Report points to poor customer management

Report points to poor customer management

Report by JANEARCHER

THE travel industry is paying lip-service to the concept of customer relationship management because most companies do not understand it, a report released by financial services company KPMG has said.

The report, “CRM and the global travel industry”, says more than 80% of travel and leisure companies see CRM as key to the success of their business, but more than two-thirds have failed to implement customer relationshipmanagement programmes.

Most give little attention to customer service, the report adds. KPMG surveyed travel and leisure companies with turnovers ranging from £1 million to £250 million in the US, mainland Europe and the UK.

“We found that companies use the term, but don’t understand it,” said KPMG director ofhospitality Nick Pattie. “They see it as a sales and marketing rather than a customer relationship tool. Yet the strength of CRM is customerretention, because it is cheaper to keep a customer than acquire a new one. It is about managing your customer base to identify clients who are most profitable for your company.”

Pattie said most companies surveyed held information in different databases, and many relied on paper records.

Poor customer relationship management often means clients do not get good service. That can impact on the company if it loses that client.

Pattie said CRM costs an average-sizedcompany £72,000, which includes the cost of database technology and management training.

.”About 40% of the small and medium-size businesses surveyed plan to implement a CRM policy in the next 12-18 months,” he added.