My great buddy and soon to be co host of "The CRM Playaz" (check out the Experience on the Edge postings for a time and date coming soon!!), Brent Leary, pointed out to me that InsideCRM had done its top 20 CRM blogs for 2007 and I won!!! That is awesome. I'd like to thank my wife, my mom and dad, my brother, my three cats, and....oh wait, you know who I can't leave out and is first in my heart....wait a minute. Where's the podium? Why aren't they playing "You Light Up My Life?" Sigh. While I may not have a bronze statue, I DO have a JPG file and I really am pleased about this. I'm pleased to be in the company of others in the top 20, like Denis Pombriant (#2), Brent Leary (#3), and Chris Carfi (#5), Dick Lee (#9) and Graham Hill (#12).
Here's the top 5 winners, the InsideCRM descriptions and the links to all 20 (thanks to Chris Carfi for suggesting this approach)
- PGreenblog: Paul Greenberg literally wrote the book on CRM (CRM at the Speed of Light, which he's currently revamping for its fourth edition), and his blog is heavy on posts about the potential of technology - especially Web 2.0 technology - to revolutionize the way companies relate to their customers. Greenberg's blog has enough readership that he can tap into a wealth of expertise for topics such as his "iPhone CRM Bake-Off," in which he analyzed CRM applications on the Apple Inc. gadget based on the experience of actual users - the best lab setting you could hope for. Greenberg is also an entertaining writer, and he lightens up the blog with posts about music or the New York Yankees every so often.
- Beagle Research Group: Dennis Pombriant's blog is strong on insight into the CRM industry and has a solid technological background, but it never becomes so technical that the average salesperson couldn't benefit from it. He's adept at spotting trends before they hit the radar; a good example is his recent series of posts about governance, risk and compliance software and its inexorable slide from the back office into CRM. He also maintains a market researcher's insane trade-show schedule, so the blog serves as a great source for nuggets that shake loose at the industry's big events.
- Brent's Blog: A consultant in real life, Brent Leary is committed to working with small businesses to help them harness the power of CRM. His blog not only dwells on the latest trends and which of them SMBs should pay attention to, but it serves as a clearinghouse for his many guest appearances on Webcasts, podcasts and other blogs. If it's Web 2.0 and collaboration ideas you're looking for, it might be smart to listen to a blogger who's enthusiastically engaged in using his ideas to build his business. Leary is that blogger.
- Philip Richardson: Microsoft Corp. Lead CRM Program Manager Philip Richardson certainly has his biases (as should all good bloggers), but he comes about them honestly. In addition to supplying a host of tricks for tweaking Dynamics and access to all manner of useful materials for anyone who works with or is considering the Microsoft solution, this erudite Australian also uses his CRM-motivated travel schedule to maintain a virtual guidebook to the upscale coffeehouses of the world.
- The Social Customer Manifesto: There's not a lot of technological how-to here, but there's plenty of smarts on display about the art of connecting with customers in the era of Web 2.0. Christopher Carfi thinks his way nimbly around emerging trends - lately, he's been exploring VRM (vendor relationship management), a reciprocal concept to CRM that puts customers in charge of how business is done. This is a blog that you need to read if you want to know how you'll be selling in 18 months.
Point taken. You have a good reason why you stated it.
Posted by: phoenix tours | March 04, 2011 at 05:49 AM
Paul: Congrats! Felicitaciones! Your insights in the industry are well respected, and as you know ,I use your blog as a benchmark for the state of the CRM industry in Latin America...
Posted by: Jesus Hoyos | December 18, 2007 at 05:44 PM