Web based versus web enabled CRM programs

Customer Relationship Management (CRM) programs are an essential part of any business operation. An effective CRM program will increase the company's revenue by enabling its marketing department to focus on the customer through a variety of means - finding new customers, building customer loyalty through increased customer satisfaction, and growing business from existing customers. The benefits your company will reap from an effective program are far-reaching and include:

• Better relations with your existing customers. Increased customer satisfaction should be the goal of any company. It results in increased sales through cross-selling other products to already-satisfied customers, as well as through recommendations to other potential customers.
•  Improved customer communication. Effective communication with your customers is essential in creating customer loyalty and satisfaction. A customer relationship program will help to improve communication with your existing customers so you can better meet their needs.
•  More effective marketing strategies. A customer relationship management program will help to better identify what marketing strategies are successful for the company and what strategies need to be revamped. In addition, the improved communication allows for marketing targeted to the customer's specific needs.
•  New products and services. By developing better relationships with your currents customers and learning what their needs are, you can provide new products and services that meet their needs, ultimately increasing revenue.
•  Cost-effectiveness. You company will enjoy an increase in value with your current products as well as a reduced cost of supporting and meeting the needs of your customers through a customer relationship management program.
•  Reputation. Through a CRM program, customers and potential customers will see your commitment to customer satisfaction, thereby enhancing your reputation.
•  Access to more customers. Once you feel like your customer service efforts are up to speed and you know your customers and their needs, you can begin to expand your market. A better relationship with your customers allows you to identify prospective customers.

Web-Based or Web Enabled?
When deciding on a CRM program, you can go with a web-based program or a web-enabled one. Each has its own advantages and disadvantages:

•  Web-based. Web-based applications use the internet as the main part of their platforms. Because the CRM applications are run over the internet, you don't need to purchase software for each of your employees; instead, they just need internet access. These web-based applications are preferable to many, as they are cheaper and easier to manage than their web-enabled programs. Instead of paying for the software upfront, they require a monthly fee to run.


•  Web-enabled. Web-enabled programs are not run via the internet. Instead, they have such features as email management features, call center support, and e-commerce applications in software, but the products are still based on client-server technology, which requires each user to have his or her own software, making it more costly than web-based. Web-enabled software can be thousands of dollars, depending on the features.