CRM Vendors and issues

With the launch of E.5, E.Piphany have taken a big step forward in getting closer to Sieble the market leader in the rapidly growing CRM market.

E.5 manages all inbound and outbound customer contacts from sales, service, and support interface points. It promises to provide real-time, rule-based personalisation by bringing data from clickstreams, customer databases, transaction systems, third-party data, and other sources into one view. Data is accessible any time the customer is on the phone or visiting the website. The software is also capable of creating and tracking concurrent, multi-channel campaigns with varying frequencies. Furthermore, E.5 promises to enhance service and support functions by bringing such information as purchase history and product preferences to service representatives, giving them the ability to cross-sell and repeat-sell products as well as handle complaints.

Whilst E.5 is a revolutionary product that will up the ante for competitors such as Siebel, Clarify, and Broadbase, it still lacks tight integration with ERP and other back-end systems. This creates a dilemma for companies with ERP systems in place that are looking to add CRM functionality. There is currently a trade-off between purchasing a top notch CRM product from E.piphany or Siebel that is disconnected from your ERP, or a CRM module from an ERP vendor such as SAP or Peoplesoft that is tightly integrated with the ERP system but does not have the functionality of a dedicated CRM suite.

Furthermore, CRM software has to be complemented with significant organisational change. These systems are intended to support customer-centric business processes. First and foremost, departments have to be willing to share information freely. A unified view of the customer is not possible unless each department is willing to share data with the rest of the organisation. Marketing has to redesign campaigns to take advantage of one-to-one marketing, and service representatives have to be empowered to sell. Firms looking to purchase CRM software must be prepared to make these and other changes if they plan on exploiting the benefits of the software.

Companies considering the implementation of a CRM product should strongly consider one or more of the six E.5 modules available. Close competitors Siebel and Broadbase should also be considered. Companies should also be aware of smaller, best of class CRM products that though limited in scope have better functionality in specific areas. Although these niche products may not easily integrate with other parts of a different vendor's CRM system, they are smaller products and carry less implementation risk than large suites.



	CRM Vendors & issues With the launch of E.5, E.Piphany have taken a big step forward in getting closer to Sieble the market leader in the rapidly growing CRM market. E.5 manages all inbound and outbound customer contacts from sales, service, and support interface points. It promises to provide real-time, rule-based personalisation by bringing data from clickstreams, customer databases, transaction systems, third-party data, and other sources into one view. Data is accessible any time the customer is on the phone or visiting the website. The software is also capable of creating and tracking concurrent, multi-channel campaigns with varying frequencies. Furthermore, E.5 promises to enhance service and support functions by bringing such information as purchase history and product preferences to service representatives, giving them the ability to cross-sell and repeat-sell products as well as handle complaints. Whilst E.5 is a revolutionary product that will up the ante for competitors such as Siebel, Clarify, and Broadbase, it still lacks tight integration with ERP and other back-end systems. This creates a dilemma for companies with ERP systems in place that are looking to add CRM functionality. There is currently a trade-off between purchasing a top notch CRM product from E.piphany or Siebel that is disconnected from your ERP, or a CRM module from an ERP vendor such as SAP or Peoplesoft that is tightly integrated with the ERP system but does not have the functionality of a dedicated CRM suite. Furthermore, CRM software has to be complemented with significant organisational change. These systems are intended to support customer-centric business processes. First and foremost, departments have to be willing to share information freely. A unified view of the customer is not possible unless each department is willing to share data with the rest of the organisation. Marketing has to redesign campaigns to take advantage of one-to-one marketing, and service representatives have to be empowered to sell. Firms looking to purchase CRM software must be prepared to make these and other changes if they plan on exploiting the benefits of the software. Companies considering the implementation of a CRM product should strongly consider one or more of the six E.5 modules available. Close competitors Siebel and Broadbase should also be considered. Companies should also be aware of smaller, best of class CRM products that though limited in scope have better functionality in specific areas. Although these niche products may not easily integrate with other parts of a different vendor's CRM system, they are smaller products and carry less implementation risk than large suites.