What Are Silos, Anyway?
One of the key elements of any CRM plan is integration, the unification of all your company’s data sources to create a single, holistic view of each customer. While technology is most often used to make this happen, integration is just as dependent on behavior. Silos refer not only to isolated data structures, but also to the sort of thinking that creates and maintains them. Imagine the multiple departments of a given business working alone. Marketing collects only the information it needs to identify and successfully put products and services before the public eye. The sales department pays attention to which leads have been explored, who has been converted from lead to customer, what they bought, and for how much. Customer service tracks only those customers who call in with questions and complaints, noting the specifics of what those customers have bought from the company, the nature of their needs, and whether the issue was successfully resolved. What’s wrong with that? What’s wron
