April 2009

Magazine Features

The 2009 CRM Service Awards: Table of Contents and Introduction

The leaders, the winners, and the honorees -- the best of the CRM service industry over the last 12 months.

The 2009 CRM Service Awards: Service Leaders -- Introduction

Eight categories -- including one making its debut -- reflect the very best the CRM service-and-support industry has to offer.

The 2009 CRM Service Awards: Service Leaders -- Contact Center Infrastructure

The 2009 CRM Service Awards: Service Leaders -- Interactive Voice Response

The 2009 CRM Service Awards: Service Leaders -- Web Self-Service

The 2009 CRM Service Awards: Service Leaders -- Web Interaction Management

The 2009 CRM Service Awards: Service Leaders -- Workforce Optimization Suite

The 2009 CRM Service Awards: Service Leaders -- Contact Center Search

The 2009 CRM Service Awards: Service Leaders -- Enterprise Feedback Management

The 2009 CRM Service Awards: Service Leaders -- Outsourcing

The 2009 CRM Service Awards: Rising Stars -- Introduction

The five companies we cast an approving eye on -- some names that might be new to you, but at least one that will be all too familiar, in a different context.

The 2009 CRM Service Awards: Rising Stars -- Get Satisfaction: Socializing Your Service

Get Satisfaction enables customers to connect with companies—and receive "people-powered customer service" in return.

The 2009 CRM Service Awards: Rising Stars -- Helpstream: Ministering to the Masses

Helpstream brings the community into customer service.

The 2009 CRM Service Awards: Rising Stars -- Parature: Gaming the System

On-demand customer service provider Parature expands from interactive gaming to target firms of all sizes.

The 2009 CRM Service Awards: Rising Stars -- Salesforce.com: Clouding Up the Scene

CRM veteran Salesforce.com utterly revamps its service offering through acquisition and innovation.

The 2009 CRM Service Awards: Rising Stars -- Sword Ciboodle: Crossing the Pond

Sword Ciboodle—the former Graham Technology—plants a flag in North America.

The 2009 CRM Service Awards: Service Elite -- Introduction

This year's class of four companies impressed us with their CRM service-and-support efforts—and, more important, they impressed their customers.

The 2009 CRM Service Awards: Service Elite -- Bath & Body Works: Spiffing Up the Center

Astute Solutions helps Bath & Body Works' knowledge management system smell like roses.

The 2009 CRM Service Awards: Service Elite -- CBS Interactive: Playing the Games

CBS Interactive optimizes online service across all its sites so customers never miss a minute of the action.

The 2009 CRM Service Awards: Service Elite -- Municipality of Coamo, Puerto Rico: Pleasing the Public

The Municipality of Coamo, Puerto Rico, connects to the community with Microsoft Dynamics CRM and Rock Solid Technologies.

The 2009 CRM Service Awards: Service Elite -- LifeLock: Scaling for Security

Identity-theft guardian LifeLock finds the key with on-demand contact center platform LiveOps.

Front Office

Service with a :-)

Customer strategists' service and support options are rapidly multiplying.

Reality Check

First Steps Are Always Critical

The Journey of Implementation — Part 1: Before the design and deployment stages begin, planning is everything.

Customer Centricity

Is Customer Experience Relevant in a Recession?

Only if you remember why it mattered in the first place.

The Tipping Point

Your Customers Want You to Know Them

Consumers—at home and abroad—are demanding that companies address their needs.

Connect

Social Customers Want to Engage

But are you prepared to let them?

Pint of View

We Reserve the Right to Screw Up Your Service

Service gaffes are part of life, but some of them are just astounding.

Insight

Power to the Consumer

New federal laws require an opt-out for prerecorded calls—but that just might lead to better relationships.

On The Scene -- Net Promoter Conference ’09: Can You Hear Me Now?

Wireless service providers aren't listening to their loudest customers

Bad Billing Will Kill Off Your Biggest Buyers

More than half of telecommunications carriers don't measure customer satisfaction when it comes to enterprise billing.

Social Support for Software

Vendors unleash a new round of community forums for their customers.

Market Focus -- Telecommunications: Bundled Offerings, Better Retention?

As service providers expand their combined multimedia packages, customer service requires attention.

Required Reading: Hear Ye, Hear Ye, Tell All About It

Solving a problem works best when others help you spread the good word.

CRM on Twitter: April 2009

Customer service tweeps speak for themselves.

Feedback: April 2009

Readers get smart on business intelligence.

Re:Tooling

Re:Tooling -- Knowledge Management: Knowledge (Management) Is Power

The need for knowledge now permeates the enterprise.