February 2008

Magazine Features

CRM Gets Serious

With customer loyalty an ever-more-fleeting commodity, businesses must deliver consistent -- and consistently high-quality -- service. In the five stages that define CRM maturity, is your company among the leaders? Not knowing means you're not there yet.

Always On

The new generation of consumers, clients, and customers is perpetually connected -- to the Internet, to you, and to each other. What can Web 2.0 do for you?

Rumble in the Office

Your sales force and your technology staff may not respect each other's turf, but you'd better broker a truce if you want your business to thrive.

The Smallest Slice

A pristine customer database -- names, addresses, phone numbers, all neat and clean -- is only the first step. Now you have to market to certain parts of that group: How do you carve out just the right piece of the pie?

Front Office

Grow Up!

Despite all the buzz around CRM 2.0 and Web 2.0, companies, on average, have been stuck in place for two years.

Reality Check

Multiplicity Means More

Customers want it. Technology allows it. The Digital Client demands it. So why have so few companies mastered multichannel CRM?

Customer Centricity

2008 Contact Center Challenges

Before managers can tackle primary goals, obstacles must be overcome.

The Tipping Point

Are You Ready for SaaS?

You may think you are, but the truth is this: Size matters.

Scouting Report

Monitoring the Quality Monitors

What you need to know about quality management and liability recording solutions.

Pint of View

The Bold Flavor of Brand

There's smoke, but maybe not fire, in the world of product image.

Insight

CRM Drives Down-Market

SAP and Microsoft make big moves to embrace smaller customers.

The Loyalty Riddle

Can marketing overcome the customers who talk about you?

Out of the Gate: Marketers Rate '08 Traits

Though marketing seems committed to its customer-centric approach, opinion is divided on which specific trends will dominate this year.

Market Focus: Professional Services -- Consultants Adapt to Changing CRM Landscape

On-demand CRM remains an ongoing challenge, but social networking promises to be the real wild card.

The Pulse

What are your company's plans regarding data quality?

Required Reading: Strategic Minds Think Alike

But why?

REAL ROI

Burning Up the Paper Trail

Origen Financial turns to automation to minimize a mountain of mortgage paperwork.

Tying Up Cable's Loose Ends

A Web-based solution helps Molex Premise Networks log project, customer, and contact information.

Sunny Skies for Knology

Impact 360 helps to forecast warmer service for a southeastern telecom's "snowballing" contact center.

No More Bumps for BlueRoads

Marketo smooths out pay-per-click campaigns that were costing more (and producing less) than they should.

Secret of My Success

Redefining High Definition with CRM

Silicon Image's HDMI unit used Oracle iStore to handle a growing licensing business.

Re:Tooling

Tech Solution: Marketing Resource Management Software

Business Problem: Marketing needs to manage the back end to free up time better spent delivering relevant creative material and addressing individual customer needs.