Technology Acceptance Model in U.S. Extension: CRM Adoption

QUALITATIVE INVESTIGATION OF TAM

29

encouraged to use the transparent marketing approach. Additionally, these recommendations

note that the interface containing core processes such as marketing, sales, inventory, distribution,

and finance is complex and should be developed with a holistic approach rather than piecemeal

development. Finally, they also recommended that a key factor in project success is close

cooperation between IT and customer management functions.

Xu et al. (2002) were concerned with the issue of how to apply cutting-edge CRM

solutions in the aftermath of the information technology era. They highlight that CRM solutions

emerged in the late 1980s to automate and standardize internal processes related to acquiring,

servicing, and keeping customers. This research examined the characteristics of CRM, and the

first characteristic identified was Salesforce automation and how CRM systems house customer,

deal, product, and competitor information together for Salesforce retrieval (Xu et al., 2002).

Additionally, Xu et al. (2002) emphasize customer service as a characteristic of CRM

technologies to help improve an organization ’ s abandonment rate through tracking, monitoring,

and measuring customer service responses. The third characteristic is marketing automation,

which provides the most up-to- date information on customers’ buying habits so that the most

effective marketing campaigns can be achieved. Using CRM, marketing intelligence, customer

database, and communication technologie s in combination can better address customers’

individual needs and allow a company to capture a market before its competitors. Finally, field

service is another characteristic of CRM that allows remote staff to quickly and effectively

communicate with customer service personnel to meet customer expectations.

Current Content

Technology Acceptance Model

Powered by