LexisNexis Makes CRM App More Relationship-Savvy

LexisNexis is enhancing its customer relationship management product, InterAction CRM , with its version of social networking functionality.

Called "InterAction IQ," the tool delves into the CRM app and the Exchange Server to establish which users have relationships with certain clients or prospective clients, and then rates those relationships as to their strength.

One of its main uses is to best establish which partner or employee is the most appropriate contact for outreach to a particular company or person, said Bill Wilshire, vice president and managing director of LexisNexis' CRM and analytics business.

Ties That Bind

"It can uncover relationships not known or widely shared throughout the firm," Wilshire told CRM Buyer. "For instance, a partner in a Houston law firm might think he has the strongest ties with a particular company, but IQ could determine that the partner in the Pittsburgh office really does."

The application uses such data as emails, newsletters or invitations sent to a particular client, and phone logs. It is very careful to preserve the privacy of the customer interactions, Wilshire said, by basing its evaluation on the subject line of an email and not on its content.

Also, the system can be configured to keep some relationships or contacts private. It can also be configured to limit the evaluation to the top clients -- a control that is more about keeping the system manageable.

A law firm with 100,000 clients might want to limit analyses via a relationship builder like IQ to its top 100, for example.

Professional Services

InterAction IQ is a legal industry-specific application. It can be found in 80 percent of the top 200 law firms, Wilshire said.

Increasingly, though, it has been adopted by professional services firms, which have many of the same needs as legal firms.

IQ, in particular, is a welcome addition to these companies, as they tend to market and network more than a law firm might. Three of the big four accounting firms use InterAction, Wilshire said, as do a number of consulting organizations.

Such companies -- both professional services and law firms -- have recognized the value of social media and Web 2.0 functionality. However, client confidentiality oftentimes limits their use.

The rollout of InterAction IQ follows LexisNexis' March release of InterAction onDemand, a Software as a Service version of the CRM application.