Hello, this is Matsubara, CRM Evangelist.

Last timeWe discussed the lesson that companies that value relationships with existing customers are more likely to overcome times of crisis, and the deeply ingrained overemphasis on new business in Japanese companies.
In this second installment, we will discuss another invisible threat that many Japanese companies tend to put off, just like existing customer support: customer information security.

table of contents

1. Why are invisible costs often overlooked?
2. The Reality of Cyber ​​Threats Surrounding Japanese Companies (Reconfirmation)
3. Why is security investment often put on the back burner?
4. Neglecting existing customers and neglecting security stem from the same underlying structure.
5. Another blind spot: Excel management
6. What would happen if these two crises struck at the same time?
7. Frequently Asked Questions (FAQ)
8. Summary: Next Episode Preview

1. Why are invisible costs often overlooked?

Last time, I mentioned that one reason why existing customer support is often neglected is the structure that makes it difficult to see results.
In fact, the exact same structure applies to security investments.

The success of acquiring new customers can be clearly reported as the number of contracts. The success of managing existing customers can only be seen in a less visible form, such as "preventing customer churn."
The effects of introducing new features and systems are easy to see. The effects of security measures, however, only manifest in the less visible form of "not being attacked."

Organizations that lack a culture of evaluating "nothing happening" as a success share a common weakness: existing customer support and security measures tend to be put on the back burner.

2. The Reality of Cyber ​​Threats Surrounding Japanese Companies (Reconfirmation)

Let me double-check the data from public institutions.

According to the National Police Agency, the number of ransomware attacks reported in 2025 was 226, the second highest number on record after the record high in 2022.
Small and medium-sized businesses account for approximately two-thirds of ransomware attacks.
According to the Personal Information Protection Commission, the number of personal information leaks in fiscal year 2025 was 19,417, the second highest number on record.
According to a survey by Tokyo Shoko Research, listed companies and their subsidiaries are expected to report 180 data breaches and losses by 2025, with personal information of over 3,063 million individuals being leaked.

These figures are explained in more detail in "Japanese Companies' Customer Information is Being Targeted from Around the World — Why You Should Protect It with CRM Now ."

3. Why are security investments often put on the back burner?

The reasons why security investments are often put on the back burner for many small and medium-sized enterprises can be summarized as follows:

- The misconception that "a company like ours could never be targeted."
- We feel that security measures are specialized and beyond our company's capabilities.
- Because they haven't experienced significant damage in the past, they may not fully grasp the risks.
- Prioritizing the allocation of a limited budget to advertising costs for acquiring new customers, which directly impacts sales.

The last point is remarkably similar to the structure of neglecting existing customers that I explained last time.
Here again, we see the same management tendency to prioritize budget allocation for "easily measurable results" while neglecting preparations for "less visible risks."

4. Neglecting existing customers and neglecting security stem from the same underlying structure.

Now, let's look at two problems side by side.

Interestingly, both of these challenges can be improved simultaneously by having a CRM foundation.
A platform for centrally managing customer information is both a foundation for accumulating relationships as assets and a foundation for security governance that controls access rights.

5. Another blind spot: Excel management

A common thread among many companies that prioritize customer service and security measures over existing customer support is that they manage customer information using Excel.
BeforeRisks of managing customer information in ExcelAs explained in detail, managing data using Excel has structural risks such as weak password protection, rampant file copying, and failure to collect data upon employee departure.

Furthermore, managing customer information in Excel makes it difficult to continuously track the status of each individual existing customer.
In short, Excel management is the root cause of both weaknesses in supporting existing customers and security vulnerabilities.

6. What would happen if these two crises struck at the same time?

Please try to imagine.
With relationships with existing customers weakening, the economy is worsening, and customers are beginning to drift away.
—What would happen if, in the midst of all that, you lost your laptop containing Excel files, resulting in a data breach?

Existing customers, who are already prone to churn, will completely leave due to the decisive reason of data breaches.
- Being overwhelmed with accident response will further reduce the time available to follow up with existing customers.
- A deterioration in the company's image can negatively impact the acquisition of new customers.

Each of these two invisible crises is serious on its own, but when they occur simultaneously, the damage becomes exponentially larger.

7. Frequently Asked Questions (FAQ)

Q. Can security measures and existing customer support really be improved using the same system?
While not entirely identical, having a CRM platform that allows for centralized management of customer information and control of permissions is a common foundation for addressing both challenges.

Q. Which should small and medium-sized enterprises prioritize with a limited budget?
You don't have to choose one or the other.
Investing in a single CRM platform is worth considering before worrying about prioritizing, as it effectively addresses both existing customer relationships and security measures.

Q. How can I explain "hidden costs" in a management meeting?
It is effective to present concrete estimates of the losses that could result from missed responses or data breaches.

8. Summary: Next Episode Preview

Neglecting existing customer support and neglecting security measures both stem from the same management habit of "underestimating invisible costs."
Furthermore, these two challenges are related in that they can be improved simultaneously through a single foundation: CRM.

Next time , I'll explain in detail the specific reasons why you should choose EMOROCO CRM Lite among the many CRM options available.

EMOROCO CRM Lite costs ¥1,500 per user per month (minimum 3 users) and has no initial setup fee, with a 30-day free trial.https://www.emoroco.com/You can start from there.
IT implementation subsidy eligible tool number: DL07-0022934.

We also offer a monthly newsletter, "ARCUS NEWS," which provides updates on EMOROCO CRM Lite and other useful information for CRM operations.
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Additionally, we publish useful articles about CRM 4.0 on note ( https://note.com/arcuss_crm ), so please check them out as well.

Related article

• Customer information of Japanese companies is being targeted from all over the world.
• Risks of managing customer information in Excel
• Before spending a large budget on new customers