The Top 15 CRM awards, which premiered in 1990, serve as the standard for comprehensive CRM software. The Top 15 are divided into two categories—Enterprise and Small & Medium Business (SMB)—to reflect the changes and growth of the CRM marketplace. The ISM Real Time CRM Awards were introduced in 2006 to capture the move to real time functionality. This year ISM will introduce a new award category—"Building Customer Communities"—to highlight the growing role of Web 2.0, user-generated content and networking that brings consumers interactively into a company's branding, product development and customer service processes.
CRM software undergoes intensive testing at the ISM Software Lab based in Bethesda, Md. Each software program ISM tests is rated according to 217 selection criteria, including 102 business functions, 51 technical features, 36 implementation capabilities, 11 real time criteria and 17 user-support features. With no ownership in or by a vendor, ISM's software analysis is 100 percent vendor neutral and bias free.
Software Reviews have been completed on products by: companies such as Amdocs Limited, Axonom, Ardexus, CDC Software, Clear C2, Consona Corporation, Firstwave Technologies, FrontRange Solutions, Interchange Solutions, Maximizer Software, Microsoft Corporation, NetSuite, OnContact Software, Optima Technologies, Oracle Corporation, Relavis Corporation, RightNow Technologies, Sage Software, Salesforce.com, SalesPage Technologies, SAP AG, StayinFront, Sugar CRM, Sword Group and update Software AG
