The adage 'Knowledge is
King' should more aptly be 'Knowledge When and Where you Need it. '
This appears to be the motivation behind the latest strategies and
offerings coming from many CRM vendors. Access to customer
information is just as important to a sales person sitting in a
client's office as it at their desk. Thus mobile
CRM (M-CRM) is becoming the buzzword among CRM vendors as
they offer thin client architecture for their CRM software.
Companies like Siebel Systems, Inc., Peoplesoft Inc., e.Piphany,
and eWare Wireless have been touting their thin client products,
promising to facilitate instant access to vital customer and
transaction data any time, anywhere.
Highlights of Recent M-CRM Offerings and Developments
Siebel Systems, Inc.
Siebel Systems recently announced the availability of Siebel
Sales Handheld functionality for Compaq iPAQ, allowing mobile sales
professionals to access vital sales, marketing, and service
information anytime, anywhere.
Sales professionals can now access up-to-the-minute information
about target accounts and
partners, key deal participants, product interest and pricing,
and detailed account activity history. In addition, users can create
and update sales orders.
PeopleSoft Inc.
PeopleSoft has launched PeopleSoft 8 CRM described as the
next-generation of CRM. The company says it is the first and only
CRM solution to run entirely on the Internet thus enabling universal
access from any Web device, anywhere in the world at anytime. The
solution features pure Internet architecture, embedded analytics,
seamless integration of enterprise data, and business processes.
The PeopleSoft 8 CRM solution with embedded analytics provides
sales professionals with real-time insight into critical business
processes. The business analytics include Support Insight,
Profitability Insight, Marketing Insight, Sales Activity Insight,
and Customer Scorecard.
SAP and Palm
SAP and Palm, Inc. have announced an agreement that will extend
the reach of mySAP.com
e-business solutions to mobile users via Palm handhelds
computers. The two companies will develop a comprehensive SAP and
Palm end-to-end enterprise mobility solution on the Palm OS,
enabling mobile professionals access to customer relation management
among other e-business applications.
This agreement marks a decisive step for Palm, as its shifts its
direction to serve the corporate sector.
Most observers see the mobile-CRM market reaching maturity within
the next two years as the telecom operators rollout 2.5G networks
and begin to focus on the corporate customer.
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