1 Understand the importance of customer relationship management in an organisation
1.1 Evaluate the role of customer relationship management in sourcing and retaining customers
1.2 Analyse internal and external factors that impact upon an organisation’s ability to find new customers and retain existing customers
1.3 Discuss the relationship between effective customer relationship management and having a competitive advantage
1.4 Evaluate the role of customer relationships as a source of innovation and growth
2 Understand methods to improve the management of customer relationships in an organisation
2.1 Evaluate methods used to measure the effectiveness of the customer relationship management system
2.2 Discuss ways in which the management and the monitoring of customer relationships could be improved
2.3 Evaluate methods used to monitor improvement to the management of customer relationships
2.4 Evaluate the extent to which the management of customer relationships leads to the achievement of an organisations strategic objectives
1 Understand the importance of customer relationship management
Purpose of customer relationship management: finding customers; retaining customers, winning back customers; building loyalty; adding value e.g. additional sales, after sales services, customer support; targeted marketing; tailoring information; individualised relationships; customising products and services; rewarding customers; contributing to the achievement of business objectives
Factors affecting customer relationship management: internal e.g. customer focus, marketing orientation, resources, staffing, information requirements, costs; external e.g. technological change, customer tastes and preferences; buyer decision making; customer volatility; competitor activities; legal and regulatory requirements e.g. Consumer Protection (Distance Selling) Regulations 2000, Consumer Credit Acts 1974 and 2006
Competitive advantage: reduced costs (acquiring customers, retaining customers, customer loyalty); increased revenues (repeat sales, aftermarket sales, cross-selling); increased sales volumes; improved profitability; increased market share; integration of functions (sales, marketing, customer service, technical support, finance); use of technology (tracking, profiling, history); communications techniques (social media, mobile computing, telephony); reputation; dynamic pricing
2 Understand methods to improve the management of customer relationships in an organisation
Measurement and monitoring: data types (qualitative, quantitative); data collection (manual, computer-based, automatic); customer analytics; data mining; customer profiling; market analysis; segmentation analysis; predictive analysis; review management of customer relationships; evaluation of management of customer relationships; potential improvements to management of customer relationships
Improving customer relationship management: strategic priority; allocate resources; implement software solutions (data collection, analytics); modify business processes; customer support e.g. help desk, responses to frequently asked questions (FAQ), 24/7 service, on-line advice; customer communication; obtaining feedback; responsiveness to feedback
Meeting objectives: customer engagement; meeting customer needs; adding value; growth (sales, revenues, market share, profits); cost management; improve processes (marketing, sales, logistics, customer support, finance); achievement against key performance indicators
