One of the major lessons learnt from some of the earliest implementations CRM solutions was for vendors and integrators not to bite off more than the company could chew. Extensive company wide roll outs have virtually disappeared from the CRM landscape, as company's opt for a more gradual, module-based implementation.
James Granter, marketing manager for CRM vendor Multiactive, said the early CRM roll outs didn't leave time for either the technology to be properly tested, or for the staff to seatle in to the new system.
-Everything had to be rapidly implemented on a grand scale," Granter said. -CRM vendors were rolling out massive rigid systems, and customers were expected to work around them."
However, as the market has shifted towards a more modular approach, where the total solutions are gradually rolled out in phases, it has also scaled down its offerings, and increased selling to mid tier companies.
At the other end of the scale, a broader understanding of CRM has also seen new software vendors emerge.
Maryann Farrugia, managing director of Australian software developer Contact has carved out a niche market, targeting hosted CRM solutions to high-end and mid-tier companies.
-We did a lot of market research before developing the product, and basically found out that customers are wary of CRM because of the cost and the time it takes to implement," Farrugia said.
Proving that size is no barrier to innovation, Contact is rolling out an ASP sales model in a similar vein to its titanic counterpart Oracle.
Rather than buy the software outright, customers rent it on a monthly basis.
Oracle's Brett Kennedy points out that businesses are not only attracted to the spreading of costs associated with this model, but are also interested in being able to roll out any changes to the software quickly and painlessly.
-CRM rolled out through an ASP model is all about letting business pick and choose what they want to use, when they want to use it," Kennedy said.
However, CA's business development manager Jim Fisher points out that while the ASP model remains nascent, the modular approach to implementation essentially sees the technology return to its roots.
-CRM is a bit of a fad term really for a series of things that already existed," Fisher said. -It is a bit like a collective term covering everything from sales force automation to data warehousing, so in that sense we have been providing CRM solutions for a long time we just didn't know what to call it."
The guy's name is "Ffrench"?