CRM

A CRM platform is a powerful tool that helps businesses manage customer relationships and support growth. It centralizes all customer information, including purchase history, interactions, and support requests, enabling teams to better understand their customers.

With features like customer segmentation, automated follow-ups, and personalized offers, a CRM helps businesses re-engage inactive customers, improve retention, and increase sales.

For example, you could automatically identify customers who haven’t purchased in 90 days and send them a personalized offer based on their previous interests and buying habits.

Why use CRM?

  • Identify and segment contacts automatically, so you track dormant leads, high-potential buyers, and repeat customers, then personalize outreach for each group.
  • Measure campaign impact across channels (email, SMS, social, support), uncovering what drives conversions and repeat purchases; adapting your messaging with real-time results.
  • Centralize all customer touchpoints (web, phone, app, chat), reducing manual work and accelerating response times for sales, marketing, and support teams.

CRM vs. CDP

Feature/CapabilityCRM (Customer Relationship Management)CDP (Customer Data Platform)
Main PurposeManages relationships with known customers and prospects, tracking interactions over time​Unifies and activates customer data from all sources (known and anonymous) for real-time personalization​
Data FocusContact-level, identified user data (name, email, activity, purchase history)​All customer data—both identified and anonymous, from online and offline channels​
Typical UsersSales, support, and marketing teams​Marketing, analytics, and product teams​
Key FunctionsAccount management, pipeline/sales tracking, service/support history, campaign reporting​Real-time profile unification, segmentation, cross-channel campaign activation, analytics​
IntegrationSyncs mostly with email, phone, and customer service software​Connects to CRM, ESP, web analytics, ad platforms, and in-store systems​
Data FreshnessUpdated with direct interactions or manual entry​Updates automatically and in real-time across all sources​
ExampleTracks every support and sales touchpoint for a returning customer​Builds a unified profile for each user and personalizes their experience across site, app, and messaging​

FAQs

What’s the difference between CRM and CDP?

A CRM tracks named user interactions for sales and support, while a CDP unifies anonymous and named data from all channels to create richer profiles for marketing. See our customer data platform overview for deeper details.

How do you use CRM in campaign reporting?

CRMs collect data from every customer touchpoint, allowing marketers to analyze engagement, segment audiences, and track historical trends. This insight helps improve campaign performance in real time and informs future strategies.

Can a CRM automate cross-channel outreach?

Yes. Modern CRMs integrate with email, SMS, push notifications, and social media platforms. This allows businesses to create automated customer journeys that respond to actions or inactivity. Read more in our marketing automation guide.

Should marketing and support share one CRM system?

Yes, centralising your data in one CRM can improve both the speed and consistency of interactions across marketing and support teams. It allows full visibility into the customer lifecycle, while role‑based permissions let you restrict access where needed. For supporting functions of your stack, you may want to explore how a CDP supports service operations in our guide on how to decide whether you need a CDP.

How is CRM different for B2C vs. B2B?

B2C CRMs focus on managing high volumes of individual customers and fast, frequent campaigns. B2B CRMs are designed for longer sales cycles, account management, and more complex workflows.