Investigating the impact of e-customer relationship management on hotels ´website service quality

As online tourists are becoming more price sensitive, less brand loyal and more sophisticated, e- Customer Relationship Management (CRM) becomes a strategic necessity for attracting and increasing guests’ patronage. Despite the vital role of eCRM for e-commerce success, its deployment frequently fails or it does not always deliver the expected results. The latter has boosted research, but studies have been primarily focused on investigating eCRM implementation from a company’s perspective ignoring its customer perspective. In this vein, the purpose of this study is to investigate the impact of eCRM on hotels’ website service quality as perceived by their guests. To achieve that, first the concept of eCRM is analysed and then, a customer-centric eCRM model that directly identifies eCRM impact on e-services is proposed and used for measuring hotels’ eCRM practices. Later, a literature review synthesizes the concept and dimensions of website service quality providing a scale of website service quality measurement. Data from eCRM hotels guests were gathered and findings provide useful implications for successful implementing eCRM and enhancing website service quality. Finally, the limitations of the study and directions for future research are discussed

Relationship between E-CRM, Service Quality, Customer Satisfaction, Trust, and Loyalty in banking Industry

E-CRM strives to enhance customer service, build relationships with customers, and keep key clients. E-CRM deals with technology, people, and processes and with the goal of fostering customer loyalty. This paper aims to investigate the relationship between E-CRM, service quality, customer satisfaction, trust, and loyalty in banking industry. In order to gather sufficient reviews, a literature review was carried out utilizing a number of corresponding publications that were indexed in reliable databases. A model that highlights the relation between E-CRM and customer satisfaction, service quality, trust, and loyalty is also shown in this study. The supervisors of administrative organizations can utilize this research\u27s insights into E-CRM to build client loyalty and increase the revenue and profitability of their fir

Investigating the deployment of electronic customer relationship management readiness and maturity models in the Iranian banking industry

Customer Relationship Management (CRM) is one of the main priorities for almost all organisations, particularly in the banking world. However, Information technology (IT) has changed ways of interacting with customers, resulting in the appearance of the concept of Electronic Customer Relationship Management (eCRM), which has caused a shift from offline CRM to eCRM. ECRM aims to attract and retain customers (especially valuable ones), to improve customer service by creating a strong relationship with them, and to provide the required financial product at the right time. Thus, it is vital to identify readiness factors in any organisation to prevent eCRM failure. Due to the current gap in the eCRM readiness and maturity assessment area in banks, this research attempts to fill this gap by developing a conceptual framework for eCRM readiness/maturity and accordingly create a tool for banks to assess their eCRM readiness and maturity. This tool helps banks to prevent any eCRM failure before and after implementation which is an essential concern for any organisation in order to gain competitive advantages. In addition to practical implications, the present study contributed to existing literature. This study contributed to the current understanding of eCRM readiness and maturity in banks and helps decision makers to assess their eCRM. This study explores the social and technical aspects of eCRM in the Iranian banking industry. Hence, a pragmatic research approach using mixed methods with a range of stakeholders, such as employees, and managers, was employed in this research. As the purpose of this research is to identify the main eCRM readiness dimensions in Iranian banks and to assess eCRM readiness and maturity, an eCRM readiness/maturity framework was developed. The proposed framework was tested by devising and distributing a structured questionnaire and conducting a semi-structured interview in an attempt to survey a large number of bank employees, and decision makers at five different and well-known private and state banks in Tehran, the capital city of Iran. This survey provides an excellent penetrating study of the Iranian banking industry. Regarding eCRM readiness, data collected from a quantitative approach was analysed statistically using the Software Package for the Social Sciences (SPSS). The qualitative data was interpreted using NVivo, which is a qualitative data analysis computer software package. Findings from the triangulation of data of qualitative and quantitative approaches were evaluated in order to determine the main eCRM readiness dimensions in Iranian banks. Furthermore, from these findings, a case study bank was assessed in regarding eCRM readiness using Analytical Hierarchy Process (AHP). Regarding assessing eCRM maturity, an eCRM maturity model was developed, and a case study bank was selected. Based on the proposed eCRM maturity model, the maturity level of the selected bank was assessed using RADAR logic approach. In addition, this model was based on critical success factors (CSFs) and adapting the CRM3 maturity model. The findings of the empirical research were evaluated against the initial framework, which was generated by integrating the proposed models for eCRM readiness and maturity. This framework consists of three dimensions for eCRM readiness (Organisational culture, corporate strategy, technology) and five level of maturity. Dimensions, factors, and levels in this framework were derived from a literature review. Finally, a revised framework was generated and based on stakeholder’s perceptions, a conclusion was derived, and a recommendation to Iranian banks was made. An eCRM readiness/maturity assessment tool was created to help banks to determine whether they are ready or mature enough for the use of eCRM. The result from this assessment tool can be easily communicated amongst key members, which would help the Iranian banks to improve and promote their eCRM. In addition, this study attempts to fill the current gap in assessing banks eCRM readiness and maturity

Customer relationship management: Are software applications aligned with business objectives?

Customer relationship management (CRM) can be thought of as IT-enabled relationship marketing. It has numerous definitions and perspectives, and success of implementation has been limited to date. This paper examines recent literature on the subject, drawing attention to the importance of a balance between strategy formulation, IT and organisational alignment when adopting and implementing CRM. It then discusses results of an exploratory study carried out amongst 34 South African organisations on their business objectives for CRM, the CRM applications that they have invested in or are considering, and the extent of integration of their customer data. The most important objectives and most widely used CRM applications are determined, and associations between applications and objectives are analysed. It is not apparent that CRM applications are selected in line with business objectives, and expected associations with objectives often do not exist for the objectives rated most important. Only certain aspects of customer data integration are significantly linked to objectives or CRM applications. The study suggests the need for fuller determination of strategy and objectives when involved with CRM investigation and adoption, and co-ordination at all levels of implementation between Marketing and IT

Exploring sources of competitive advantage in e-business applications: A cross-industries case study in mainland China

A review of existing literature revealed that little theoretical framework exists to capture e-business-enabled value creation through an integrated approach that includes the environmental view and resource-based view (RBV). Furthermore, little empirical research has been conducted to test these theoretical frameworks, in particular in the Chinese business context. The aim of this research is to extend the theoretical and practical understanding of e-business-enabled sources of competitive advantage (SCA) in China. The value chain (VC) concept, virtual value chain (VVC) framework and RBV were identified from the literature as the key constructs to underpin the theoretical basis. The research design used a qualitative research methodology consisting of indepth case studies of nine leading Chinese companies in three industries - housing development, manufacturing, and B2C. The principle finding is the formulation of a theoretical framework for investigating ebusiness value creations which integrates the key constructs of the VVC, online information capabilities (OIC), value system and RVB. This research also proposes a typology of five generic types of key e-business applications which states clearly the relationships between key e-business applications and SCA. Finally, this research demonstrates that e-business value creation features differently between two groups: Internet pragmatist and Internet pioneers. The research offers a number of contributions to the field of e-business value creation. Firstly, it introduces the concepts of OIC and value system to the VVC. It also provides empirical test of the analytical framework. In addition, this research provides an indepth understanding of the relationships between types of e-business applications and key SCA. Finally, this research identifies and explains the key differences and similarities between the three industries, within each industry, and between the two key groups

The Relationship Between Customer Relationship Management Usage, Customer Satisfaction, and Revenue

Given that analysts expect companies to invest $22 billion in Customer Relationship Management (CRM) systems by 2017, it is critical that leaders understand the impact of CRM on their bottom line. The purpose of this correlational study was to investigate potential relationships between the independent variables of customer satisfaction and CRM utilization on the dependent variable of business revenue. The service-profit chain formed the theoretical framework for this study. The study population included 203 service branches for an industrial equipment manufacturer in North America. The service director for the subject organization provided the data for the study via data extracts from the company\u27s corporate database. Some branches were eliminated, leaving a total sample size of 178. The results of a multiple linear regression analysis showed that the proposed model could significantly predict branch revenue F (2,175) = 37.321, p \u3c .001, R2 = .298. Both CRM use and customer satisfaction were statistically significant, with CRM use (beta = .488, p \u3c .001) showing a higher contribution than customer satisfaction (beta = -.152, p = .021). This study provides evidence to business executives that CRM use has a strong positive influence on revenue. Additionally, this study supports the findings of other studies that show a point of diminishing returns in improved customer satisfaction. This study contributes to positive social change by allowing firms to make better decisions with their investment dollars and by increasing CRM utilization through cause-related marketing

Integration of Enterprise Resource Planning (ERP) and Customer Relationship Management (CRM) for Quality Service Delivery. The Case of Ethiopian Airlines

Service quality and customer satisfaction are very important concepts that companies must understand in order to remain competitive in business. In the process of delivering quality service and meet customers’ need, technology plays a larger role. The purpose of this study was to explore the achievements, pinpoint the challenges and scrutinize the prospects of integrating Enterprise Resource Planning (ERP) and Customer Relationship Management (CRM) and analyze their impact on quality service delivery in Ethiopian Airlines. A structured questionnaire was designed, pre-tested, modified, and distributed to senior executives, employees and customers of the company to capture data. A total sample of 165 were taken as a respondent. Out of these, 115 were employees of the company and 50 were customers who have made a flight with Ethiopian airlines on any route. Non-probability purposive sampling was used during the selection of the sample. The SPSS computer package was used to analyze the collected data. Feedbacks received from 84 employees and 45 customers were analyzed and the response rate was 73.1 and 90 percent respectively. Since the integration, the company is enjoying the ultimate benefit of all-in-one system that can decrease errors, lower cycle times, reduces turnaround time, and support management decisions. In addition, the findings indicated that delivering high quality service increase customer satisfaction, which in turn leads to high level of customer commitment and loyalty. Several challenges were also pointed out among which included lack of expertise in IT to operate the systems, lack of training and development of staff on the systems. The study also assessed the perception of the customers about the quality of the service delivered by the Ethiopian Airlines by using five dimensions of the SERVQUAL model. The result revealed that, in reliability, tangibles and assurance dimensions, the customers are satisfied, but in responsiveness and empathy, they feel dissatisfied. This implies the presence of inefficiency in delivering prompt service and understanding individual customer needs. Keywords: Enterprise Resource Planning (ERP), Customer Relationship Management (CRM), Integration of ERP and CRM, Service Quality, Ethiopian Airline

Evolving Loyalty Programs- Merging Classic Loyalty with New Technology

Thesis purpose: The purpose of this thesis is to determine how a technolo-gically enhanced shopping tool, synergizing eCRM tech-niques with personalized promotion at the point-of-sale, can increase customer loyalty by considering perceptions of current grocery retailer loyalty programs in Sweden. Methodology: An exploratory research was undertaken in the light of a qualitative method collecting primary data through focus group interviews. Theoretical perspective: The major considerations regarding theoretical aspects, for this thesis, can be addressed by Behavioral/Attitudinal loyalty and Relevance of Promotion. Empirical data: The empirical data, in regards to primary data, was ga-thered based on four focus group interviews. Conclusion: The conclusions of the thesis imply, that in order to make a loyalty program successful, it needs to firstly be conven-ient for the customer; easy to join, and provide an easy and time efficient display at the point-of-sale. Secondly, it has to be relevant/meaningful in terms of cash-back, promotion and have additional functions such as life-style profiles which customers can use. Thirdly, it needs to be inspiring; through recipes on the display and giving recommendations based on other customers with similar purchase habits. Finally, the program needs to address ethical concerns; how the data is used and by whom

Investigating the antecedents to the adoption of SCRM technologies by start-up companies

Despite their fairly recent emergence, start-up companies now play an important role in the economic development of countries around the globe. These companies have fewer tangible assets and capital, and therefore, the efficient delivery of services and products is a key business priority for them. Customer relationship management (CRM) technologies, which are designed to facilitate customer engagement during the design, development and delivery of services and products may play a significant role in the success or failure of start-up companies. Developments in new communication technologies have transformed traditional CRM into electronic CRM (eCRM), mobile CRM (mCRM); and more recently, social CRM (SCRM). However, there remains very little understanding of the factors affecting SCRM adoption in start-up businesses. The relative newness of SCRM technologies, coupled with the swiftly evolving nature of start-up companies: which has made them difficult cases to study – has limited the amount of research undertaken in this area. This paper aims to close this gap by proposing a framework that depicts the factors affecting start-up companies’ intention to adopt SCRM applications, and explores the relative importance of these factors. Inspired by an extended Technological, Organisational and Environmental (TOE) framework, this paper investigates effects of technological characteristics (TC), organisational characteristics (OC), environmental characteristics (EC) and managerial characteristics (MC) on start-up companies’ intentions to adopt SCRM applications. The results outlined in this research indicate that the observability, compatibility and trialability of SCRM solutions positively affect SCRM adoption in start-up businesses. Moreover, the availability of internal financial resources has a similarly positive effect. When considering environmental characteristics, it was found that support from venture capitalists, crowd funding support, governmental support, business angels support and external pressure all positively affect the intention to adopt SCRM applications within start-up businesses

Service Undone: A Grounded Theory of Strategically Constructed Silos and Their Impact on Customer-Company Interactions from the Perspective of Retail Employees

This work elaborates the impacts of strategically constructed silos that are not byproducts of flagging cross-departmental cooperation or the cumulative effect of decades of decentralized command and control. Rather, these silos are strategically intended structures within organizations. Most significantly, the substantive theory of strategically constructed silos and their impact on customer service contributes to the field by illustrating the presence and consequence of silos occurring in suboptimal conditions. The existence of silos has implications that extend far beyond the retail area. A key take-away from this research is that contrary to how most customer service processes are designed, not all customer-company interactions are alike. As shown in the data, interaction types vary both in regard to the degree of knowledge needed by retail employees to fully serve customers, and the routine or nonroutine nature of the interaction. This is an important finding since it directly relates to whether the existence of a silo is appropriate (or optimal) for a specific interaction or task. Additionally, the findings suggest the role that a task\u27s routine-ness plays is secondary to the degree of specialized knowledge needed by retail employees to meet customer expectations. Understanding the various customer-company interaction types and how each interaction type may be affected by silos is crucial for designing customer experiences that will sustain over time. Likewise, identifying customer-company interaction types correctly and then subsequently developing strategies to support these interaction types is critical for both customer experience management (CEM) initiatives and customer relationship management (CRM) system design within the company. This work provides an overview of the implications of strategically constructed silos occurring in suboptimal conditions and provides recommendations for diagnosing customer-company interactions based on interaction type. By identifying strategically constructed silos as an intended structure of the company, the model elaborated here works to deliver prescriptive and specific strategies for managers and employees\u27 use as they attempt to improve their firm\u27s customer-company interaction outcomes