---
title: Why looking at the big picture is key to success or failure in CRM
description: Why looking at the big picture is key to success or failure in CRM
image: https://blog.digitall.com/hubfs/iStock-1126057511.jpg
---

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# Why looking at the big picture is key to success or failure in CRM

By [Sabine Kirchem](https://blog.digitall.com/author/sabine-kirchem) on  02.07.2025

[CRM](https://blog.digitall.com/tag/crm) [Digitalisation](https://blog.digitall.com/tag/digitalisation) [CustomerManagement](https://blog.digitall.com/tag/customermanagement) [dCRM](https://blog.digitall.com/tag/dcrm)

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 1 min read

Companies often think of CRM on a small scale. They fine-tune campaigns, enhance touchpoints, and implement systems, but they don't look at the big picture, the bird' s-eye view. However, this perspective is crucial if we want CRM to have a long-term effect. This is exactly what the chapter “The Exploded View as a Frame of Reference for More Successful CRM” is all about.

My key takeaways from the chapter are:

- Failures in CRM are often due to structural issues - and cannot be solved by individual measures.
- The so-called Exploded View shows companies exactly what and where adjustments need to be made, from the customer to the data.
- The great strength lies in the change of perspective: with the customer, market, company and employee perspectives all being brought together.
- The implementation is carried out top-down in the analysis and bottom-up in the realisation - simple but effective.
- This model is both theory and practice: it has been used many times and provides a clear framework for roadmaps and change design.

My conclusion: Anyone looking to develop CRM strategically will find this a helpful framework: clear, understandable, and immediately applicable. For me, the Exploded View is a must-know in the CRM context.  

🔗 [To the book on Springer](https://link.springer.com/book/10.1007/978-3-658-45798-3)<https://link.springer.com/book/10.1007/978-3-658-45798-3>

*This blog post is based on the chapter “The Exploded  View as a Frame of Reference for More Successful CRM” by Hans Albrecht Bartels and Jonathan Möller from the book “CRM Goes Digital – Design and Use of Digital Customer Interface in Marketing, Sales and Service”, published in 2024 by Springer Gabler Publishing House.* 

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#### by [Sabine Kirchem](https://blog.digitall.com/author/sabine-kirchem)

Sabine Kirchem is a Marketing, Brand, and Communications expert as well as a book author. She is enthused by innovation topics, current trends and technologies in the areas of digitalization, marketing and communications.

<https://www.linkedin.com/in/sabinekirchem/> <https://twitter.com/SKirchem>

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