| Over the past decade, forces including globalization | | | | "old" solution definitions and categories are |
| and hyper-competition have made it a matter of | | | | becoming less relevant. The new mobile |
| critical importance to stay in close contact with | | | | technologies are creating new types of |
| colleagues, customers, and partners. CRM solutions | | | | customers, new services, new channels and |
| have become a standard way of doing this, and | | | | routes to market that require not just an |
| mobile access to CRM information and processes | | | | extension of existing solutions but new solutions |
| has become an increasingly essential element of | | | | that support new kinds of customer relationships. |
| effective CRM – a must-have capability for | | | | The result is that mobile CRM can, and should, be |
| companies that want to stay at the forefront of | | | | re-imagined from the ground up. It should no |
| their industries. | | | | longer be regarded as a discrete application but as |
| Tens of thousands of companies rely on | | | | an umbrella concept that covers all the ways in |
| "traditional" mobile applications such as salesforce | | | | which mobile technologies can help organizations |
| and field-force automation, which enable greater | | | | get closer to their customers. |
| efficiency and productivity by helping mobile | | | | The rapid pace of change creates new challenges; |
| workers manage schedules and routes and by | | | | nothing in the mobile world can be considered |
| providing ready access to information such as | | | | stable or mature. Many applications are limited to |
| customer contact details, order history, and | | | | a single type of device, and many devices can run |
| service history. Realtime access to current | | | | only on certain mobile networks. It is difficult to |
| collateral, from sales brochures to repair manuals, | | | | predict which of today's devices, operating |
| has increased field effectiveness. Realtime | | | | systems and carriers, if any, will dominate over |
| synchronization has become the norm, replacing | | | | the long haul, or if (as believes likely) the market |
| the "batch sync" that was state of the art back | | | | will continue to support multiple mobile platforms. |
| when field people had to reach the office or a | | | | That could force a significant shift in today's |
| hotel room to log the day's activities and check | | | | mobile app-store model. Today they are primarily |
| product availability to know whether they could | | | | vendor- and/or platform-specific. But in a |
| keep the promises they'd made that day while | | | | multi-platform market with no dominant player, |
| offline. | | | | developers will press for a more open model in |
| Now, as mobile solutions' three main elements | | | | which their apps can run on any platform. |
| – devices, networks, and applications – | | | | In the face of such rapid change, many |
| evolve at warp speed, mobile CRM is adding even | | | | organizations are understandably cautious – |
| more value. Handheld devices with the computing | | | | reluctant to invest in technologies that may |
| power of yesterday's servers, networks capable | | | | become obsolete; in vendors that may not |
| of megabit download speeds, and applications that | | | | survive; in so-called "solutions" that don't deliver |
| can incorporate Internet feeds such as realtime | | | | what they promise or match the competitive |
| traffic data and display it through intuitive, | | | | advantage that a rival gains from some other |
| role-tailored interfaces – all these | | | | mobile option. |
| developments and more are making mobile CRM | | | | Caution is wise, but only to a point; companies |
| more valuable than ever. | | | | must avoid the temptation to follow a certain |
| But even this rapid evolution only hints at what is | | | | technology path simply because it's the path they |
| to come. Smartphones are still largely the | | | | know best. True, whatever they adopt should |
| province of mobile professionals, but consumer | | | | integrate with and leverage the IT infrastructure |
| demand is rising too. Mobile networks aren't just | | | | already in place. They must consider "lock-in" and |
| getting faster; they're expanding their footprints | | | | avoid options that will limit flexibility as business |
| and evolving toward common standards that will | | | | conditions change and technologies continue to |
| simplify interoperation across broad geographic | | | | evolve. |
| areas and boundaries. Technologies such as cloud | | | | But they shouldn't lose sight of the fact that rapid |
| computing and software as a service create | | | | advances in all three key ingredients – |
| more options – applications that live entirely in | | | | devices, networks, and applications – will |
| the cloud or that live mainly on the device but | | | | provide tremendous advantages to the companies |
| draw on cloud-based data and services as needed. | | | | that exploit them effectively. The way to stack |
| Social networking tools already are driving much | | | | the deck in one's favor is to revert to |
| of the increase in mobile network usage. An | | | | fundamental principles and evaluate new mobile |
| increasing array of technologies – GPS, RFID, | | | | options in the context of how they can enhance |
| and near-field communications – can be | | | | the organization's core strategy and value |
| combined with cellular, WiFi and Bluetooth radio | | | | proposition and help it to reach more customers, |
| capabilities to open even more possibilities. | | | | more often and more effectively |
| Considered as a whole, the warp-speed evolution | | | | For more information please visit : |
| of devices, networks and applications mean that | | | | PH.NO. |