Customer Experience Management (CEM) Key Terms

Learn more about the importance of Customer Experience Management
By Emmet McMahan Customer Experience Management (CEM) is also known as Customer Relationship Management (CRM) and refers to the process by which a company tracks contact with its customers. The typical goals of CEM are to improve the company's customer service and to conduct targeted marketing campaigns to the company's customers. CEM can be implemented without software, although software is frequently needed to provide the maximum benefits. CEM software should provide the support that will allow employees to take advantage of information about customers. CEM also uses a combination of business processes, such as operations, customer relationships and analysis to provide consistent customer interactions.
 

Operational CRM

Operational CRM provides support for customer interactions that are performed by marketing, sales and service staff. These records are generally part of the contact histories for the customer.
Try: MITEM provides a detailed description of operational CRM and also provides a specific example.

Analytical CRM

Analytical CRM uses data mining on customer records to make business decisions. These decisions can include designing targeted marketing campaigns, making pricing decisions and financial forecasting.
Try: CRM Software describes analytical CRM and illustrates its use in a real-world business.

Sales intelligence CRM

Sales Intelligence CRM provides direct sales tools by analyzing customer records. Common features of sales intelligence CRM include identifying sales opportunities, sales performance and customer trends.
Try: Businessways offers an overview of the specific aspects of CRM, including sales intelligence CRM.

Open source CRM

Open source CRM is CRM software for which the source code is publicly available. Businesses frequently use open source CRM since it is free, but it can have disadvantages.
Try: The Customer Service Zone provides a definition of open source software and also discusses the pros and cons of open source CRM.

Collaborative CRM

Collaborative CRM coordinates the CRM processes between the different departments within a company, such as marketing, sales and technical support. For example, customer support agents may receive feedback from staff members of other departments regarding the features and services requested by customers.
Try: Inside CRM offers a more elaborate definition of collaborative CRM and also provides a specific example.

Sales process engineering (SPE)

Sales process engineering (SPE) is the application of scientific principles towards a sales process for achieving a particular goal. CRM frequently plays a important role in SPE.
Try: Sales Process Engineering provides a detailed definition of SPE, along with a discussion of its benefits. The effect of implementing SPE is to transition salespeople into true team members.