IT Strategy for Large Corporation: ERP/MRP/CRM, Unix/Linux/Windows, Microsoft/Java

Combining Microsoft Business Solutions Great Plains ERP with non-Microsoft Business System or CRM: Lotus Notes Domino, Oracle, DB2

There are multiple opinions on building your established large business IT system.  Some companies prefer to be Microsoft shop, others prefer to stick to Java world.  In our opinion large company should try balance its ERP in several layers: Hardware, Operating System, Database Platform, ERP/CRM software vendor.  The history always proofs that staking on one thing statistically has a chance to fail, remember Windows/Mac battle in the middle of 1990^th?  Then Java resurrected UNIX world in the end of the 20^th century.  All these facts just tell us that any prediction of the future should not be accurate, because the factors we could consider in the prediction formula will be superceded by new conceptions.  Good example would be C cross-platform programming language however now we are crazy about thin client so where is C longevity?  So, in 2004 we merged several companies to serve large corporate businesses, positioning us as cross platform integrators and the company, envisioning harmony between multiple computer platforms and conceptions.  Let us give you our bullets below:

• Microsoft Business Solutions pluses old conception that OS should be separate from the DB platform and from your accounting application doesnt work when we consider modern Microsoft: it now offers all in one: Microsoft Great Plains/Navision/Axapta/Solomon/Microsoft CRM/Small Business Financials ERP, based on MS SQL Server DB platform and all this nice suite is working under Microsoft Windows 2003 Server.  This is very nice to have and the price would be lower, however you are in the business space and conceptions of Microsoft corporation, which really deserves you to consider either ERP or CRM solution to be trusted and handled into Microsoft guys
• ERP/Accounting/MRP - we suppose that the old days of expensive ERP application are going to the history.  Nowadays we see the trend to use reasonably inexpensive and functionally sufficient applications, based in decent SQL platform.  So, our suggestion is do not pay for high end ERP/Accounting system and rather consider reliable budget solution as a platform for light customization
• Business System/CRM CRM market should be considered a mature one in 2010, when such pioneers as Siebel will cross 15 years of the existence.  Again in our opinion youd rather pay for small or moderate customization to budget CRM solution to have work done.  Microsoft CRM or SalesLogix would do the job
• Oracle Financials we are supporters of the companies who decided to go with Oracle Financials or SAP and have their CRM/Business Management System to be placed on the Microsoft Windows platform.  Microsoft CRM would integrate with Oracle smoothly
• Microsoft CRM in our opinion large publicly traded company should consider using Lotus Notes Domino for document workflow and CRM and when adopting MS CRM it should consider using Domino as primary email server see our MS CRM Lotus Notes Domino email connector description.

Good luck and you can always seek our help in customization, implementation, integration and support.  Call us: 1-866-528-0577 or 1-630-961-5918, help@albaspectrum.com

Andrew Karasev is Chief Technology Officer in Alba Spectrum Technologies USA nationwide Great Plains, Microsoft CRM customization company, serving Chicago, California, Arizona, Texas, Florida, Georgia, New York, Australia, UK, Canada, Germany, Continental Europe, Russia and having locations in multiple states and internationally ( http://www.albaspectrum.com ), he is Dexterity, SQL, C#.Net, Crystal Reports and Microsoft CRM SDK developer

Microsoft CRM Integration: Siebel Email Attachments Import - C# and MS Transact SQL example

Microsoft CRM CRM answer from Microsoft Business Solutions has aggressive pricing, going down and making it affordable for small companies. We see cases when Microsoft CRM replaces such traditional CRM systems as Siebel. It is not necessary, that clients decided to replace it themselves they may be victims of their systems the example: Great Plains had alliance with Siebel several years ago and we saw multiple clients with Great Plains Siebel tandem. Now Great Plains integrates with MS CRM.

This article is for programmer, who needs data to be migrated from Siebel or other CRM to MS CRM.

Todays topic is Siebel emails, stored in the files, import into MS CRM database. Each message exists in the form of separate file in the import directory. We will use custom SQL table, created in MS SQL Server 2000:

if exists (select * from dbo.sysobjects where id = object_id(N'[dbo].[CrmAttachImporter]') and OBJECTPROPERTY(id, N'IsUserTable') = 1)drop table [dbo].[CrmAttachImporter]GO#BREAK#

Microsoft CRM Implementation fundamental CRM principles revision

Microsoft CRM is relatively new player on the now becoming traditional CRM software applications market. We would like just to mention shift in the technical conception Microsoft CRM is committed to Windows and Microsoft components: Exchange, Active Directory, SQL Server, etc (while traditional CRM applications, such as Siebel were biased toward multiplatform compatibility: Unix, Oracle, Windows, SQL Server) and move up to business logic paradigm shift.

There is high-tech wisdom and it is always applicable to traditional industries, such as auto makers. Dont try to be too innovative on the market, rather have your competitors build the market niche and then move in. It is rather safe not to purchase the car of the new line, just introduced this year, even if it comes from such a respectable manufacturer as Toyota. The same in software industry we have unlimited trust and greatest respect to such CRM makers as Seibel but I guess we have to admit companies like this had to be pioneers on the market and had to create the market, being a little bit premature, however savvy in the long term market prediction..

Microsoft seems to be allowing the enthusiasts to create the market niche and then move in with its own or purchased and beefed up solution. In the case of MS CRM it seems to be from ground up MS development and very excellent fit to Microsoft Business Solutions business strategy.

Microsoft CRM application conception in our opinion was substantial simplification in CRM functionality and making IT group to support it, by deploying all the recent Microsoft technologies.

Bullets to emphasize:

1. Microsoft CRM is for MCSE / Microsoft oriented IT departments Microsoft CRM would be be-loved system for IT specialists. If you are MCSE+I - CRM will recruit all your MS Exchange, Active Directory, MS SQL Server, Windows domain security, Windows 2003 Server, Web publishing and HTML knowledge and experience. This is completely opposite to earlier Apple Computer believe - that computer systems should be easy in service and completely intuitive. MS CRM is kind of intuitive for end user, but not for its administrator.

2. Microsoft CRM - is not CRM - but rather simplified CRM - if you do remember old days whitepapers about CRM in general, or even it's predecessor - Lotus Notes/Domino - these papers were full of predictions about the future and were written for top level company executives, not for regular computer specialists. This was probably why so high percentage of CRM sales failed in implementations. Microsoft CRM has the highest ever rate of successful implementations, because it is not a CRM, but rather popularized version of it - it just does the job - as cheap and reliable car.

3. Transportation Companies - about 30% of our clients in the States are transportation and freight forwarding companies. This actually proves the hypothesis that MS CRM is very simple solution - these companies usually do not have extra money to spend on their computer system, but need the solution for its sales people to instantly see the cargos, plus have simple customization, allowing them to integrate with legacy system.

4. Movement down to small and tiny companies this is completely new trend for CRM market. We know the examples when 5 employees companies make a decision to implement and have surprising success in Microsoft CRM implementation.

Happy implementing!

Andrew Karasev is Chief Technology Officer in Alba Spectrum Technologies USA nationwide Microsoft CRM, Microsoft Great Plains customization company, serving clients in Chicago, California, Colorado, Texas, New York, Georgia and Florida, Canada, UK, Australia and having locations in multiple states and internationally (www.albaspectrum.com) You can reach Andrew at 1-630-961-5918 or 1-866-528-0577. He is Dexterity, SQL, C#.Net, Crystal Reports and Microsoft CRM SDK developer.

help@albaspectrum.com

Microsoft Dynamics CRM V3.0 ? Customer Relationship Management

Customer Relationship Management software effectively implemented, provides business owners and management with an extremely powerful tool for bringing the front-office functions of sales, marketing and customer support together and working far more effectively as a combined team.

Many businesses think wrongly that a CRM solution is only for enterprise class concerns with large check books when in fact software providers such as Microsoft offer scaleable versions for all company sizes. Microsoft Dynamics Software has evolved from their enterprise class Great Plains software however versions have been developed and aimed specifically at the small and mid-range business market.

Microsoft Dynamics CRM v3.0 allows businesses to respond to the growing challenges in the modern business environment by bringing client and prospect information into a central repository, organizing the information and allowing users throughout the business to access the data when they need it. Microsoft Dynamics CRM v3.0 delivers the ability to manage the customer relationship throughout the entire sales cycle from initial enquiry in response to a marketing or sales campaign, through to pre-sales meetings, the actual sale and post sale issues such as delivery and repeat ordering.

Microsoft Dynamics software empowers every decision maker in your business to satisfy customer demands by providing the most up-to-date and accurate client information they need when they need it and ensure that the history of the relationship is encapsulated for all to share. Decision makers in this context need not necessarily be management but a customer service representative with a customer on the telephone asking about an order or information on your other products. All staff in contact with prospects and customers will be able to see at a glance what is happening with a particular account and in customer relations, knowledge is power. Customer relationship software provides everyone in your business with the ability to demonstrate an outstanding level of customer service not possible by traditional reporting methods.

The ability to integrate a customer relationship software solution with existing applications already employed by your business allows for the transfer of information between your word processor and spreadsheet applications and the CRM. Microsoft CRM software has been specifically designed with Microsoft Outlook and Office in mind, and allows a seamless user experience. Mobile workers reliant upon email are able to access Microsoft Dynamics CRM v3.0 via their Outlook client, while marketing and sales campaigns can use data imported from the Dynamics Suite directly into Microsoft Word and Excel applications for marketing campaigns and mail shots.

If your business has several office and site locations, it is still possible to implement a customer relationship software solution across the whole company. Microsoft Dynamics v3.0 is well adapted to be delivered to remote locations via Microsoft Terminal Services, Citrix and other ?thin client? solutions. An example is where a business has a central warehousing facility in Detroit with sales offices in New York, San Francisco and Chicago and they all are able to utilise the customer relationship software solution almost in real-time.

Microsoft Dynamics CRM v3.0 benefits your business by saving time and costs, minimizing non-productive activity while maximizing sales revenue by ensuring that sales leads are followed up and do not get lost or ?fall between the cracks?, while customer retention is improved by enhancing customer relations and service.

Syed Ali, is the lead CRM consultant for a Toronto based company. His company offers, Microsoft CRM Software Syed can be reached at Tel : (905) 815- 1995 ext 22, email :asyed@cqsolutions.com

About Customer Relationship Management

Customer relationship management (CRM) encompasses the capabilities, methodologies, and technologies that support an enterprise in managing customer relationships. The general purpose of CRM is to enable organizations to better manage their customers through the introduction of reliable systems, processes and procedures.

Customer relationship management is a corporate level strategy which focuses on creating and maintaining lasting relationships with its customers.

CRM, in its broadest sense, means managing all interactions and business with customers. This includes, but is not limited to, improving customer service. A good CRM program will allow a business to acquire customers, service the customer, increase the value of the customer to the company, retain good customers, and determine which customers can be retained or given a higher level of service. A good CRM program can improve customer service by facilitating communication in several ways:

Provide product information, product use information, and technical assistance on web sites that are accessible 24 hours a day, 7 days a week.

Identify how each individual customer defines quality, and then design a service strategy for each customer based on these individual requirements and expectations.

Provide a fast mechanism for managing and scheduling follow-up sales calls to assess post-purchase cognitive dissonance, repurchase probabilities, repurchase times, and repurchase frequencies.

Provide a mechanism to track all points of contact between a customer and the company, and do it in an integrated way so that all sources and types of contact are included, and all users of the system see the same view of the customer (reduces confusion).

Help to identify potential problems quickly, before they occur.

Provide a user-friendly mechanism for registering customer complaints (complaints that are not registered with the company cannot be resolved, and are a major source of customer dissatisfaction).

Provide a fast mechanism for handling problems and complaints (complaints that are resolved quickly can increase customer satisfaction).

Provide a fast mechanism for correcting service deficiencies (correct the problem before other customers experience the same dissatisfaction).

Use internet cookies to track customer interests and personalize product offerings accordingly.

Use the Internet to engage in collaborative customization or real-time customization.

Provide a fast mechanism for managing and scheduling maintenance, repair, and on-going support (improve efficiency and effectiveness).

The CRM can be integrated into other cross-functional systems and thereby provide accounting and production information to customers when they want it.

Ismael D. Tabije is the Publisher-Editor of http://www.BestManagementArticles.com, a unique niche-topic article directory that features exclusively business and management topics. For a large dose of customer relationship management tips, ideas and strategies, see http://customer-relationship-mgt.bestmanagementarticles.com

Customer Relationship Management - 2 Secrets Every Small Business Owner Should Know!

When was the last time you received some form of communication, such as a postcard, phone call, or email, from a business asking how satisfied you were with their products and services? If you're like me, you may not be able to remember the last time because it has been so long (almost three years for me).

When was the last time you received some form of communication from a business to thank you for using their products or services or to simply maintain friendly contact with you? Once again, if you're like me, it has been a very long time.

In fact, the last time a business did that with me was almost seven years ago. I had spent several nights at a Bed & Breakfast in Colorado during the summer of 1999, and I received a Christmas card from the owners that Christmas with a picture of their house during one of Colorado's famous blizzards.

It was a nice follow-up on their part. When I received the card, it brought back the memory of the great experience and fun that I had while staying there. It also made a very nice impression on me that they had taken the time and effort to send me such a nice Christmas card (in reality, there wasn't much effort involved on their part, but recipients of this type of communication always magnify the effort in their minds).

This type of follow-up is one area in which almost all businesses fail miserably. Customer relationships are the life force of every business, yet business owners continually neglect these relationships. And it costs them dearly.

Think about all the money that a business may spend on advertising to bring in new customers. Think about all the money that a business may spend on creating a high-quality experience for their customers. Now think about how much most businesses spend to cultivate and reinforce their relationships with current customers.

How about your business? What do you, as a business owner, do to cultivate your relationships with your current customers? A current satisfied customer is your greatest asset. Not only are they already predisposed to continue doing business with you, but they are one of the absolute best sources of new customers through the power of "word-of-mouth" advertising.

Sure, your paid advertising promotes your business as being "the best". But paid advertising is almost never viewed as being objective. After all, everybody's paid advertising promotes their business as being "the best".

On the other hand, when a customer who has no profit motive enthusiastically recommends your business, that recommendation is worth its' weight in gold. People will trust the independent recommendations of others. That's just one of the many reasons why you should always take good care of your customers.

Okay, so how can you cultivate a high-quality relationship with your customers? Let's start by developing a simple action plan that you can begin to use immediately.

First, you need to collect contact information for your customers. Ideally, you should choose a method of contact that fits your type of business. In my example above, the postcard with a picture of the Bed & Breakfast was a great method of contact for that particular type of business. It was personal and effective. If you sell very expensive items, then you may want to consider a personal phone call. For many businesses, email contact may be the best method.

Whatever method of contact you choose, just be sure to let your customers know that you value their privacy and will not disclose their contact information to anyone else (trust is a huge part of any relationship). In some cases, you may even have to offer a little something to encourage your customers to provide their contact information. If necessary, do so.

Second, follow-up with your customers on a regular basis. You will need to decide what that regular basis should be based on the type of business you own. If you own a dress shop, then you may want to contact your customers and let them know that you just received a new inventory of the very latest fashions from one of your best suppliers. In this particular case, email or possibly snail mail will be your best method of contact.

If you own a boat dealership, then you may want to send recent boat buyers a note letting them know that you just received a new shipment of accessories that they may be interested in seeing. You may want to send less recent customers a note telling them about the new boat models you now have in stock and the incredible trade-in program you are currently running. Or maybe you can tell them about a "Customer Appreciation Sale" that you are having.

Perhaps you can contact your customers and offer them a special deal that will allow you to smooth a seasonal demand that your business may have. If you operate a small engine or lawnmower repair shop, then March and April are going to be pretty busy months for you. Why not send a note to your customers in January offering a special discount on lawnmower maintenance if they act by February 15th? That will allow you to level your workload and avoid the huge peaks and valleys in demand that you would normally have to deal with.

I do have one word of caution though; be very careful with the content of your communication with your customers. Always try to provide some value whenever you contact your customers so that they don't just view your contact as nothing more than a cheap and poorly conceived sales pitch.

If you do a good job of cultivating your relationships with your customers, then your business will reap the rewards. So don't delay. Use what you have learned in this article to begin building a strong and lasting relationship with your customers. You'll be glad you did.

Gerald Cook holds a Bachelor's and a Master's Degree in Business Administration, and he has extensive real-world business consulting experience. Gerald is the author of the "One book every small business owner or manager should read!" Visit http://www.discovergreatsuccess.com for more details.

Knowing who's who, where, what and when - 10 Tips for Good Customer Relationship Management

I have been serving customers, guests, clients, friends and family for over 23 years. Serving customers has brought me more and more into the realm of technology where I have been blown away by what I can buy to help me "manage" those relationships better, more effectively, faster.

With new Customer Relationship Management (CRM) technology I can cross reference data until my imagination becomes tired, extract a myriad of reports, know in detail who is saying what to whom and when in my organization. In different organizations I have seen staff spend hours and hours typing up phone calls, meetings and other interactions - I have also seen these system unused, these entries unread. As much as organizations like to believe their CRM software will keep their staff informed in reality people like to talk to people about people. This is why I see a return to human customer relationship management, the return of the Relationship Manager - the point of contact for the customer and the organization.

23 years ago, as a student, I started out working with a famous hotel chain and they taught me something very valuable - good customer relationship management. Now this was never based on needing to know everything about the guest in fact respect for privacy was always a priority, no, good customer relationship management was about the human touch, the relationship between the customer and me.

10 Good Customer Relationship Management Tips

1. Respect your customer and that means respecting their right for you not to know everything about them.
2. Show genuine interest and learn to actively listen, aim to always help.
3. Trust is everything.
4. No surprises. Do not let your customer or client find out about something that impacts on them from another source.
5. Give notice, if something is going to change let your customer know in advance and prepare them for the change.
6. Be professional, never talk about other clients or customers to others,
7. Put the customer first; even if you do not agree actively try and come to a good solution.
8. Stay in touch.
9. Always say hello, if you are at an event or just walking down the street, always acknowledge with a smile.
10. Ah yes, always acknowledge with a smile.

For further tips on maintaining good customer relationships go to www.contactcenter.in

Nic Howard is a website planner and lover of excellent customer service.

9 Steps to Building a Profitable Customer Relationship

Success in sales depends directly on your ability to make yourself likeable, and create a positive experience for your customers. The following 9 Tips are some of the best - and easiest - ways I know to help you create a more positive customer experience:

Love what you sell, the company you work for and the customers you serve.
If you are truly passionate about these three things, your willingness to help your customers solve their problems will shine through. Customers will believe your sincerity and be captivated by your excitement. In short - you will be fun to work with. Our studies show that customers prefer to buy from sales people who overtly show that they believe in the products they sell, and the companies they work for. Choose to be honest, open and empathetic to your customers' needs, and you will experience consistent sales growth, build an excellent reputation and become one of the top performers in your field.

Be empathetic and compassionate.
Truly care about your customers, and remember that no matter how good an actor you are, faking it simply won't work. Ask questions, take notes and lean in to show that you're engaged in their answers. When you take an interest in people, they remember you - and when people remember you, it's good for business.

Add value and give first.
Share your network of contacts with your customers, and don't expect them to give you their business without you giving them something first. I don't mean give away free product in the hopes they will buy more. Instead, give away things that increase your value - like a referral to a partner of yours, a solution to a business problem that you read about or heard from someone else, or even help finding a new dentist!

Make eye contact.
This is especially important when you walk into a room full of people. Eye contact is also essential after we get to know people, because it cements our existing relationships and lets them know that we're still interested in their well being. Very few sales people ever look their prospects directly in the eye. By simply smiling and making eye contact, you'll be surprised how much you will set yourself apart.

Express your true intent.
Tell customers upfront: "I don't know if there's a fit between what you need and what I have right now, but I'm hoping we can explore that in more detail during this meeting." Or: "I only have your best interests at heart, and I promise to be honest with you throughout our conversation. In the end, I hope that we can mutually decide if there is a reason to move forward. If not, that's fine too, and I hope you'll feel comfortable telling me so." This advice runs counter to 90% of the approaches I see being used in the field today. But then again, maybe that's why only 10% of sales people are top performers. Try it yourself a few times, and you'll be amazed at the response you get.

Don't go for the big decision all at once.
In our personal lives, we don't propose to someone on a first date (at least, not usually!). The same is true in our business relationships. So get approval from the customer to move ahead in increasing increments. The first approval might be just to agree to speak openly with each other, as outlined in Tip #5 above. The second could be an agreement on a follow-up call time or meeting date. The third might be gaining agreement on the decision making criteria or a commitment to have the "big boss" present at the demo, followed by an agreement to a "go/no go" decision date. All too often, I see sales people jumping way ahead of their prospect's buying curve. This puts the buyer and seller out of synch. When the sales person is trying to close while the prospect is still evaluating options or determining risk, trust is broken, the prospect feels pushed and the sale comes dangerously close to disappearing.

Use friendly, warm words.
When you use simple language instead of formal "business speak," people respond better and trust you more. So limit your words to three syllables max. And don't try to impress prospects with your extensive vocabulary, or you may end up just sounding fake.

Use people's names.
When it comes to using names, there are just two rules to follow: first, be aware of whether they're more comfortable with first name only or title + last name; second, never overuse their name - this only sounds corny and false. Dale Carnegie once said, "nothing is so beautiful to a person as the sound of their own name." Just use your discretion.

Ask the right questions.
Successfully building agreement with your prospects depends on your ability to ask the right questions. What are the right questions? Those that move the prospect from an intellectual position of knowing they have a problem that needs to be solved, to an emotional state of trusting you to solve that problem in a way that will satisfy them.
In short, the right questions are those that reveal true buying motivations. Mastering the right questions will ensure that you and your client build a strong relationship, wherein you can both succeed - and profit!

To help you close more deals and build lasting profitable customer relationships, try asking some of the following questions during your needs analysis:

1. Identify the intellectual problem with a lead-in question.

• What makes you think...?
• How do you select...?
• What?s most important to you about...?
• Where do you see...?
• How have you employed...?
• What has been your experience with...?
  

2. Develop an intellectual awareness about this problem.

• Can you tell me more about it?
• Could you be more specific?
• How long have you had this concern?
• What have you done to address it?
• How did that work out?
  

3. Identify the specific business impact of this problem.

• How has this problem impacted your organization?
• If you had to guess, what do you think this problem is costing your department / company / business / etc?
• What will happen if this problem continues?

4. Get emotional! Identify the specific personal impact of this problem.

• What impact does this problem have on your job / your staff?
• How important is this to you personally?
• What will happen if you don't find a solution to this problem?
• Why is it so important?
  

Remember: your success is directly determined by the way you are perceived, and the amount of effort you put into your career. Changing any of those variables will have a huge impact on whether you succeed or fail.

After all, in good times or in bad, the type of sales person you choose to be is 100% up to you.

 

Colleen Francis, Sales Expert & Founder of Engage Selling Solutions.Colleen's Lead-Up Coaching - 60 days free: www.lead-up.comReceive free 6 wk e-course & bi-weekly e-zine, Engaging Ideas: www.engagingideasonline.com

 

What is a Successful Customer Relationship Management CRM

What is a Successful Customer Relationship Management CRM

Publishing Guidelines: You may publish my article in your newsletter, on your website or in your print publication provided you include the resource box at the end. Notification would be appreciated but is not required.

By S. Maurer

In today's competitive business environment, a successful Customer Relationship Management CRM strategy cannot be implemented by only installing and integrating software packages designed to support CRM processes.

Over the past few years, many companies have implemented operational customer relationship management - CRM - systems, and these companies are now analyzing customer behavior to plan and optimize marketing tactics and improve customer service programs.

Small and midsize companies have been able to implement more complete Customer Relationship Management CRM systems because they may not operate globally and may be newer organizations that have fewer business processes to contend with.

It's also worth noting that CRM used to focus on the telephone as the primary means of contact, with little attention paid to e-mail or the Web. However, electronic messaging is overtaking voice as the most common form of communication. Corporate call centers aren't going out of business, but they need new people and equipment to deal with e-mail and Internet inquiries.

In the hunt for the right CRM tool, be diligent in the vendor evaluation process. If you don't understand the vendor's CRM solution in its entirety, you might wind up with no solution at all.

Across every sector and industry, effective Customer Relationship Management CRM is a strategic imperative action for corporate growth and survival.

S. Maurer is a 53-years old college graduated IT professional, with 30 years of experience in the computer & technology business. Now is the Correspondence Courses Director of the Abet Open University: http://distance-learning-mba-online-mba-program-executive-jobs.net and http://mba-open-university.net

The new Customer Relationship Management CRM functions

C.MeloPublishing Guidelines: You may publish my article in your newsletter, on your website or in your print publication provided you include the resource box at the end. Notification would be appreciated but is not required.

The new Customer Relationship Management CRM functions

By J.C.Melo

The Customer Relationship Management CRM system was born because of the need for a software to analyze customer's data - as for example its preferences - changing rough data that usually exists in any customer's database, into important information about the same customer. That is to say, a new modern sales & marketing tool.

In this first period the data of an online and real-time accounting & management system was analyzed by this stand-alone CRM software, and in the following period those accounting & management systems integrated this initial marketing & sales functions of a CRM.

Soon after, this new accounting & management system - now integrated with the CRM functions - included a Call Center system of the last generation with or without a voice processing system - input and output - through the telephone system usually so loved by us.

Soon after appeared an obvious question: If the CRM support my customers, why don't change it to support all the external functions of my company, as for example my suppliers, distributors, representatives, branches, affiliated companies, employees's families, etc., each one with different needs and processings?

This is the current Customer Relationship Management CRM system, for everything concerning the external world of a company, and consequently its original name no longer represents its current functions in spite to be widely used.

Today we should split the IT system of a company in two great sides but in the near future will be only one system:

1. Enterprise Resources Planning ERP, for the internal world of a company, on which we will write another article in the near future,

2. Customer Relationship Management CRM, for the external world of a company.

However it's absolutely necessary to understand that a CRM is not a software package that can be installed and immediately will be ready to work, but yes a system that obligatorily should be implemented by IT specialists together with the whole company in a continuous job, besides to be adapted to the specific needs of the company. And because the CRM was not interpreted correctly by a large amount of companies, recent research showed that 42% of purchased CRM systems are inoperative for been interpreted as a push-button software.

However if very well designed and installed, a CRM is a powerful tool for a company to grow on this digital business Century, certainly surpassing your competition and generating reasonable ROI Return on Investment.


The new Customer Relationship Management CRM functions

By J.C.Melo

The Customer Relationship Management CRM system was born because of the need for a software to analyze customer's data - as for example its preferences - changing rough data that usually exists in any customer's database, into important information about the same customer. That is to say, a new modern sales & marketing tool.

In this first period the data of an online and real-time accounting & management system was analyzed by this stand-alone CRM software, and in the following period those accounting & management systems integrated this initial marketing & sales functions of a CRM.

Soon after, this new accounting & management system - now integrated with the CRM functions - included a Call Center system of the last generation with or without a voice processing system - input and output - through the telephone system usually so loved by us.

Soon after appeared an obvious question: If the CRM support my customers, why don't change it to support all the external functions of my company, as for example my suppliers, distributors, representatives, branches, affiliated companies, employees's families, etc., each one with different needs and processings?

This is the current Customer Relationship Management CRM system, for everything concerning the external world of a company, and consequently its original name no longer represents its current functions in spite to be widely used.

Today we should split the IT system of a company in two great sides but in the near future will be only one system:

1. Enterprise Resources Planning ERP, for the internal world of a company, on which we will write another article in the near future,

2. Customer Relationship Management CRM, for the external world of a company.

However it's absolutely necessary to understand that a CRM is not a software package that can be installed and immediately will be ready to work, but yes a system that obligatorily should be implemented by IT specialists together with the whole company in a continuous job, besides to be adapted to the specific needs of the company. And because the CRM was not interpreted correctly by a large amount of companies, recent research showed that 42% of purchased CRM systems are inoperative for been interpreted as a push-button software.

However if very well designed and installed, a CRM is a powerful tool for a company to grow on this digital business Century, certainly surpassing your competition and generating reasonable ROI Return on Investment.

J.C.Melo is a 73-years old IT professional with 54 years of experience in computer science & technology entrepreneurship. He was the owner of the first minicomputer factory in South America and Consultant for the U.S. Government in several contracts. Now is the CEO of the organization
http://mba-open-university.net.

 

Mobile Sales Force Automation - How companies doubled its sales volume with wireless technologies

Introduction

In countless vertical business markets, mobile professionals are roaming far from their corporate campuses with laptops and cellular phones in tow. The increasing ubiquity of Wi-Fi hotspots and high-speed cellular networks, in part, has made these road warriors depend on real-time access to email, calendars and other corporate information systems.

Similarly, Sales force workers equipped with mobile devices such as Tablet PCs and ruggedized handhelds can be found in retail stores, on construction sites, in manufacturing plants, on service calls and everywhere else business is being done. Mobility gives them the tools they need for order-entry, shipment tracking and business intelligence reports. The use of mobile devices increases accuracy and eliminates redundancy, so there?s no need to carry around a stack of manuals.

Throughout business locations such as factories, offices, hospitals and other facilities a new breed of mobile worker, often referred as corridor warrior are seen armed with lightweight, handheld devices linked to wireless local area network (WLANs). The real-time communications and information access made possible through these complete mobile solutions is redefining the ways professionals perform at their jobs and consequently the costs of doing business.

These solutions are helping to raise the standards that both businesses and their workers are held to. This White Paper will discuss how the benefits of mobile solutions, are empowering Enterprises and their employees to improve revenue, engage in industry best practices and offer the best practices possible with its new features, functions and capabilities.

Obstacles in traditional SFA

A firm that has mobile sales force has been facing a lot of obstacles in recent times. They must continue realigning as the market changes. Earlier SFA Applications served the basic needs of field workers such as access to emails, contact management, calendaring and scheduling. Even though these features remain the dominant in SFA, the portfolio of capabilities has started to expand. A firm must adjust the pace of rebuilding the mobile force to match expected obstacles. The common anticipated obstacles are

• Focus ? Wasting time, money and resources on uninterested prospects. Instead of focusing on best prospects, sales force spends time on all the prospects.
• Access ? The Sales person often are not able to satisfy customer needs as they do not have access to the information that are sitting elsewhere in a database back at the office.

This led to the expansion of Mobile Sales Force Automation.

Expansion in Portfolio of Capabilities

• Quick Access to Information ? Imagine having outdated and inadequate information when you are in a sales call. Sales people should have critical facts and figures on the field that help them to close a deal. By providing the sales people with quick access and communicate information to and from the field allows the sales people to get the most from the time they spend with the customer.
• Shortened Sales Cycle ? Sales people can access current product information, check inventory and quote prices during a customer meeting which gives an outlook that they are very responsive. During the sales call customer can be informed about their accounts receivable status and credit standing with the push of a button. By using their mobile device the sales professionals can remove tedious tasks and reduce the delay in sending accurate information about customer meetings. Remote order entry capability also eliminates manual input of data into ERP. With these sales cycles are shortened, accurate information is gathered, customer is satisfied and revenue is increased.
• Sync Capability ? Synchronization provides a simple method of sharing data and merging new and updated information between offline users and the Mobile Server. When the offline user comes online he should be able to retrieve the updated information from backend server through mobile server and the information in his mobile device should be updated with the backend server. This ensures timeliness and accuracy of the information. The changes made outside the wireless coverage should be reliably conveyed to the backend. This ensures the sales professionals have most recently updated information and at the same time they need not reenter data again and again into the database. For Example, the corporate network of a major banking industry is designed to provide sales professional with reliable real-time access to their server. In a customer?s place network coverage is not stable always, it gets lost. They need to use their mobile device and enter data as they interact with customer and then make that data available to the server as soon as the connection returns.
• Always On Sometimes Connected ? During sales call, sales professionals are in consistent time constraint. They need to deliver their messages efficiently as well as effectively so that they don?t waste the face time with the prospects. The required boot of the laptop can waste a considerable amount of time in front of the prospect, which makes it less optimal. In such cases, sales professionals needs a mobile device which can help them access critical information in a small screen. ?Always On capability is a must and the sales professionals can connect sometime to retrieve information.? An efficient and powerful search capability is an important requirement.
• Security ? With the growing functionalities in today?s SFA security plays a very important role. The primary security requirement is that all users should authenticate themselves as a verified user into the corporate systems. This ensures the sales professional accessing into critical information is an authorized user. And also an insecure connection or a lost device can cause a loss to company?s proprietary data, in turn lowers competitive advantage. Mobility devices should have strong encryption capabilities for application data as it is transmitted over a network using a standard communication. A strong encryption system such as Triple AES (Advanced Encryption Standard) or DES (Data Encryption Standard) is necessary in ensuring the application data on the device is protected. In case of any lost or stolen devices, they should have the ability to remotely disable it.

SFA Mobile applications open up new frontiers

Recent advances in both wired and wireless Internet access solutions have spurred faster growth of mobile sales force population in the last couple of years, with hosted applications promising to open up new frontiers. The following features emerged into SFA applications, assures companies to maximize its capability to effectively and efficiently manage mobile users and devices.

• Policy-based Management ? Can provide a way to allocate network resources, primarily network bandwidth and security (firewalls), according to defined business policies. Users can be defined as individuals, groups, communities, and have specific management capabilities applied to them. This can be easily changed, and can be tied to a directory.
• Broad functionality ? Can function with a wide variety of applications and data requirements. Most of the applications have the needed interfaces to allow customization and additions.
• Directory integration ? Can interface with already defined directory structure and policies so a stand-alone or duplicate directory is not needed.
• Scalability ? Can provide management for a large number of users with a large number of devices.
• Single console for all network/application/device/security ? can provide a single console from which it can define, control, deploy and maintain all aspects of the device, application, network and security.
• Web-based console ? can be managed from a web-based console from any standard browser, allowing management from local or remote locations, and on a variety of devices.
• Support for diversity in devices, platforms, and networks ? supports a variety of devices, connections and platforms, and will continue to expand on the device types and OS flavors.
• Security components ? Provides at least a minimum set of security capabilities within the product. Can be integrated with higher-level security tools.
• Bandwidth aware ? can adjust for whatever bandwidth is available for the particular connection (e.g., delivering massive file updates on a slow connection).
• Dashboard ? can provide a management dashboard of information on processes, users, devices, performance, etc.
• Backend management integration ? can integrate effectively with other back-end management infrastructure already deployed within the organization without needing to retrain existing staff already familiar with the application.

Emerging trends in Mobile Capabilities

Today, an assortment of technology is used by sales professionals, ranging from laptop computers to consumer-grade personal digital assistants (PDAs) to beepers and cell phones. These top features provide a solution for everything a sales professional may need while out of the office.

• Integration ? Ability to integrate with enterprise-level business applications.
• Operating System ? Defining a standardized OS environment has greatly eased deployment of devices. Much like the PC desktop environment, the ability to deploy a single platform to all users means allowing a uniform distribution of SW, and a consolidated support requirement. Can support Familiar Microsoft Windows Mobile-based operating system.
• Deployment platform ? Companies ultimately deploy applications on one of two major platforms: Microsoft .Net, or Java. However, many organizations will deploy both. Can run in either environment (e.g., running a JVM on a Windows Mobile device supporting .Net).
• Third party application availability ? Many application vendors now offer mobile extensions to their application suites, providing a convenient means of extending applications to a mobile sales professional. However, not all vendors provide such capability, nor do they support all platforms. Third party middleware extensions provide needed functionality when not available within the application.
• Asset Management ? Deploying devices to users is only part of the challenge. The greater part of the challenge is managing the deployed assets. Devices deployed in enterprise settings provide the appropriate tools to mange the devices adequately, even when used with a third party asset management application.
• Connectivity ? Companies are relying on the notion of the ?real time enterprise? which requires up-to-date data acquisition of business activity information, as well as empowering employees with the data necessary to make the proper decisions. Mobile devices offer connectivity, even if not immediately used with the expansion of WiFi deployments within companies, as well as in public places. Can also allow a choice of radio connectivity options.
• Battery Life ? Battery life varies greatly depending on usage factor but the bottom line for most users is, can mobile devices get the user through the workday without a recharge? Most consumer PDA devices are challenged to provide a full day?s operation when using a wireless connection (WiFi). Can provide sufficient powerful batteries to provide at least one day?s operation, and allow full recharge overnight. Further, can provide field replaceable battery, as most batteries will only withstand about 300 charge/discharge cycles.
• Data Capture ? Data capture options provide linear and two-dimensional scanning or imaging.
• Voice telephony ? Voice telephony for push-to-talk (PTT), peer-to-peer (P2P), private branch exchange (PBX), one-to-one or one-to-many communications.

Future Technology Accelerators

Tablet PC

Tablet PCs combine the touch screen and handwriting features of the PDA with the computing power of a notebook computer in a compact and light weight design. End-user experiences the same look and feel in the office as in the field. Other advances in battery life and wireless capabilities are also eagerly anticipated.

Voice

Emerging technologies that allow natural text to speech dictation will allow easier data capture by both sales professionals and other members of the sales channel. Such services can run on mobile devices or via telephone services to a central server. Such solutions will tie directly into sales and marketing applications and can help increase the amount of useful data that can be captured in the field.

Extending into Field Analytics

As wireless networks improve, our ability to access information throughout the enterprise increases. Through integration of analytics into a mobile environment, we bring the sales professional in closer contact with the home office and help them to better highlight customer needs. We will be able to better measure and predict behavior and the interactions with the customer and, in turn, support changes in the business landscape, such as product launches and formulary changes.

RFID [Spell out] ? Radio Frequency Identification

An RFID system comprises three main elements: electronic tags, tag readers and software to store collected data.

The tags, which consist of a silicon chip and an antenna, provide each individual object to which they are attached with a unique identifier. When scanned, the tag transmits a wireless signal to the reader, which in turn sends the data to a database. The reader can also write information to the tag if required.

RFID technology is becoming prevalent in logistics where the movement of mobile tags, for example on pallets of consumer goods, is read by static readers, say, in goods in/out bays of a warehouse. However, for Sales Force Applications, this concept is reversed: the tags are static and the readers are mobile, i.e. carried by the sales professional. Tags can be attached, say, to a fixed location for proof of attendance, or to a specific item of machinery to be checked.

Top 5 reasons to make SFA MOBILE

• Company conducts business in a national or global market.
• Sales professionals spend more than 25% of the time out of office.
• Business depends on quick and informed decisions from people who are frequently on the road.
• Sales professionals need to have quick access to information and provide quick answers to the customers when they are on the call.
• Nimbleness is a competitive advantage for the sales professional.

Sample Case Study

Challenge

A famous Banking company needed a robust tool for managing sales leads and opportunities with visibility of the sales pipeline. The company desired a web-based, customizable solution that would be a good fit with that company?s mobility offerings to their sales professionals. It also desired a low-risk solution that could scale as the company grews. They also wanted their sales professionals to have up-to-date information about the leads they handle.

Solution

They selected ZSL?s middleware technology for its wireless capabilities, ease of deployment, configuration and customization. Through ZSL?s middleware technology the sales professionals were able to wirelessly access the provisioning functionalities such as sales order management systems and hosted prospect database. In addition, they were impressed with ZyPrism?s ability to synchronize data?s with reliable real-time access.

Results

Because of availability of data at real-time sales professionals were able to respond to customers at a quicker rate, shorten the sales cycle, increased their productivity and greater revenue generated. Because leads are pushed via alerts directly to sales professional?s Mobiles, sales professionals started experiencing faster response times to people who register interest via the web or its sales call center.

Conclusion

By providing quick access to information to sales professionals available at back-end data and applications helps them to shorten the sales cycle, gather accurate information, improves customer satisfaction and increase revenue. Sales professionals become more responsive to customers through expansion of capabilities in SFA.

With Synchronization feature in SFA sales professionals are equipped with real time and updated information, which in turn helps them to provide customers with up-to-date prices and inventory available. Remote order entry capabilities reduce the burden of entering the data again in the database residing at the server and help them to close the sale quickly and efficiently.

Business productivity and customer satisfaction can be achieved when mobile and wireless solutions are used wisely. Mobile solutions have truly come of age and can literally transform business to newer heights. Now is the time to evaluate how becoming more mobile sales professionals can be more productive. Its time to craft your mobile strategy otherwise your competitors are likely to go mobile giving them the competitive advantage.

Expansion in the capabilities of Sales force automation applications holds great promise for improving the efficiency of mobile sales professional and reducing the overall cost of sales. The enterprise network should be properly equipped to provide reliability, security, bandwidth, adequate remote connectivity and management controls. Mobility can give all the business advantages with these capabilities.

 

John Solomon is with ZSL. ZSL realizes that salespeople are mobile by definition. ZSL uses technology to make sales team more focused and successful. ZSL?s solution is customized in such a way that sales professionals get the direction they need and managers get the information they need. The bottom line is increased profits.

ZSL is an ISO 9001 certified provider of Onshore, Offshore & Near shore technology services. ZSL offers substantial cost savings and enhanced performance associated with a secure and effectively managed global development model. For over 10 years, ZSL has been partnering with a loyal following of clients seeking to leverage our proven delivery methodology, as well as 24/7 access to the very best technical resources and development tools available anywhere.http://www.zslinc.com