Social customer relationship management factors and business benefits

Purpose This study aims to identify the business benefit of and factors affecting the use of social customer relationship management (SCRM) in Indian organizations. Design/methodology/approach Building on theoretical foundations, a conceptual model of factors affecting SCRM in Indian organizations is developed and empirically tested through a survey and corresponding analysis using SPSS and AMOS software. Findings The study presents empirical evidence that technological competence, environmental characteristics and organizational environment positively impact the actual use of SCRM on Indian organizations. Additionally, leadership support of organizations impacts positively the actual use of SCRM in organizations, while the trust factor insignificantly impacts the latter. The actual use of SCRM in organizations was found to have a positive impact on their business benefits. Research limitations/implications The theoretical model is built on the constructs of the technology, environment and organizational framework. It has added new factors, such as leadership support and trust, and thereby identified the business benefits of organizations using SCRM mediating through the organizations’ actual use of SCRM. The proposed model is simple, implementable and has a high explanative power of 81 per cent. Practical implications The study provides practitioners with evidence and practicable knowledge regarding the means and impact/benefits of SCRM use in Indian organizations. Originality/value The study is one of few empirical studies on the topic and contributes valuable knowledge to extant works through additional factors, theoretical conceptualization and empirical scientific findings of both scholarly and executive worth.