Change is the only constant factor in business and managing the lifecycle of customers today.
According to Forrester analyst Bill Band, keeping up with new developments in customer relationship management software is challenging for organizations at every stage of the business cycle. Band stresses the importance of CRM as a key factor in achieving ongoing success. To ensure strong sales in the future, organizations must pay close attention to CRM trends.
1. AI Becomes Standard Fare in CRM and a Competitive Differentiator
By 2023, CRM systems will require AI, and companies like Alibaba, Amazon, and Netflix are leading the way in AI adoption. Several CRM vendors have already incorporated AI-powered apps which enhance analytics, sales, marketing, and customer service. The influence and prevalence of AI in CRM will increase. Although currently, AI functions best alongside human specialists, as the technology advances, the level of human oversight required will decrease.
Anticipate CRM providers to imbue their AI technology with personalities through “AI assistants” for enhanced consumer appeal, similar to Apple’s Siri or Salesforce’s Einstein. Zoho’s Zia AI assistant is an example of how several CRM providers are adopting this trend. As AI’s functionality relies on data, it can be harnessed for any CRM process that produces data. Inevitably, AI will penetrate all facets of customer relationship management as firms will need an AI-driven system to remain competitive. Advantages of AI in CRM at present include:
- More accurate and relevant purchasing recommendations, thus optimizing overall spend
- Real-time analysis of voice data that helps staff minimize negative customer sentiment
- Conversion of unstructured data into structured data to gain business insight
- Reduced customer churn by detecting key data points and patterns that indicate attrition
- Facilitated automation for processes such as lead qualification and customer segmentation
The surge of voice technology in CRM.
The upcoming years will witness a surge in the utilization of natural language processing (NLP), voice tech, and conversational user interfaces (UIs) as CRM tools. According to Statista, the market will see a staggering 8.4 billion devices embedded with digital voice assistants by 2024. This growth will be reflected in the sales and service transactions through CRM systems as there would be a constant increase in the use of voice interaction. Moreover, conversational UIs will become a preferred option for various sales and service interactions. Users can confirm their responses with a simple “yes” or “no” rather than tapping on-screen buttons. Additionally, marketing aspects like calls to action (CTAs) would need to adjust to voice and NLP tech. The integration of voice technology and NLP in the CRM interfaces could bring an added layer of security to many transactions occurring through the system.
By storing the spectrogram, which is also known as a voiceprint, in the CRM, staff, partners, and customers can confirm their identity and obtain access. TD Bank is among the companies that have embraced this technology to assist customer service representatives in quickly and securely identifying callers.
3. Social CRM Evolving from Social Media Platforms
CRM software commonly integrates social features, and it is anticipated that this trend will continue to advance.
Social media platforms like Facebook, Instagram, LinkedIn, Pinterest, and Twitter offer specific tools that enable direct sales and services, signifying a significant shift in sales and customer management practices. As a result, these platforms function as a type of social CRM system, and software vendors have taken notice of the success of social media merchants. Prominent CRM systems will go beyond simple social media channel integration and evolve into social CRM, meaning that social media sales and service processes will be crucial at every stage of the buyer’s journey, the sales funnel, relationship development, and customer service. Incorporating social media data seamlessly is perhaps the most valuable aspect of social CRM systems, as it delivers valuable insights for businesses and market analysis.
Social media data analysis can now measure brand reputation, uncover valuable brand collaborations, and detect changing market structures in ways that were previously unattainable, as per recent research.
By means of heightened automation and self-service, Nimble CRM has become more agile.
The use of automation is increasing in all areas of CRM technology, from chat bots that guide customers to web pages, to automated marketing campaigns and messaging, to systems that can address certain customer service issues without the need for human interaction. For many businesses, automation leads to cost savings, enhanced productivity, and faster marketing and customer service procedures. Clients also benefit from CRM automation when it saves them time, money, and aggravation. Automation also aids self-service and the growing DIY trend in e-commerce and online shopping. As an example, customers can access self-service systems at their convenience rather than waiting to communicate with a representative during business hours. Additionally, staff members save time when automated systems handle mundane, repetitive, and time-consuming tasks. Usually, a mixture of human expertise and automation yields the greatest outcomes, as shown by a recent study that revealed service center agents outperform automated systems in complex customer service scenarios, while automation is more effective for handling straightforward tasks.
5. Customer Data Platforms (CDPs) Become Essential for CRM
The integration of all customer interactions and related data into customer data platforms is a major improvement for CRM methods. CDPs allow sales teams to quickly generate precise buyer profiles from all sources, thereby greatly enhancing the customer analysis functions of CRM systems.
The utilization of an integrated CDP can significantly enhance personalized marketing campaigns and communications via CRM for marketing teams. Additionally, decision makers can derive a more comprehensive data set from the CDP for calculating crucial metrics such as customer lifetime value and acquisition costs.
6. Hyper-Personalized Experiences Crafted by Customer Data
In the realm of CRM trends, the customer experience (CX) takes center stage. According to surveys conducted by Salesforce, a whopping 84% of marketers tailor their marketing strategies and techniques based on past interactions with customers. It’s evident that many vendors seek to maximize their CRM data to provide customers with the experiences they crave. This pattern aligns with the substantial surge in data sources that marketers anticipate utilizing in the coming year. Customer data platforms will undoubtedly be critical in crafting highly customized experiences with efficiency.
Every Amazon homepage is specifically tailored for each customer, taking into account their shopping history, wish lists, browsing activities, and other relevant data points. The Starbucks app has accumulated data for more than ten years, enabling them to provide real-time personalization such as personalized messages, targeted recommendations, and promotions based on prior purchases and other available data. One of the main difficulties in implementing this top CRM trend is accurately interpreting customer data in the appropriate context, a challenge that AI and natural language processing can address for users.
In exchange for convenience, many customers are willing to sacrifice their private data, which can enhance their overall CX. However, customers expect to receive tangible benefits in return for relinquishing some of their privacy.
7. Increasing Cloud Based CRM on Demand than On-Premise
Gartner’s study on CRM patterns predicted that cloud-based solutions would make up 50% of customer relationship management software implementation in 2014.
According to Gartner, the use of cloud-based CRM software is projected to increase by 14.8% each year until 2025. They also predict that 85% of CRM software usage will be based in the cloud. This trend is expected to continue due to the benefits such as better data quality, quicker software upgrades and implementations, and lower upfront costs. As a result, cloud-based CRM will be vital for digital initiatives in the years ahead.
An article on Techworld reported on Seaco’s move to the AWS Cloud, which involved abandoning their data centers in favor of Amazon’s public cloud. Seaco migrated their SAP platform in order to improve their ERP system, and completed the process in the initial week of April 2015.
Since migrating to AWS cloud, Seaco has witnessed significant enhancements in their ERP system compared to their outdated systems. The Director of IT services at Seaco explained that batch jobs were performed with a 90% greater speed and AWS cloud enabled them to reduce the run time of the billing cycle by 70%, which used to be a major challenge in the past.
According to Gartner’s forecast, more than half of the companies will have adopted cloud-based customer relationship management software by the end of 2015. On-premise CRM software systems have the drawback of incurring expensive upgrades for every new development.
As the number of updates and upgrades increases, companies choose to adopt cloud-based CRM software instead of sticking with costly upgrades for on-premise customer relationship management software. This option offers reduced infrastructure costs and provides a flexible platform for future expansion.
In the past, Oracle was resistant to the idea of implementing cloud-based CRM. However, during a keynote speech at Oracle CloudWorld 2015, Shawn Price, Vice President of Oracle, acknowledged that due to shifting business models and consumer behavior, the company’s attention would be directed towards cloud CRM solutions in 2015.
8. Businesses to Focus on Effective Cloud CRM Solutions for Security
The Target and Sony security breaches have highlighted the vulnerability of any network, prompting businesses to prioritize secure cloud CRM solutions due to the rise of cyber-attacks.
According to ReportsnReports, a market research firm, the customer relationship management software segment is projected to expand from 4.2 billion in 2014 to 8.7 billion by 2018 due to the rising need for security.
By adopting an ISO standard to safeguard personal data stored in the cloud, Microsoft has successfully achieved an important milestone. The ISO standard will be implemented in Dynamics CRM Online, Intune, Microsoft Azure and Office 365, making Microsoft the first public cloud service provider to attain this significant achievement.
As the collective knowledge regarding cloud security grows, sales CRM software applications will become more refined. The trend for 2015 in cloud CRM software security is the emergence of “Big-Data” style analytics, which employ sophisticated algorithms to detect unusual network behavior and other malicious activities on the cloud network.
9. Mobile CRM to Become More Powerful
In the past, customer relationship management software had restricted capabilities; however, the year 2015 will introduce a significant shift as CRM providers allocate a considerable amount of money toward enhancing the potency of mobile CRM platforms. With the emergence of powerful mobile CRM applications, businesses are provided with the opportunity to efficiently manage their sales team, thereby allowing them to dedicate more time to sales.
On April 15, 2015, CIO reported on the release of Salesforce’s Sales Engage Cloud, which has become a popular technology trend. Sales Cloud Engage offers agents access to information, marketing materials, and comprehensive analysis of potential leads prior to interacting with them. This enables representatives to create customized nurturing campaigns without the added burden of manually developing ad-hoc marketing initiatives.
The Sales Engage Cloud allows for the incorporation of lead nurture campaigns into the Salesforce1 mobile app, making it possible for sales personnel to easily include leads in their campaigns via their smartphones.
Salesforce has declared the launch of Sales Engage Cloud at a cost of $50 per month for a single seat, which will aid salespeople in accessing the entire engagement record of the prospects with the organization. This will be accessible by the end of April 2015.
In most organizations, “Bring Your Own Device (BYOD)” policies are prevalent, and as a result, Gartner forecasts that 30% of organizations are now providing Tablets as the primary devices for salespeople. Due to the excessive amount of marketing and sales historical data piled up in CRM software systems, representatives are dedicating more time to data entry than utilizing the software.
In 2015, businesses will work towards achieving a balance between gathering data and user-friendliness. The emphasis is more on CRM software providers to develop a streamlined, user-friendly system that can be used on mobile devices instead of a convoluted one that people won’t bother using.
In 2015, companies that select a CRM software supplier that offers robust mobile applications will enhance their profitability by enabling their sales teams to close more deals, generate more precise reports, and better prepare for meetings.
The next major development in CRM software systems is the integration of wearable devices.
The upcoming phase of mobile revolution in CRM software that organizations will utilize to connect with their customers in innovative ways is wearable technology.
By combining wearable computing devices with CRM software, companies across different sectors can acquire immediate access to account information, engage with customers proficiently, and identify numerous opportunities for up-selling and cross-selling to strengthen customer relationships at all touchpoints.
The implementation of wearables will transform the way companies gather information on their clients. Wearables are poised to have a significant impact on CRM trends due to their ability to capture a myriad of data points beyond written communication.
According to a recent report from CIO focused on Enterprise Software, Salesforce is expanding its reach to the Apple Watch to offer its cloud service. Previously, Salesforce had formed alliances with other healthcare wearable creators such as Google and Philips, and is now broadening its horizons by collaborating with Apple. Salesforce’s CRM software will merge cloud, mobile, social, and data science innovations on the wrist in the upcoming year of 2015.
