Customer feedback management software is gaining momentum because it allows organizations to centrally manage the customer survey and feedback process on an enterprise-wide basis, enabling them to listen, learn, react, and anticipate the needs of the customer base.
It is being driven by the fashion for customer experience management whereby organizations are trying to create an edge for themselves by providing customers with a high-quality, appropriate, and consistent experience. Gathering feedback on what real customers really think is a critical part of a experience management initiative.
Many of the players in the area, such as Perseus, which is one of the leaders, are specialists in this emerging field. Broader-based applications providers like SPSS are also entering the market.
The Respond software, which is used by 800 customers, is focused on improving customer service through the management of complaints and enterprise feedback and is being acquired to complement the sales, marketing and customer support capabilities of CDC’s existing Pivotal CRM offering.
The acquisitive CDC Corp subsidiary is also looking to deepen Pivotal’s vertical reach, particularly within the financial services sector. Respond brings customers like AXA Insurance, Barclays, and Aegon, against Pivotal’s line-up which includes Allianz Dresdner Asset Management, Julius Baer Investment Management and Morgan Keegan & Company.
CDC is hoping for cross sell opportunities between the Pivotal and Respond customer bases in the financial services sector and among government organizations where both vendors also have a presence.
There is also the hope that Respond’s complaint management functionality will add depth to Pivotal’s efforts in the building and real estate verticals.
Overall the two fit well together, providing complementary rather than overlapping capabilities and because both are built on the Microsoft platform there is some technical compatibility. CDC has yet to lay out its plans for integrating or SOA-enabling its portfolio of acquired applications.
Financial details of the transaction were not disclosed.
