Here’s what 2011 promises: more Salesforce.com versus Oracle, further “platform shift” wars, the rise and rise of social CRM (sometimes with a business upside), the impending debut of Oracle Fusion CRM, and an iPad in every stocking.

Facebook launches a new messaging platform that offers immediate CRM advantages. Learn how to apply Messages to up your customer intimacy game, courtesy of Mark Zuckerberg.

What are your CRM program’s unknown unknowns? When it comes to planning, to ensure that projects don’t fail, you need to find out.

Does Crest need 40 different toothpastes?

Where are all of the CRM mashups we were promised?

Do your marketing campaigns incite prospective buyers with a clear call to action?

The adage about how much less it costs to keep the customer you have, instead of finding a new one, is even more true in a down economy. Indeed, if the cost ratio between acquiring new customers and retaining old ones was 10:1, today it’s probably more like 100:1, given the relative scarcity of customers with available spend. But what can the service department do to help?