CRM Trends that we should consider

Customer experience (CX) is still the key component that customers need in 2020. Modern customer relationship management (CRM) must be used as a foundation for customer engagement in order to deliver experiences that keep your customers coming back for more. Here are some trends for CRM in 2020 that you may need to think about:

1. Self-service for end-to-end customer journey support increases. More customers self-serve as the first point of contact with companies. We see companies increase their investment in self-service technologies: marketing resource management solutions to track marketing outcomes, commerce solutions, and customer-facing configure price quote (CPQ) solutions, chatbots, knowledge management, and more.

2. AI and automation continue to improve CRM outcomes. AI-fueled CRM guides sellers and agents through the right actions, empowers them with the right insights, and optimizes campaigns, product configurations, and pricing. However, we see companies struggle with larger, transformative initiatives to digitize and automate core processes.

3. Unified CRM boosts targeted role-based experiences. Great customer experiences rest on tailored role-based experiences, delivered by a unified CRM with tight coupling to back-office applications — not by departmental, siloed CRMs. We see the continued consolidation of departmental CRMs into broader business solutions.

4. Customer value models accelerate ongoing customer success. As more companies shift to subscription models, renewals and expansions become more important to their success. We predict that success, onboarding, and CRM technologies will blur; this will provide all frontline personnel with better visibility of the customer’s value to the organization. Also, new CRM licensing models that focus on business value and outcomes, rather than software consumption, will emerge.

5. Mobile CRM Isn’t Going Away. If anything, as processes become more involved, the workforce becomes more scattered and buyer demands place more pressure on sales reps to perform, putting the power of CRM into the palm of your workforce’s hand will only serve to propel your brand further down the road to success. As you evaluate your current CRM — or look at implementing your first CRM — don’t underplay the value mobility can bring to your operations.

6. CRM Will Continue to Get Social. As the customer experience bar raises to new heights, social media has become a focal point. Social channels allow companies to connect with their audience in real time and build brand equity where prospects and customers are already spending time. Email and phone support aren’t dead, but some customers will prefer the ease of using social media to resolve their question. And that’s the point. Giving people the option to choose which platform to connect with your organization, on their terms, is a fundamental part of winning.

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