Customer Relationship Management: how a CRM system can be
used in the sales process

Abstract: The conditions for doing business are rapidly changing. Consumptions
patterns are different, there are new technologies for distributing and
collecting information, and the competition on the market is increasing
domestically as well as globally. In order for companies to survive and grow
they must find new ways of thinking, which has led to that new approaches
has emerged in marketing research. First, Relationship Marketing appeared
and now Customer Relationship Management, CRM, is in the center of interest.
CRM highlights the importance of using Information Technology in creating,
maintaining and enhancing customer relationships. However, there is a need
to develop a better understanding of CRM and of how companies can use IT, a
CRM system. Thereby, the purpose of this study is to describe CRM and the
realization of CRM in companies by using a CRM system. The research in this
study can be considered as both exploratory and descriptive, but mainly
explorative. Three case studies has been conducted, where both secondary and
primary data were used. The analysis is based on the empirical findings, as
well as on the theoretical frame work for this study.

The analysis show that the goal with CRM is to maximize company profits by
maximizing the value of interaction with the customers. In order to do this,
companies need a business strategy that focuses on the customers and that
generates a process-oriented view of the organization. The business
processes needs to be supported by a CRM system, comprising CRM
functionality, that makes it possible to create a single view of the
customer as well as of the company. The CRM system also facilitates
collection and analysis of customer data, which results in more effectively
managed customer interactions. The analysis also show that the stage in the
CRM development process affects a company’s view on CRM.

Furthermore, the analysis show that companies have a need for CRM
functionality to support the Marketing, Sales, Order, Production, and
Service Process. CRM functionality can be divided into three main
categories, which are Marketing Automation, Sales Force Automation, and
Customer Service & Support. Where each category comprises a number of
different functional groups. The fact that companies are operating within
the service or production industry doesn’t seem to imply that the need for
CRM functionality differ noticeably. However, there are several other
aspects that seem to have an influence on the needs, such as the stage in
the CRM development process, and the process-orientation of the
organizations.

In order to describe how companies can use a CRM system, this thesis
includes a description of how CRM functionality can be used at different
steps in the sales process. Certain functionality is generally applicable
and can be used at many different steps in the sales process, while some
functions can be connected to a specific step. The analysis show that the
functionality included in the three main functional categories are used in
all phases in the sales process. For example. Customer Service & Support
functionality isn’t only needed for service activities, the results from
measuring customer satisfaction can also be useful when deciding who to
target in a campaign. Consequently, the connection between CRM functionality
and the sales process gives a complete view on how a CRM system can be used.