CUSTOMER RELATIONSHIP MANAGEMENT AIMED AT RETAINING CUSTOMERS

The concept of customer relationship management (CRM), like many other modern concepts, has been a subject of debate in terms of its meaning and scope. The reason for this is the fact that CRM is a strategy, a process and a system. As a result, it is difficult to provide a clear definition of a concept covering such a wide area. However, in considering CRM, one should bear in mind that this concept has been developed in the framework of relationship marketing, a business philosophy aimed at building customer satisfaction by meeting individual consumer needs and turning consumers into loyal customers through continuous interactions with them. In order to do that, it is necessary to establish a system of communication facilitating direct interaction with consumers and using it to turn an anonymous individual into an individualized and personalized entity on whom information is being continuously collected, but also one that is being constantly provided with information. It is not possible to build such a system of communication without the use of modern information and communication technologies, especially when the number of consumers is large. Therefore, CRM system combines marketing and information systems with management. The collected data are used as the basis for creating customer profiles in order to meet their needs effectively. The system also allows the identification of high quality consumers so that appropriate efforts can be made to ensure their loyalty. CRM facilitates the development of a defensive marketing strategy that seeks to retain existing customers, which requires less effort and resources than implementing an offensive marketing strategy.