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In the finance sector; in terms of managing customer relations, customer acquisition, and customer retention, Customer Relationship Management (CRM) approach is widely accepted both strategically and operationally. In the sector, unlike banking and investment consultancy, where direct relationships with customers have become the main business model, working through intermediaries is dominant in both pre-sales and after-sales processes. Intermediaries such as bancassurance, agents, and brokers have dominated nearly 80% of the sector. For this reason, insurance companies have started to invest in factors such as the satisfac-tion of intermediaries, the establishment of reward and target systems for intermediaries, and hence imp-roving their performance. In the literature; there are many studies covering CRM on issues such as increasing efficiency and effectiveness in customer processes, improving corporate performance, and the success of sales teams. However, considering that intermediaries can simultaneously represent different insurance companies, their attitude towards the insurer is as important as their sales performance. Therefore, the sub-ject of this study is to examine the effects of CRM practices on selling intention and sales performance of sales representatives working in the non-life insurance industry. For this purpose, CRM applications were evaluated with four sub-dimensions: focus on key customers, CRM organizational structure, information management, and technology-based CRM implementation. Data were collected from intermediaries in the Turkish non-life insurance market and a total of 299 surveys were obtained. The results of the study suggest that effectively managed CRM practices have positive effects on both sales performance and selling inten-tion of sales representatives. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The paper examines attributes of customers for modelling the dimensions of confidence, convenience and affordability of services offered by financial services firms (FSFs) by applying a generalised least square (GLS) systems model to a cross-section of customers in Dubai. These three dimensions have become major drivers of long-run viability and survivability in the last 15–20 years, because of dynamic and competitive macroeconomic forces faced by the FSFs. Earnings stability, longevity of relationship and liquidity attributes significantly explain the confidence level of customers across FSFs. Core, tangible and relational attributes besides ambience and ATM network, positively significantly explained the convenience level of customers in FSFs. Home loans, credit cards, savings accounts, term deposits and insurance services are significant products that are affordable and valued by customers. The systems model was validated using a holdout sample. The study findings have implications for customer relationship management, customer insight and production/transaction processing competencies of FSFs in the study area and are equally applicable to FSFs in other developed and developing economies. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]