Headline Feeds|
Small Business CRM, Part 5: How to Save a Troubled Implementation March 16, 2010 
A successful CRM implementation starts with good preparation. It is a good idea to document the goals and objectives of the small business first and test the system with the users, Sheryl Kingstone, director of the enterprise research group at Yankee Group, told CRM Buyer. "Be proactive," she advised.
|
CRM for the Small Business, Part 4: Getting the New System Up and Running March 09, 2010 
When it comes to implementing a new CRM system, small companies have several options. If they have enough resources and experience to devote to the task, they can implement the system themselves. If they choose not to go that route, a third party can be brought in to help them implement it, Craig Klein, president and CEO of SalesNexus, told CRM Buyer.
|
|
Navigating the Content Management Maze February 10, 2010 
Today, a retailer's e-commerce initiative extends beyond the online store. In fact, e-commerce typically becomes the central hub of a company's overall digital strategy. Retailers strive to seamlessly integrate the brand into their catalogs and merchandising, and also to weave these components into the site experience as a whole.
|
The Cloud Is Not a Place February 03, 2010 
What exactly is cloud computing? The question just doesn't go away, and as the year starts, SugarCRM has just released a white paper -- "The Sugar Open Cloud" -- offering its definition and its argument for why its vision is superior. I am not sure about either. Full disclosure: I like SugarCRM and have a lot of respect for what they are trying to do.
|
|
MOSS Gives Medical Data-Sharing a Dose of Open Source January 19, 2010 
New software from Misys Open Source Solutions promises to provide what could be the world's first fully open source, standards-based platform for exchanging health information. The Misys Connect Exchange software was demonstrated and successfully tested last week in Chicago at IHE Connectathon, the healthcare industry's weeklong interoperability testing event.
|
Cloud CRM: Ready, Steady, Roll It Out January 12, 2010 
SaaS and cloud solutions continue to represent key drivers in the CRM market, up from 8 percent of the CRM market in 2005 to 20 percent of the market in 2008, according to Gartner. SaaS and cloud CRM solutions spurred the evolution of computing -- with no more software installations, no infrastructure management and no more upgrades to test.
|
|
The Retail Industry's CRM Implementation Problem January 04, 2010 
Cyber Monday may be the most visible symbol of the increasing use of e-commerce technology in the retail sector. On just one day, Nov. 30, consumers operating from home or office computers in the U.S. spent $887 million on Internet purchases. The spending level amounted to a gain of 5 percent versus Cyber Monday of 2008, and it matched the heaviest online spending day on record.
|
Gauging CRM's Effect on the Profit Meter December 18, 2009 
In a bittersweet twist of irony, a CRM technology solution can save a company or kill it. If wielded effectively, obstacles disappear and profits materialize. Used wrongly, your investment and customers are lost -- often permanently. It's crucial to know your company's CRM strengths and, more importantly, what's holding it back.
|
|
Inside Sales: Let Them Drink Coffee December 10, 2009 
From early origins of cold-calling into purchased contact lists, to contemporary methodologies incorporating Web 2.0 enablers, companies seeking to steer highly qualified leads to their "closers" are faced today with a combination of competitive threats, information overload and hesitant buyer behavior requiring new strategies and tools to succeed.
|
5 Painfully Common Ways Managers Sabotage CRM December 08, 2009 
As anyone familiar with CRM knows, adoption is the key to whether you live or die by your CRM solution. You can make detailed plans, do arduous research, negotiate great deals, execute a deployment plan flawlessly -- and then see it all go for naught when your users fail to use the system.
|
|
Who to Blame When CRM Fails November 23, 2009 
Companies considering CRM systems often view them as a way to improve customer satisfaction and retention, boost sales and accelerate employee productivity. However, as with many technology-enabled business process, success is a complicated and interdependent proposition.
|
From Mainframes to I-Frames November 11, 2009 
I got a dose of reality last week when I took a briefing from TmaxSoft, a Korean company that specializes in mainframe conversions. I hadn't thought about a mainframe in a long time and assumed they were no longer an issue, but it turns out that they continue to live on. There are still 6,600 mainframes in operation in the U.S., according to TmaxSoft.
|
|
CRM for the Small Biz: Turning Agony Into Ecstasy October 30, 2009 
Small businesses frequently rely on a haphazard assortment of tools to manage their CRM processes, such as email, contact managers and spreadsheets. However, such methods are usually not sustainable or scalable. "Their customer data ends up fragmented across 10 different applications and physical locations," said Dmitri Eroshenko, CEO of Relenta.
|
Think, Then Measure: BI in the SMB October 01, 2009 
Suppliers and consumers have tightened their belts under current economic conditions, sending businesses scrambling for cost-cutting methods. Small and medium businesses have turned to business intelligence tools in response to these pressures.
|
|
Main Street Meets the Cloud August 12, 2009 
Late on a summer morning recently I got a call from my wife saying "On Point," a public radio program, was doing a show on about cloud computing. "Isn't that what you write about?" she said. "You should listen or call in." Well, I tried, and all the lines were jammed, but I was able to make a comment on the Web site. It was a funny show in some respects, though short on laughs.
|
Oracle Gives JD Edwards a PIP of an Upgrade August 11, 2009 
Oracle is giving users of JD Edwards -- one of the myriad enterprise software suites the company has acquired over the last decade -- a new set of tools to leverage through its value chain planning applications. It's upgrading the JD Edwards offering with a bundle of SCM-related applications and best practices that Oracle developed for its own products over the years.
|
See More Articles in Implementation Section >>
