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Despite the changed competitive landscape, other vendors will likely increase maintenance fees as well, Denis Pombriant, principal with Beagle Research, told CRM Buyer. The overall inflation rate and huge energy price increases will be the culprits "In a company like SAP that...

On my blog, I have been writing about my experience with my new computer: an iMac. In addition to the usual functional comparisons, I have been spending a lot of time thinking about the whole cultural difference between the Windows world and the Apple world. As a longtime user of Windows, I felt I knew and understood that platform pretty well and the jolt of cutting over cold turkey was both surprising and refreshing...

Ease of use and software simplicity have been mainstay messages in CRM for many years. I have watched as this messaging has alternated with financial benefits for a long time, and I am not sure if it's random alternation or if there might be economic undertones, but it seems like we're trading themes at the moment ...

Recession talk is all around us, and CRM has a role in helping any company get through the slump. How? Take our quick quiz ...

Last week, and for many other weeks, I discussed CRM 2.0, but today I am thinking more about the world beyond 2.0. Maybe it will be CRM 3.0, or maybe some wise guy like Paul Greenberg will change the numbering and call it "CRM 20xx," who knows? ...

I was at the Enterprise 2.0 conference in Boston last week. Good show, nice people, well run, and it was held at a swanky new Westin on the waterfront. It got me thinking, though, about the "two-dot-oh" phenomenon and how badly it needs a rethink ...

Lately I have been working on a keynote speech that I need to deliver in a few weeks, and in the process of doing my research, I came across some very interesting ideas that fit in well with my research focus. In the last half of the 20th century, a number of thinkers became increasingly dissatisfied with the classical model of economics and began looking for an explanation that better represented the facts that they saw daily...

As we've said here before, blogs have been an excellent leveler of the playing field for consumers. Had a poor customer service experience or are just feeling aggrieved with a service provider? Complain to management, yes, but then blog about it. While such posts are generally considered to be the realm of consumers, occasionally a practitioner in the industry takes a stand as well. Denis Pombriant, principal with Beagle Research, vented about American Airlines in his post. He didn't have a bad experience, but does have his reasons to target American...

I once played organized football -- not that I was any good at it, but I played it with relish. My favorite parts were anything that had to do with disrupting the opponent's carefully planned plays, which included covering kickoffs and punts as well as regular defense. This bit of information has almost nothing to do with this column except that it points out an early character trait (some would say flaw) that has perversely influenced my career...

After a long build-up, I think we're finally at the real beginning of a new era in computing. The previous (nearly) 10 years have laid an important foundation, by which I mean on-demand computing, but if you thought that was it, I think the next few years could blow you away ...

Zuora introduced itself to the world this week, and while it is not a typical CRM company, its position should have a big impact on CRM and all other markets that offer on-demand solutions. Founders Tien Tzuo, K.V. Rao and Cheng Zou, formerly of Salesforce.com and WebEx, chose the usually sedate billing market because they have a new idea that looks like it has legs...

She is not a software person, writesBeagle Research Managing Principal Denis Pombriant in his blog post Insights on Insights. That doesn't seem to matter "Swenson is from the telco space and is very smart. It is also important to note that she is not a software person, but she...

I sometimes forget about the fact that people are trying to do business and that their business is top of mind -- not CRM. That point was brought home to me last week when I was on-site with a client ...

I have been investigating the possibility that social networking is something that can be used inside an organization -- "intra-organizationally," as my bureaucratic friends might say. That should really be no surprise -- the entire employee base is a natural community, though in many companies the group is small enough that good old face-to-face communication works pretty well. There's at least one place, though, where community-oriented techniques not only work, but also can have a lot to do with profit and loss...

This is one of my favorite times of year because it's announcement season, the time when all sorts of vendors book briefings to tell me about what's new in their worlds. It has been a busy couple of weeks, and I expect the briefing deluge to continue for the rest of the quarter. ...

Salesforce's announcement that it would partner with Google to integrate and deliver Google Applications said more about the software industry today than it said about either company or even about the propensity of software makers to deliver Software as a Service ...

They may be still waiting for the first signs of the much advertised recession in the Bay Area. Everything I see here, especially this week, points to growth and all that goes with it. Multiple people have come up to me, phoned or e-mailed seeking introductions or support as they confess to having itchy feet or the promise of some capital to start a business. Some -- a few lucky ones -- also have some cash from their last initial public offering (IPO), and having tasted victory, they are eager to do it all again...

There is an interesting debate beginning to brew in the on-demand market. Although most people are still clearing their throats, sides have been chosen and trial balloons have been floated. It appears that a small group of big companies, including Oracle, SAP and Microsoft, are trying to slow Salesforce.com's momentum by going after the crown jewel. Another way to say it is that these companies are trying to hop on board a moving train...

Active is much better than passive in most things, not just CRM. In writing, I am constantly reminded to write in the active voice because active voice is terse, to the point and more intelligible ...

"Starbucks' new customer-community-let-us-hear-from-you idea shows how hard it is to do the social marketing thing and it also shows how corporations sometimes take good ideas and drain the life out of them and then present the morphed idea as the real thing,"writes Denis Pombriant, principal of Beagle Research...