Posted November 13th, 2008 by admin
nyone that works in sales knows just how important it is to have lead sources to keep your pipeline filled. But it is not only how we obtain the leads that is important, it’s what we do with them once we get them. One of the most critical mistakes a sales person can make once they receive a lead, is not acting on it immediately.
I once worked with a guy who belonged to a networking group, the soul purpose of his joining this group was to receive leads. This group wasn’t cheap either, it cost him $500.00 annually to be a member. He would come back from his weekly meeting with a lead in his hand and pin it to the bulletin board above his desk, and there it would stay until he noticed it a few days later. It drove me nuts!
In sales, and it does not matter what you are selling, every day is critical! At any moment, your competitor can call your customer and walk away with the business. Another common mistake I have witnessed countless times, is contacting the lead in a timely fashion, but having absolutely no enthusiasm once you contact the customer.
When you call a potential customer, smile as you speak to them, the customer will pick up on the inflection in your voice and respond to it. Don’t act as though the customer is a burden to you, and that you are doing them a favor. Remember, you are the expert when it comes to your product, don’t expect your customer to know everything, if they did, they wouldn’t need you. So make sure they know that you are happy to help them.
Another no-no when following up on a lead is to yawn, sneeze, or cough into the receiver of the phone. I understand that these are normal and common bodily functions, but there is no excuse for doing it directly into the receiver, this is a great way to loose the sale, the yawn alone will most likely make the customer hang up the phone.
Always put yourself in the shoes of the customer. Imagine meeting someone for the first time over the telephone and your conversation is being interrupted by yawns, and sneezes, I doubt you would be gung-ho about doing business with them.
Following up with a lead and then putting that person on hold is another common mistake I have come across. Although your reasons for putting your customer on hold may seem very important to you, your customer will find it to be annoying regardless of your reasons. So be sure to set aside a time to call your lead when you know the interruptions will be few.
So the next time you receive a lead, act on it immediately, let your customer know that you are happy to work with them, speak clearly and avoid interruptions, and watch your sales productivity increase.
Article by Jay Conners of CallProspect.com.
Posted November 13th, 2008 by admin
Microsoft Business Solutions CRM data conversion deserves FAQ type of article, where IT people could get initial directions. Even if it seems as a trivial task, we would suggest you to think about these possible scenarios: objects mapping between your legacy CRM: GoldMine, ACT, Siebel, Lotus Notes Domino. When you think about MS CRM switch over – do you think just to transfer master records: Leads, Contacts, Accounts, or you are thinking about historical activities: emails, faxes, calls, appointments, etc?
• MS CRM Import tool. You can import contact and leads using MS CRM import, your source files should be text files and import tool doesn’t validate duplicates, dirty records and similar potential pitfalls. Well, Import wizard comes free with MS CRM purchase, but in our opinion, you should just continue reading and go to the next bullet.
• Scribe. This is the first professional level option you should consider. The nicety of scribe lays in the fact that it has mappings for ACT for example and you will need just select the destination. Again, please understand that each CRM solutions has its own master and activity objects categories. Scribe should resolve 85% of your conversion issues and if not you should check with scribe. Some issues are not resolvable in scribe: Siebel email attachments, records duplications and others.
• Microsoft CRM SDK. MS CRM SDK is the ultimate tool to migrate whatever is possible and impossible into MS CRM. However – we have to warn you that in this case we have to do custom data conversion and our programmers dedicate their time to help you out. We expect your participation in objects mapping. Plus you should be ready to allocate substantial time to test the conversion, prior to going live. So, the expectations should be set that your have to budget 50 hours or more.
• Security Model Concerns. Microsoft CRM has advanced security model, and technically it can serve up to large corporation with regional and worldwide offices. In this case you usually deploy objects sharing technique and deploy teams and role (MS CRM Business Units and Sales Territories doesn’t allow your CRM users to be in multiple units or at the same time serve several territories). If initial data conversion requires security consideration – you should consider MS CRM SDK approach – even if you have to pay higher price for the conversion. Large business should consider the risk of exposing records to unauthorized employees.
• MS CRM Integration. Using MS CRM SDK you can integrate CRM with your third party financial applications, such as Navision, Axapta, Solomon, Oracle Financials, SAP, PeopleSoft. Software Development Kit allows you to integrate your custom SQL, DB2, Oracle or other ODBC and OLEDB complaint application.
Currently we are confident in MS CRM ability to automate the following industries: Aerospace & Defense, Chemicals, Oil & Gas, Advertising & Publishing, Distribution & Logistics, Beverages, Supply Chain Management (SCM), Pharmaceutical, Nonprofit, Healthcare/Hospitals, Wholesale/Retail, Manufacturing/Assembling, International Business/Multinational Corporation, Government.
Article by Andrew Karasev of AlbaSpectrum.com.
Posted November 13th, 2008 by admin
“A long-awaited update to Microsoft’s customer relationship management software, which will for the first time include subscription-style pricing, will debut next month, the company said.” Read more
Posted November 13th, 2008 by admin
Without doubt, understanding what a customer’s wants and needs are is one of the most important aspects of running a business. You must know your customer. For the most part your customer will buy on emotion, especially for products or services that are not a necessity and where there are a number of suppliers for the same item. Understanding and defining why your customer shops the way they do is your key to success.
There may be a number of factors that are common amongst your target audience for your business service or product. By researching and finding out what these are, you will be able to see what areas you can focus on where there is a need, and what areas will not interest them. Write down what your ideal customer will looks like, behaves like and wants from you. Seeing your business through their eyes will help to highlight your strengths and any weaknesses you might have.
Where can I find information about my customer?
There are a number of resources that you can access at LITTLE OR NO COST to you, that can help provide accurate impressions on your customer and their buying habits. Also, these resources will help you define and research potential markets that you had not yet considered for your business.
Firstly, research and access all the SECONDARY data that you can. Secondary data is data that has been gathered by someone else for a different and specific purpose. Often, this data contains information that you can utilize and apply to your own needs. For example, the research may relate to how people spend their money in the home, and you may want to know what people and how much they spend on tools for the shed. This secondary data could well provide the information on the amount they will spend, where they will shop and why, and what type of customer will do the shopping.
Places and Sites that you can visit to begin gathering secondary data:
* Ibis World (http://www.ibisworld.com/) - The IBISWorld US Industry Reports provide you with immediate access to vital information on 100’s of industries. They are continually adding more industries to eventually cover the entire economy in depth.
* LibrarySpot.com (http://www.libraryspot.com/) - a free virtual library resource center for educators and students, librarians and their patrons, families, businesses and just about anyone exploring the Web for valuable research information.
* Internet Public Library (http://www.ipl.org/) - The Internet Public Library (IPL), is a public service organization and learning/teaching environment full of information and resources to help educate you.
* US Census Bureau (http://www.census.gov/) - The Census Bureau serves as the leading source of quality data about the nation’s people and economy, providing the best mix of timeliness, relevancy, quality, and cost for the data they collect and services they provide.
Having gathered any secondary data available, you might find that you still need some information relating to your customer and niche market. The best way to do this is to gather what is called PRIMARY data – information that you gather for your own purposes. There are a number of ways that you can do this. For example, you might choose to call people out of the phone book and ask them to complete a survey over the phone. You also might choose to go to the local shopping complex and interview people you meet. This second idea is very useful if your product is something that is already sold through retail outlets, as you can talk direct to customers that could become your customer in the future!
If you have never written a survey before, visit the site below as a great starting point:
* How to Write a Good Survey http://www.accesscable.net/~infopoll/tips.htm - this site has a description of each step in writing a survey, and some useful links and further articles about the gathering of information by using surveys.
Don’t be afraid of gathering your own information - it can prove to be an invaluable exercise. Not only do you gain a more complete understanding of the needs of your customer, but you increase your own knowledge and understanding of the marketplace. This places you in a better situation when building and expanding your business.
Article by Matthew Tibble of BusinessPlanningMadeEasy.com
Posted November 13th, 2008 by admin
Allied Home Mortgage has just signed a huge hosted CRM deal with Entellium because it outgrew GoldMine.
Read more on this case study at Line56.
Posted November 13th, 2008 by admin
In order to maintain a successful business, the business must understand and maintain a positive relationship with its customers. Customer Relationship Management (CRM) is the process of bringing the customer and the company closer together. There are many different areas in which Customer Relationship Management can be implemented. The goal of CRM is to help a company maintain current customers, as well as gain new customers.
Targeted Marketing
Targeted marketing is accomplished through collecting information about the customer. This information can be buying habits or simply demographics. The idea behind this is that a business analyzes what a customer buys and then markets specific products to that customer based on his or her buying habits. Businesses track buying habits using discount cards, and special store credit cards. Targeted marketing can also be implemented on the Internet. Amazon.com has product recommendations based on buying habits, and product ratings. Customers can also be sent e-mails that market targeted products. Marketing the right products to the right customers can significantly increase a business’ sales with minimal associated costs.
Call Centers and Customer Service
Have you ever called a business to complain or ordered a product and encountered an automated call response (I.E. “please press 1 for questions, 2 for comments” etc.)? That’s CRM. Call centers that take calls and monitor customer/business interactions are often running on hosted CRM programs. CRM managers want to make call centers as efficient and customer-friendly as possible. A customer who can easily navigate through an automated system is more likely to do business with the same company in the future. In the case of a complaint, a customer whose problems are responded to immediately is more likely to forgive and forget a company’s transgressions. Customer service is the backbone of all CRM processes and strategies.
CRM Vendors
Not surprisingly, in order to successfully collect data, manage call centers, analyze data, and make changes, businesses need CRM software. There are many CRM vendors in the world. The most widely-recognized vendors are Siebel, Salesforce.com, and Microsoft. Each of these vendors has contributed to CRM in its own way.
CRM Applications
There are many different types of CRM applications. Some CRM applications are Web-based so they can be accessed via a browser. Other CRM applications have programs built in for integrating data entries and data management across several applications. CRM vendors also have specific strategies that are unique to every client. The goal of a CRM vendor is to not only upgrade a company with the latest CRM technology, but also to design the companies infrastructure in such a way that the customer/company relationship can flourish.
Conclusion
Knowing the customer is the key to a successful business. Customer Relationship Management is the process through which a business analyzes their customers and makes changes accordingly. CRM vendors provide applications and advice on the best CRM methods. Most observers believe that CRM practices will continue to flourish as new CRM strategies and technologies are developed. For any business, a successful CRM approach is a must-have.
Article by Matt Hogansworth of SalesForce.com.
Posted November 13th, 2008 by admin
When hosted CRM was first introduced, concerns were voiced about its drawbacks: the lack of customization, integration with other applications, support, third party storage, control over data control and the performance of service reps - not to mention the all-important security issue. Hosting’s biggest drawback is that your most important data is in a third-party’s hands.
Although CRM, as hosted solutions are also known, are not as difficult or as costly to install as packaged solutions, they still require an infrastructure, significant IT resources, and time to deploy.
Application integration has been another challenge for ASPs. Since ASPs unilaterally update their code bases, this opens the possibility that an integrated business process could be broken by a change that you don’t control.
Privacy and privacy laws are another concern: you must investigate what safeguards an ASP offers to protect your data. As you can see, hosted CRM isn’t perfect. Aberdeen researchers found that when considering these problems, support for hosting dampens. One way around this might be a hybrid approach: rent now, buy later.
It Does Not Have To Be Either-Or.
Another emerging trend is that companies adopt hosted solutions as a low-risk way of evaluating a CRM solution’s capabilities before they buy into an in-house set up. This approach allows companies to mitigate risk and experience the benefits of rapid time-to-value. Once companies see a ROI, then they can choose to bring the solution in-house.
The decision between an in-house implementation and a hosted solution is based on many factors. It is important to evaluate your business plan, technology strategy, risk profile, IT budgets, IT resources, opportunity costs, customization requirements and industry-sector requirements.
Article by David Cowgill of Sales-Force-Software.com.
Posted November 13th, 2008 by admin
ZDnet.co.uk has a great little article about a UK company called Sage which is offering hosted CRM to UK companies. It is reported as the UK’s first hosted CRM.
Posted November 13th, 2008 by admin
Dow Jones has launched a CRM Software product called “Wealth Management Direct” which is a CRM software package for independent financial advisers.