CRM - optimize your company: Benefits and downsides of implementing CRM systems

Master's Thesis from the year 2010 in the subject Business economics - Offline Marketing and Online Marketing, grade: 1,7, University of Bedfordshire, course: Applied Management Project / Master Thesis, language: English, abstract: III Executive Summary In the past, CRM (Customer Relationship Management) was seen more clearly as a strategic tool in conjunction with technological progress. Now more and more companies use CRM to earn benefits. It helps to understand, manage and develop customer-specific analyses in order to increase customer loyalty and customer satisfaction. The fast-growing market of the different CRM systems is becoming more and more obscure but also more and more interesting for medium sized enterprises. This implementation promises to survive in the market and achieve a competitive advantage. This thesis therefore aims to create a guideline to set aside to a number of clients that helps the clients of medium sized companies to get a sufficient overview of the whole situation around the subject of CRM. Relevant information about the variety of systems, conditions and requirements of using CRM within an enterprise will be provided. In addition, the positive and negative aspects of CRM will be mentioned in this report. Based on the findings this report will clarify the question which economic strategy is correct or preferred for medium sized companies. Many providers offer companies to rent their CRM system during the first steps of implementation rather than to buy it. This offers the possibility to optimise one's own corporate strategy with regard to the procedure which will change a corporate strategy by implementation of a CRM system. The prerequisites of successful implementation consist of many different changes within the company. These changes are the key factors to a successful and profitable decision about the failure or success of the strategy in the market. To round off the issue of the topic, customer satisfaction, customer loyalty and changes in consumer behaviour will be analysed. To benefit from a customer it is particularly important to understand this first. It is advantageous to monitor and track changes in the consumer behaviour and to be prepared at the next step or be one step ahead. Finally, the downsides, risks, benefits and opportunities of the CRM implementation will be analysed and evaluated at the end. Also, a recommendation is offered for the approach of medium sized companies within the implementation-stage.