Exploding 3 Social CRM Myths that Paralyze Business Leaders

By Chris Bucholtz (@bucholtz) Oct 27, 2011

In MarketingSherpa’s recent social marketing benchmark survey, 38 percent of marketers responded that they have not yet begun planning a social CRM initiative. So what’s holding them back?

Most business leaders are well aware of the power of social media and the communication revolution that it represents. It gives businesses a new ability to forge deeper relationships with customers and to do so in a resource-effective manner.

But, like anything that’s done in public (or at least semi-public), it holds pitfalls. Do something inappropriate or insensitive and many people will see it and hold you accountable for it.

Shocking Survey Results

Perhaps that’s behind the reticence of some companies to seize the moment. MarketingSherpa’s social marketing benchmark survey polled more than 3,300 marketers and discovered that just six percent of them felt their social CRM initiative was fully deployed. Another 20 percent said it was partially deployed, and 36 percent said things were still in the planning stage.

However, the largest percentage — 38 percent — responded that they had not yet begun planning a social CRM initiative. That’s shocking — nearly four out of 10 companies involved in the survey were, through inaction, indecisiveness or indifference, allowing the social media revolution to rush past them.

What’s keeping this 38 percent from moving forward? Speaking with CRM users battling to get the social CRM ball rolling can be revealing. One of the culprits is the collection of myths about social CRM rattling around the boardrooms and front offices of the world that are readily dispelled but which still cause leaders to balk at efforts at greater engagement and deeper data about customers.

The 3 Biggest “Impediments”

Here are the three biggest imaginary impediments to social CRM initiatives:

1. You can’t quantify Social CRM ROI

“Calculating a social media ROI has challenges because you have to hold three complex concepts in mind — traditional business, social business and financial analysis,” said Kathy Herrmann, the author of Simplifying Social Business and an independent consultant who helps businesses develop ROI methodologies for social CRM. “There are a lot of smart people in social circles, but many don’t have the necessary experience to tackle the calculation. For them, determining ROI seems impossible.”

Another reason for this myth is that there are unknowns associate with social initiatives. “That can be true — but this is true of any corporate initiative,” Herrmann said. “Dealing with unknowns in calculations like ROI is a combination of science and art.”

So, while the blind spots people have about ROI and social media are understandable, they are not insurmountable. Start by defining the business case for your social programs. Herrmann recommends determining, in this order, your objectives, strategy, key performance indicators (KPIs) and your expected business results, including demonstrating a return on investment.

“The ROI is your narrative or underlying story that supports your strategy — and it’s nothing more than a numerical view of your strategy,” said Herrmann.

Getting to that view can be complicated, because there’s lots of variability between social media projects from business to business. Herrmann and her collaborative partner Dr. Natalie Petouhoff start with a base methodology, “but then each company requires customization to their respective social media ROI model,” because each social program has its own characteristics that impact the ROI, said Herrmann.