Publishers: the user is the key

A very dense application market

The market for business management applications has grown enormously, become more specialised and more verticalised. The CRM market alone counts nearly 700 different solutions according to G2, with continued growth expected.

Specialised solutions are also multiplying in human resources, project management, finance and logistics.

Choosing on the basis of relevant criteria

Identifying the right application requires gathering a wide range of information. The elements to study include:

• Innovative features: They address legal, fiscal or social constraints, or offer better ergonomics.
• Integration capabilities: Integrations with complementary solutions have become standard and necessary.
• Customer service: A company will scrutinise support conditions and the supplier’s responsiveness.
• Excellence in a domain: For niche solutions or specific regulated sectors, assurance that key concerns are addressed makes the decision easier.
• Price: SaaS models are analysed and projected against the company’s outlook.
• User experience: Simplicity, friendliness, intuitiveness and mobile adaptation require significant exposure (demos, videos, review platforms).

Project phase: success is not guaranteed

An independent 2025 study by Johnny Grow puts the CRM project failure rate at 55% (deployments that did not meet their planned objectives). The gap is telling: only 41% of business-side respondents felt objectives were met, versus 54% on the IT side, and end users were four times more likely than managers to see expected benefits simply written off.

Project deployment failures are unfortunately common. Although the product and project look appealing on paper, implementation is often incomplete or disappointing.

Key user teams must transcribe or adapt their processes to the chosen solution. Training is planned, but an employee who is poorly trained, unconvinced or uncomfortable will not use the tool correctly, or at all.

User experience starts during the project phase

Crucial questions include:

• Does the software have consensus?
• Has its implementation been explained and adopted by future users?
• Are they convinced the solution addresses the company’s challenges?

Three situations can arise:

1. The solution may fail to convince during a demo or pilot. Rudimentary ergonomics can disengage the user team. There is still time to adjust the project’s scope before significant financial commitment.

2. Implementation time may exceed forecasts. An unconvinced team will not prioritise the project, indefinitely postponing deployment.

3. The application may disappoint once deployed. Poorly deployed tools are misused and fail to meet initial needs.

Failure takes many forms

The consequences for the organisation are significant:

• Costs: maintaining the old solution, adding consulting days, redoing the training. The cost doesn’t stop at the failed project: a second solution still has to be chosen and deployed.
• Disengagement: The perception of an imbalance between resources invested and expected gains creates a rejection of the project.
• Inertia: “It wasn’t working so badly before.” The company chooses not to innovate.

Genuinely listening to users and anticipating their needs becomes the key, both during the project phase and from the earliest stages of solution design.

3 paths to a more engaging user experience

Adoption depends on simplicity

A user engages with a tool when it brings them something. If the effort required is too great, contributors abandon it or fill it in less accurately.

Optical character recognition (OCR) has been adopted by most publishers because it spares users from tedious data entry. According to Grand View Research, the global OCR market is expected to reach $13.38 billion in 2025, up from around $7.9 billion in 2020, demonstrating strong demand for tools that simplify daily work.

User experience requires scalability and flexibility

Teams evolve over time. Users will want assurance that the solution can follow organisational evolutions, acquisitions or verticalisations.

Giving users a voice through newsletters, user clubs, release notes and roadmap sharing builds a relationship of trust. Informed users feel more at ease, knowing they can count on a partner to adapt to technological evolutions and business challenges.

User experience put to the test of mobility

According to Nucleus Research, 65% of companies using a mobile CRM meet their sales quotas, compared to 22% for non-mobile CRMs.

Many professionals work on the move every day without access to a web portal. Enabling simple and intuitive interaction on mobile is crucial for adoption across all employees.

Concrete example: at an industrial manufacturer running a Procure-to-pay solution, purchasing managers approve purchase orders from their phone between site visits. Without an ergonomic mobile app, approvals pile up until they get back to their desk, delaying deliveries and creating friction with suppliers.

Offering intuitive interactions and visibility into the product’s evolution guarantees an engaging user experience, reinforcing the credibility of both the solution and its publisher.