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Developing an efficient working environment and customer loyalty

Claudiu Arion

Microsoft Dynamics CRM helps Mercedes-Benz Romania to build a professional relationship with clients, by its ability to respond quickly and personalized to any requests.

- Claudiu Arion
eBusiness&CRM Manager Network

Company

Mercedes-Benz Romania, a Daimler AG company,  is the importer of the Mercedes-Benz brand in Romania. 
 
Its main activities consist of importing Mercedes-Benz vehicles (cars, light commercial trucks), the import of Mercedes-Benz spare parts, marketing and PR (for its brand) and activity coordination for the  authorized centers within Romania (over 30 Authorized Sales and Service Centers).
 
Except for the sale of trucks, where Mercedes-Benz Romania sells directly to the end consumer, sale to the end customer is handled through Authorized Sales and Service Centers. 


Situation

Mercedes-Benz Romania fully complies with brand’s international standards and, implicitly, respects the attention for customers and their desire to customize cars. Therefore, in order to carry out an efficient marketing and loyalty activity, the company needs detailed information about its customers. Requirements for a professional solution to customer relationship management took shape in 2010, when changes in the local car market have increased the attention to market segmentation and understanding of customers' personal requirements. „After 2010, when the car market had changed, the management of Mercedes-Benz Romania gained a better understanding of the fact that, in order to increase  customer loyalty by offering better service, we needed a consolidated view of customer relationship with more detailed information about all types of interactions. Moreover, for the retail business within the Division Truck, we needed specific tools for documenting, managing and reporting sales processes"states Claudiu Arion, eBusiness & CRM Manager Network, Mercedes-Benz Romania.
 
In this context, Mercedes-Benz decided to invest in a CRM solution to provide the necessary support in the development of professional relationships with clients and business partners in Romania.
 

Solution

The selection process for the CRM solution was highly elaborated and carried out with support from the head office in Germany. Therefore, Mercedes-Benz Romania formed a project team with participation of several key people in each department to identify requirements and define a specification. After its validation by the headquarters in Germany, the project team began the actual selection of a solution. Following the selection process, Mercedes-Benz and Daimler HQ Romania chose Microsoft Dynamics CRM. 
 
"From my point of view, Charisma CRM is an easy and flexible solution, which also provides additional functionalities. Furthermore, Charisma CRM was easy to integrate with other existing systems in the company " believes Claudiu Arion.
 
After choosing the solution, Mercedes-Benz Romania began a process of selecting the right partner for implementation. In the end, Mercedes-Benz Romania and Daimler HQ selected TotalSoft to implement Microsoft Dynamics CRM. „We evaluated each vendor and have given marks to several aspects, from project approach, costs and team’s experience, to company profile and ability to provide support to implement the solution in other markets where Mercedes-Benz has a direct presence” also said Arion.
 
The project implementation of Microsoft Dynamics CRM began in January 2012 with a series of workshops conducted alongside TotalSoft team, dedicated to strengthening requirements in each department and defining specifications. Dedicated streams were created for each line of business: cars, vans, trucks and after sales, with a single database that integrates several sources: their own applications, websites, dealers, marketing agencies etc.
 
The project covers the activities of sales, marketing and customer support both in terms of interaction with customers and back-office processes. To achieve business goals more easily, the project was divided into three modules / stages:
 
  • Customer 120 module, representing the first stage of the project, is focused on building the consolidated database and capturing online and offline interaction with customers. It allows the capture of information on customer cars and dealer activity, traffick in showrooms and service entrances. At this stage, company websites have also been integrated into the CRM solution, for automatic download of online requests from customers. Workflows to automate the allocation of tasks and the streamlining of processes have been predefined. In addition, the solution directs customers’ messages to those responsible and monitors their progress. Standard response time was set at 24 hours; if time limit is exceeded, the application automatically sends alerts and, where appropriate, notice to superiors. Also at this stage workflows for management claims were defined; they can be captured now through various channels (phone, email, website) and are sent to those responsible for assessment and response.
  • Customer 240 is the module by means of which information about vehicles is added into CRM, by integrating with other systems of Daimler. The module allows a more refined customer segmentation on criteria related to cars owned, using information about technical data, endowments and specifications related to production, as well as the generation of complex reports.
  • Customer 360 module – in progress, will add a sales component to the project through the implementation of specific functionalities, dedicated to the Truck Division. The module will allow the management of the entire sales process within the CRM, from generating offers and contracts to product delivery to the customer, for both new and used cars. 
 
Along with the completion of the Customer 360 module, the project will include other developments; one of them is a version which can be accessed by means of a tablet, to bring enhanced mobility to the advisory and sales team of Mercedes-Benz Romania. 


Results

By implementing Microsoft Dynamics CRM, Mercedes-Benz Romania develops a professional relationship with its clients and is able to provide better and prompt services. Even if the project has not been completed yet, the benefits are unquestionable and have been quickly notified by both clients and the company.
 
  • Improves customer relationships by providing prompt and personalized feedback. With Dynamics CRM, Mercedes-Benz Romania captures and automatically processes customer requests, submitted online and offline, communication errors are eliminated, and the customer is coherently and timely informed. The response time is guaranteed by the SLA domestic and the analysis of recent months showed a significant reduction thereof. "Processing interactions with customers by means of Dynamics CRM and the automation of the workflows have reduced processing time of customers’ requests" also said Claudiu Arion.
  • Increases Customer Loyalty. Mercedes-Benz Romania has integrated information from multiple sources into the CRM solution database, which enables the creation of a complete view of customers and real understanding of their requirements. "With Dynamics CRM we have far more advanced knowledge about customers, anticipate their future needs and requirements and proactively act to develop loyal cooperation relations. Also, Customer Support colleagues are able to immediately identify the entire service history of the customer and provide a fast and documented response"believes Arion.
  • Streamlines marketing operations. Marketing Specialists of Mercedes-Benz Romania are some of the key users of the CRM solution. They now have detailed information about customers from multiple sources, which allows a granular market segmentation and provides the framework to carry out actions which are more appropriate to the specific and requirements of the audience. The solution also allows access to the entire history of marketing campaigns and implicitly resumption of actions with major impact and positive results. "Colleagues in the Marketing Department can streamline their budgets by conducting niche campaigns and easier identification of results. Dynamics CRM allows us to identify opportunities and turn them into leads and prospects at a much lower cost" believes Claudiu Arion.
  • Increases sales and advisory force productivity. Using the solution enables streamlining and simplifying internal processes, from the preparation of documentation to management reporting. Thus, the employees involved in sales and consulting devote more time to specific activities in dealing with customers and business productivity increases. "At the end of the implementation of Microsoft Dynamics CRM, we will know exactly how every opportunity evolves and the way to complete it. Managers will be able to intervene in time thus streamlining eficiency, and forecasting sales volumes will be easier, which helps to carry out a coherent business strategy"concludes Claudiu Arion.
 
"Microsoft Dynamics CRM allows us to bring the customer to the center of everything that Mercedes-Benz Romania does. Moreover, we know exactly which channels he prefers in order to receive information" Claudiu Arion, eBusiness & CRM Manager Network, Mercedes-Benz Romania.
 
Case study revised in 2013.