Resumen:
New media - i.e. web based strategies and tools - have become
indispensable to customer relationship management (CRM). This study
provides a comprehensive empirical analysis of German service-sector SMEs’
experience with new media in CRM, which is based on interviews and a
statistical survey among 101 companies. The analysis reveals perceived
opportunities, risks and success factors and evaluates to what extent the
use of and insights into new media have an effect on SMEs’ CRM success.
Findings reveal that SMEs successfully rely on a strategic mix of new media
and personalized and individualized CRM. SMEs that have realized the
opportunities and success factors of new media in CRM understand how to
optimize the economic outcome of these strategies but frequently ignore
their utility from their clients’ perspective.