Social CRM For Dummies

Chapter 2

Meeting the New Kid on the Block: Social CRM

In This Chapter

• Demystifying social CRM
• Comparing social CRM with its forerunner
• Seeing how social CRM can help your business

At the time of this writing, Facebook surpassed the one billion users mark. Let's break it down real fast: One billion people are either using or signed up for the social networking site. That's one billion, with a b. This monumental accomplishment isn't just a huge user base for the social networking giant. It shows a fundamental shift in the way people are communicating with each other and brands. It shows that the social side of business is going to be more important in the future than ever before.

Social media is just one ingredient to a successful social CRM strategy, but it's a fundamental ingredient. This new customer relationship management mandate presents new challenges for any business owner. However, it ultimately enables you to truly know your customers and their preferences. In this chapter, we help you get acquainted with this new kid on the block. You might just find out that this paradigm shift to social business isn't so overwhelming.

Defining Social CRM

There are many forms and definitions surrounding the idea of social CRM. The basic idea is that multiple business units interact using the social web (social media). You have the ability to overlay the traditional CRM model with social data that builds better relationships for the future. The official definition is best given by ...