Here's one for ya -- vendors that supply CRM software to US companies wishing to improve their customers' loyalty have the lowest percentage of loyalty amongst those very companies when compared to other software segments. Ouch! So says a new report from Walker Information...
According to an article from destinationCRM, only 52% of US customers stated that they wanted to continue the relationship with their CRM software providers. Compare this to enterprise software providers who had the highest loyalty percentage of 59%.
US CRM software providers scored high in another area (not good either) -- they had the highest percentage (22%) of high-risk customers. These are customers who have a low commitment and low intention of furthering the relationship with their current vendors. Twenty-one percent of customers surveyed felt "trapped". Look out, CRM providers -- if given a viable alternative, your customers will likely defect.
Why, you ask? Well, here are just a few of the factors contributing to these dismal statistics:
-- Total cost of ownership
-- Product quality
-- Reliability
-- Ease of use
Among the CRM software providers examined, Microsoft came out the only winner have earned the loyalty leader distinction in the US. Sixty-three percent of its US customers are truly loyal - congratulations to them! By comparison, SAP only had 48% of its customers deemed truly loyal.
According to Phillip Bounsall, EVP at Walker, "The line of thinking is -- If you were more customer friendly and you were more focused on me, you would be making products that are more what I want, that are easier for me to use, and that are reliable for me".
Gee, isn't this the very selling line from the CRM software vendors to their customers on why THEY should buy their CRM applications? Maybe these providers should use their own software to understand their customers better...
Posted August 23, 2005 2:47 PM
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