Changing the Game: Is Play Profitable for Microsoft Dynamics CRM?

"Gamification" is the latest CRM trend, but does having more fun at work really lead to greater ROI?

Customer relationship management (CRM) systems are hot commodities. Small, midsize and enterprise businesses alike now need a solution in place to compete - "interruption based" sales no longer generate the same kind of revenues and consumers demand a far more personalized experience. Despite advancements in software and legacy integration, however, many companies suffer the problem: employees don't like CRM solutions and do everything they can to avoid them.

Not Working as Intended

That's what 43% of IT advisers say about their CRM systems, according to a recent Schwab Advisor Services poll. The reason? Employees refuse to get on board. Eighty-four percent of those asked said they'd purchased the right solution, but while most (98%) use it to store data, they "don't really figure out how to effectively implement and adopt it," according to Schwab's vice president, Neesha Hathi, because employees won't play nice.

So what's the big problem? CRM apps are supposed to make life easier for salespeople and increase customer loyalty; why wouldn't employees use them? Simply put, it's often more effort. Whether this means an extra click, an extra form to fill out or a solution that doesn't integrate well with legacy systems, employees often find an excuse that lets them "forget" to use a purchased solution.

But customer relationship app developers now think they've found the solution: "gamification". The idea here is that by replacing physical sales rewards like trips, cash bonuses or employee of the month awards with virtual achievements such as badges, titles and progress bars ...