What is the general idea of the service?

The idea is to offer a compact learning materials for interested companies to improve their skills in building and sustaining relations with customers in remote work.
 
Workshop materials and plan for customer relationship building (theory, case study, quizzes, videos) finally tested by the target groups: four parts of the course divided into theoretical part, description of identified good practices, quizzes questions and videos regarding building relationships with customers, maintaining relationships in business remotely, relationship marketing, customer service process and managing relationships in crisis.

Why are we piloting it?

The idea of conducting this pilot is to invite micro, small, medium enterprises and public institutions to test a tool, give the feedback and influence the final version of the tool.

Building a positive and long-term relationship with a client is in fact a never-ending process during which at least several basic conditions must be met. In fact, speaking about remote work there are some challenges to build the trust and connections with clients. The relations marketing we all knew at the beginning of 2020 has much less in common with what we do now. The situation we have been has forced brands to verify their marketing strategies and consider how they should communicate with customers. The aim of the pilot is to support micro, small, medium enterprises, and public institutions in improving their knowledge and position on the market by offering a tool for customer relationship building (theory, case study, quizzes, videos).

Why is your organisation invited to join?

Customer relationship building tool is open for all micro, small, medium, and public entities from different fields and industries from Baltic Sea Programme countries. It is helpful to assess and get the insight on customer relationships in relation to specific remote work.

What do you get?

You get access to online compact learning materials about process and tools on building and sustaining relations with customers in remote work- video lectures, practicing files, lecture slides.

You can learn the service material through book like pdf files or listen to the audio books that are inside the units. Each unit has reading material, audio book and small exercise set.

Click the image below to pop out a book reader. First is English and second is polish

LEARNING TOOL: CUSTOMER RELATIONSHIP BUILDING
NARZĘDZIE EDUKACYJNE: BUDOWANIE RELACJI Z KLIENTEM

You can either read the module or listen to this audio book

Audiobook Player

Building customer relationships in online business

Unit I. RELATIONSHIP BUILDING WITH CUSTOMERS

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Exercises

Think about your customers and try to classify them according to their interest in your company’s offers and their influence, using the following scheme.

Once you have entered their names in the table, evaluate the validity of the proposed action strategies

Interests
Low High
Impact High Keep happy
  • Potentially dangerous
  • Inform, involve, and consult in the area of interest
  • Drive to increase interest
 Key
  • Collaborate closely
  • Manage carefully
  • Engage and consult regularly
  • Use two-way communication
  • Ensure expectations are met
Low Monitor
  • Potentially indifferent
  • Inform through general channels (newsletter, website)
  • Try to increase interest
 Interested
  • Potential allies
  • Inform and consult in the area of interest
  • Ensure expectations are met
Interests
Low High
Impact High Keep happy
 Key
Low Monitor
 Interested

Think about your customers and try to list situations in which they have
expressed satisfaction with your company’s offering.

  • What made them happy?
  • Was this factor repeated with different customers?
  • How did they let you know they were happy?
  • Did this translate into growth for your business?  

Make an initial diagnosis of the way you contact your customers. You can use the table below.

Do all customers use the same communication channels?

Is it possible to segment your customers?

Dimension Description Yes/No
Increasing Brand Awareness
Social Media Ads Advertising on various social media platforms
Google Ads Pay-per-click advertising on Google
Traditional Print and Media Ads Advertising in traditional media channels
Organic Content Creating blogs and organic content
Acquisition of Customer Data
Internet Data Search Searching for data on the internet
Survey Data Collection Use of survey after clicking on advertisement
Customer Profiling
Media Preference What type of media do they prefer to interact with?
Specific Platforms Platforms of interest:
  • YouTube
  • Instagram
  • Facebook Live
  • Twitter
  • Specific magazines
  • Certain apps
  • Certain brands
Active Channels Channels they are most active on or likely to see:
  • Social media
  • E-mails
  • Outdoors advert
  • Telephone
  • Other

In its simplest terms, a loyalty programme is an exchange of benefits, so a simple principle can be applied in the form of: customer action – your company’s response.

Try to think about what customer action would be most desirable to you and what you could offer the customer in return. You can use the following table.

Action Reaction
Spending €20 to buy my product/service Discount of 2% on purchases.
Recommending my company on Social Media More frequent contact on social media and customer promotion.

You can either read the module or listen to this audio book

Building customer relationships in online business

UNIT II. LONG-DISTANCE BUSINESS RELATIONSHIP MANAGEMENT

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Exercises

When deciding to use written communication, it is worth considering what will
be better in a given case: a blog or a website. The following tool can be used
for assessment. By inserting the “√” sign closer to a given characteristic that is
suitable for your needs, the predominance of characteristics corresponding to
the website or blog will be indicated.

Specification Website My preferences Company blog
Content strongly related to the essence of the company's activities any, unlimited author unknown, content prepared anonymously
Author author unknown author known by name or nickname
Comments no ability to comment on content commenting is an integral part of the blog
Technology often complicated simplified, easy to use
Context marketing and offer material diverse material, without direct promotion
Scope of functionality wide specified
Complexity of navigation and structure high low

When deciding on a particular form of content marketing, it is worth analysing your potential before deciding. You can use the table below to do this:

Form Description Time [1-5] Idea [1-5] Ability to use [1-5] Average
Guide aims to educate consumers, dispel doubts and provide knowledge, while also supporting website positioning 0.00
Company blog is used to publish guides, news, updates and other useful content for users, supporting communication, loyalty building and SEO activities 0.00
Expert article reliable and specialised content created by experts and published on the company's website, blog or external services 0.00
Sponsored article is intended to promote a brand, product or service in a subtle way; often used as a source of links for SEO campaigns 0.00
Interview allows a brand to be presented in the form of a conversation with its representative; most often published in online trade magazines 0.00
Product description presents the benefits of buying a particular product and supports the positioning of the online shop 0.00
Category description allows for a better understanding of the online shop's offer and the selection of individual products, thus supporting the positioning process 0.00
Review presenting the strengths and weaknesses of products, services, their application, distinctive features compared to the competition 0.00
Ranking product and service comparisons published on the company blog or external services 0.00
Newsletter sending valuable content to the e-mail addresses of subscribers to the shop or company database 0.00
e-book / audiobook e-books or listening books which convey valuable information about the brand 0.00
Social media content allows direct communication with the audience and the building of long-term relationships 0.00
White Papers specialised studies on a specific problem or issue, often used in industrial and technological sectors 0.00
Case Studies descriptions of positive experiences of cooperation with clients, illustrating the effectiveness of the solutions offered 0.00
References testimonials and recommendations written by clients cooperating with the company, usually posted on the company's website 0.00
FAQ question-and-answer databases, which provide customers with knowledge and allow them to avoid many repetitive queries 0.00
Infographics the combination of text and graphics makes it possible to convey a lot of interesting content in an original way 0.00
Video videos posted on the company website, video blogs, YouTube videos on the brand and its products 0.00
Podcast includes interviews, tutorials and instructions made public in the form of streaming (to listen, watch) 0.00
Topical social media groups provides opportunities to reach audiences, establish communication-based relationships with them, promote products or materials 0.00
Own online forum discussion forums on industry or specific products 0.00
E-Learning provision of electronic training materials for customers, employees or business partners 0.00
Online games (gamification) use of games for business purposes, e.g. product promotion or education 0.00
Photo-sharing posting photographs (e.g. on Instagram), particularly attractive for fashion, beauty or interior design industries 0.00
Social bookmarking light, entertaining content (e.g. Wykop.pl), which aims to attract the audience's attention 0.00
Webinars a video presentation, interview or online mini-training course that aims to educate, inspire and develop 0.00
Rebus, quizzes, puzzles, tests lighter forms that catch the audience's attention, allow them to test their own knowledge and have fun at the same time 0.00
Research reports the results of surveys, research or studies that may be of interest to clients or the industry are developed and published 0.00
Microsites a separate page highlighting, for example, the history of the brand, its specific activities (involvement in certain projects) or promotions 0.00
Mobile application a simple mobile application made available to recipients of the corporate website, which may facilitate the use of services, promote products or offer additional functionalities 0.00

Collect the results about your company (this can be information gathered on the internet, but it is important that a specific question is asked:

“How likely are you to recommend the company to a friend?” on a scale of 1 to 10, where 1 means “most unlikely” and 10 means “most likely”). Place the values indicated by the following respondents in the table and they
will be automatically assigned groups.

An automatic NPS summary will appear in the final table.

Net Promoter Score (NPS) Survey

No. Respondent Value [1-10] Category
1 Respondent 1
2 Respondent 2
3 Respondent 3
4 Respondent 4
5 Respondent 5
6 Respondent 6
7 Respondent 7
8 Respondent 8
9 Respondent 9
10 Respondent 10
NPS Summary
% of Promotors 0%
% of Passives 0%
% of Critics 0%
Net Promoter Score 0%

You can either read the module or listen to this audio book

Building customer relationships in online business

UNIT III. CUSTOMER SERVICE RELATIONSHIP MARKETING

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If you want to build a CRM strategy, you can use the following 7 steps.

No. Step Description Action
Step One Define your vision and outline your goals Make sure the goals of your CRM strategy align with the organization's overall business strategy. Use the SMART goals method to ensure goals are specific, measurable, achievable, relevant, and time-sensitive. Your goal specification: - Measure (indicator):
- Achievability:
- Relevant:
- Time duration:
Step Two Identify Your Audience Understand who your customer is by finding out the characteristics that define your recipients to effectively reach them with your marketing content.
  • 1. Consult with your marketing, sales, field services, and customer service teams.
  • 2. Distribute appropriate targeted surveys through all contact points and record the results.
  • 3. Analyze customer profiles and talk to other customers to get detailed feedback.
Step Three Conduct Customer Acquisition Mapping Understand all possible initial touchpoints in the customer acquisition process. Capture data at every stage to provide insights into audience details and buyer profiles.
  • 1. Which teams are interacting with customers in this stage?
  • 2. How can these interactions be improved?
  • 3. What is the type of communication?
  • 4. Is there a better way to convey the message?
  • 5. What does your audience want at this stage?
  • 6. What problems might recipients face?
  • 7. How can you provide better service to your customers?
Step Four Organize CRM Components Analyze conclusions and identify areas for improvement. Ensure each CRM strategy component can solve specific customer problems. It takes into account the following elements:
  • 1. Customer service
  • 2. Human Resource Management (HR)
  • 3. Lead management
  • 4. Marketing
  • 5. Sales
  • 6. Analytics
  • 7. Pipeline management
  • 8. Workflow automation
  • 9. Business reporting
Step Five Get to know the market Compare your plan's effects to the competition and determine your market position. Questions to ask:
  • 1. How does your company fit into the market landscape?
  • 2. What are the unique elements of our sales offering?
  • 3. How do our competitors differentiate themselves from us?
  • 4. What trends can you currently observe in the industry?
  • 5. Are there any new sales opportunities we can try?
Step Six Consider adding technology Enrich your CRM strategy with innovative technologies to make team tasks easier. Use AI and automation to improve customer interactions and free up team resources. Determine technology for implementing strategy elements
Step Seven Invest in CRM Software Implement CRM software that evaluates current processes, meets organizational requirements, and drives the company's CRM strategy. 1. Specify a CRM system
2. Estimate usage costs
3. Identify system users

If you want to implement a CRM system, you need to take further steps, starting with planning.

You can use the following tool to describe the actions taken at each stage.

STEP 1: Pre-implementation analysis
Determining the needs of your company Members of the analytical team, separated from the company’s structures, should include representatives of all departments in the company. Later, selected employees will participate in talks with system suppliers and actively supervise the CRM implementation. The team’s tasks include analysing three elements:

step 1

ASSESSMENT of: - the current business model of the company - enterprise in terms of its preparation for CRM implementation - the impact of implementing CRM practices on the company's main strategy and current business model
Action
Result
specify technical resources:
expectations of all potential users of the system (by examining them):
define business processes and prioritize them:
get information about available CRM systems and their manufacturers or suppliers:
define the business goals of the implementation (e.g. reducing indirect sales costs, shortening order processing time, increasing turnover in a specific segment, etc.):
create a vision diagram for maintaining relationships with customers:
Checklist:
 • list of business processes, arranged by priority,
• list of hardware and software requirements,
• short list of requirements (introduction to defining the functionality of the system),
• list of requirements for staff.

STEP 2: Planning the budget, estimating the expected ROI (rate of return on investment)
You should establish the financial framework within which you can operate when choosing a system, then estimate how the implementation will affect cash flow, the company’s quotations, its brand, reputation, and what other financial implications the CRM implementation brings. The option of a failed deployment should also be considered.


You need to answer the following questions:

step 2

Planning the budget, estimating the expected ROI (rate of return on investment)
Action
Result
What costs will the company incur due to such a failure?
Is there a risk of bankruptcy?
Do implementation costs constitute a significant part of the company's capital?
Checklist:
•final decission concerns CRM implementation

Such an objective analysis is extremely important and is worth spending time on before making the final decision to implement a CRM system.

 

STEP 3: Implementation/adaptation, tests, correction
This is the longest (proper, fundamental) stage of implementation, in which the supplier prepares the system according to the prepared analysis. Then, it tests them internally in terms of ergonomics, technical and logical aspects, and in this form it passes the system on to the end customer for testing. This is also the time to implement corrections reported by customers. It is therefore worth working closely with the implementation team at the testing stage to avoid any misunderstandings and shortcomings. In this aim you can use the following table:

step 3

Implementation/adaptation, tests, correction
Action
Result
Internal test in terms of the aspects:
- system ergonomics:
- system technical scope and functionality:
- system logical framework:
External testing:
- customer feedback:
Improvement:
- implementation of them
Final version:
Checklist:
• All elements are done
STEP 4: System launch and training After performing all tests, the system is ready for use. The final step is to provide client-side system administrators with instructions on how to manage the system. End users are instructed by the supplier on how to use the functionalities provided to them in practice.

step 4

System launch and training
Action
Result
System management and operation:
- instructions for system administrators on the client side:
- instructions for end users:
Checklist:
•Administrators and user use the system correctly

If you want to implement a CRM system, you can use the alternative steps in this
process. In this purpose use the following tables

No. Step Action Result
STEP 1 Identify your business needs Analyse of:
  • sales process
  • customer data management
  • customer satisfaction goals
 Checklist: Identification of specific features your CRM system should have.
STEP 2 Choosing the type of CRM software Identification of the main application of the CRM system:
  • data analysis
  • improving team communication
  • non-standard need for integration with other systems
 Checklist: Identification of specific purpose of your CRM system and sales decision
STEP 3 Development of a CRM strategy Development of a CRM implementation strategy:
  • project goal
  • CRM applications and features to be developed
  • resources needed to build a custom CRM
 Checklist: Plan of CRM system development
STEP 4 Gathering the development team Establishing a team to develop CRM:
  • designers
  • programmers
  • testers
  • project managers
 Checklist: CRM system development TEAM
STEP 5 Development and adaptation of the CRM platform Project milestones check:
  • system coding
  • integration of your own CRM system with other business tools
  • checking whether the CRM platform is adaptable and flexible
  • system cybersecurity analysis
 Checklist: Achieving of CRM system development milestones
STEP 6 Implementation and training of the sales team Implementation:
  • launching the system in the company
  • user training
  • support during the transition period
 Checklist: Users' ability to operate the system
STEP 7 Monitoring and optimization Monitoring and evaluation:
  • system performance monitoring
  • analysis of system data regarding trends in customer behavior
  • analysis of system data regarding customer satisfaction
  • collecting information about problems during system operation
 Checklist: Summary report for a given period of system use

If you want to conduct preliminary audit of CRM system using, you can use the following tool. Assign a weight to each aspect so that the sum of the weights is 1.0. Give each aspect a rating, where 1 is the lowest rating and 5 is the highest.

Question Rating
[1-5]		 Weight
[0.1-0.9]		 Average
• Do CRM system users actively use it? 0.00
• Are the purchased CRM functionalities fully used? 0.00
• Does the CRM system fulfill its functions? 0.00
• Has there been a change in the business strategy that requires modification of the CRM solution? 0.00
• Is there a need to optimize work efficiency in the CRM system? 0.00
Total weight should be 1 current:

avg:

If the average value is between 4,1 and 5,0 – it means that the system fulfils its function.

Average between 3,1 and 4,0 – system or some processes needs a correction.

Average between 2,1 and 3,0 – the system must be subjected to detailed analysis.

You can either read the module or listen to this audio book

Building customer relationships in online business

UNIT IV. CUSTOMER RELATIONSHIP MANAGEMENT IN THE CRISIS

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Service Leader

Justyna Franczyk

Project Expert

Małgorzata Kilian

Project Expert