Cloud computing’s impact on customer relationship management (CRM) has been tremendous, but more significant is the notion that cloud computing is only in its infancy, and therefore the potential of further developments has substantial implications for the business world.
The term cloud computing only seems like a fresh buzzword in the world of sales and marketing, but, in fact, that concept has existed for decades. Anyone who has used Web-based email, like Gmail, or Hotmail, or Yahoo!, has experienced the benefits of cloud computing. Anyone who has used Myspace or Facebook has experienced the benefits of cloud computing, and has participated in this new wave of social media and social networking that cloud computing is responsible for. Twitter is the latest example,as it is a cloud computing super-star in the world of social media. It has skyrocketed in growth, appealing not only to individuals, but to businesses as well. Marketers and business executives have taken initiatives based on what they’ve witnessed in the way social medias have influenced the market and consumer behavior.
Cloud computing has undeniably affected the business climate in general, with decentralization, and thinning–even eliminating–the margin for miscommunication. More significantly, perhaps, is the way cloud computing solutions have greatly benefited customer relationship management. Companies like Amazon have exemplified what cloud computing has done–and can do–in the world of customer service. At Amazon, cloud computing has taken customer service to new heights, proving just how mutually beneficial these solutions can be. Amazon customers create accounts, and log on interacting with the online shopping interface. All of the customer’s activity is tracked, stored, and monitored, including purchases, searches, and communication. Also, dates, times, frequency, and other factors are logged into the customer database in real time.
Not only is this beneficial to the customer, but it benefits the sales and marketing initiatives at Amazon by providing the appropriate decision makers and executives with on-demand accurate information. The data can be compiled and segmented in a number of possible ways, to tell the marketers exactly what they need to know. For example, customer data can be segmented by demographics, geographic location, or some other applicable market segmentation. Because the data is so readily available, analysis and interpretation may be completed much sooner than if the company used on-premise software. Sales and marketing executives can view the trends and buying patterns of customers in whichever compartmentalized fashion they feel is relevant. This way, response to customer needs and demands is much more rapid.
Sales efforts can be more precise and tailored to address the needs of specific customers. In turn, the customers benefit from this because Amazon sales initiatives are specific–a promotional email is not distributed to every Amazon customer, for example, but is specifically targeted to certain customers based on the data provided by the cloud computing software, in conjunction with marketing analysis. The data also benefits the customer in the way that Amazon can create recommendations based on the data of other users, hence the useful feature on any of Amazon’s product pages, “Users of this product, also purchased [X].” This leads the customers down a strategic sales avenue that benefits the customer with its convenience and speed of appealing specifically to the customer’s needs, and benefits sales because the tactics are much more effective.
Amazon customers can log in and products will appear that directly appeal to that customer. Also, the Amazon system allows other users to communicate with each other on the interface, in effort to make the shopping experience feel more like a community, rather than just the standard retailer-to-end-user sales push. As you can see, cloud computing provides the ultimate in customer service satisfaction.
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