Social Media at the Heart of CRM 2.0

Roundtable Topic: CRM and Web 2.0: Leveraging New Technologies to Engage Customers

We asked the top CRM vendors to offer tips to our readers on how they might best leverage new “Web 2.0” CRM technologies to Engage Customers.  Responding to this topic, Hoyt Mann, President of PhaseWare, Inc., emphasizes the use of social media to build customer interaction. 

Read more »


Customer Participation and CRM 2.0

Roundtable Topic: CRM and Web 2.0: Leveraging New Technologies to Engage Customers

We asked the top CRM vendors to offer tips to our readers on how they might best leverage new “Web 2.0” CRM technologies to engage customers.  Nitin Badjatia, an Enterprise Solutions Architect at Consona CRM, advises readers on the importance of transparency in the construction of a collaborative CRM environment. 

Customer Participation and CRM 2.0
Contributed by: Nitin Badjatia, Enterprise Solutions Architect, Consona CRM
Forward thinking companies realize that engaging in this new ‘web 2.0′ world requires more than just enabling the new channels of communication, it requires a set of powerful tools to coordinate and manage these interactions, and provide intelligent feedback to all participants.  Architected to enable this new paradigm, the best knowledge management suites can serve as core technologies that drive better interactions with your customer ecosystem by building a collaborative environment that leads to greater satisfaction and loyalty. Read more »


Around the World in 30 Seconds or Less

The Business Software Advisor

You ask the questions, and our resident software guru shares her wisdom.

This week’s question: My company’s business travel expenses are out of control. What can I do to reduce costs?


A: These days, travel isn’t cheap. Facing the climbing costs of sending employees out into the field, companies are tightening the reigns, placing restrictions on all business activities that impact travel budgets. Yet, travel is a necessity in today’s dynamic marketplace, and severe restrictions can hinder critical business operations.

What’s the solution? Many companies are finding that Web conferencing is the answer. According to a market study done in April by Scottsdale-based In-Stat, about 20 percent of U.S. businesses use Web conferencing to some extent, and 13 percent plan to add it in 2008. Small and medium-sized businesses are especially gravitating towards the new technology: Frost & Sullivan, a leading research firm, reports that 64% of SMB’s use Web conferencing regularly in their business. Read more »


Business-Software.com Releases New Top 10 Reports for Human Capital Management

Are you looking to streamline your human resources and talent management processes? Today’s human capital management and talent management systems offer advanced software solutions to fit your company’s unique needs. To help you in your purchasing decision, the editors at Business-Software.com have compiled a list of the best vendors in the industry. Just released, the Top 10 Human Capital Management Vendors and Top 10 Talent Management Vendors reports are designed to help you build your short list and make an informed purchasing decision. Read more »


Entellium’s Got Game With The New Rave CRM

An Interview with Entellium CEO, Paul “PJ” Johnston
By: Mandy Kemp


Q:
How does Entellium endeavor to better meet the needs of salespersons with the new Rave CRM solutions suite?

  Our goal with Rave CRM is to provide smaller businesses a suite of products that help their sales teams spend more time and be more successful doing what they love – selling!

With Rave, we’ve built in a variety of features – such as pre-built activity sets and sales processes, and ‘leader board’ dashboards that give salespeople instant insight into the activities that will help them close the most business. We’ve also taken an innovative approach to the user interface by giving salespeople the ability to radically personalize Rave so that information is presented in a style that works best for them. Read more »


ERP SaaS Trends. View Webinars Now.

Salesforce.com’s success in offering on-demand, SaaS applications changed expectations for software delivery. ERP buyers find many aspects of SaaS attractive – low startup costs, fast deployment, and predictable monthly fees. To address this market several new ERP SaaS offerings have emerged. Learn more about ERP SaaS below. Read more »


New Mobile Workforce Webinars: See Them Now

According to a recent Forrester Research study, nearly half of all businesses in North America and Europe have already deployed – or are planning to deploy – mobile workforce applications.  Watch the upcoming webinars detailed here and learn how you can keep your your mobile employees connected to client data while on the road.  Read more »


Epicor and IBM Join Forces To Offer Specialty Retailers a Comprehensive Retail Management Solution

IRVINE, Calif., June 30, 2008  press release excerpt — Epicor Software Corporation (NASDAQ: EPIC) today announced a collaborative agreement with IBM to deliver a comprehensive, integrated retail system management product for specialty and department store retailers. As part of the expanded relationship, the two companies will develop and market a total offering to centrally manage and support point-of-sale (POS) hardware and software via IBM’s Remote Management Agent (RMA). Read more »


PhaseWare Announces Upcoming Webinar, “7 Ways to Automate Customer Support”

Learn how to increase responsiveness and meet every deadline without straining your staff or your budget.  Join PhaseWare’s Randall Nelson and Hoyt Mann for a short session on practical ways to automate your support operations.    
 
At this online event, you’ll learn how to:

  • Keep your customers in the loop, not in the dark, about when a problem will be fixed. 
  • Maintain Service Level Agreements without breaking a sweat.
  • Keep the pulse of your customers and know exactly when it goes up.
  • Escalate incidents without escalating the workload.

Details:
7 Ways to Automate Customer Support
 Friday, July 31st, 2008
8:30am PDT / 10:30am CDT / 11:30am EDT

Register for this webinar or learn more


Best Practices for Leveraging Your Existing CRM System

Many businesses outgrow their CRM system. But, before you consider purchasing a new one, make sure you’ve gotten as much value as possible out of your existing investment. Read more »