Today's contact center must leave traditional approaches behind and transit itself into a real-time customer engagement center. According to Donna Fluss (founder and president of DMG Consulting), real-time analytics is quickly becoming a necessity in customer service. Recent innovations gives an organization a practical approach to use real-time input from customers and enterprise business intelligence solutions to optimize service experience. Real-time speech analytics takes traditional speech analytics to the next level, looking at interactions while they are happening. According to Frost & Sullivan's "2014 Big Data and Analytics Survey", it was reported that 75 percent of firms have either deployed or plan to deploy a real-time analytics solution in their organizations. Read more at: http://www.destinationcrm.com/Articles/Editorial/Magazine-Features/5-Hot-Customer-Service-Technologies-100524.aspx

Social media has opened the gates of consumer data and outdated demographic advertisements. Companies can gain a lot of information on individuals through their social media accounts. Every post made, comment liked, or page shared gives an insight into who we are. New features also allow social media sites to learn why certain ads don’t appeal to us, and which ones we tend to react more. Managing vast information in a social media site is a complicated process. Read more at: http://www.socialmediatoday.com/content/using-data-better-social-retargeting

Next-generation technologies adopted by telecom service providers has led to worldwide growth in the Operation Support Systems (OSS) and Business Support Systems (BSS) software market. According to a market study by TechNavio, this market is expected to grow at a CAGR of 17.85 percent from 2015 to 2019. In order to reduce operational expenses, telecom operators outsource most of their service functionality -- such as infrastructure, operations and management -- to vendors who can optimize their business. Also increased usage of cloud computing in OSS/BSS is also expected to push market growth. Read more at: http://www.socialmediatoday.com/content/how-telecom-service-providers-will-evolve-2015-0

B2B marketing requires a longer sales process and the need to build customer loyalty with market-savvy and knowledgeable customers. B2B marketing is tough and continuously changing. B2B marketers also rely heavily on other parts of the business – sales, operations, finance etc. to drive successful marketing campaigns. Mary Wieder-Bottaro (Business Development & Marketing Associate located in Verona, Italy) writes in her article about the roadblocks that arise during B2B marketing. Read more at: http://www.socialmediatoday.com/content/5-b2b-marketing-roadblocks-and-how-deal

According to a report by corporate finance adviser Hampleton Partners, it was found that investment for Internet-connected devices is growing at a fast pace and the report also highlighted the fact that $9.4 billion has been spent in the past three years to acquire so-called "Internet of Things" suppliers, with $5 billion, or more than half of the total, in the first nine months of 2014. Read more at: http://www.reuters.com/article/2014/11/27/us-internet-m-a-idUSKCN0JB14220141127

Nowadays businesses are vying for customers’ attention and making strategy on how to attract customers to your site and convince them to buy. One important strategy is to offer value in the form of content. The content is a powerful tool that business house can use to boost brand and elevate sales. It was found that 40% of marketers report that inbound marketing, including content such as blogs and social media, demonstrate positive return on investment for a company. According to research by Ipsos OTX, photos are the most popular form of content shared on social media. To know more, follow: http://digitalmarketingmagazine.co.uk/social-media-marketing/how-engaged-are-your-social-customers/1225

Customer Lifetime Value (CLV) is the buzzword in today’s world. CLV has the ability to measure by sector, product type and purchase occasion. CLV is also linked with brand loyalty and ease of brand switching. It is dependent on many factors, from customer personality types to the ability for a brand to differentiate the experience it offers. According to a study by Sitecore, it was found that in the retail sector people expect customer loyalty to be low. The automobile sector faces challenges when it comes to growing CLV, as customer demand is typically driven by a range of factors; technological advancements, public opinion, cost, life stage and fashion. The media and technology and telecoms industries also face a similar challenge. In a nutshell, it was found that 64% of brands believe improving customer experience is the route to focus on CLV and move customers towards the ideal bracket of remaining loyal. To know more, follow Shawn Cabral (VP Corporate Marketing at Sitecore)’s article link: http://digitalmarketingmagazine.co.uk/customer-experience/how-do-sectors-compare-when-it-comes-to-customer-lifetime-value/1228

Companies need to provide easy access across platforms and services including the cloud, mobile devices, customer portals, social platforms, and the Web. On the other hand they must protect customer security and ensure that customers get what they pay for. Businesses must reassess their approach to identity management in order to prosper in fast-paced environment. Identity and access management (IAM) tools enable or deny access based on some criteria, and users, employees and partners. Companies who are looking to support innovative services for customers can leverage identity relationship management (IRM) platforms. IRM can support multiple devices, react to context, and scale up to accommodate millions of users at a time without any performance degradation or service disruption. To know more, follow Neil Chapman (Senior Vice President & Managing Director EMEA)’s article link: http://digitalmarketingmagazine.co.uk/customer-experience/harness-identity-management-to-thrive-in-the-age-of-the-customer/1229

Marketing is the most important aspect in business world. But, companies over market and under market their products. Overmarketing makes things worse. If you undermarket, you lose sales and if you overmarket you can turn prospect customers. The most common form of overmarketing in today’s world of email is sending too many messages to the same customer. Successful marketing can be described as giving the right message to the right customer at the right time through the right medium. CRM strategy prevents companies to over market their products  Rick Cook (writer of technology) writes in his article about some points to follow when implementing a successful marketing strategy. Read more at: http://it.toolbox.com/blogs/insidecrm/how-crm-prevents-overmarketing-62584

Successful adoption of CRM system begins when companies make a good strategy to adopt CRM. It begins when implementation team begins training as soon as the product decision is made. Another aspect is the adoption of training and for training it is advisable to consider each group of users that will adopt the new system. A CRM training strategy can make or break a CRM system. Companies have to make sure users are properly prepared to adopt the new system by beginning the training early, customizing training to each user group, and re-training on a regular basis. Read more at: http://it.toolbox.com/blogs/insidecrm/is-your-crm-training-strategy-good-enough-64696

Organizations forget the benefits of a customer relationship management (CRM) solution. They forget the benefit of having a centralized database in which they can store customer information. In this age of Big Data, the centralized database would not only help the sales team but also other departments. Management will be able to review customer records from one location when their time is limited. Organizations can train the users in one system rather than in multiple systems. Read more at: http://it.toolbox.com/blogs/insidecrm/centralized-data-for-crm-64692

Nowadays most people are working remotely and companies have accepted this. Working remotely has helped employees to have flexible schedules but companies must reassess the technologies needed to set up a remote workstation. The main purpose is to provide technology to perform their job while on the go. Businesses can set up a cost-effective way for their workers to work remotely. Norah Abraham (freelance writer), writes about the tools needed to set up a remote workstation in her article. Read more at: http://www.socialmediatoday.com/content/5-essential-tools-remote-working

Gartner has predicted that by 2020, customers will manage 85% of the relationship with an enterprise, without interacting with a human. 43% of respondents in a recent AYTM survey (rising to 62% when aged 18-24) feel they can solve service issues on their own if companies put better self-service tools in place. Companies have tools like automated customer service interactions, email response systems and intelligent agents. In the future, self-service technology promises greater capabilities such as retailer-specific mobile alert applications; entirely new personalized experiences; and data management. To know more, follow Rod Brown (co-founder and CEO of MCADO)’s article link:  http://digitalmarketingmagazine.co.uk/articles/who-s-serving-you-providing-enhanced-service-in-a-digital-age/1211

According to a report from Fracti, it was found that one in five consumers say that reflecting their identity is the most important reason why they share content online. Identity ranked as the third-most important reason for sharing content, after wanting to entertain (44% of respondents) and wanting to educate (25%) according to a recent survey in the United States. Read more at: http://www.marketingprofs.com/charts/2014/26546/how-identity-influences-content-sharing-infographic?adref=nlt112514

The best way to know a customer is by looking into customer profile. But what is a customer profile. A customer profile is a picture of your ideal customer, the one you want to target your marketing and sales.  CRM system helps to keep track of customers' characteristics. An organization must consider some points in order to visualize an ideal customer. To know more, follow: http://it.toolbox.com/blogs/insidecrm/profiling-the-ideal-customer-64693

Loyalty programs are important nowadays as there is stiff competition among companies to win customers. According to a research by Gartner, it was found that 50 per cent of customers cited loyalty programs as the key differentiator between brands. It also shows that these schemes play a key part in the decision process, and therefore right type of engagement is vital in building long-term relationships with customers. Brands also need to consider consistency of message with consumers now using a number of different ways to communicate with providers. In this article by Adam Goran (Divisional Director for Customer Engagement at Grass Roots Group), writes about some key rules of engagement that brands should follow to revive their customer loyalty programs. To know more, follow:  http://digitalmarketingmagazine.co.uk/customer-experience/how-not-to-lose-friends-and-alienate-people-key-rules-of-customer-engagement/1206

Today’s consumers are always connected by mobiles. According to a report by Forbes it was found that 90 percent of mobile searches lead to action, more than half lead to sale, and 74 percent of people use their mobile phones for shopping. Mobiles are used for connecting with consumers to stay ahead in competition and is also used to enhance consumer loyalty. Companies can tailor their mobile marketing by using subscriber data – known as “mobile context” – to offer messaging that drives customer behavior. Mobile context means mobile usage patterns, shopping behaviors and brand affiliations to build a model that predicts what offers will motivate a user. To know more, follow article link by Todd Thayer (Syniverse Vice President of Product Management, Enterprise and Intelligence Solutions): http://digitalmarketingmagazine.co.uk/mobile-digital-marketing/for-better-customer-engagement-it-s-time-to-go-mobile/1202

According to advertising industry, effective frequency is the number of times a person is exposed to an advertising message before a response is made and before exposure is considered wasteful. In advertisement industry, finding the optimal frequency of an ad is the key. In mobile advertisement industry, repeated exposure to ads, specifically at key points in the purchase cycle can positively change consumer awareness and over exposure can create negative sentiment. In case of mobile ad, higher frequency is needed. To know more, follow: http://digitalmarketingmagazine.co.uk/digital-marketing-advertising/re-defining-mobile-advertising-frequency/1205

Every company needs to stand out from other companies. So, measuring ROI in social media becomes a necessity. Measuring social media ROI depends on what your company goals are. A smaller company may want to track their measurements monthly, whereas a larger organization will want to track measurements on a daily basis. To know how to measure social ROI, follow Dawn Ellis (Content Outreach Executive, alldayPA), article link: http://www.socialmediatoday.com/content/ultimate-guide-determining-roi-your-social-media-campaigns

An organization can convert information into customer intelligence to strengthen relationships and maximize profits by integrating Knowledge management (KM) and Customer Relationship Management (CRM). Knowledge management (KM) is the practice of identifying, capturing, distributing, and using information for a company’s benefit and CRM is all about data. The more information a CRM system receives, the better it performs. When a CRM system is integrated with the KM system, it creates an environment in which employees can share insights for the benefit of the company and the customer and customer knowledge remains with the company regardless of turnover or job changes. KM integration helps only if the database is properly maintained and employees actually use the application. Read more at: http://it.toolbox.com/blogs/insidecrm/knowledge-management-can-make-your-crm-project-a-success-64662