Posted by Bob Walton on Sun, Aug 09, 2009 @ 11:54 AM
When choosing Contact Management (CRM) software for your small business, it is important the difference between a Contact Centric and and Account (Business) Centric system. The is one of the biggest mistakes companies make when choosing a Contact Management (CRM) system. At Big Contacts, we are about to give you that choice.
Stay tuned for an announcement of the release of our very unique Business Contact Record. We think you're going to like it!
In Contact Centric systems, the primary organization is around individual contacts. In the Account (Business) Centric systems, there are two levels to the basic organization: a Business (or Account) layer to which multiple individual contacts can be related.
CONTACT CENTRIC
In a contact centric system, the database is organized around individual contacts. So, if you have dealings with 3 different people all from the same company, you would have 3 different contact records and in each record would be the company name.
A Contact centric organization makes sense if you are dealing with individuals and you do not need to do such things as look at an organization's combined history. It is very difficult and clumsy to track company related information separately from contact information. For example, if you want to track information about a company (e.g. sic code, # employees, annual budget, etc.) separately from contact related information (e.g. favorite hobby, home phone number, spouse's name, etc.). There isn't an easy way to do that:
- Under which contact do you store the company information?
- Which contact becomes the primary record?
- Do you store the information under both contacts...which makes updating difficult?
- Do you create a "contact" record to serve as the company record and somehow relate the contacts to it?
ACCOUNT (BUSINESS) CENTRIC
Account (Business) Centric systems have a layer above contact, the business or account that can link multiple contacts together. This has the advantage of being able to track company-related information entirely separately from contact-related information. This approach is usually easier to:
- See all opportunities for an account/company.
- See combined history.
- Do address updates.
- See the organization and all its contacts in one view.
- Report on company vs. individuals easier.
Our Recommendation
If you're working in an industry where you only need one contact record per account, you may want the simplicity of Contact Centric option. However, if you are going to want to track multiple contacts per account (business) then the Account (Business) Centric becomes the best option.
Posted by Bob Walton on Thu, Mar 19, 2009 @ 01:21 PM
Over the past few years, BigContacts has evolved from a Contact Management System (Small Business CRM) into something much more.
We realized that today's top CRM systems were evolving to include elements of Sales Force Automation (SFA), allowing company's to effectively target and manage larger pools of prospects.
But we felt that there was still something missing in this equation. The foundation to any business that ensures things get done are the processes or work-flows that a company establishes. This is true whether your serving existing clients or going after new prospects.
These processes set the stage and ultimately determine the entire flow of activity and level of efficiency within your business. You could go to great links to develop and articulate these processes, but you need a way to effectively keep score. How well are you serving your clients? Where are the weak points in your business? Who’s delivering on the promises you make to your clients and prospects and who’s falling short? Our system incorporates a discipline we've talked about before and that is Business Process Management (BPM). This discipline, coupled with technology can truly help you streamline your operations and ensure that your business operates as efficiently as possible. Feel free to call one our Account Managers if you would like to learn more about this tool. It's included as part of our core service at Big Contacts, you might as well take full advantage! 1-888-286-6578 Ext. 701
Well, this is where we are today, but we feel that our work has just begun. Our mission is to deliver a platform that has all of the essential tools that you need in your business that will make your life easier and put more money in your pocket. It's that simple. Everyday we ask ourselves how we can harness technology to deliver real value to you in your business. Late last year we even surveyed our growing subscriberer base to find out what you felt would make this a better application for your business.
We learned alot from that survey and we have listened! Below is a preview of what we have coming within the next few months. As you will see there are a number of great new features and tools that we hope truly will deliver on our mantra and that is to give you:
More TIME to spend in front of clients and prospects
- More MONEY as a result of satisfied/loyal clients and more targeted selling efforts
- More CONTROL over your business and personal life
What's coming the first half of 2009?
PLEASE NOTE: All system enhancements listed below will be available to you at no additonal charge to our currently low prices.
In March we unveiled our new Client Support Center. We offer several new self-help tools like our new knowledge-base that contains dozens of frequently asked questions, downloads for the system, and dozens of 30 second feature videos that can walk you through a quick overview of how any feature works. We asked ourselves "Why stop there", so we now offer LIVE Chat Support (M-F 9am - 5pm EST) to give you instant feedback to any questions or issues you may have.
Two-way Outlook Synchronization plug-in . This plug-in will be something that a user will download from our site, and you will now be able to keep all contacts, and calendar events synchronized. Any work that you do while offline in Outlook will automatically synchronize to Big Contacts the next time you are back online.
New Marketing Module. This will replace the “Auto-Pilot” tab and create an entire marketing suite for you to use to stay in touch with your clients and to more effortlessly and effectively market to your prospects. This new module will include:
- Our Current Sales Pipeline Drip Marketing Manager
- A New Email Campaign Manager complete with reports and analytics that will integrate directly with our system and feed campaign data directly to each contact record.
- In a future release (later in 2009), weoffer a complete Direct Mail Campaign Manager. You will be able to develop a number of campaigns using any combination of these direct mail pieces (Postcards, Letters, Flyers, Certified Mail, and Booklets)
GREATLY Enhanced Business Contact Record. This new contact record will allow you to create a business contact record and then add as many individual contacts to that contact record as you like. As a matter of fact all communication/ history in that contact record will be organized by individual contact so that you will know who you spoke to, about what and when.
iPhone application, and later this year a Blackberry application will be released on the newly formed Blackberry app store that they are calling "Blackberry App World". These applications will give you true mobile office capabilities. For more information on what you will be able to do through this new application, feel free to give us a call at 1-888-286-6578 Ext. 701.
Enhanced Email Module. Enhancements will include advanced features that will ensure proper identification with email providers to prevent being categorized as a spam, and the ability to reply directly to emails from within the Big Contacts application. All this will allow you to easily maintain all email history within each contact record.
Enhanced Calendar. We will be moving this to its own tab so that we will have plenty of room for enhancements. Enhancements will include better, more detailed calendar views, customizable alerts and alarms, customizable reminders for the prospect and client via email and text message.
Enhanced Reports Module. We will be adding more data fields that can be searched - with the goal being that we have all fields in the database in the reports area where one can search. We already allow you to set up your own Custom reports, and now you will be able to set up a delivery schedule for reports that you wish to periodically generate. These scheduled reports will run in their appropriate intervals and will be directly emailed to your inbox for your review.
As you can see, we are working very hard to deliver the most functional platform in the industry. We hope you find that these latest additions will make a measurable difference in your business.
Here's to a great 2009!
Posted by Bob Walton on Wed, Jan 21, 2009 @ 10:59 AM
We've all heard the expression "work smarter - not harder". This could not be more important than during an economic slowdown like the one we're currently experiencing. With the proper application of it's resources, your business can be more strategic in enhancing your client experience and deepening relationships with existing customers.
According to a study released by Forrester Research, an increased emphasis on business value will see companies focusing on customer retention and creating better solutions to support customer facing processes.
It is not enough to ensure business value in the new projects, enterprises will begin focusing on customer retention instead of customer acquisition to stay afloat Forrester predicts. "During an economic recession, sustaining revenue growth - or forestalling revenue erosion - becomes even more critical," the company wrote.
But customers are getting harder to win and keep, Forrester said, and the solution is improved customer experience. "Good customer experience is highly correlated to customer loyalty," Forrester said.
During these tough times, businesses usually look at how they can reduce operational costs. There are many approaches that businesses take, but one of the first ways businesses try to cut spending is through their IT budget. This makes companies less likely to spend money on new software or make needed upgrades to their current software. This can save money today, but could cause problems in how they manage their business and their customers.
CRM Software can provide companies with the tools needed to effectively manage the client experience and deepen relationships with existing customers. While cutting or postponing in some areas of IT may make sense, it would be wise to re-visit your existing CRM strategy. Does your company consistently deliver the client experience they are looking for? How are customers reacting to this experience? What do you feel you could better in order to deepen relationships and retain clients?
Investing in the right CRM can mean the difference between retaining or losing clients. There are many tangible benefits that the right CRM can deliver in your business.
- Provide more efficient work-flow or Business Process Management (BPM)
- Improve the customer experience through better organization of key client data
- Improve the accuracy of work from employees to ensure nothing falls through the cracks
- Improved reporting to track company performance and ensure service standards are being met
Traditionally, some software solutions have proven to be a very expensive undertaking that can require alot of time to implement. Time and money are two commodities that most businesses lack in times like these, so how can you accomplish all this with less money and implement these tools very quickly?
A solution to these challenges that many businesses are finding is software-as-a-service (SaaS). This form of software allows businesses to take advantage of the tools they need today without large investments of time or money. SaaS CRM can be very inexpensive, very fast to implement, and very effective in helping you better manage your business.
Finally, another aspect of SaaS CRM that can be so appealing in a down economy is the ability to add new functionality to the system WITHOUT capital expenditures. Your business can remain current with the latest software and hopefully ahead of your competition due to the wise choice you made to more effectively utilize your current resources and invest in a platform that will grow with you.
Posted by Bob Walton on Tue, Nov 18, 2008 @ 09:14 PM
The ripple effect from today’s tough economic times has forced virtually every business to re-evaluate how they are doing business. When top line revenues decline it’s important to evaluate your expenses to cut back where you can. The challenge is to tighten the belt while maintaining the level of service your existing customers have come to expect.
To successfully navigate these tough waters, it’s important to correctly distinguish between an expense and an investment when making decisions that affect the future growth of your business.
It could be argued, and the numbers show, that Contact Management Software (CRM) fits squarely in the investment category. So what questions show you ask when approaching this technology investment?
- How much more money can my organization make?
- What is the return on my investment (ROI)?
There are two ways to justify this investment in your company
- Increase revenues or
- Reduce costs
Costs can only be reduced so much, but that is generally where of the attention is focused because it is easier to quantify. The real payback in CRM can be realized by increasing the revenues of the organization (top-line growth). This increase in revenue is driven from three primary areas:
- Enhanced customer service/ retention
- More targeted selling efforts
- Improved Productivity
You may be saying to yourself, “This is great, but what does this really mean for my bottom line?” There are a number of studies that have been conducted on this subject and the numbers are very appealing. Below are the findings from industry veteran, Barton J. Goldenberg, author of the book CRM in Real Time: Empowering Customer Relationships.This books draws on Barton Goldenberg’s 20+ years of experience guiding firms to a successful implementation of CRM solutions and techniques. Goldenberg demonstrates how the right mix of people, process, and technology can help firms achieve a superior level of customer satisfaction, loyalty, and new business.
The ROI
- 10% per year increase in the gross sales revenues per sales rep during the first three years.
- 5 % decrease in general and administrative cost of sales during the first three years.
- 5% increase in win rates for forecasted sales during the first three years.
- 1% margin improvement in the value of a deal over the system’s lifetime.
- 5% improvement in customer satisfaction among customers
When you look at these numbers and apply them to any business, they can translate into some meaningful results.
The bottom line is businesses that take care of their customers and consistently find new ones will be successful. The people most responsible for finding new customers and maintaining satisfied, profitable relationships with existing ones are sales people. Many CRM platforms try to be everything to everyone, offering everything from Accounting, Project Management, to Ticketing Systems. The most successful CRM solutions are those specifically designed to help manage the sales process. And no matter what measure we look at, when a focus is established and maintained in these key areas, the positive results to both the top and bottom lines cannot be denied.
Posted by Bob Walton on Mon, Sep 22, 2008 @ 10:14 AM
The technology adoption lifecycle is a sociological model, originally developed by Joe M. Bohlen and George M. Beal in 1957 at Iowa State College.[1] Its purpose was to track the purchase patterns of hybrid seed corn by farmers. Approximately six years later Everett Rogers broadened the use of this model in his book, Diffusion of Innovations.
The technology adoption life cycle model describes the adoption or acceptance of a new product or innovation, according to the demographic and psychological characteristics of defined adopter groups. The process of adoption over time is typically illustrated as a classical normal distribution or "bell curve." The model indicates that the first group of people to use a new product is called "innovators," followed by "early adopters." Next come the early and late majority, and the last group to eventually adopt a product are called "laggards."
Source: Wikipedia
When does your company typically adopt a new technology?
If you’re an Early Adopter, you are willing to take calculated risks and place bets on new technology. This approach can prove to be very beneficial if you focus on software that is core to the operation of your business and is something that you feel can be a competitive differentiator. The ideal scenario for small business with limited resources is to find technologies that can be tested with low up-front costs. The evolution of the Saas model of software deployment has made it more feasible than ever before to take the approach of the Early Adopter in an effort to get a jump on the competition.
Small Business is more nimble
Cheryl Currid, president of Currid and Company, a Houston-based IT consultancy, was quoted as saying “SMBs usually take the lead in adopting new technologies simply because there are not many management layers to slow down decision making.” Some SMB owners, Currid pointed out, are very technology-savvy, see the immediate benefit in a technology, and are able to move quickly to adopt it.
In fact, Currid added, early adopters can win big with customer service applications, as long as they use the technology as a business tool and don't simply become enamored of it for its own sake. On the other hand, Currid warned, as time goes on late adopters will risk losing customers because they can't keep up with competitors. But, if it has a loyal customer base, a late adopter can sometimes get away without offering a new technology, Currid added.
Challenge: Gaining quick adoption within your company
The successful implementation of your new technology is ultimately determined by end-user acceptance. The best technology is doomed to fail unless end users use it.
How do you implement a new technology in your business, with as little cost as possible, and realize widespread adoption as quickly as possible?
Most technology that is robust enough to deliver meaningful solutions for your business is also difficult to learn. Couple this learning curve, with short attention spans and little spare time, and you have a formula for another application headed to the graveyard.
At Big Contacts we have worked very hard to address all of these challenges.
- We have developed a Web Based CRM Software solution that will deliver the low cost implementation and maintenance of a Saas platform.
- We have developed a very robust platform that can make a real impact in the way you manage your business.
- We made this platform very intuitive and easy to use.
Couple all of this with an entire set of training videos that demonstrate every feature within our system, our ongoing “Best Practices” web demonstrations, and you have a platform that you can get up and running in your business very quickly, with low cost and ahead of your competition!
Posted by Bob Walton on Mon, Aug 11, 2008 @ 10:34 AM
The CRM industry has historically been focused on managing customer data. But how can we better use these systems to focus on our clients in an effort to generate more profit and growth? We must further leverage the technology to manage our customer/ business processes. Doing so will allow you to deliver a consistent and reliable experience to your clients. This client experience often is the only real way to differentiate yourself in a very competitive market.
There is a growing movement in the CRM industry focused on the concept of Business Process Management
The Wikipedia definition of a Business Process reads like this:
A business process is a collection of related, structured activities that produce a service or product that meet the needs of a client. These processes are critical to any organization as they generate revenue and often represent a significant proportion of costs.
Big Contacts has addressed this need and delivers two easy-to-use process management functions.
- Sales Force Automation (SFA) - The "Autopilot" module of our system can literally put most of the activities in your sales cycle on autopilot. With the click of a few buttons you can quickly and easily define multiple tasks that will automatically trigger as a prospect or client moves through each stage your sales pipeline. You may want to generate an email to thank someone for a meeting. Maybe you want your assistant to send a personalized letter and you want to ensure that you are reminded to make a follow up call a few days later. You can create automated functions that will be performed without fail and stored within the contacts record to ensure a complete history of activity. All of this is managed from a single dashboard within the system.
- Client Relationship Management (CRM) - Within every business there is certain set of tasks that must be carried out on an on-going basis to ensure that your business operates smoothly and that you have satisfied clients. The challenge is to effectively manage all of these tasks and to monitor them to ensure they get done correctly and in a timely fashion. Our system allows you to easily create a library of all the tasks that are performed within your company. Most tasks involve multiple steps and often times can involve multiple people within your organization. You simply create a task, designate all the steps involved within the task, and assign each step to the correct person within your organization. It doesn't matter whether each step within the task needs to worked on at the same time by multiple people of whether each step must be completed by a person and then handed off to the person responsible for the next step within that task, the system will reliably coordinate and hand off tasks as you have designed them to work.
Finally, you can establish service standards by defining the time each task and each step within that task should take to complete. The reporting capabilities within our system allow you to monitor all activity and determine where things may be breaking down and where the service standards within your company are not being met.
For more information on how these very powerful modules can work for you in your business, you can visit us at Big Contacts and click on "view a fully populated demo" on the home page or feel free to call us at 1-888-286-6578 Ext. 701
Posted by Bob Walton on Sun, Dec 16, 2007 @ 08:35 AM
BigContacts is a powerful application. And yet, it is designed to be simple to learn and use. Kathy Sierra writes about the problem of Featuritis in her blog Creating Passionate Users. There is a point at which an application becomes difficult to use and starts to frustrate users. Here is the graph Kathy uses to perfectly illustrate the point:
I think that software can be complex and still easy to use. To achieve that, we focus on a few things. One, don't require users to have to remember anything. Instead of cute icons to represent some feature, just spell it out. Our 'Actions' section is just a list of things you can do. It would take less space and might look better to replace that list with a set of icons, but then you'd have to remember what each of those icons does. Another thing we do is to put most everything right in front of you. You don't have to go searching for something. If you want to add a photo, just click on the 'Add a Photo' link right on the page. No need to remember where that feature is. Another thing you will find in BigContacts is that there are no modes. There are no buttons that change meaning depending on what mode you are in. Other contact managers have a 'view' mode and an 'edit' mode and you have to not only remember which mode you are in, but what buttons and links do when you are in each mode.
The hard part of picking up a new software tool is learning and then retaining all that useless knowledge about modes and where things are hidden and what all those icons mean. It is very frustrating and makes you feel stupid and nobody wants that.
With BigContacts there is no user manual. Because once you create a user manual, you are admitting your application is too difficult and that people need a book to use it. We will do our best to never have to resort to that.