CRM systems can be used in the customer relationship cycle to manage and automate activities like

initial purchase, after sales service, subsequent purchases and recommend the brand to others. The
customer relationship cycle consists of five stages. Targeting and marketing where customers are
segmented and targeted according to purchase behaviour and response to price and promotions.
Development of offering involves developing the product and its features according to customer
preferences. Sales involves forecasting sales numbers, formulating sales strategies for customers.
Superior experience involves providing a seamless experience for customers before and after
purchase of the product. Finally, retention and winback involves loyalty program management and
running winback campaigns. This will help companies to identify the promotion strategies that will
boost sales and profit.

It depends on the organization. Some organizations require perfect data throughout the customer
lifecycle. But it is always better for companies to distinguish between activities that require perfect
data and those that need good enough information. This will help companies to efficiently manage
costs on acquiring data.

Routine aches are problems that can be solved with minimum effort. These problems though solved
have minimal impact on the company. The solution to the problem can be copied by competitors
easily. These are problems that can be easily identified by the organization.

Strategic pain points are problems that require significant planning and effort to solve. These
problems have a huge impact on the company in terms of tangible benefits. The solution to these
problems provides a competitive advantage, enabling the company to be far better than
competitors. These problems are difficult to identify.

During implementation of CRM systems, it is essential to know business requirements before

knowing what technology can do. It is important for companies to identify what CRM systems should
do before they know what CRM systems can do. By streamlining the requirements of CRM according
to business objectives it is good for companies to make huge returns at minimal cost and risk.

The cost of CRM starts with estimating the defection rate of customers. When the cost of CRM
system is less than the returns, it is better to implement a CRM system. The CRM system should be
capable of identifying the accurate amount of defective customers and loyal customers.