More Organizations Are Using IT Outsourcing to Enhance Business Performance Rather Than to Just Cut Costs

According to a 2007 Gartner survey of 750 IT and outsourcing executives in North America, Asia/Pacific and Europe, 41 percent of organizations that were currently outsourcing IT said they use IT outsourcing (ITO) to enhance business outcomes and performance. Approximately 47 percent of organizations still identified controlling or reducing costs as the primary benefit expected from ITO. However, there is a shift taking place. In 2005, only 28 percent of respondents reported enhanced business outcomes and performance as the primary benefit of ITO.

In all major regions, buyers of ITO anticipate increasing their use of ITO in the coming 24 months. On a global basis, 88 percent of organizations that are currently outsourcing anticipate moderate or high levels of outsourcing compared with 67 percent in 2007. Over the next two years, 89 percent of North American organizations anticipate outsourcing at high or moderate levels, up from 67 percent in 2007. About 85 percent of Europe, the Middle East and Africa (EMEA) organizations and 90 percent of Asia/Pacific organizations expect to continue at the same level or increase their outsourcing during the next two years, up from 62 percent and 73 percent in 2007, respectively.

Both North America and Asia/Pacific respondents said data privacy/security was the top inhibitor to ITO, while EMEA organizations were more likely to be concerned about loss of control in outsourcing.

More information on Customer Relationship Management can be found at www.CRMindustry.com

CRM solutions on brink of widespread adoption across the Higher Education Market

Higher education institutions are turning to customer relationship management (CRM) technology solutions to differentiate themselves in a bid to compete more aggressively with one another to recruit and retain the "right" students. The report, 'CRM in the Higher Education Market' by independent market analysts Datamonitor, predicts IT revenue from CRM solutions in the higher education markets of the US, UK, Germany, France and Australia will grow from $184.9 million in 2007 to $324.5 million in 2012. This growth will be driven both by the purchase of new solutions and the expansion of existing installations.

CRM enables institutions to create a 360 degree view of the student experience

Colleges and universities have historically targeted CRM to support specific processes, such as campaign management, in the admissions and development offices. Fueled by developments in the consumer market, student expectations for institutional services are rising fast and prompting institutions to extend their view of CRM to include a larger and more diverse set of processes and departments.

While corporate-sector CRM solutions are a good start, higher education has unique requirements that must be addressed

Translating a corporate sector CRM solution into one that meets the specific needs of higher education is a far more complicated task than simply changing references to customers and sales to students and admissions in the end-user interface.

The degree to which CRM vendors have successfully made these changes varies considerably and has given rise to a large and diverse competitive landscape. The current landscape, however, is likely to evolve.

More information on Customer Relationship Management can be found at www.CRMindustry.com

Technology Populism Will Drive The Next Wave Of IT Adoption

The next wave of change within IT organizations will be fueled by the proliferation of consumer devices, social networking tools, and cloud-based collaboration services making their way into the enterprise, according to a new report by Forrester Research, Inc. What Forrester calls Technology Populism will force Information & Knowledge Management professionals to rethink how they currently evaluate, provision, and support collaborative software and services. This sea change will present IT departments with a number of opportunities and challenges that will upend the traditional way that technology is deployed.

Other drivers behind Technology Populism include:

--Cheap broadband at home and work. Nearly 50 percent of North American households have a broadband connection, and the Web continues to develop into the preferred platform for two-way communication and collaboration. According to Forrester, 15 percent of North American adults use social networking sites on at least a monthly basis and 34 percent communicate via instant message as frequently.

--A new generation of applications based on network interactions. Companies are learning how to exploit services such as LinkedIn, Facebook, and salesforce.com for business purposes to generate sales leads, recruit talent, and test and improve products.

--IT views Web 2.0 favorably. Despite popular opinion, IT leaders support Web 2.0 technologies in the workplace: A recent Forrester study shows 72 percent of IT departments are using some form of Web 2.0 technology.

Among the challenges posed by Technology Populism are how to govern Web 2.0 technologies, ensuring information integrity and avoiding information silos, a real issue as these new tools could create volumes of information microsilos that make it next to impossible to find information. In addition, IT departments are faced with current collaboration and Social Computing technologies becoming obsolete as Technology Populism grows.

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Technology Barriers to Mobile Commerce Are Coming Down, but Consumer Challenges Remain

Forthcoming improvements in mobile technology, such as better form factor and faster data speeds, are causing many retailers to think about adding a mobile commerce (m-commerce) channel in the next 12 to 24 months, according to Gartner Inc. However, in order to drive m-commerce revenues in the future, both retailers and m-commerce vendors must seriously consider how far consumers are willing to shop using their mobile phones.

Gartner recently undertook a survey of more than 2,000 consumers in the U.S. and the U.K. to assess the likelihood that they would undertake a variety of mobile shopping activities, from price checking and product browsing to ordering and paying for a product from a mobile phone.

Key survey findings:

--Consumers are more likely to shop rather than to buy from a mobile phone. In the U.S., consumers were twice as likely to check for prices of items as to buy items from their mobile phone (24 percent were likely to check price, and 12 percent were likely to buy on a mobile phone). U.K. consumers posted similar responses (18 percent check price and 11 percent buy).

--Checking item prices and finding stores are two shopping activities particularly suited to consumers on the go. These two activities were in the top three activities to be done on a mobile phone in both the U.S. and U.K.

--Openness to receiving promotions on a mobile phone ranked third in the U.S. and fourth in the U.K. Twenty percent of U.S. and 16 percent of U.K. respondents stated that they would be likely to want to receive promotions on their mobile phones.

--The younger the consumer, the more likely he or she is to use the mobile phone to conduct retail activities. In the U.S., the "digital native" respondents (ages 18 to 27) were, on average, 1.98 times more likely to do mobile shopping activities than the "boomer" generation respondents (ages 43 to 61). In the U.K., the digital natives were on average 2.63 times more likely to do mobile shopping activities than their boomer counterparts. This is consistent with the assumption that mobile use in the U.K. is considered more advanced than in the U.S.

--U.K. consumers were slightly more conservative in stating their likelihood to use the mobile phone to shop, but the relative ranking of the preferred activities was very similar to U.S. consumers. However, digital natives in the U.K. were slightly more aggressive (7 percent more) in stating their likelihood to do mobile shopping activities than U.S. digital natives.

More information on Customer Relationship Management can be found at www.CRMindustry.com

E-Commerce Satisfaction Soars in American Customer Satisfaction Index

Customer satisfaction with the e-commerce sector hits an all-time high, according to the American Customer Satisfaction Index (ACSI), released by the University of Michigan with e-commerce partner ForeSee Results. E-commerce in aggregate rises to a score of 81.6 on the ACSI’s 100-point scale, a significant 2 percent jump from 2006. The e-commerce sector now outperforms all other service industries measured by ACSI.

The ACSI E-Commerce Report, which is a part of the ACSI’s fourth quarter report, measures customer satisfaction with online retail, online brokerage and online travel companies.

Online Retail: Amazon Ranks Second of 200+ Companies Measured

Online retail is the highest scoring industry in the fourth quarter, scoring 83 for a second consecutive year and surpassing the offline retail sector (74.2) by 12 percent. All of the measured companies in the e-retail industry are among the top 10 highest-scoring companies in all of ACSI.

E-retail stalwart Amazon.com ties its all-time high, up 1 point to 88, leading both the e-retail industry and the e-commerce sectors. The silver and bronze for online retail go to two new companies to the Index: Newegg debuts at 87 and Netflix at 84.

mazon has the second-highest score in the ACSI (trailing only Heinz) and surpasses other customer-pleasing companies such as Apple and Southwest Airlines. The company’s dedication to the customer experience is paying off in terms of customer satisfaction, as evidenced by its biggest fourth quarter revenues ever.

ACSI merged the auction category with online retail to reflect the increasing overlap and competition between the two. EBay moves up a point to 81, but it has been fairly stagnant over the last few years, failing to come up with the true business innovations that have catapulted Amazon up 5 percent since 2004.

Online Travel: Satisfaction Continues to Deteriorate

The online travel industry falls for a second straight year, dropping 1.3 percent to 75. The three major online travel sites all suffered drops in satisfaction. Expedia remains the highest-scoring company, but its score plummets 3.8 percent to 75. Travelocity and Orbitz both drop to 73, as the three companies continue to have difficulty differentiating their services.

Priceline employs a different model for its service and improves 1.4 percent to 73. But even the improvements in the "all others" category (+3.9 percent to 79) could not prevent the aggregate score from falling. The "all others" category includes airlines, hotels, and other travel search engines like Kayak.com. Travel suppliers like airlines and hotels are putting pressure on the three major travel sites. Airlines are now offering hotel and car rental options in addition to lowest-price guarantees and loyalty and rewards programs, and hotels encourage customers to book directly on their sites.

Online Brokerage: Fidelity Overtakes CharlesSchwab

After a big surge last year, customer satisfaction with online financial services continues to climb. Online brokerage is up for a third consecutive year (+1.3 percent to 79). Fidelity is the biggest gainer, increasing 5 percent to 84, setting a new high for the industry. CharlesSchwab (+2.5 percent to 82) and TD Ameritrade (+3.9 percent to 80) also improved, while E*TRADE’s score is down 1.3 percent to 73.

Survey Finds Current Converged Mobile Devices Fail to Compel Users

The conventional wisdom within the portable device industry is that consumers have a preference to use converged devices, meaning single devices that combine the functionality of previously separate devices, reports In-Stat. But the idea that there will be wholesale adoption of a device that simply combines multiple devices is unrealistic, the high-tech market research firm says. A recent In-Stat survey of US businesspeople shows that users tend to remain loyal to older technology, and employers are reluctant to force the issue.

Recent research by In-Stat found the following:

--One positive sign of progress in convergence is that 8% of road warriors, businesspeople who travel frequently, have given up a desk phone to rely solely on their mobile number.

--Before employers can insist that employees use fewer devices, manufacturers need to address battery life and ergonomics issues for portable devices.

--The survey shows that many more users prefer to carry redundant devices than chose to have a single telephone number and a single computing device.

More information on Customer Relationship Management can be found at www.CRMindustry.com

Services Marketers Optimistic About 2008

Despite the dark clouds hanging over the economy and growing fears of a recession in 2008, services and solutions marketers are optimistic about the year ahead. In fact, according to new ITSMA research, their members are predicting robust revenue growth, bigger marketing budgets, and increased headcount in 2008.

ITSMA members reported services revenue growth of 19% in 2007. Survey respondents expect that growth to keep right on going, anticipating 18% services revenue growth for the year ahead.
Services marketing budgets are also expected to rise, with 61% of the respondents predicting an average increase of 18.9%, 15% of respondents predicting an average decrease of 9.9%, and 24% of respondents predicting that their services marketing budgets will stay the same.

In addition, 40% of survey respondents reported that they expect to increase headcount over the course of the year, 48% expect their staffs to stay the same size, and only 12% indicated that their departments will shrink.

Budget Allocations: Sales Enablement, Offering Management, and Marcom Are Key Categories for '08

Looking to increase marketing's impact on the business, 67% of the respondents say they will funnel more resources into sales enablement initiatives in 2008, with only 15% indicating that they will decrease spending in this area. Other budget categories that are expected to receive higher levels of investment in 2008 include:

• Strategy and market planning
• Offering management
• Marketing communications

In terms of the marcom budget breakdown, it's clear that the emphasis is on building relationships and engaging customers and prospects in dialogue. Look for increased investment in digital marketing, face-to-face events, and thought leadership in 2008.

More Marketers Recognize That Experimentation = Success

The best marketers are the ones who take risks, make mistakes, and learn along the way. Even though the economy looks a bit precarious, you can be sure that the best marketers aren't conservatively sitting on the sidelines. They're getting their hands dirty experimenting with new tools and approaches—especially digital ones.

This year, marketers are especially high on search, with 70% of the respondents reporting that they are increasing their investment in search engine marketing (both paid and organic). Between 50% and 60% of the respondents also indicated that they're increasing spending on:

• Online communities
• Microsites
• Intranets
• Webinars
• Blogs
• Podcasting

Wikis and virtual worlds like Second Life were less popular: Fewer than 30% of the respondents expect to increase spending in these areas in 2008.

Top Marketing Priorities

In 2008, marketing's priorities are more measurable than ever, demonstrating how important it is for marketers to be able to prove that their activities are having an impact on the business.

This year, the top five priorities for services marketers are:

• Differentiating the company or offerings
• Enabling the sales force
• Generating demand
• Improving customer satisfaction and loyalty
• Developing thought leadership

Although it didn't make it into marketers' top five priorities for 2008, increasing the use of digital tools and online marketing channels rose from number 16 on the list in 2007 to number 7 in 2008—a dramatic leap that ITSMA is happy to report, given that recent research showed that the best marketers are experimenting more with newer marketing techniques such as blogging, podcasting, and social networking.

Additional information on Customer Relationship Management can be found at www.CRMindustry.com

Brand Image is Main Motivation for Companies to be Eco-Friendly

BearingPoint, Inc., a management and technology consulting firm, announced the results of a survey that suggest that corporate image is one of the most significant motivations for US companies to be “eco-friendly.” The survey results were gathered from data from more than 600 executives from large firms around the world.

Seventy-one percent of US companies report that they proactively market the “environmental friendliness” of their products to their customers, which is comparatively higher than the global average of 59 percent.

Yet, US companies lag behind their global counterparts in developing “green” supply chains, the process by which products and services get from design to delivery and the operational area of many enterprises that is widely believed to leave the most significant environmental footprint.

Globally, the single-most important driver for companies to implement “greener” operations is regulatory compliance.

Also of note is the fact that 36 percent said their greatest barrier toward the implementation of “environmentally friendly” supply chains is a lack of information while 11 percent saw cost as a limiting factor.

While 83 percent of all companies surveyed claim to factor environmental concerns into their corporate strategy, slightly less than a quarter of US companies have worked to implement “green” supply chains, while approximately 38 percent of European companies and nearly all Japanese companies have taken steps to ease their environmental impact of their supply chain.

The survey also revealed that those companies which have acted are seeing a significant increase in customer satisfaction and are gaining some competitive advantage as a result; furthermore they are not only preempting likely new legislation, but also benefiting from savings in operating costs.

The survey questioned 601 directors of firms from around the globe with revenues ranging from $100 million to more than $1 billion. BearingPoint, Inc., one of the world’s largest management and technology consulting firms, announced the results of a survey that suggest that corporate image is one of the most significant motivations for US companies to be “eco-friendly.” The survey results were gathered from data from more than 600 executives from large firms around the world.

Seventy-one percent of US companies report that they proactively market the “environmental friendliness” of their products to their customers, which is comparatively higher than the global average of 59 percent.

Yet, US companies lag behind their global counterparts in developing “green” supply chains, the process by which products and services get from design to delivery and the operational area of many enterprises that is widely believed to leave the most significant environmental footprint.

Globally, the single-most important driver for companies to implement “greener” operations is regulatory compliance.

Also of note is the fact that 36 percent said their greatest barrier toward the implementation of “environmentally friendly” supply chains is a lack of information while 11 percent saw cost as a limiting factor.

While 83 percent of all companies surveyed claim to factor environmental concerns into their corporate strategy, slightly less than a quarter of US companies have worked to implement “green” supply chains, while approximately 38 percent of European companies and nearly all Japanese companies have taken steps to ease their environmental impact of their supply chain.

The survey also revealed that those companies which have acted are seeing a significant increase in customer satisfaction and are gaining some competitive advantage as a result; furthermore they are not only preempting likely new legislation, but also benefiting from savings in operating costs.

The survey questioned 601 directors of firms from around the globe with revenues ranging from $100 million to more than $1 billion.

More information on Customer Relationship Management can be found at www.CRMindustry.com

New Study Analyzes the Positive Effect of Online Reviews on E-Commerce

PowerReviews, a developer of customer-review solutions for retailers and their shoppers, released a whitepaper entitled “Merchant and Customer Perspectives On Customer Reviews and User-Generated Content.” The whitepaper surveyed dozens of online retailers for their insights on how online reviews have been implemented and used, as well as analyzed the measurable business results.

Findings of note include:

59% of merchants interviewed cited the customer experience as the most important factor in the addition of customer reviews to their site.

79% said the product page is very successful as a product review hub. In contrast, the home page had varying degrees of success with 37 percent reporting strong successes.

Merchants indicate that there is less reliance on customer service as the reviews answer some of the questions that otherwise must be handled on a one-off basis.

The unbiased nature of reviews (where they are more transparent and trustworthy) engenders customer trust and that trust translates into loyal, lifelong shoppers.

Merchants were generally surprised by the number of positive reviews, another hidden truth. Initial fears of heavily negative reviews never materialized for any of the merchants interviewed.

More information on Customer Relationship Management can be found at www.CRMindustry.com

Global Technology Companies "Treading Water" When it Comes to Security and Privacy

Companies in the Technology, Media & Entertainment and Telecommunications industries (TMT) are overconfident and underprepared to prevent security breaches, according to a new Deloitte survey.

The 2007 global security survey of more than 100 TMT organizations reveals that 46 percent of TMT companies surveyed do not have a formal information security strategy in place. Despite this lack of a formal security strategy for nearly half the respondents, 69 percent report they are “very confident” or “extremely confident” about their organization’s effectiveness at tackling external security challenges.

Additional findings include:

• Just 7 percent of TMT companies believe they are prepared for future security threats.
• In the past year, only 5 percent of companies increased their security investment by 15 percent or more. And half allocated less than 3 percent of their IT budget to security.
• Only 38 percent of companies believe their organization has all the skills and capabilities they need to respond effectively and efficiently to security challenges.
• Only 62 percent of respondents believe that security is a key imperative at the board or executive level.

With more and more people working outside the office – whether it is at home, in the car, or in a local coffeehouse – businesses must adopt an end-to-end security strategy that spans the extended enterprise. This model requires that enterprises pay close attention to the security of its mobile workers as well as the security capabilities of its business partners.

The study also revealed a concern amongst respondents in the area of insider threats, with only 56 percent displaying confidence in addressing employee misconduct, whether it be deliberate or accidental.

The convergence of physical and information security is something most TMT companies have not yet addressed, with 64 percent of respondents indicating they have done little or nothing to integrate the two. TMT companies could be missing out on opportunities to improve both information security and physical security by thinking about their strategy holistically.

For example, an access card or wireless chip normally used to control physical access could also be used to help prevent unauthorized information access. When someone tries to log on to an information system, the system could connect with the company’s physical security systems to make sure the person associated with that user ID is actually present in the building. If not, it could deny access and trigger a silent alarm.

There are signs that smarter security strategies will emerge in 2008 as the number of Chief Information Security Officers (CISOs) appointed in the companies surveyed increased from 57 percent to 65 percent in the past year. CISOs are still not industry standard among TMT corporate officers, yet they are one of the keys to effective information governance. The survey revealed that only 13 percent of CISOs have a tenure of over 10 years, whereas the highest percentage, 39 percent, responded having held a CISO position for just three to five years, indicating that there is still an upward trend toward governance frameworks overall.

More information on Customer Relationship Management can be found at www.CRMindustry.com

Companies Pressured to Deliver CRM Access Anywhere Turn to Software-as-a-Service Solutions

A recent survey conducted by the Aberdeen Group revealed that only 7% of respondents will not consider purchasing CRM delivered via SaaS. The move towards SaaS as the preferred delivery method for a CRM system is due in part by the need for organizations to find efficient ways to increase the productivity of a diverse sales force.

The top pressure causing all organizations to focus resources on SaaS as a CRM delivery method is the need to provide access to account information anywhere to an increasingly mobile and global workforce. Best-in-Class companies indicated that they currently blend organizational capabilities, such as the ability to provide remote access to employees (95%) and CRM security processes (57%), with technology deployment to positively affect the productivity of sales reps, while reducing the IT constraints that would accompany an on-premise solution. As a result, Best-in-Class companies have reduced Time-to-Close 30% more than Laggards. Furthermore, 71% of Best-in-Class companies integrate lead management technology with a CRM solution to provide increased visibility into the sales pipeline.

The report demonstrates the value of collectively leveraging organizational practices in process, performance measurement, knowledge management and technology to maximize the productivity and efficiency of an organization’s CRM system and sales force. By utilizing CRM/SFA (90%) and system access restrictions (67%), Best-in-Class companies are able to provide their employees with a secure repository of account, contact, and customer information.

More information on Customer Relationship Management can be found at www.CRMindustry.com

Four green marketing predictions for 2008

There are likely to be some serious shifts in the 'green marketing' landscape during the next year or two, including legal challenges and consumer 'greenwashing lists', according to green marketing expert Jacquelyn Ottman.

Some of the coming changes may be influenced by the US Federal Trade Commission's hearings on green marketing claims and so-called "eco-labels", while others will come about because of large retailers' efforts to persuade suppliers to produce trimmed-down products and packaging. Ottman's top four predictions for green marketing in 2008 and beyond are:

Discredited green claims lose traction
Expect some meaningless marketing terms to fall by the wayside. For example, expect to see fewer claims of bio-degradability, especially with regard to some types of corn-based plastics (which have actually been found not to degrade in backyard compost heaps or even in municipal systems). There could also be a hard backlash against claims of carbon offsetting until meaningful standards can be set, and until those who sell these offsets can be officially verified.

CPG manufacturers and retailers may also be driven to severely curb the use of self-imposed eco-labels. Instead, green marketers would be wise to stick to officially recognised labels such as Energy Star, FSC, and Organic, which have been issued by trusted third parties. Official standards may also be set in the near future for terms like "natural" so that consumer confidence can be restored in this most basic of green attributes.

Electronics suppliers tout eco-performance
Expect electronics firms to start marketing their green credentials, earned by creating programmes to take back their products at end of their useful life and reducing their use of toxic chemicals in response to various government directives, WEEE (Waste for Electric and Electronic Equipment) and RoHS (Restriction of Hazardous Substances) programmes.

Companies make more green products
Many more green products will hit the shelves as the industry takes more confident steps to satisfy big retailer demands for products with less packaging, less energy use, and reduced toxicity (e.g. containing no PVC or heavy metals). Many of these products will put their primary benefits first in their marketing materials, including higher performance levels, aesthetics, and cost effectiveness, while green claims will tend to recede, reflecting reticence from potential greenwashing backlash, and a simple growing awareness of good green marketing practice.

Consumers buy more green products
Green products sales will increase greatly, boosted by the marketing weight of major CPG firms that have been buying up as many green brands as possible over the past year or two. Examples include: Clorox, which bought Burts Bees in 2007 and launched its own GreenWorks brand; Colgate (Tom's of Maine); Procter & Gamble (Crest Naturals and Tide Coldwater); and Danone (Stonyfield Farm).

Expect continued growth for 'deep green' standalone brands such as Method and Seventh Generation as they continue to grow behind mass-market distribution. A myriad of green product trade shows (such as Coop America's 'Green Festivals', and the 'Go Green Expo') will introduce more consumers to green alternatives, greatly helping green companies to achieve long-term growth and awareness.

More information on Customer Relationship Management can be found at www.CRMindustry.com

High-Value Consumers Demand a Seamless Cross-Channel Experience

A new survey by Sterling Commerce found that “high-value” consumer groups – higher-income consumers, college graduates and younger consumers – have made cross-channel shopping a standard, indicating to retailers that achieving cross-channel execution can increase consumer loyalty and share of wallet. Increasingly, consumers are using the Web as a first touch-point and want to channel-hop to complete their purchases, making integration across channels essential to retail success.

The survey, which polled 1,005 adults between January 18 and 20, 2008, found that nearly two-thirds (64%) of all respondents went online before making a purchase in the past three months. That percentage was even higher for “high-value” consumers, such as those with household incomes of about $75,000 (81%), college graduates (78%) and consumers age 25 to 34 (77%).

The survey also queried consumers about which cross-channel activities they deemed to be most important. The top three were:

• The ability to return merchandise to a store even if it was purchased via telephone or online (81% “very important/important”).
• The ability to pick up merchandise at a store after ordering online (56% “very important/important”). Store pickups are particularly important to younger adults (69% of those 25 to 34 years old).
• The availability of gift registry information in the store, online and over the telephone (56% “very important/important”). As with store pickups, having gift registry information available in multiple channels is particularly important to those 25 to 34 years old (66% “important”).

Shoppers are hopping channels to gain more value out of their interactions with a retailer. In turn, the retailer has the opportunity to gain customer loyalty and share of wallet. The Web is becoming an important first touch-point, often serving as a research tool before a store purchase, according to more than half (57%) of the survey respondents. In addition, nearly one-fourth (24%) of respondents reported using a coupon or rebate offer found online. One out of six consumers (18%) checked an online gift registry as part of the purchase process. The percentages are higher for the “high-value” consumer groups:

• Among those with incomes of $75,000 or more, 77 percent conducted research online in advance of an in-store purchase, 32 percent used a coupon or rebate found online, and 25 percent checked an online gift registry within the past three months.
• Among those who are college graduates, 74 percent conducted research online in advance of an in-store purchase, 31 percent used a coupon or rebate found online, and 21 percent checked an online gift registry within the past three months.

Consumers also are expecting away-from-home access to the Web to enhance their shopping experience. One-third of consumers consider it important to:

• To have access to an online kiosk while shopping in the store to conduct product research (37%).
• To have access to their online account while shopping in a store to view items they have tagged online (36%).
• For call center personnel to have a record of what they have been researching online (32%).

More information on Customer Relationship Management can be found at www.CRMindustry.com

Worldwide Enterprise Search Market Will Surpass $1.2 Billion in Total Software Revenue by 2010

The quest for enterprises trying to manage, organize and search content inside and outside of their organizations in a way that is transparent and easily understood, will drive worldwide enterprise search total software revenue to total $989.7 million in 2008, up 15 percent from $860.6 million in 2007, according to Gartner, Inc.

The enterprise search market, having been revitalized, continues to evolve as it faces a consolidation phase with significant market restructurings under way. Enterprise search products are expanding to include information access capabilities such as taxonomy, classification and content analytics. Offerings aligned to vertical markets, e-commerce transactions or work functions focus on specific tasks and processes, improving user efficiency and effectiveness.

Extensive technology consolidation will continue during the next several years as vendors expand their products and service portfolios, obtain vertical market centric expertise, and acquire new customer bases. The enterprise search market is rapidly shifting from high-growth to a consolidation phase. Frequent merger and acquisition (M&A) activity from current enterprise search vendors and larger vendors, such as IBM, Microsoft, Oracle, and SAP, is expected to continue. Also, there will be increasing use of enterprise search functionality with e-discovery requirements, as well as within structured data repositories.

The worldwide enterprise search market has experienced healthy growth since 2004. However growth will slow to low double digit percentages starting in 2008, because of continued downward pressure on license prices and market consolidation.

More information on Customer Relationship Management can be found at www.CRMindustry.com

Study Looks at ‘Going Green’ Through the Eyes of IT Decision Makers

It is almost impossible for one to pick up a newspaper, magazine or access the Internet without seeing an article concerning the "greening" of Corporate America. A recent study conducted by Harris Interactive with more than 300 IT decision makers indicates there is a plethora of thoughts and activities for "Going Green". While the majority of companies have implemented "Going Green" strategies with recycling and proper waste disposal, overall only 41 percent of corporations have deployed virtualization or server consolidation strategies to save on energy cost.

What is "Going Green?"

Today, as part of their corporate citizenship, brand equity, and go to market strategy, some corporations are implementing a "Going Green" strategy. One definition of "Going Green" is designing, selling, or funding eco-friendly products and services. For example, does your company recycle old electronic products to properly dispose of electronic waste such as lead and mercury?

Innovative "Green Thinking:" Why or Why Not?

Attitudes for adopting "Green Thinking" are diverse among the IT professionals surveyed. About 16 percent might be put in an "anti-green camp", saying that corporations should be environmentally friendly only if they can do so and achieve their profitability goals. However, 71 percent might be described as "pro green", believing that corporations should go beyond governmental requirements in their efforts to be environmentally friendly (39 percent) and that they should be environmentally friendly even if they have to sacrifice some of their profitability goals (32 percent).

Among those IT professionals that either have implemented a going green strategy or are in a pilot phase, fifty seven percent say "Going Green" is good for business. Fifty-five percent say that "going green" reduces their energy costs, thus improving profitability, while 53 percent say that being environmentally friendly is a corporate value. Only 27 percent say that the decision to implement this strategy is due to top management, and 21 percent say that the implementation is due to government regulatory requirements.

On the flipside, for those with that have not implemented a "green strategy", the reasons for not implementing are varied:

• Twenty-six percent says that they "fully comply with current governmental regulations for environmental safety", while 25 percent says that they have other pressing corporate needs;
• One quarter isn’t sure of what actions that they must take to "Go Green" in the most cost effective way;
• Twenty percent indicate that they don’t have the funds to implement a "Going Green" strategy;
• Sixteen percent feel that they are already environmentally friendly.

How Do They Do It? Actions Taken in "Going Green"

Nevertheless, despite the positive attitude toward "going green" efforts, the plot thickens when asked about the firms’ actual actions in becoming "a green company" and when focusing on the actions that are underway. Ultimately, there appears to be a lot more bark than bite, since most of the action is in recycling programs and very few firms are doing the heaving lifting that includes adopting alternative power solutions and designing energy efficient buildings.

Only nine percent say they have a fully implemented plan across all areas of their respective companies and about 32 percent say they are in "pilot mode" or have partially implemented something in departments considered appropriate. Nearly one-quarter (23 percent) say their company has no plan at all.

More information on Customer Relationship Management can be found at www.CRMindustry.com