Customer relationship management (CRM) and customer communications management (CCM) have many similarities, but they both have distinct purposes in business.
Both focus on improving the way companies manage their relationships with customers. They also allow organizations to tailor customers’ experiences to meet their needs. Although both options offer many benefits, it’s important to understand how these solutions work to get the most out of each.
What Is CRM?
CRM is a business practice that focuses on the relationships between the company and its customers.
CRM aims to track, organize, and manage all customer interactions, which can involve everything from monitoring phone calls and emails to organizing customer data into a central database.
Many businesses use CRM software to grow their customer base by providing them with tools for building relationships with current customers, identifying new prospects, and improving their service offerings.
What Is CCM?
Customer communications management is the practice of managing all customer-facing communications to create a positive experience for customers and a high level of customer satisfaction.
CCM aims to manage all content and every aspect of customer communication, from initial contact to resolution. That way, businesses can deliver the best customer experience at every stage.
The content management market has even reached $11 billion because it has become an integral part of organizations. While it’s still a newer technique, business leaders are starting to recognize the importance of CCM in attracting new customers and retaining existing ones.
How Do They Differ?
Customer communications management and customer relationship management are two terms that are often used interchangeably, but they have very different meanings.
CCM and CRM are different, but they often need clarification.
CCM occurs when a customer has a problem or question and wants to reach out to a company. This can mean emailing directly, posting on social media or leaving a review online. Customer communications management is about how a customer rep responds to these situations to reduce churn.
On the other hand, CRM is the overall strategy companies use to manage their customers over time. This includes everything from how they collect data to tracking their satisfaction level and marketing their products or services.
Each system has its advantages. Yet by integrating the two, companies have an even more effective way of enhancing the customer experience and delivering optimal returns on investment.
Why Should Businesses Use CRM?
Companies use customer relationship management to improve their relationships with customers and prospects, enhance their sales processes, reduce costs and increase efficiency. It’s a valuable investment.
In fact, there are plenty of ways that CRM can increase revenue:
- Identifies potential new customers before they become clients.
- It helps organizations understand their existing client’s needs and preferences to provide better service.
- Companies can identify which marketing efforts are working and save money using effective campaigns.
- Allows businesses to find opportunities for new products or services based on feedback from current customers.
Though the key to all this is understanding how data works and how companies can use it to improve the business — otherwise, a CRM is pointless for growth.
In fact, one survey shows that 73% of companies stated that their CRM is broken within their organization. Oftentimes, each department will have its own CRM system, but silos make it challenging for employees to collect data and enhance customer experiences.
Why Do Businesses Need CCM?
CCM is a vital part of any business strategy. The right customer communications management tool can help:
- Reduce costs by automating manual processes and leveraging technology.
- Increase customer satisfaction by providing faster responses to inquiries and issues.
- Gain insight into customers’ needs and preferences to improve your products or services.
In today’s fast-paced digital world, businesses must find ways to stay on top of the latest trends in technology. That way, they can meet their customers’ ever-changing demands.
CCM helps businesses do that by providing them with the ability to deliver consistent messages across multiple channels and media types.
The Value of Integrating CRM and CCM
There is no doubt that CRM systems are a great way to manage customer interactions, but they work even better when integrated with CCM.
CCM allows businesses to manage the content of their communications with customers, whether by email, call or text message. When integrated with CRM, companies can keep track of those interactions on a single platform. Then they can gather insight into the demographics of their customers, allowing them to segment customers and highly personalize every interaction.
By combining CRM and CCM, businesses can create a better customer experience and more opportunities to make sales.
Use the Right Solutions to Propel Your Business Forward
Organizations have always considered CRM to be an invaluable tool for their business. Yet, business leaders have started to see the value in CCM. By implementing both of these methods, companies can ensure they are receiving actionable insights and creating a customer-centric culture within their organization.
