Canyon Ranch Case Study
1. Should Canyon Ranch engage in a personalization and CRM strategy? Why? Canyon Ranch should engage in a personalization and CRM strategy because this will enable them to consolidate all their customer data into a central view. Canyon Ranch currently has a decentralized IT infrastructure. A central view will allow them to aggregate the data they already collect and use this to address the different needs of the customers in the fastest and most effective manner. The use of CRM could also be used to target specific marketing programs for individual customers.
It will help the company evaluate its customers, which in turn will aid Canyon Ranch in developing features, products or services that will suit clients’ preferences. The different locations could use this information in advance of a customer’s visit to prepare a more personalized experience for them. The CRM strategy can also be used to identify additional data that needs to be captured. Additional purchases as well as wait-list sign-ups will provide additional insights into the demand for current offerings and allow Canyon Ranch to add more of the high demand items and reduce those not being utilized. . Perform a SWOT analysis for Canyon Ranch. Strengths •Canyon Ranch is regarded as the gold standard in the industry, commanding rates 25-30 percent higher than its competitors •Strong customer base •A wide variety of services and its Health and Healing department sets it apart from its competitors •Solid talent recruitment strategy •Executives have substantial knowledge about their customers •Canyon Ranch owns the source code to CLS so it’s easy to customize the system as needed. Weaknesses •Decentralized IT infrastructure system High employee turnover rate (Program coordinators) •There was no readily available plan for how to improve on the “best-in –the-business” spa experience •Did not have point-of-sale (POS) software so the value of purchases could not be tracked independently. •The CLS system focused on processing transactions rather than collecting decision-support data Opportunities •Canyon Ranch management and operational personnel were aware of the potential value of information to enable better decision making, as well as the risks of not using that information appropriately and carefully. The Canyon Ranch ‘Guestware’ system, which has the potential to improve relationships with customers, could be fully integrated with CLS and other systems to provide more comprehensive customer information Threats •Increasing competition and duplication of Canyon Ranch’s services by other industries, such as medical centers •It was difficult to analyze the competition they were getting from substitute luxury purchases 3. What should Canyon Ranch’s strategy look like? Focus on Canyon Ranch in the Berkshires.
Canyon Ranch’s strategy should include the full integration of the CLS and Guestware systems to give the managers on duty access to consolidated information so they can take any required actions immediately. POS software should be installed in the restaurants and salons. They should also consider online options for customer bookings and completion of health questionnaires. Customers should be able to book an entire stay online, chat with a customer representative online, as well as complete then submit their health questionnaires online if they opt to.
The database used should be open and industry standard to allow easy integration with other applications and easy movement of data in the future. The database can then be connected to the CRM software from where employees can extract the aggregated information that is relevant to them. 5. Is the proposed CRM strategy sustainable? What can Canyon Ranch do to increase its potential for sustainability? The proposed CRM strategy can be sustained if Canyon Ranch does a number of things.
Firstly, a comprehensive user adoption strategy needs to be developed and implemented. Adoption of the strategy should preferably be the overall responsibility of a senior executive who should have the authority and resources to drive and sustain the CRM adoption. The success of the CRM adoption could also be tied into the executive’s performance and bonus criteria to provide extra motivation to make the CRM adoption a success.
Canyon Ranch should define what is considered a successful CRM strategy. This can be defined in terms of business value creation, user adoption, and Return on Investment (ROI). Quantitative and qualitative CRM success measures should be determined, and probably aligned to every employee’s performance management plans. A comprehensive analysis of the company should be carried out to identify all the factors that may encourage and/or inhibit the sustainability of the CRM strategy.
This would include analyzing policies, processes, reward systems, communication methods, job descriptions, leadership, and existing user attitudes and behaviors. The CRM strategy should be facilitated on an ‘on-going’ basis. Specific actions need to be taken before, during and after implementation to ensure effective adoption. User adoption should be measured at regularly scheduled intervals, the CRM adoption goals and program should be adjusted as necessary to ensure the CRM system is meeting current and future Canyon Ranch goals.
