When software-as-a-Service CRM was first launched back in the late 1990s, it represented an innovation of how the CRM technology was delivered to end users. The hosted model decreased total cost of ownership- TCO dramatically and became a very popular option amongst small and medium size businesses as well as many Fortune 1000 companies.
Although more innovative; the software-as-a-service model suffered serious usability issues and obstacles when compared to its desktop cousins. Web based applications have been suffering from the Page-Reload Cycle which annoys users and prolongs the time it takes to do any task within the CRM. When a post form is utilized to generate a dynamic page, the content will not be refreshed unless a page-reload is performed. Some applications might use Java Applets to show data in real time, but this approach is so not web 2.0 and is just another user-annoying feature. What this means for the CRM user? It basically means, that getting up-to-the-minute information is never done in real time and will depend on a human-effort (you) to synchronize whats on your screen with whats on the servers.
Such usability deficiency has not stopped tens of thousands of companies from implementing SaaS CRM, which leads me to believe that resolving such user-interface issues is only bound to make the on demand CRM market that much larger!
Many companies with a SaaS offering have been trying to bridge the gab between the desktop and the webtop behavior, and to their credit with much success. Take for instance gmail. By using AJAX, Google is offering a hosted web-based email solution that is as interactive and user friendly as Microsoft's outlook, without the headaches.
Salesboom.com, implemented many AJAXy features that reduce the clicks required to complete everyday CRM tasks. For instance, in Salesforce.com, adding a note to an account will require several clicks and page-reloads before it is done. In Salesboom.com, an AJAX pop-up will take care of this task in one single click without the usual page-reloads seamlessly.
While a full-AJAX approach is not feasible financially for most vendors, some vendors are starting to focus on important and often most used tools, especially in SFA- Sales -Force Automation.
Another great solution to synchronizing data in real time between the user's screen and the server's database is COMET. COMET is an AJAX technique that allows a server to hold a poll request until it times out. With such techniques, the server will inform the user when new data is available without depending on the user to request it or ever reloading the page. Again gmail
uses it to synchronize emails, and Salesboom.com uses it to alert the users with work flow messages.
The development techniques such as AJAX and COMET will further contribute to the idea of Rich Internet Applications- RIA, which promises better CRM adoption through enhanced usability.
March, 2007
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