Customer Relationship Management has led to a great transformation of marketing methods and practices throughout the years in the digital space. As marketing continues to evolve at lightning-speed, old, traditional ways are being left in the dust, and for good reason. With many recent updates and a constant need to evolve and keep up with current trends and practices, along with shifting customer behaviours, CRM has completely transformed the marketing landscape into a more sophisticated, efficient, adaptable and modern space.
Evolution of Marketing in the Digital Age
In recent years, the realm of digital marketing has experienced an immense shift. Forget the days of one-size-fits-all advertisements and cold calls. Contemporary digital marketing has changed from its inception 20 years ago and continues to strive for more personalised, interactive, meaningful and updated content. GDPR, privacy, savvy prospects, and even huge corporations like Apple redefining data mining have all had a profound impact.
Buying data lists, mass emails sent with misspelt names, cold calls without consent and spam SMS messages from random numbers may all sound familiar, but are also a thing of the past. If businesses and brands continue to rely on these outdated methods, they will seem ancient by comparison and most likely struggle to meet their objectives and goals. Many companies are so excited to get their message out there, they forget the blend of science and craft that comes together to create great marketing. They forget they sit on a goldmine of prospect data offering powerful insights into behaviour, predilections and desire.
Enter the Customer Relationship Management (CRM) system. A CRM is a system that holds the data of your customer. It can be as simple as a spreadsheet or as powerful as a constantly evolving AI single source of truth. And when used correctly, a CRM has the power to drive more revenue and delight prospects at every stage of the buying journey.
GDPR, Privacy Concerns and Changing Customer Behaviours
- Privacy has been a paramount concern for customers and regulators alike. With the new era of data protection that we are in at the moment, after the introduction of GDPR laws and regulations, it means that businesses have had to fully rethink and alternate their strategies and data collection and processing methods in order to comply.
- Prioritising customer privacy and data protection is an adamant practice, as customers become all the more weary of invasive advertising and are deploying tools, such as ad-blockers, to curate their online experience. Additionally, customers have more of a say on what they receive and see from brands due to growing preference for opt-in communication.
- Customers are seeking much more than they did 10 years ago, or even a couple of years ago. They are after more personalised and streamlined experiences, and will probably not pay attention to any content that is not valuable or impactful to them. In the midst of so much information being thrown at everyone on a daily basis, it’s impossible to keep up with it all, and that is why they are expecting new and exciting methods to grab their attention.
CRM: A More Sophisticated Approach for Today’s Needs
In the age of information overload, it is not longer about shouting the loudest or being aggressive with marketing; it’s about speaking with precision and purpose, and CRM systems are the full embodiment of this principle. With a more sophisticated approach to modern marketing efforts, CRM is able to empower businesses to tailor their communication messages and put their optimised data collection to good use.
It allows for the creation of content personas and segmentation, which can ensure that the right message goes out to the right people at the right time, and thus gaining the loyalty and trust of audiences. With data-driven insights at its core, CRM enables businesses to understand their customers on a deeper level and proceed to provide them with the content that they demand, but also need.
CRM has pretty much rendered old, outdated marketing methods obsolete, by bringing into focus a more streamlined approach that fits better with the renewed customer needs and requirements, as well as the continuous expansion of digital marketing as a whole. It’s all about adapting to change in efficient ways, and embracing the sophisticated, customer-centric and organised approach provided by a CRM, can lead you to thrive in today’s competitive marketing landscape.
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