The Asia and Australia CRM software market is outpacing many other regions in new technology adoption and the achievement of customer relationship management software results. Springboard Research reports that Software as a Service (SaaS) CRM represents 48% of the growing CRM software market in the Asia Pacific region. Their projections suggest that on-demand CRM software will grow from US$183 million in 2008 to US$570 million by 2012. This research report builds upon prior year research advisories which suggest that the Asian SaaS CRM market, excluding Japan, is forecast to grow at 61% (CAGR).
Asia Pacific CRM Software
The Asia SMB (small and midsize business) market is the sole market segment not dominated by western software suppliers but instead by local and inexpensive CRM vendors. However, as CRM system adoption grows and customers demand more sophisticated products, there is an increase in the percentage of western software as a service (SaaS), middle market and enterprise software products gaining market share.
Research from Springboard and discussions with local CRM strategy and software experts share how the Asia CRM software market, as well as the market for new technologies such as Software as a Service (SaaS) or CRM in the cloud, are both unique from the rest of the world and changing the Asia Pacific IT landscape.
CRM software research from Springboard, Datamonitor and Gartner as well as the go to market business strategies implemented by SAP, Salesforce.com and other CRM vendors demonstrate the growth and strength of the Asian Customer Relationship Management software market and the vendors approaches to acquire customers in the region.
The India cloud computing market is expected to grow ten-fold to $1.08 billion by 2015. With plenty of delayed enterprise software purchases caused by the global economic climate, the pent up demand and explosive cloud growth presents a dual opportunity for SaaS CRM software vendors to aggressively grow market share in India.
The Australia CRM market is better understood by what it has in common with North America than what separates it from the rest of the world. Comparing the CRM objectives, measurement metrics, listing of the top CRM systems used in Australia and a desire for second generation CRM benefits such as mobile CRM and social CRM reveals a microcosm of the global market.
Just before the turn of the century, deregulation helped boost the CRM market in Australia. Today, the Australian CRM software market is driven more so by the global competitive environment with cloud CRM systems showing significant uptake. In fact, Springboard Research found that the SaaS or cloud market in Australia and New Zealand is the most mature market in the Asia Pacific region.
CRM vendor strategy in the [Asia-Pacific] region has focused primarily on reaching out to customers directly. Existing supplier resource constraints, combined with the size and complexity of the region, excluding the Japan market, make it imperative for Software as a Service CRM suppliers to use indirect channel partners who will not only be able to tap a wider customer base but also play a significant role in ongoing customer support."
~ Michael Barnes, Springboard VP
Asia CRM & IT Forecasts
Industry research and analyst projections suggest continued advancement of customer relationship management strategies in Asia.
The Asia-Pacific survey performed by analyst firm Springboard Research discovered that CRM systems are a top organisational priority, with 40% of respondents declaring a preference to purchase cloud CRM solutions in the next 12 months. This demand for online CRM applications is highest in Australia and New Zealand, with 61% of respondents planning purchases in the next 12 months, followed by India and the Southeast Asia region.
Research firm Frost & Sullivan projects that CRM software investments in the Asia region will reach $408 million, an 8% growth rate. They also comment that Japan will continue to incur the majority of total CRM software investment while China and Korea will be close behind. The analyst firm also points out that CRM analytics capabilities will be a key driver for regional CRM software adoption.
Frank Gens of the IDC Predictions Team forecasts that emerging markets, led by China, will continue to drive global IT spending growth, with 2.6 times the growth rate of developed markets, contributing over 50% of all new growth.
How Customer Relationship Management software is evaluated, selected and consumed has changed in Southeast Asia more over the last few years than at any time prior. Since the turn of the century the region has seen an uptake in the adoption of CRM software software applications, and with faster and more reliable Internet service more companies are choosing cloud CRM systems. In this review, we identify, evaluate and rate the Top 10 CRM System in Southeast Asia. Read the Top 10 CRM Systems in Southeast Asia »
Gartner projects the India CRM software market size at about 15% of the overall Asia Pacific (APAC) market, the second largest in the region, after Australia. Between 2009 and 2014, CRM in India is forecast to grow at a compound annual growth rate (CAGR) of 16% to 19%. This special report illustrates the top 10 CRM software systems in India and provides CRM vendor analysis as well as a forward look at the high growth software as a service (SaaS) market penetrating the India subcontinent.
Read the Top 10 CRM Systems in India »
Asia Pacific Market Briefs
Asia Businesses Fail to Embrace Social Media
Unlike U.S. and European companies which are actively employing social media strategies to engage customers and compliment sales and service objectives, the biggest companies in Asia are standing on the sidelines. According to research from PR company Burson-Marsteller, less than half of companies listed in the Wall Street Journal Asia 200 Index use social networks. Of these, more 55% are inactive, often just using their social media accounts as place-holders. By comparison, 79% of enterprise global companies actively use social media as part of their corporate communication agenda. A separate study by Gartner suggests that social networking in Asia is largely dominated by local brands or locally-developed social networks. While social media adoption is low, Asian consumers do show growth in mobile social channels as mobile penetration is more prevalent than computer access. Burson-Marsteller CEO, Bob Pickard, comments, "Few [Asian] companies are approaching this area strategically. Most appear largely driven by short-term marketing considerations, or are hampered by concerns about resourcing, cost or lack of control over message and content."
More References
CRMsoftware.asia provides a wealth of content regarding CRM strategy, software selection, software implementation and hosted, enterprise and open source CRM software products. The research statistics and CRM software reviews are helpful for CRM buyers.
G-CEM (Global Customer Experience Management Organization) is a professional group managed from Hong Kong but with international partners located in Europe, Asia, and North America. The organisation helps companies assess and create a branded and total customer experience (TCE) and also delivers TCE Evaluation and CEM Certification programs.
