help w/replies (4) due in 24 hours

TOPIC 1:

ADRIAN P. POST:

What is a social media CRM platform?  

Social Customer Relationship Management (CRM) is an integration of traditional CRM with social media enabling “a deeper understanding of customer behaviors, preferences, and feedback, leading to more effective and personalized customer engagement strategies” (Scheiner, 2024).  It helps acquire new customers and build brand loyalty, plan social media posts and gathers analytics on how well a company’s social media presence is doing.  

Why would an online merchandise store like CompanyOne combine CRM and social data?  

Song (2023) states that CRM accomplishes three main points: tracking customers’ profiles, building valuable relationships, and improving customer knowledge.  By tracking customers’ profiles such as their history, CRM helps understand a customer’s needs throughout their interaction with the company.  Improving relationships links with improving a company’s “performance by promoting customer loyalty, enhancing customer service, increasing personalization, and improving sales and general profits” (Song, 2023).  Increasing a company’s customer profile knowledge helps to acquire and retain the right customers.  

CompanyOne, an online merchandise store, should combine CRM and social data for various reasons.  Choudhury and Harrigan (2014) state that “as individuals depend more and more on the social media technologies for keeping connection with friends and peers, it has become a domain for a plethora of information arising out of such interactions for businesses.”  This increased level of interaction with friends leads to an increase in the level of interaction with business counterparts that users interact with (Choudhury & Harrigan, 2014).  Lastly, the increased use of social media can help influence CompanyOne’s performance with the increase of customer engagement and information sharing via various social media platforms (Choudhury & Harrigan, 2014).  

What is the impact on its brand? Explain. 

Social media CRM can impact a brand in several ways as it provides a means for direct customer interaction and provides a rapid response to concerns and gathers valuable data for customer preferences.  Social media users can share their brand experience on a platform, their voice and experience can potentially reach and audience of millions (UMGC, 2024). 

Kissinger (2023) notes that “by analyzing social media interactions, businesses can identify trends, monitor brand perception, and understand customer needs.”  Direct interaction and faster response build stronger relationships between customers and businesses.  The stronger relationship and positive experience can also be shared on social media attracting potential customers.  Companies can also use direct response to address any issues consumers are experiencing increasing customer satisfaction and improving brand image. 

 

References

Choudhury, M., & Harrigan, P. (2014). CRM to social CRM: the integration of new technologies into customer relationship management.  Journal of Strategic Marketing, 22. doi:10.1080/0965254X.2013.876069

Kissinger, H. (2023, November 23).  The Impact of Social Media on Customer Relationship Management (CRM). Retrieved from Medium.com: https://medium.com/@henrykissinger51/the-impact-of-social-media-on-customer-relationship-management-crm-67d9d29100dd

Scheiner, M. (2024, February 05).  What Is Social CRM? 10 Best Social Media CRM Tools Reviewed. Retrieved from CRM.org: https://crm.org/crmland/social-crm

Song, J. (2023). A Review of the Impact of Social Media in Customer Relationship Management of Large Corporations in the UK.  Advances in Economics, Management and Political Sciences, 22, 144-150. doi:10.54254/2754-1169/22/20230302

UMGC. (2024).  Social CRM. Retrieved from UMGC.edu: https://leocontent.umgc.edu/content/scor/uncurated/mba/2218-mba640/learning-topic-list/social-crm.html?ou=927837

ANIKO POST:

What is a social media CRM platform?

A social media customer relationship management (CRM) platform is a digital environment where customers can share their experiences with a brand among their social circles. This opens up the possibility for a vast number of individuals to view a single user's interaction and contribute their own perspectives. Given that social customers value the opinions of their peers highly, they are more inclined to form a favorable impression of a brand, product, or service when it is recommended or praised by someone they know ( Social CRM, UMGC, n.d.).

Why would an online merchandise store like CompanyOne combine CRM and social data?

According to Liebowitz's (2022), the rise of social media has facilitated businesses in collecting customer information and tracking their online interactions through public social channels. Social CRM software integrates social media data with a company's current CRM software, enabling a complete analysis of an individual's online behavior.

It is recommended for CompanyOne to integrate both CRM and social data in order to gain a more comprehensive and valuable understanding of customer sentiment towards the company, brand, and specific products or services. Doing so will enable the business to respond more effectively, act with greater agility, and even anticipate customers' future needs. In addition, by tracking social interactions with customers, CompanyOne will be better equipped to deliver swift and satisfactory resolutions to customer service cases across the entire organization, resulting in increased customer satisfaction ( What Is Social CRM? Learn How Customer Service Works Best in a New Social Media World., n.d.).

Certainly, analyzing social data will help CompanyOne identify important trends and patterns in customer behavior and complaints, which can then be used to inform marketing strategies, product development, and customer service approaches.

What is the impact on its brand?

Social data integration into CRM offers various benefits to businesses. Here are five ways it can help them enhance customer engagement, insights, service, lead generation, and brand reputation (Wani, 2023):

1. Real-time Customer Engagement: With social media platforms, businesses can respond to customer queries and concerns in real-time, fostering a sense of connection and responsiveness that improves customer satisfaction.

2. Customer Insights: By integrating social media with CRM, businesses can collect valuable customer data, including demographics, preferences, and behaviors, which can be used to tailor marketing strategies and improve products or services.

3.  Improved Customer Service: Social media provides a convenient channel for customers to seek assistance. By promptly addressing issues, businesses can demonstrate their commitment to customer satisfaction and build trust.

4.  Enhanced Lead Generation: Social media platforms are excellent sources for generating leads and identifying potential customers. CRM systems can help track and manage these leads effectively.

5.  Monitoring Brand Reputation: Social media integration enables businesses to monitor their brand reputation by tracking mentions and conversations related to their products or services. This helps in addressing any negative sentiment before it escalates.

References

Liebowitz, M. (2022). Why You Need a Social Media CRM Platform.  Brandwatch.  https://www.brandwatch.com/blog/why-you-need-a-social-crm/

Social CRM (n.d.). Document posted in University of Maryland Global Campus MBA 640 9046 online classroom, archived at:  https://leocontent.umgc.edu/content/scor/uncurated/mba/2218-mba640/learning-topic-list/social-crm.html?ou=927837

Wani, S. (2023). Social Media Integration in CRM: Enhancing Customer Relationships in the Digital Age.  Medium. https://medium.com/@shreesagarwani/social-media-integration-in-crm-enhancing-customer-relationships-in-the-digital-age-11c0bcd7095a

What is Social CRM? Learn how Customer Service works best in a new Social Media world. (n.d.). Salesforce.  https://www.salesforce.com/eu/learning-centre/crm/social-crm/

TOPIC 2

ANNE POST:

How can CompanyOne use social CRM tools to track and engage its customers across different social platforms? What should CompanyOne do to ensure a successful social CRM strategy? What challenges can it face? Explain.

If CompanyOne wants to track and engage with customers and while doing so in different platforms, first and foremost, they have to understand that the buyers themselves. This could also be known as the touchpoint, that has three phases, which is prepurchase, purchase and the post purchase (Understanding Customers, 2024). Once these have been established it makes a smoother transition in the long run.

The reason for the important of social media platform is basically to share what other people know about the brand or the products. Therefore, it makes an easy connection with one another even if the person lives in a different country. According to the reading material called Social CRM (2024), there are many ways to track social CRM. The first one that can help CompanyOne is putting their business with third party such as Yelp. Customers can make input about company and the more star they received the great their reputation would get. This also involved the monitoring part, where CompanyOne should response back to either a complaint or a compliment to show that they care and understand the feedback that was given. In short provides different perspective on both sides, customers and the prospectives (Bottorff, C. & Polner, M., 2022).

The article that was provided in the reading material called Implementing a CRM Strategy (2024), it was suggested that there are five parts to go over. The first one being is that there needs to be an analysis, which means that CompanyOne is comprehended properly to those who are new to it. Secondly, is focusing on the customers and what they are wanting, this could be from customer support and service delivery. Third, is pretty simple, and that is looking at the objectives and the measurements. CompanyOne needs to figure out a way to have a successful long-term relationship with the customers. Fourth, once that objective has been known, now it is time to approach this technique. Companyone has to figure out the data points and even what touchpoint there is. Lastly, having the right method is the way to go. What this means is that it is very crucial to pick the right data to choose and from their finding the solution.

In addition, if they also add a strategy known as the customer-centric and the customer-driven, it will give both different meaning but has the same value. When it comes to customer-centricity, it is divided into 3 parts marketing, sales, customer care, and the measure results (Bruce, T. 2022). CompanyOne should at least consider these types of ideas when starting their business. Not all preplanned strategies turn excellent, in fact sometimes things do go wrong. The five challenges that may arise (1) lack of support, (2) needs to innovate better (3) don’t make change with employees, unless necessary, (4) Minimal Viable Product (MVP), and lastly (5) data not up to date/incorrect input (Hawes, T. 2023). Overall, not half fasting a task is essential as well because, these preparation do take time and looking other business that is in the same field can also be a treat eye opener, so that they can avoid those that did not work for them.

References:

Bruce, T. (8 Dec. 2022). CRM Strategy: How Smart Entrepreneurs Leverage Growth With a Customer-Led Approach.  Forbes. Retrieved from  CRM Strategy: How Smart Entrepreneurs Leverage Growth With A Customer-Led Approach (forbes.com)

Bottorff, C. & Polner, M. (28 Dec. 2022). Creating a CRM Strategy That Will Help Your Business Thrive. Forbes. Retrieved from  Creating a CRM Strategy – Forbes Advisor

Hawes, T. (21 Aug. 2023). Five Reasons Companies Struggle With CRM Implementations.  Forbes. Retrieved from  Five Reasons Companies Struggle With CRM Implementations (forbes.com)

Implementing a CRM Strategy. (2024). University of Maryland Global Campus. Retrieved from  Implementing a CRM Strategy (umgc.edu)

Social CRM. (2024). University of Maryland Global Campus. Retrieved from  Social CRM (umgc.edu)

Understanding Customers. (2024). University of Maryland Global Campus. Retrieved from  Understanding Customers (umgc.edu)

BARBARA POST;

CompanyOne can use social CRM tools to track and engage its customers across different social platforms in several manners. "Digital tools powered by relevant data can help to generate customer insights, better allocate sales resources, facilitate channel interactions, and improve brand value (Cespedes, F. V., & Krentzel, G. (2024)." 

Utilizing tools to monitor mentions, comments, and conversations about their brand on various social media platforms. This allows them to stay updated on customer feedback, concerns, and trends. Targeting their social media audience based on demographics, interests, and behavior to deliver more targeted and personalized content and offers. Responding promptly to customer inquiries, feedback, and complaints on social media to show that they value customer engagement and are committed to customer satisfaction. Analyzing social media data to gain insights into customer preferences, sentiment, and behavior. This can help them understand what resonates with their audience and adjust their strategies accordingly.

To ensure a successful social CRM strategy, CompanyOne should employ develop a plan to streamline its processes. Ensuring seamless integration between their CRM system and social media platforms to centralize customer data and interactions. Provide training to staff members responsible for managing social CRM to effectively use the tools and respond to customer inquiries and feedback in a timely and professional manner. Maintain a consistent brand voice and messaging across all social media channels to reinforce brand identity and values. Continuously measure the effectiveness of their social CRM efforts monitoring engagement rates, response times, and customer satisfaction scores. "These actions create, stabilize, strengthen, and restore business relationships primarily with consumers, and influence the creation of mutual value in the process of these relationships (Raiko, D., Shypulina, Y.,2024)."

Challenges that CompanyOne may face with social CRM include keeping data current. "Some generic older data can help you assess trends over time, but identifiable customer data is usually useless if it is not up to date (UMGC, 2013)."  compliance with data privacy regulations and protecting customer data collected through social CRM tools. Managing negative feedback and complaints on social media in a way that preserves brand reputation and resolves issues satisfactorily. Adapting to changes in social media algorithms, features, and trends, which may require ongoing training and adjustments to strategies. Dealing with the complexity of integrating social CRM tools with existing CRM systems and other marketing technologies. By addressing these challenges and implementing an effective social CRM strategy, CompanyOne can strengthen customer relationships, drive engagement, and ultimately boost sales and brand loyalty.

Cespedes, F. V., & Krentzel, G. (2024). Integrating Digital Tools into Every Stage of Your Sales Strategy. Harvard Business Review Digital Articles, 1–8.

Raiko, D., Shypulina, Y., Potrashkova, L., Illiashenko, N., Bozhkova, V., Konokhova, Z., Miroshnуk, M., Nagy, S., Illiashenko, S., & Abdunurova, A. (2024). Defining a Selection Procedure of Crm Systems for the Informationanalytical Support to the Marketing Activities at an Enterprise. Eastern-European Journal of Enterprise Technologies, 41–58.  https://doi-org.ezproxy.umgc.edu/10.15587/1729-4061.2024.298301

eMarketing: The Essential Guide to Marketing in a Digital World, 5th Edition by Rob Stokes and the Minds of Quirk