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Ask Wendy - Management Strategy

Top Trends Driving CRM Success
Wendy Close Jun 15, 2007
The secret is out. Successful companies of all sizes are gaining an edge by putting new trends in CRM to work in their favor. Want to join them?

To get a leg up on the competition in 2007 listen to this Webinar on key CRM trends in 2007 featuring Liz Herbert. Senior Analyst of Forrester Research. Discover how to:
- Tap into new trends in CRM to increase sales
- Maximize the value of your existing CRM investments
- Deliver an irresistible customer experience
- Replicate the successes of leading companies
Register here to listen to the recorded webcast: Register for the Webcast Now. And, visit here for a copy of the Forrester Report, Trends 2007: Customer Relationship Management compliments of Salesforce.com: Download trends_2007_crm_3.1.07.pdf

If want a copy of the Webcast slides download them here: Download sfdc_crm_trends_webcast_6.20.07.pdf

To learn more about the on-demand CRM solutions offered by Salesforce.com please visit our CRM software as a service applications area.
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Cool Tools Heat-Up The AppExchange
Wendy Close Oct 27, 2006
While not an exhaustive list of apps in any given technology area, here are my picks for some of the coolest partner solutions on the AppExchange. I define a cool vendor as one that offers solutions that are either:

1) Innovative meaning they enable users to do things they couldn’t do before like Cast Iron’s Application Integration Appliance, a form of packaged integration which allows users to simply plug an appliance into their network and make minor customizations to the process, maps and governance mechanisms to quickly integrate salesforce.com with SAP, Oracle, or Lawson for example.

2) Impactful meaning they will have business impact (e.g., revenue enhancement) like the ability to automate and streamline the entire quote to cash process by embedding a product and pricing configurator in your sales process.

3) Intriguing meaning they caught my interest and curiosity in the past few months like Angel.com’s SurveyByFone, an automated IVR solution that enables users to send an automated 5-question customer satisfaction phone survey from salesforce.com.

Cool Vendors on The AppExchange

Customer Surveys: Clicktools, Pollzter by Astadia Consulting, LLC, Angel.com (IVR phone surveys)

Data Cleanse: CRMfusion’s DemandTools, Before the Call, Harte Hanks Trillium Software

Data Append: OneSource, Hoovers, Factiva

Document Management: ShareMethods

Email Marketing: VerticalResponse and Exact Target

Integration Tools: Above All Software's Above All Order Management for SAP, Cast Iron Systems Application Integration Appliance, The Informatica PowerCenter Connect Option for salesforce.com, and Scribe Software's Scribe Insight.

Professional Services Automation: OpenAir

Project Management: DreamFactory

Quoting, Pricing, and Configuration: BigMachines, Firepond, Comergent

Sales Compensation: Xactly, Centive

Service and Support Add-Ons: Angel.com (IVR), Talisma (email, chat and knowledge base), Gearworks (mobile workforce management)

Web Conferencing: Convoq, WebEx

Test Drive, Demo and Install these cool on-demand business solutions and more, on the AppExchange.

Have a CRM question? AskWendy@crmsuccess.com.

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Selling the On-Demand Model to IT
Wendy Close Sep 25, 2006
In September, the Software & Information Industry Association (SIIA) published a new white paper that takes a comprehensive look at total cost of ownership (TCO) of software applications. The white paper provides a true "apples-to-apples" TCO comparison between the traditional on-premise model and the Software-as-a-Service (SaaS) model. The research reveals that common TCO analyses underestimate or omit the people resources and other costs necessary to run and manage traditional on- premise software applications. Since SaaS service fees typically include most, if not all, people and infrastructure costs, many TCO comparisons between the two models are incomplete. The white paper identifies the common cost factors most likely to be underestimated or omitted when comparing the TCO of traditional software versus SaaS. These common costs (which are included in the SaaS service fees) are:
1. Hiring and training certified personnel to install, manage and maintain the on-premise software applications
2. Staffing a help desk to provide training and support to the end-users of the on-premise software applications
3. Building and maintaining the redundant network and hardware infrastructure necessary to operate the on-premise software application
For on-premise software, the white paper concludes that when factoring people cost, it is estimated that companies spend up to four times the cost of buying the software itself. With many internal IT departments overworked and overloaded, a strong case can be made that the SaaS delivery model could alleviate headaches such as capital expense, end-user training and others. The white paper also includes a TCO calculator that incorporates all the cost variables discussed. Using the calculator enables companies to make better informed decisions when considered SaaS or traditional software deployments. For a copy of the white paper visit: Software-as-a-Service; A comprehensive Look at the Total Cost of Ownership of Software Applications.

As a pioneer in the SaaS arena, Salesforce.com has been help more companies deliver better products and services, at lower costs than any other CRM SaaS vendor. You can learn more about Salesforce.com's award-winning CRM Software-as-s-Service applications by visiting www.salesforce.com.
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A Dozen CRM Best Practices
Wendy Close Aug 10, 2006
Whether you’re just starting out in customer relationship management (CRM) or you’re a seasoned CRM veteran looking for a boost, these 12 CRM best practices can get you off on the right foot or into the next generation. From justifying a CRM investment, to measuring and improving customer loyalty, these short and easy to read CRM best practice whitepapers answer some of the most common CRM questions today.
To learn more about the on-demand CRM and business applications offered by Salesforce.com you can visit our CRM software as a service applications area on www.salesforce.com.

Have a CRM question? AskWendy@CRMSuccess.com
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Improve Your Prospecting with Account Intelligence
Jamie Grenney Jul 10, 2006
Based on our June 2006 customer relationship survey*, we estimate 21 percent of you are interested in additional data cleansing and data quality services however, we suspect many of you may not know that one of the best ways to improve the quality of your data is to leverage the data enrichment services of providers like OneSource.

The best CRM system is only as good as the data that goes into it. Too often, low-quality contact and prospect data keep companies from achieving the sales productivity gains that CRM can help deliver.

Join salesforce.com July 14^th for a live Webinar and learn firsthand how you can empower your sales force with on-demand Account Intelligence.

You'll hear a customer share their story of how his team has increased productivity and call success rates with better account intelligence, you’ll see a live demonstration, and get all your questions answered in live Q&A. Give your sales organization the information they need for better prospecting, deeper account penetration, and increased close rates. Start by registering for this free event now: Pump Up Your Prospecting with Account Intelligence. (Update: this link has since lapsed)

* June 2006 salesforce.com Customer Relationship survey conducted by independent 3rd party CustomerSat Inc., 963 respondents, randomly selected.

Salesforce includes many features to ensure that real-time data is always on-hand. To learn more about these features visit Lead Management, Opportunity Management, Sales Activity Management and Sales Management feature pages.

Have a CRM question? AskWendy@crmsuccess.com.

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Best Practices in Selecting Applications in the AppExchange
Jamie Grenney Jun 22, 2006
With the AppExchange, Salesforce customers now have an easy way to address dozens of business needs through the world's first on-demand application-sharing service. The AppExchange directory gives Salesforce customers an easy way to find and install hundreds of on-demand applications designed to solve a wealth of common business challenges. With hundreds of pre-integrated, on-demand applications now available on the AppExchange, you may be wondering where to begin. For some good advice,

Download best_practices_in_selecting_applications_in_the_appexchange.pdf

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On-Demand versus On-Premise CRM: There Are Proven Performance Differences
Jamie Grenney Jun 14, 2006

Over the past five years, CRM users have aligned themselves into one of two camps; those organizations that have implemented, administered, and maintained their CRM systems in-house (On-Premise) and those who have leveraged the services of software as a service (On-Demand) solution providers like salesforce.com to meet their CRM needs. According to recent research conducted by CSO Insights, based on user experiences, On-Demand CRM holds the edge over On-Premise CRM in key areas. If your organization is still debating On-Premise versus On-Demand CRM, this independent research by CSO Insights and available compliments of salesforce.com, is a must read.

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Best Practices in Business Process Automation and CRM
Jamie Grenney May 16, 2006
Business process automation (BPA) is a big part of CRM and for good reason. Winners in CRM analyze and redesign customer-facing processes that provide real value to the customer.

Truly customer-centric enterprises will redesign and automate customer processes as necessary, even when they cut across business functions and/or the back office. The goal is to examine all customer-related processes, remove those that are not needed, and rework those that could be improved with technology.

The challenge, according to Scott Nelson, vice president and distinguished analyst at Gartner (and our recent Secrets of Successful CRM Practitioners Webcast guest), is that most organizations have 600 to 1,000 processes that need to be examined.

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Improving Customer Self-Service: Analyst Research and On-Demand Webcast
Jamie Grenney May 8, 2006
Are you creating great customer experiences? According to research firm Yankee Group, customer service is one of the few differentiators that a company possesses. And, self-service is increasingly the customer's first choice for interacting with your business. Join us for a complimentary on-demand Webcast ‘Five Steps to Improving the Customer Self-Service Experience' including myself as host, Wendy Close, Salesforce.com CRM Success Expert; Yankee Group Director of Customer-Centric Strategies Sheryl Kingstone; and salesforce.com customer Steve Petrofsky, VP of Support Services at m-Qube. Learn 5 key steps for creating great customer self-service experiences from auditing your current service and support operations to developing a 360-degree, real-time, cross-channel view of the your customer. And, hear how m-Qube deployed Salesforce Service & Support to immediately scale its support center to handle more than 10,000 inquiries a week without adding any new staff. View the Five Steps to Improving the Customer Self-Service Experience Webcast now and get Latest On-Demand Software Eases Self-Service Experience, a Yankee Group research report by Sheryl Kingstone, compliments of salesforce.com. The Webcast is about 50 minutes of easy listening packed with actionable advice. It is well worth the time for all those with a keen interest in improving customer self service. As always, comments and questions welcome. Have a CRM question? Askwendy@crmsuccess.com.

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Improving the Customer Experience with Self-Service
Jamie Grenney Apr 27, 2006
Based on the American Customer Satisfaction Index (ACSI) scores, we were amazed to discover for the fourth year in a row, the online retail industry within the ecommerce sector (companies such as Amazon and eBay) continued to satisfy customers better than any other industry --- including the traditional offline retailers.

This means customers are getting a better customer experience online then they are in stores with live human help. This shocking statistic certainly makes a strong case for organizations to provide really great web self-service sites for their customers. Want to know how? Read on.

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