Yes, it was a sales pitch. What else can you call it when people from four technology firms get up on stage and tout the benefits of their CRM systems?
But a couple of panelists also told how their clients have pursued what is now called mass customizing. For example, James Fiorda, product line marketing manager for PeopleSoft, said that Sun Microsystem achieved a conversion rate of 33% with a customized e-mail newsletter program designed by his firm. “And the industry average is 8%,” he added.
Prior to that, Sun had communicated through many channels without “a lot of consistency,” Fiorda said. It needed to find the most profitable customers and present them with relevant offers. “The ultimate goal is to drive leads to the sales force,” he added.
An early online newsletter test to 1,300 names pulled a 27% subscription rate. The company moved on from there, using sign-up techniques like ubiquitous registration and encouraging people to tell a friend or colleague. It now sends dialogue-based e-mail letters to tens of thousands of people, Fiorda estimated.
Then there was Greg Padavani, head of Padovani Consulting Ltd. He said his Patient Education Newsletter system (PENS) had been used
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