After publishing a couple of articles on what is customer centricity and how to increase customer centricity, I’ve been discussing the topic with some good friends and these conversations inspired me to write again on this subject.
The subject of today’s post is the difference between being a truly customer centric organization following the principles, the values of customer centricity. And using some tools like CRM (customer relationship management), to develop customer metrics and do some common practices.
Is Customer Centricity Related To A CRM System?
If you type in the words “customer centricity”, “customer-centric” or similar keywords in the Google search engine you will get a list of results predominantly related to CRM software systems.
CRM is the software that manages data resulting from the interaction of the company with its customers and can be used to improve the relationship.
With CRM, Medtech companies can capture and analyze data about customers. However, the fact that it can be classified as being “the essential element” to customer centricity is, in my opinion, debatable.
It’s worth noting that CRM software is based on quantitative and subjective company data and is mainly focused on the needs of the company rather than the needs of the customer.
Moreover, companies use CRM to find a most effective way to sell rather than to find a better way to serve the customers. CRM is more often on the push side than on the pull side of the marketing equation. Therefore, this practice is definitively not customer centric.
Customer Centricity – A Holistic Marketing View
The central idea of customer centricity is building long-term relationships with the customers by better satisfying their needs.
The founding principle of customer centricity is creating value for the customer, thereby creating value for the company – in a dual value creation model.
To keep the company oriented to the needs of the customers and offering them value, should involve broad, deep, and continuous research about the market and customers’ needs.
Furthermore, understanding the competitive landscape defined by competitors, potential entrants, substitutes, as well as the factors which are critical to success, is an essential element for an informed and effective market analysis and strategy.
This information comes from different marketing initiatives such as qualitative and quantitative market research, competitive benchmarking, and market analysis.
Hence, a company moving toward customer centricity cannot rely only on the data provided by the CRM.
Final Remarks
If having a well-designed CRM, comprehensive customer data, and some metrics related to customer orientation was all that was needed to be customer centric, customer centricity would be an easy task and very well widespread across the medical device sector.
However, that’s obviously not the case!
In the real sense, customer centricity comes from defining the customers and their needs, building a culture that puts the customer at the center and aligns objectives, targets, rewards with customer needs – not only the application of technology.
There is no question about the role of CRM and customer data, but they can’t replace a customer centered ethos which permeates the entire company. A CRM is an advantageous tool, but it is ONLY a tool.
Moreover, relying only on customers already in the CRM database and not having a good market and potential customer awareness could make effective customer centricity difficult to achieve for many companies.
Do you agree that a CRM does not necessarily mean customer centricity? Let me know your opinion in the comment space below and subscribe to be notified of other insightful content.