Loading ...I’ve already talked about what’s ahead for CRM in 2007 in a previous post but failed to recognize what was accomplished in 2006. Better late than never right? Despite being well underway into 2007 I felt this list was worth mentioning.
An anonymous author for SearchCRM put together this article and starts it off with this blurb
"For the first time in years, earth-shattering acquisitions weren’t the
biggest news in CRM this year, but the market for CRM technology
remained an active and tumultuous place in 2006. We break down the top
10 stories of the year."
The article then goes on to list the top 10 CRM stories of 2006. We’ll do this David Letterman style and start from number 10…
10. Security isn’t just for databases anymore – CRM practitioners need to start thinking security as well. Research conducted this year found that the customer loyalty costs of data breaches can reach $140 per record. In addition, the HP pretexting scandal and several offshoring fiascos showed how vigilant companies have to be and have left call centers grappling with data security. Yet despite the headlines, marketers remain unprepared should their company fall victim.
9. CRM finds a friend in Google — Not one but two SaaS CRM vendors released tools to link their CRM system with Google’s adwords program. "Marketing nirvana," quipped one customer.
8. VoIP connects in the call center – The benefits of Voice over Internet Protocol became worthwhile for an increasing number of contact centers in 2006 as many, particularly smaller operations, decided to make the move to VoIP, though others remained cautious.
7. Mobile CRM gets a move on — For years, we’ve been hearing it: "This will be the year for Mobile CRM." In 2006, that prediction finally rang true , particularly in the midmarket and with SaaS vendors. Salesforce was so excited it bought a mobile CRM company. And one welding firm gave the trend some credibility with a successful mobile SAP implementation.
6. On-demand outgrows CRM – Software as a Service wasn’t just for CRM in 2006, and it was the CRM vendors leading the expansion with on-demand customization, online communities and open source.
5. SAP gets SaaSy — Having held out for years, SAP emerged with CRM on-demand capabilities in 2006. Much to the chagrin of its competitors, SAP added a twist to the on-demand CRM market, following up its sales module with marketing and customer service modules, eventually marrying SAP CRM on-premise to on-demand and drawing some attention to "hybrid" as a new implementation fad.
4. The return of big CRM… — This year marked the start of a return to spending on enterprise CRM applications, so say prognostications from Forrester, AMR and analysts at the Gartner CRM Summit. Predictions have the CRM market reaching between $8.4 billion and $10.9 billion by 2010.
3…but only after the post mortem — In 2006, everyone had a theory for why, historically, CRM has failed, whether it was too much focus on technology, not enough process or a lack of patience. But at least this year they also offered up some reasons for success.
2. Microsoft follows through — It seems Microsoft makes this list every year. Because it does. Its CRM product showed real momentum in 2006, offering relief after Vista delays, and even made some headway in larger enterprises. Microsoft has big plans to integrate CRM with Office 2007, and Vista as well.
And the number one CRM story of 2006 (Paul, drum roll please….)
1. SAP vs. Oracle — Opposition – not acquisition – strategy was front of mind for Oracle in 2006, as it repeatedly wrangled with SAP over CRM market share. Along with massive marketing efforts, the two applications giants were fighting over vertical CRM and support.
I believe In 2007, the Top CRM story will be about Security, jumping from position 10 to position 1!
Recently Salesforce.com database was breached, and customer accounts were hacked into. Salesforce.com of course down played the whole thing, but If it happened once, it will happen again, maybe with another vendor.
It seems that some software-as-a-service CRM vendors such as Netsuite and Salesboom.com are working on multi-factor authentication using the USB Token technology.
It would be nice if CRM security advancement makes the headlines instead of CRM security breaches!