Customer relationship management is integral to your company’s growth and even success, but what about the relationships you may have outside of those with your customers or prospects?
CRM has evolved, and today we can even talk about xRM (Extended Relationship Management) solutions to designate the multiple relationships that an organization can manage.
xRM, a solution that would replace CRM?
xRM is a much broader, more “extended” term that goes beyond the customer dimension by linking all the actors with whom you will be in relation: it can be suppliers, partners, collaborators, distributors, shareholders, or data specific to the organization itself (products, articles, seminar rooms…).
By forming a network of relationships, all your data will be linked together. This means more information available and better communication and collaboration between all stakeholders.
This gives xRM system users a centralized view of their relationships. In the same way as a classic CRM system, all data is kept on the same platform, saving time and money.
Why use an xRM?
xRM does not replace CRM. It is in fact an advanced version of CRM.
Let’s take the example of an event project. Organizing an event involves many actors: sales people, planners, suppliers, partners… who will intervene before, during and even after the event. By using a simple CRM, you take the risk of putting aside all these actors, who have all their importance in your projects, to concentrate only on your customers Without them, you will reduce the value of the relationships that are critical to your business success.
With an xRM system, it is much easier to establish relationships with everyone who may be involved in your projects and to understand how they relate to each other.
By managing complex resources, an xRM will significantly improve your business processes, thus facilitating interactions with your customers or future customers for a better satisfaction!
To summarize, an xRM is :
- All your data on the same tool for a better data integration and no more need to use other solutions
- Helps to reduce time and expenses, thus reducing the risk of failure of your projects
- Helps manage relationships not only with customers but also with suppliers, partners, organizers or any other actor you interact with.
What are the differences between ERP and xRM?
An ERP (Enterprise Resource Planning) system improves the flow of data and streamlines the operations of your company. It is generally more complete than an xRM which is, as seen above, an extension of CRM.
Although xRM solutions are particularly complete, they are not the most suitable to manage all the accounting, human resources or production aspects for industry or logistics.
You have probably heard of SAP, the number one in the ERP market. This system is implemented by many companies to meet higher expectations than an xRM by reducing your costs and thus offering a significantly improved customer experience.
Lab Event: an xRM or a CRM?
Lab Event is a software in SAAS mode that allows you to manage all your customers, your opportunities (we talk about events at Lab Event), activities with customers, the product catalog … So, xRM or CRM?
Both of them!
Lab Event is perfectly adapted to manage all types of relationships, not only those of your customers but also those concerning your suppliers, your supplier contacts or even your activities with them and to link them to customer opportunities.
We could even say that Lab Event is an ERP, probably not at the same level as SAP, but perfectly adapted to event management.
With Lab Event, you manage all your events on a unique platform and save 80% on the entire value chain (briefing, search for external providers, creation of proposals, editing of quotes and invoices …). Our tools allow you to spend less time on administrative and financial management and focus more on your customer and supplier relationships!
