OpenAI's Unpredictable Plot Twist and Its Impact on CRM

This week on Funnel Frontier: OpenAI Drama, How SMBs Can Avoid One CRM Mistake that Can Cost Them Everything & Zoho's Bold Move

This week we’re going to be talking about:

• OpenAI trilogy

• Is this customer relationship “The One”? Careful…

• Amid choppy waters, the Zoho founder’s surfin’

Stat of the Week 

Last anyone checked, CRM gives back $8.71 for every dollar spent. (Nucleus Research)

OpenAI Trilogy

The Trilogy: 

• Pt I. OpenAI CEO Sam Altman is fired 

• Pt II. OpenAI CEO Sam Altman is hired (by Microsoft)

• Pt III. OpenAI CEO Sam Altman is hired (by OpenAI)

As NPR notes, this tripartite drama didn’t come out of nowhere. 

OpenAI, initially a non-profit co-founded by Altman and Elon Musk, proposed developing AI for humanity's benefit. But by 2019, Musk's departure and the costly nature of AI innovation led to a for-profit arm. 

Cue the struggle: AI-altruists vs AI-profit seekers. Some speculate that Altman got the boot for scaling commercial use of the app “too fast.” 

There’s probably more to it. Allegedly, just prior to Altman’s ouster, the company had made a major breakthrough with its “project Q-Star,” putting OpenAI on the path to artificial general intelligence (AGI). That could threaten humanity.

Yet lo and behold, Altman’s back, after 702 of 770 staffers said they’d walk if he wasn’t reinstated. With him comes a new-look board stacked with Silicon Valley glitterati.

Not a CRM story per se. But given the stakes of genAI for the future of work apps, this trilogy’s hard to ignore. 

The question is: Who will become sentient first, Salesforce Einstein or Microsoft Clippy?

“The One” Customer Relationship

In the small business game, many folks are learning customer relationships the hard way. Swooning over just one client can be risky. 

Taking a page from Don Quixote, strategy and performance expert Graham Kelly says, more-or-less, “don't put all your eggs in one customer's basket.” He remains silent on the issue of “tilting at windmills.”

Take Alan, the plumbing business tycoon. He was so smitten with one big client that when they went under, his business and personal life followed suit. A tragic Shakespearean tale. 

Meet Will, the CEO-cupid of a fruit cooperative, who wisely spread risk by courting various supermarkets. By decreasing net dependence, he avoided heartbreak of Alan-like proportions. 

Then there’s Lindsay, who runs a parts manufacturing co. Lindsay plays perhaps the shrewdest game of all, not just diversifying, but also mastering pressure points.

For those stuck in a one-and-only scenario, Graham says it’s all about keeping the relationship balanced — a delicate tango of mutual dependency. 

The lesson? 

“Customer relationship management.” Don't let your small biz story turn into a weepy. Spread the love, read the signs, and keep the power scales even. Peace.

The Week @ CRM.org

Best USB Format Tool. Because “eject safely” is just the beginning of your storage adventure.

What is Analytical CRM? Customer data mystery… begone!

Habit Tracker Apps. Getting into the habit of checking habit tracker best-of lists? We’ve got you covered.

Automotive CRM Software. From test drives to tire-kickers, we’ll “steer” you in the right direction.

Best CRM for WhatsApp. Don’t let your business txts get lost between memes and fantasy football chats.

Weekly Bloom 

Ethos, Pathos, Logos. Business Secrets of Aristotle? The three modes of persuasion never seem to change. 

Zoho’s plan: avoid layoffs

Across the seven seas, economic choppiness is real. But the CEO and founder of CRM/SaaS app giant Zoho, Sridhar Vembu, has some ideas on how to surf it.

In particular, India’s SaaS sector is jamming to its own version of the “bubble burst blues.” But Vembu declared in an interview that layoffs were off the table. 

Taking the long view, Vembu foresees a future where the crowded SaaS train makes a stop at Diversification Station. His strategy? Do R&D, and offer customers a buffet of pre-integrated services so they can stop juggling vendors. 

Vembu's master plan involves dabbling in semiconductor chips and data center hardware, aiming to future-proof the company via tech fortress-ing. 

He's got his eyes on boosting software development productivity by an ambitious ten-fold, maybe even twenty or thirty if the stars align. 

It's a tightrope walk of balancing employee well-being with savvy investments. Will it go? Stay tuned… 

Tasty Tidbits

CRM blips from around the web

Pipedrive gets a new General Counsel. They’ve gone with Phillip Mellet, formerly SVP and General Counsel at digital insurance broker Healthpilot. 

Salesforce gives new time for Q3 Fiscal Year 2024 Results. One day early—after markets close on Wednesday, November 29th. 

Salesforce gives Airkit.ai employees equity awards. The CRM behemoth, which acquired Airkit.ai last month, granted them restricted stock units.

B2B event marketing platform Vendelux gains $16 Million+ in new venture capital. FirstMark Capital led the way, injecting $14 Million in Series A investment. 

Stocks of the Week 

Significant Moves (11/20-11/24) 

^{*Figures are for the previous week (11/20/23-11/24/23); price calculated at the close of markets on Friday, November 24th. We look at publicly listed CRM-related vendors only. This is not financial advice, and we make no claims on the accuracy of these figures.} 

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