The growth of CRM in SA

CRM has come a long way over the last couple of years in SA, not only through product development and channel growth, but also as an organisational ideology.

According to Marcus van Niekerk, managing director of Cyber Wiz, SA has seen CRM offerings evolve from contact management solutions and sales force automation into fully integrated CRM solutions that form the basis for many companies` organisational operation in a relatively short span of time.

"Cyber Wiz decided to concentrate our business focus on CRM solutions at the beginning of 2002. We subsequently became business partners with Maximizer Software EMEA, who are a leading provider of proven and affordable customer relationship management (CRM) and contact management solutions," comments Van Niekerk. "Partnering with Maximizer has meant that we have been at the forefront of CRM development and implementation for the last three years, which is largely due to their vast experience in the marketplace and superior product offerings."

Maximizer`s focus on the South African CRM market took a more concentrated approach when, in August 2003, the company opened a local office and, more recently, through their appointment of a senior account manager and a sales engineer, solely for the MEA (Middle East and Africa) region.

"Maximizer`s continual commitment to this region is also prevalent through their training certification and channel support, which is expressed through the frequent visits to SA by their technical and management personnel," continues Van Niekerk.

Having recently received Maximizer`s premiere partnership level - Group D, eCRM is of special interest to Cyber Wiz. Maximizer Software`s first standalone software program for Internet commerce was launched in March 1999 and it has now also added the Maximizer Version 8 eCRM suite to its product offerings. The eCRM suite offers opportunity management, workforce synchronisation, marketing, customer service and support and workflow capabilities coupled with the suite`s Web portal feature. The Web portal provides employees, partners and customers easy access to vital information, be it remotely via a handheld device or through any computer terminal with Internet access and a Web browser.

"These market-leading solutions, as well as Maximizer`s frequent business partner training and their commitment to their South African customer base, has culminated in Cyber Wiz, along with other business partners, excelling within the EMEA channel region. The last three years have seen Cyber Wiz receiving two customer care awards and one technical achievement award at the annual Maximizer business partner conferences," continues Van Niekerk.

"Maximizer Software is really committed to implementing successful CRM solutions in SA. Their continued communication drives toward end-users outlines the possible pit-falls surrounding improper CRM implementation, further educating business people on the proper use of CRM and how it can improve overall organisational effectiveness and customer relations," comments Van Niekerk.

"Maximizer Software`s commitment to their channel, their stringent business partner selection criteria and the high quality of training given to their business partners only bodes well for the future of CRM in this country. We should soon see a rekindled confidence in CRM by a larger majority of businesses, not only large corporations, but also in our growing SME sector. And with vendors like Maximizer Software backing our efforts in these sectors, we will soon all be speaking the language of customer relationship management," he concludes.