Dal CRM al social CRM: uno strumento per incrementare le performance della relazione con il cliente (From CRM to social CRM: a tool to increase the performance of the relationship with the customer)

Abstract

Purpose of the paper: Based on dynamic capabilities theory, the study examines the transformation from CRM to social CRM and the impact of social CRM capabilities on customer relationship performance.

Methodology: An online survey was administered to collect data from a sample of 90 Italian top manager and structural equation was used to test the model.

Findings: Findings show that 1) the customer relationship orientation and social media technology usage have a positive, significant and interactive effect on social CRM capabilities; 2) social CRM capabilities have a positive and significant impact on customer relationship performance; 3) social media technologies do not have a positive and significant impact on customer relationship performance.

Research limits: Main limitations involve: the small size of the sample, the heterogeneity of the observations and the survey sample of top-management team executives.

Practical implications: From a managerial perspective, our findings suggest that companies should utilise social media to take marketing decision, create more effective social CRM capabilities by improving interactions with customers and allowing access to a large number of real customer data, and, consequently, increase customer relationship performance.

Originality of the paper: While extant literature provides a wide analysis of CRM, few research has examined how social media technologies interact with CRM, the transformation of CRM to social CRM and how social CRM capabilities enhance customer relationship performance.