for forecasting, and analytics and interactive dashboards.

·         CRM on demand can be tracked advertising to prospective students and determined accurate costs for each lead, admissions application, and registered attending student.

     Disadvantages

·         Availability assurances and service level agreements are not always available.

·         CRM apps with a cloud infrastructure have no guarantees that their date will be available at all times.

3. What people, organization, and technology issues should be addressed in deciding whether to use a conventional CRM system versus a cloud-based version?

The people and organization who are like to expand their business normally will try to use CRM system. For example, Dr Pepper Snapple Group adopted Salesforce CRM to replace an outmoded Excel application that requires extensive manual data input to compile reports on more than 50 beverage brands and to sales performance against objectives in real time. Besides from that there are some technology issue should be addressed in decision making for the option of use CRM system. Nikon found that more customers are needed the information from web, call times dropped by 50 percent, and incoming e-mail dropped by 50 percent. Therefore, Nikon still hosted its SAP EPR system internally due to its complexity.