|
 |
Articles
A Travel Marketer's Top 10 CRM Resolutions
Written by Adrian Caruso, CEO/Master Business Coach of TA Fastrack
Customer relationship management (CRM) is a compelling business strategy. Simply put, your CRM initiative will acquire, grow and retain profitable customers, allowing you to achieve a sustainable competitive advantage. Once considered affordable by only the largest players in the travel industry, CRM has now become essential for midsize and even smaller travel providers.
There is ample research showing that "loyalty leaders" – those companies with the strongest customer relationships grow at close to twice the industry average and do so more cost effectively. Nowhere is CRM and customer loyalty more important than in the travel industry, where individuals purchase products worth thousands of dollars and where their lifetime value could represent hundreds of thousands of dollars to your company or agency.
Competition in travel is fierce. Larger competitors have the financial resources to continually up the amenity ante, a practice that is serving to commoditize the industry. For the most part, physical amenities can no longer offer you a sustainable competitive advantage.
Customer service continues to improve in most companies and is perceived to be fairly comparable across the various segments in each travel category. Good service, or at the high end of your category, great service is a necessity. But it is no longer enough to truly differentiate your company or offer a sustainable competitive advantage
Today, your only option to clearly differentiate your travel company from the competition is to build a strong, emotional relationship with your customers. This will allow you to retain your most profitable customers and attract more people just like them. In other words, you must implement an effective CRM program. You must resolve to become a "loyalty leader."
CRM starts before an individual becomes one of your customers, is enhanced during every point of contact with your staff and partners, and continues long afterwards through all communications and contacts until they become a repeat customer. To become a "loyalty leader" and grow significantly faster than competition you need to either start a CRM initiative or re-energize your existing one. Let the following be your credo this year: In 2006, I firmly resolve to:
Begin or re-energize my CRM initiative. As the owner (senior executive), I will make it my responsibility to personally drive my company's program. CRM is a top-down business strategy that will require integrating our business processes and eliminating departmental silos. This will require some organizational change, but I can and will make the decisions necessary to keep my CRM program on track. I expect my managers to support the program and cooperate amongst themselves to achieve it. But I will be at the helm. It will take time I don't have, but the rewards will be well worth it. I am determined to be a "loyalty leader" not a "loyalty laggard."
Make my customer database the foundation of my marketing efforts. After all, "customer" is the first word in CRM. It all starts with the customer. My database is my most valuable asset and I will treat it as such. I will find or reallocate resources to ensure that I am capturing the information I need for CRM initiatives and that my customer database is both accurate and up-to-date. I will review and make certain my current database will support my CRM program – if not I will make plans to replace it.
Identify my most profitable customers. I know all customers are equal; but some are more equal than others. I will use my database and available analytic tools to segment my customers and identify those who contribute the most profit to my hotel. I will profile my customers to determine the characteristics that differentiate my most profitable customers from others. Once I have a better understanding of who are my "best" customers, I will develop programs so they know I appreciate their business – I will treat my best customers differently. I will also develop strategies to acquire more people who look and act like them (this is not rocket science).
Integrate all my marketing efforts. My customer service, sales, advertising, public relations, and direct marketing will all focus on the customer. I will break down departmental silos, establish cross functional communication, and allow for a more coordinated, multi-channel marketing effort. CRM cannot work if every department and discipline operates in a vacuum and is allowed to communicate with customers and prospects haphazardly. I will establish an integrated program.
Establish metrics to measure the success of my CRM program. I will begin by establishing a baseline benchmark to determine the quality and strength of my customer relationships. Whether it is customer satisfaction surveys, "likelihood to recommend" my product or service, or some other criteria, I will measure progress. My managers know they will be evaluated based on progress in improving loyalty.
Allocate my marketing budget to programs that produce the greatest ROI. I refuse to be a slave to the past and continue allocating resources to programs and media I can't measure. The time has come to stop "feel good" marketing (spending money where it just feels good). If it can't be measured I will not allow my managers to spend money on it. Enough is enough! I will create a learning environment. I will learn what works, what produces a positive return on investment (ROI) and spend more money behind those that do and eliminate those that do not. I will increase funding for promotion, direct marketing and Internet marketing programs, since I know they are measurable.
Romance my most profitable customers before, during, and after they travel. My company and my competitors all provide an excellent travel experience. But what happens once the customer gets home? My CRM program will keep those memories fresh in the minds of my best customers for as long as it takes to get them to repeat. Word-of-mouth continues to be my most effective marketing tool. Keeping memories alive will ensure that my best guests will mention or recommend us when they discuss great vacations with friends. That means virtually free and very powerful advertising!
Employ "best practices" to build strong relationships. I will treat my customers and prospects exactly the way I would like to be treated – as somebody special. I will protect my customer's privacy and not sell or exchange their information, meaning I will engage in permission-based marketing.
Expect it will take time to realize a return on my CRM effort. Although we live in an era of instant gratification, I realize CRM does take time, especially at the beginning. I know my customer database, the very foundation of my CRM program, needs work. Information is missing, records are incomplete or outdated, and email capture rates have been sub-optimal. It will take time to establish a cross-functional organization, which may require new hiring. Once organized for CRM however, I do expect continuous incremental improvements in my marketing and in my benchmark measurements of customer loyalty. My investment in CRM is a long-term investment in the future of my company. The sooner I start, the sooner I will realize the full benefits and become a "loyalty leader." (A CRM Guru study of 448 CRM projects in 2002 found that over 50 percent achieved payback in 18 months, and nearly one-third achieved it in less than one year.)
Seek integrated marketing and technical expertise to ensure CRM success. Knowing CRM is multi-dimensional and requires a very specialized skill set. If those skills are not available internally, I will look outside for the support needed to get the program running as quickly and as smoothly as possible. I also will use an outside firm for advice on any organizational changes that will be required to succeed. If I use an outside firm, they must have a demonstrated competency in acquiring and retaining profitable customers and have access either in-house or through partnerships to all the resources to move my CRM program forward as quickly as my organization will allow (at an affordable price).
There are two kinds of companies in the world today – those that have embarked on the road to CRM to become "loyalty leaders" to grow at twice the rate of competitors, and those who insist on marketing the old fashioned way, content to be "loyalty laggards. As an owner or executive, you have a choice. If you have yet to start a CRM program or need help re-energizing an existing one, follow these 10 resolutions and you will soon be on your way. Good luck and have a safe journey!
tell
us what you think
We offer this article on a nonexclusive basis. You may reprint or repost this material as long as Adrian Caruso's name and contact information is included.
email, 07 3630 1298, http://www.tafastrack.com
If you liked this article, you might also be interested
in these articles.
|
|
|
Media
