Category Archives: Contact Relationship Management

Improve Your Business With ACT! Contact Management Software

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ACT! Contact Mangement

CRM Software is critical in helping employees keep up to date with existing customers

Do you know that the cost of obtaining a new customer can be doubled or tripled the cost of holding on to an existing customer? This is why it is so important for you to make smart business decisions and smart marketing decisions so you can show all of your existing customers that you still love and appreciate them for being one of your customers.

Since there is a need for businesses to show their existing customers that they are valuable to the business, there has been a growth in contact management software and technologies. Contact management software has become a critical component for marketing departments across various industries.

It does not matter if you are operating a startup company or if your business is already established and successful, contact management software is increasingly important. Your company has to prepare for the possibility of swift growth. If your business wants to take advantage of every revenue stream that is available to you, you are going to need the perfect contact management software for your business.

The right contact management software will allow you to understand your customers better, and this will allow you to maintain stronger customer relationships. ACT! Contact Management Software will allow your business to excel in more ways than you can think of.

Here are some things that ACT! Contact Management Software will allow you to do:

Be Mobile

Many of us are loving the ability to telecommute. Over 20 percent of employees will handle all or the majority of their work-related tasks from the comfort of their own home. This number is expected to continue to grow over the years. In less than three years, over 100 million employees can be telecommuting. When your contact management software allows you to be mobile, you will have quick access to important customer information, even if you are not working in the office.

Easy Integration

Contact Management Software that can be integrated with your marketing strategy and your social media platforms, you will find it easier to be productive. If you consider your business to be forward-thinking, you should definitely make sure your Contact Management Software can be integrated into your different strategies.

Grow With No Worries

When your business really starts to boom and you experience an incredible amount of growth, you are going to need a Contact Management Software that is scalable. If you make the decision to use a Contact Management Software that is not scalable, you will not be as productive as you need to be. It is important that you choose the right Contact Management Software the first time because you do not want to go through the trouble of migrating to a completely new software.

As a business owner or business manager, you are aware of how overwhelmed your departments can be with data from a variety of sources. One of the biggest challenges your business will face is finding the right steps to take when it comes to using that data. Data is constantly growing at high speeds, and it is not always easy for businesses to comprehend this data effectively.

Fortunately, you do not have to shake your head and pound your fist in frustration any longer. It does not matter what industry your business is in, you will be able to take advantage of a variety of opportunities when you have the best Contact Management Software. When your contact management software is mobile, easily integrated, and scalable, you will have the best opportunities to grow and succeed, now and in the future.

Contact us today for additional information on ACT! Contact Management Software.

Is Your Current CRM Software Holding You Back?

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ACT! Contact Management Software is critical to business operations In the Office

If you are still only using one of the traditional tools like Excel and if you are having trouble with your contact relationship management software, these could be signs that you are due for an upgrade. When you have the right CRM system, you will give yourself the ability to not only organize your business processes but automate them as well. When you can automate your entire business processes through every stage of the customer buying process, you will give yourself a better opportunity to maximize your sales. You will also be able to retain your current customers and bring in more customers.

How will you know if it is actually time for you to reconsider how you have been managing the relationships you have with your customers?

Where Is Your Data Located?

If you are still using Excel to document your customer’s information, you are not giving anyone else the ability to use this information. If you are not satisfied with your current CRM system, you have probably already turned to other methods to document every interaction that you have with a customer. However, no one else in the workplace will be able to obtain this information. If a customer calls more than once to receive information about an order or if their call was not resolved in one phone call, your other sales team members need to have access to this information.

How Is Your Workplace Communication?

When you are using a CRM system that is effective and efficient, you will not have any internal communication problems because everyone will have an insight to what is going on across the entire workplace. Every sales team member will have access to the previous customer interactions. If your workplace has poor internal communication, this could be due to your current CRM system. Do you have to answer the same questions? Do you have to constantly send out the same messages to customers because you are unsure of where they are in the customer buying process? Do you have essential customer data, but you are not sure how you are supposed to gain access to it?

Is The Customer Data Stored In A Safe Location?

Have you ever found yourself searching your entire office for important customer information? If customer information is lost, you are putting your business in a difficult position. Losing important customer information can definitely limit the growth of your business. If you have to send customer information to others via an email, you have a problem on your hands. You want your business to grow, and the growth of your business depends on how well you maintain and manage your customer records.

How Is Your Customer Data Accessed By Employees?

If you do not have an efficient way to store all of your customer information and company data, it will not be an easy task for any of your employees to work out of the office. Many of your employees will appreciate the opportunity to access important data if they have to work from home or if they are traveling. If your employees cannot access customer data remotely, they may decide to use their own computers or mobile devices to store the information, which will allow them to have access to the data whenever they need it. However, this will mean that none of the other sales team members will know about the customer interactions.

The business world is definitely a competitive environment, and it is important that you understand how you should connect with your customers. When you have effective relationships with your customers, you will be able to give yourself a better advantage over the competition. Are you struggling to keep your business running the way you want? Do you think your CRM software is holding you back?

If you want to know what it feels like to have a CRM software that will take your business to greater heights, do not hesitate to contact us today.

15 reasons to upgrade to ACT! v18.2

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20161013

ACT! version 18 offers many useful and valuable upgrades to business’s CRM systems.

 

Version 18 of Act! CRM software brings a new level of versatility to this trusted CRM application. It’s now possible to make a huge range of integrations with other Web services, and administrators have more control over their teams. The biggest differences are in the Web (Premium) version, which makes major advances in cloud readiness. Let’s look at a few of the reasons to upgrade.

 

Web API

  • A new API for Act! Premium Web allows integration with other Web applications. This allows changes in other Web services to automatically update information in Act! or vice versa. For example, a custom web form can submit information directly to the Act! database, or adding a new contact can generate an email notification. The API is based on REST, a simple but powerful way for Web applications to communicate. Programmers or advanced users can write simple scripts to integrate applications. This is new with version 18.1.
  • Act! Connect Link lets anyone use the API without writing scripts. With Connect Link, Windows users can connect Act! with online applications, such as Slack, Google Contacts, and PayPal. An Act! Premium subscription and a free Zapier account are necessary to use this feature, as well as an account with the site you’re linking to. Zapier does all the work to use Act!’s Web API to connect it to your account. (Some features of Zapier require a paid account.) This feature requires version 18.2.
  • Act! Connect View has been redesigned for the new API integrations.

Administrative features

  • Administrators have more detailed control of Team accounts. They can designate which users have permission to send email campaigns, sign up for marketing accounts, and set up Connect Link integrations.
  • More user preferences are kept in the Act! database, allowing administrators to set them for all users at once. This also lets users access their settings in Act! Premium.

Better contact management

  • The “Favorite contacts” list lets a business track its most important contacts and retrieve them quickly.
  • Segmented call lists allow easier management of different calling groups within a campaign.
  • Activities now have a creation date stamp to make it easy to see when an activity started.

Compatibility

  • Act! Premium Mobile now works with iOS 9.
  • Act! Premium is fully compatible with the latest versions of Chrome and Internet Explorer 11.
  • Act! 18 now supports Windows 10 and Office 2016. Previous versions of Act! have problems with these releases. If you want Act! to run smoothly with them, you need the upgrade.
  • Act! version 16 won’t be supported after November 30. If you want continued support and have version 16 or older, you need to upgrade.
  • Act! version 16 users need to upgrade by September 30 to keep their Loyalty Pricing. If they don’t, the cost to upgrade will go up.
  • Besides, version 17 brought some nice advances to the desktop application, so why are you still on version 16? With versions 17 and 18, administrators can create browse-only users who can view but not change data and hide inactive users in their lists. Template folders make the selection of emarketing templates easier. Lists of email opt-outs and bounces are available for convenient viewing, making it easy to remove or correct addresses as necessary.
  • If you’re on the subscription plan, Act! 18.2 is free! If you aren’t, the Act! Premium Cloud subscription is well worth considering. It includes cloud hosting, Windows and mobile client applications, automatic upgrades, up to 500 email marketing contacts, video training, and technical support. Monthly pricing is per user, and a free trial is available.

With the latest version of Act!, you get the latest Web features, the best compatibility, and ongoing support. It’s the way to go if contact management is important to your business.

SystemsNet offers a variety of options for managing and maintaining your systems. For more information, please contact us.

Why should you use ACT! to manage prospects and customers?

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20160909

ACT!’s powerful CRM software enables businesses to build stronger, longer-lasting relationships with their customers.

Managing your customer relationships is critical for your company’s growth and success.

Savvy businesses are taking advantage of powerful software tools to hone in on prospects, cultivate a relationship with customers, and benefit from insights that can boost sales and open up new opportunities. Recently, eMarketer reported that Customer Relationship Management (CRM) solutions are becoming an increasingly important part of marketing budgets across a variety of organizations.

Which CRM software should you choose? The software should perform a variety of important functions that you can adapt to your business needs. Your options include ACT! – a powerful CRM product that’s popular among small businesses.

Why use ACT! to manage my prospects and customers?

The following are some of the benefits that ACT! can bring to your business.

Stronger, more personalized customer relationships

Developing a stronger relationship with customers, and increasing customer retention and loyalty, will help your business thrive.

A recent article from Entrepreneur offers some of the supporting evidence – for example, one study that shows the following:

“…increasing customer retention rates by just 5 percent can increase profits by 25 to 95 percent.”

If your potential and existing customers feel that you’re welcoming to them and responsive to their individual needs, they’re much more likely to do business with you repeatedly. They can also spread the word about your company to their family, friends, colleagues, and social media followers.

ACT! helps you gather and organize and information about your customers, including their preferences, concerns, and purchase history. This knowledge, readily accessed, makes it easier for you to reach out to them at the right times and with the right content for each occasion. Customers are less likely to feel neglected or bombarded with emails that contain irrelevant content.

Opportunity tracking and increased sales

With its opportunities and sales tracking capabilities, ACT! gives you the means to easily manage every step of the sales process. You can monitor your progress with each lead, opportunity, or prospect and better understand your chances of closing a deal. You can review every interaction you’ve had, including the outcomes of email exchanges, phone calls, and in-person meetings. Having this information available helps you figure out what steps will bring you closer to securing a sale.

Helping your employees work as a team

With high-quality CRM software, your employees are all on the same page. They can access the most updated information on every potential or existing customer. Using the software, they share their own knowledge and insights with their coworkers. No one is left out of the loop, uncertain about the status of a lead or whether or not a customer complaint has already been addressed. If one employee needs to quickly fill in for another, they have all of the relevant information available to them on the spot.

Improved efficiency and productivity

One of the major benefits of CRM software tools is the ability to rely on automated processes. Whether it’s backing up your customer data or launching your latest email campaign, ACT! takes care of a lot of its functions automatically. You enjoy the power of oversight and management, but you don’t have to get immersed in all of the details. Based on your business needs and your directions, the program handles various tasks, freeing up your time and allowing you to invest your efforts in larger, overarching objectives. ACT! is also convenient in how it allows you to integrate its data with other tools you routinely use for work, including Microsoft Outlook, Dropbox, and iCloud Storage.

Please contact us for more information about how you can successfully use ACT! to manage your customer interactions and grow your business. As certified consultants for ACT!, we’ll make sure the software is customized to your company and working in a way that best suits your needs.