Contact Management and CRM – Time to join forces - Story From: Commence CRM Blog
Contact management is an increasingly difficult task. Through the development of technology such as smart phones and tablets, contact details are now increasingly elaborate and across many platforms, like social media, email addresses, residential addresses, cell phone numbers, Skype details, twitter accounts etc. Therefore managing your contacts can be a time consuming task. Within these [...]
Categories: CEO Corner, CRM, CRM Software, Commence News, Contact Management Software, linkedin, online contact management, social media, twitter Tags: Commence CRM, CRM, CRM Software
Commence-ing with the Cloud - Story From: Commence CRM Blog
Commence Corporation, a leading provider of online CRM software, is helping companies transition from traditional desktop software to CRM programs that operate in a cloud computing environment. “Many small to mid-size enterprises are still a bit suspect of cloud computing,” says Tom Gibson, Sales Manager at Commence. “These companies have spent years using traditional contact [...]
Categories: CEO Corner, CRM Best Practices, CRM Online, Commence News, Contact Management Software, cloud computing, online contact management, online crm Tags: Commence CRM, CRM, CRM Software
Small Enterprises Take Advantage of Cloud Based CRM Software - Story From: Commence CRM Blog
Small to mid-size enterprises have been using some form of CRM software for almost two decades. Once labeled contact management software, customer interaction software and collaborative groupware, the business objective behind these software programs was primarily the same; to capture, track and manage customer information. In addition to similar functional capabilities these software programs also [...]
Categories: CEO Corner, CRM Online, Commence News, Contact Management Software, Web Based CRM, microsoft dynamics crm, online crm, salesforce.com Tags: Commence CRM, CRM, CRM Software
Commence Takes Contact Management Software to the Next Level – Attracts Users of Act, Maximizer & Goldmine - Story From: Commence CRM Blog
CRM software provider Commence Corporation has added new functionality to their cloud based CRM software that is attracting users of traditional contact management products. What is unique about Commence is the ability to manage information at the account level or the contact level with the click of a button. Traditional contact management software products require [...]
Categories: CEO Corner, CRM Software, Commence News, Contact Management Software, act-software, goldmine-software, online contact management, sales force automation Tags: Commence CRM
A new level of support for web-based CRM - Story From: BigContacts Product News
At BigContacts it has always been our goal to deliver dependable and timely support to our customers. We feel that a great support experience can never be commoditized and we are committed to delivering the best support in our industry and are driven to do more than our peers.
To deliver on a great support experience… We include email support, live chat, and an extensive knowledge base library to all of our free trials and customers. For most of you this is not news. This is not the "new level of support" that we are offering for our web-based CRM software platform. But what we have done is roll out an entirely new support suite to better deliver our support services.
This new support suite includes all of the services that have grown accustomed to and they are delivered in a much easier to use format.
Some new services we've added...
In addition to this new, easier to use and more modern interface… We have added:
- User forum
- Support satisfaction surveys
- Integrated knowledge base articles with text, screenshots and videos
- Robust keyword search tool
3 ways to access the BigContacts support suite…
- The BigContacts website
From virtually any page on the BigContacts website you will find a live chat button that will allow you to start a live chat with one of our agents Monday through Friday 8 AM to 5 PM EST.
- Your BigContacts CRM account
While logged into your BigContacts CRM account, you can select the "support" tab to access our full library of knowledge base articles, the user forum or start a live chat.
- Your Email
You may have a quick question for us about your account and you are not in front of a computer or log into your account. From any Internet connection (including your mobile phone) simply email us at support@bigcontacts.com and this will instantly create a ticket for you. This ticket will be assigned to a support associate and responded to as soon as possible.
Attention: Registered Support Users...
If you are already a registered user in our old system...we will be sending you an email invitation to establish a password on the new support system.Some good news for Internet explorer users…
Our new support tab in your BigContacts CRM account is now also fully encrypted just as your BigContacts account has always been. You will no longer see a pop-up asking you if you wish to open the support tab. Simply click on the tab and start searching for your support answers.Categories: BigContacts, Contact Management Software, Sales and Selling Tags: Big Contacts, CRM
BigContacts… CRM software with no data storage limits - Story From: BigContacts Product News
BigContacts has always offered our customers the ability to store an unlimited number of contacts within your account. We have just added a new element to our unlimited capacity.
Not only can you upload an unlimited number of contacts but you can now store an unlimited amount of data/files/history for your contacts. It is our goal to make it as easy as possible for you to store as much information as needed about all of your contacts.
So, feel free to start loading all the notes, files and history that you need for your contacts.
Just think...how nice will it be to have access to all of your important contact information from any Internet connection?
Here's to a Happy and Prosperous New Year!
Categories: BigContacts, Contact Management Software, Sales and Selling Tags: Big Contacts, CRM
A revolutionary new CRM platform for Small Business - Story From: BigContacts Product News
As many of you may already know, BigContacts has invested a great deal of time over the past 2 years gathering in-depth feedback and ideas from our customers.
Our research has been focused on better understanding how our customers currently use BigContacts to help you improve your day-to-day operations, and what we can improve with our software to help you even further.
At BigContacts, it has always been our mission to give small businesses an easy-to-use tool that will help you get more organized so that you have more time to focus on:
i) Finding more prospects (marketing)
ii) Converting more prospects to customers (sales management)
iii) Keeping more of the customers you already have (customer retention, operations)
We have recently completed our research, and have begun the development of a revolutionary new platform! We are confident that “BigContacts 2.0” will help small businesses to level the competitive playing field when it comes to attracting and retaining more customers.
It is our goal to complete and release this new platform in the June–July timeframe in 2012. Please note that this is a “target” that we are aiming for and we will keep you updated with more specific dates, as we get closer to this new release.
Over the next several months I will share with you highlights of each of the major modules within this new system. Stay tuned for more information on what we think will become the easiest to use, most powerful and effective small business CRM software on the market today!
Categories: BigContacts, Contact Management Software, Sales and Selling Tags: Big Contacts, CRM
Affiliate Marketing Opportunity for BigContacts – Web Based CRM - Story From: BigContacts Product News
BigContacts has just rolled out a unique opportunity for you to spread the word about our service and get paid for doing so!
As you may already know, BigContacts is a Web-Based Contact Management (CRM) Software designed for small businesses that have outgrown basic solutions like Outlook, Goldmine or ACT but don't want the cost or complexity of CRM solutions like Salesforce.
Our software is helping many thousands of small businesses all over the world to:
-
Organize their business
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Track More Prospects
-
Close More Sales
-
Retain More Customers
About the BigContacts Affiliate Program
Unlike many affiliate programs we don't require a "sale" in order for you to get paid. All we require is that you refer leads to BigContacts and we will pay you for every lead that starts a verified* 30 day FREE Trial of our software.
You can promote our site with text or banner ads on your site, or spread the word on social network sites like Facebook, and earn a commission for every verified FREE Trial you refer. Access your Affiliate Control Panel to see your results, and get paid monthly...it's that simple!
BigContacts offers a very simple commission structure. You earn $5 for every verified* FREE Trial that you refer. As long as the referral signs up for a FREE Trial within 90 days you get credit for it!
A check will be issued to you at the end of the calendar month following the month your commission account reaches or exceeds this $50 level . For example, if you generate $50 or more in commissions this month, and we will send a check in the mail at the end of the very next month!
* A verified FREE Trial is one that we are able verify/ validate both the phone number and email address on the free trial signup form.
Bonus Offer
Signup today and post your first Affiliate links on your site within 7 days of your application approval...and instead, earn $7 for every verified* FREE Trial that you refer to BigContacts. In order to qualify, you will need to email us (within 7 days of being approved) at affiliate@bigcontacts.com with a link to the page where the text or banners ads have been placed. If you have questions about our program and how to get started, I would be happy to speak with you.Questions?
If you have questions about our program and how to get started, our Affiliate Program Manager, Matthew Smith, would be happy to speak with you.Matthew Smith
Affiliate Program Manager
1.888.286.6578 Ext. 709
Become a BigContacts Affiliate
Start Making Money today!
Categories: BigContacts, Contact Management Software, Sales and Selling Tags: Big Contacts, Web-Based Contact Management Software
Update: Mobile access to BigContacts - Story From: BigContacts Product News
BigContacts iPhone App
We wanted to let our iPhone users know that we have just released our latest iPhone App. This has been updated to work properly with Apple’s new iOS5 operating system and is now available in the App Store.
If you already have the BigContacts iPhone app loaded on your phone, you can simply click the App icon on your phone to retrieve the update. If you have yet to download our iPhone App, you will want to go to the App Store and search for “Big Contacts”. (notice the space between the two words) Here you will find the latest download.
BigContacts "Mobile Edition"
We often get asked if we are going to release other apps for all the great smartphones on the market - like the Android, Blackberry, Windows Mobile Devices, etc.
We want you to know that we have NOT forgotten about you. After a great deal of research and planning, we have realized that we can deliver much greater value to ALL smartphone users by thinking beyond Apps. 
At BigContacts, we have decided to develop a full “Mobile Edition”.The BigContacts Mobile Edition will do things that an App cannot deliver:
- You will be able to access to ALL the features and functionality of the main application without any restrictions – limitations you may find in a lightweight App.
- You can handle and access more information than your phone will ever handle if the data were all to be downloaded – synced directly to your phone.
The point is that a Smartphone has limits as to the data it can house directly on the device and still perform up to the standards you may demand for speed and efficiency.
With the BigContacts “Mobile Edition”, we can give you access to ALL of your contact information without any capacity issues that your Smartphone may have. We do all the heavy lifting on our end and deliver ONLY the data you need, WHEN you need it - directly to your mobile interface.
The Mobile Edition will work on any web enabled phone (over a 3G or better network) and will always give you access to the latest features & functionality. No updates or upgrades needed!
Stay tuned for more information on this great new addition to the BigContacts family. This new Edition will be avilable when we roll out our new platform - "BigContacts 2.0". We hope to complete this in mid-2012.
Categories: BigContacts, Contact Management Software, Sales and Selling Tags: Big Contacts, Web-Based Contact Management Software
BigContacts has eliminated downtime during daily backup window - Story From: BigContacts Product News
As you may already know, BigContacts takes great measures to ensure the safety and security of your important customer data. To protect your data, we perform a system-wide backup every day from 1:00am - 1:45am EDT.
In the past you had very limited access to your BigContacts account during this backup window. We realize that this caused a great inconvenience for some of our customers in certain parts of the world as this was the middle of your business day.
We have recently implemented some changes to our main data center that has eliminated this downtime during our daily backup window! Say goodbye to the daily 45 minute window of limited to no access.
BigContacts is now available to you 24 hours per day – 7 days per week!
If you are in an area of the world that was affected by this daily backup window, we would like to hear from you. Let us know how the system performs for you during this backup window. We think you will be pleased with the new results.
Questions or comments?
Feel free to drop us a note at support@bigcontacts.com
Categories: BigContacts, Contact Management Software, Sales and Selling Tags: Big Contacts, Web-Based Contact Management Software
Convert more Prospects to Customers with Web Based CRM Software - Story From: BigContacts Product News
The goal of any business is to convert as many of the right prospects as possible into paying customers. The more organized and efficient you are in the “CONVERT” phase of the customer lifecycle, the more prospects you can effectively move through your sales process so they become customers.
Every time I look at a broad set of sales statistics, I am reminded that winning in this stage of the customer lifecycle is not possible without a heavy dose of persistence. You could have the best product and a great value proposition and message, but unless you generate enough “touches” with your prospects, you won’t reach the conversion rates you need to succeed. These touches include actually asking for the order.
It’s estimated that only 19% of sales close in the first 4 contacts or touches. The remaining 81% close on or after the fifth one. Many businesses I speak to know this, yet few have a plan in place to ensure they are “showing up to the party” often enough to give themselves a chance to break out of the 19% bracket.
According to Dartnell Corp., 90% of businesses follow up with their prospects 4 times or fewer and only 10% follow up 5 times or more. It doesn’t take a math wizard to figure out who is getting most of the business. Don’t waste all that time and effort on the front end and stop short of the finish line.
Be sure to get in those 5 or more touches and contacts with your prospects.
The only way to ensure success in this area is to have a centralized database that can automate some of these required touches, track the notes and history of interactions with the prospect, and assign tasks at the appropriate time to ensure the sales rep can be visible at the right times to help move the sales process forward to closure.
The more prospects a sales rep must juggle to reach goals, the more precious this commodity of time becomes.
With the estimated average cost of an onsite sales call at nearly $400, a good Web Based CRM system is well worth the investment. It will help to increase the productivity of your sales team, while containing or even decreasing your overall cost of sales.
Want to learn more about Web Based CRM Software and how it might help you in your business? Give us a call. One of our CRM Advisors will be happy to assist you.
1.888.286.6578
Categories: BigContacts, Contact Management Software, Sales and Selling Tags: Big Contacts, Web-Based Contact Management Software
Best CRM Software for Small to Mid-Size Businesses - Story From: Commence CRM Blog
Small to mid-size businesses are turning to CRM software to help them capture and distribute leads, manage the sales process, and take advantage of cost effective bulk e-mail marketing to promote their products and services.
Categories: CEO Corner, CRM Software, Commence News, Contact Management Software, microsoft dynamics crm, process management Tags: Commence CRM, CRM, CRM Software
Just Released: CRM book for Small Business - Story From: BigContacts Product News
Bob Walton – our Founder and CEO, has just completed a book titled “BIG Contacts – How small business can harness the power of technology to attract and retain more customers”.
Without customers, a business has nothing – regardless of how good the product or service may be. For your business to thrive over the long-term, you need to pay close attention to your biggest asset – your customers. The sobering reality is that the typical business will lose half of its customer base every five years.
CRM software is one of the best tools for strengthening your customer relationships and can transform your business. BIG Contacts gives you what you need to confidently research, review, and choose the CRM software that is right for their business. Learn to identify the features you need, the questions to ask, and the steps to take for success.
In this book, Bob uses his 20 years of business experience to help you better evaluate how you are managing the customer lifecycle today and then shows you how you can leverage CRM technology to get a handle on the entire customer experience.
Categories: BigContacts, Contact Management Software, Sales and Selling Tags: Big Contacts
BigContacts now syncs with Google Calendar & Google Contacts - Story From: BigContacts Product News
At BigContacts we are constantly working to help you streamline your important prospect and customer information. One of the biggest challenges in managing this important data is trying to keep your calendar and contact information "synchronized" across the multiple platforms that you may use to manage your business.
Google Calendar and Gmail are 2 of the most widely used applications by small businesses today. These programs are easy-to-use and are great ways to manage your time, send and receive emails and store basic contact information.
Our new 
function will automatically synchronize all of this important information every 5 minutes - 24 hours a day, 7 days a week. You can now add,edit, or delete a meeting on your Google Calendar or your BigContacts calender and this new information is automatically synchronized. No more copying and pasting to multiple programs and NO more manual synchronization. We take care of all this for you.This applies to your contacts as well. Add or edit any information in either program and rest assured that this data is now current in both programs.
If you use one of these great programs offered by Google, we encourage you to learn more about this new synchronization module.
Feel free to contact us if you have any questions about this new module or general questions about BigContacts.
1.888.286.6578
Categories: BigContacts, Contact Management Software, Sales and Selling Tags: Big Contacts
BigContacts now syncs with Outlook,iPhone,Android,Blackberry and more - Story From: BigContacts Product News
BigContacts has just released our new Sync Module. We are calling this new module "AutoSync". This new module will be in a (BETA) release for the next 30-45 days to allow you to try this great new functionality at no charge and to identify potential bugs that may need to be corrected.
When we first began this journey toward a sync module, it was our goal to only sync with Outlook. The module was initially going to be offered at no additional charge. After months of creating different design options, it was decided that this module was too limited in it's functionality.
We made the decision that this was not the direction that we wanted to take with this important new feature. So after going back to the drawing board and developing an entirely new suite of devices and applications that we now sync to, we are pleased with what has resulted - AutoSync.
What will this new Sync Module do?
This initial release of BigContacts AutoSync will allow you to sync BOTH your contacts and meetings between our software (BigContacts) and any one of a number of desktop applications, mobile devices and tablets that are listed below.
With our initial release, you will be able to seamlessly and automatically perform the following sync functions:
Contact Sync
- Add or Edit a contact on one device or application and have any changes automatically sync/ update to BigContacts or visa versa.
- Add, Edit, or Delete a meeting on one device or application and have it automatically sync/update to BigContacts or visa versa.
What applications and devices do we currently Sync with?
The following clients are currently available for synchronization.
NOTE: When downloading a sync client - if prompted to register for myFunambol, SKIP this step and proceed to the login screen.
NOTE: When downloading a sync client - if prompted to register for myFunambol, SKIP this step and proceed to the login screen.
Don't see a client for your needs listed here? Contact us at support@bigcontacts.com for additional client options.
Who did we partner with to deliver this new sync module?
We work with only the best providers in each area of our industry and chose Funambol (pronounced Fu-NAHM-bol) to help us deliver a first class sync tool for our customers. Funambol's vision is to make it easy to sync billions of mobile phones, personal computers, tablets and connected devices with the systems and websites people use everyday via the cloud.
Funambol has grown to become the leading mobile open source project in the world, with millions of downloads. We feel that they are uniquely positioned to do this using an open source approach that provides the greatest degree of device compatibility as well as flexibility and control.
For more details on this exciting new module and to get started, please visit our website for more details.
Categories: BigContacts, Contact Management Software, Sales and Selling Tags: Big Contacts
BigContacts now offers option of Live Phone Support - Story From: BigContacts Product News
It has always been our mission to deliver a level of support that is superior to what you will find with other Web Based CRM Software companies. We are committed to helping you realize all the benefits that BigContacts has to offer for you and your business.
We think this is one of the things that makes BigContacts different. As many of you know, we already offer a number of support services that are included (at NO additional charge) with your standard subscription of BigContacts.
Over the past several months, we have received a number of requests to add live phone support to what we currently offer. Well, as we always try to do - we listened!
We have now added the additional resources that are necessary to offer live phone support through our Customer Support Center here in Atlanta, GA. Beginning Monday, August 15th, 2011 - you now have the option to contact a live phone support representative at a cost of only $20 per call*. Live phone support is available Monday through Friday (8am – 5pm ET). You can reach one of our support representatives during these hours by dialing 1.866.417.0707.
We are excited to offer this new level of service and hope that you will realize even more value from our software as a result.
* A representative is committed to remaining on the call with you for up to 20 minutes to answer your questions. If you require more intensive assistance and consulting, we offer a full suite of consulting services that the representative will be happy to arrange for you.
Categories: BigContacts, Contact Management Software, Sales and Selling Tags: Big Contacts
3 Customer retention moments & how Web Based CRM can help - Story From: BigContacts Product News
Successful customer retention is interwoven into the entire "Customer Lifecycle". It starts with the first contact you have with a prospect and continues over the lifetime of the relationship. Customer retention is more than giving the customers what they expect; it’s about exceeding their expectations so that they become loyal advocates for your product or service.
Harry Beckwith, author of What Clients Love, has a great philosophy that he calls “Your Three Key Moments: 3, 24, 5.” Explaining the numbers, he makes the following points:
Research shows that the first 3 seconds of interaction with a customer influences the level of their satisfaction more than the amount of service time that follows for that interaction.
How can Web Based CRM help?
Whether you're reaching out to a customer or they're calling you, a good Web Based CRM program will allow you to quickly display and review all pertanent information using a "dashboard". This dashboard should display all the important information about this customer in a single view.
Having this information readily available ensures an informed and personal conversation with your customer. And what customer doesn't appreciates feeling like their vendor knows who they are and really undestands their needs?
When customers received a follow-up within 24 hours of any interaction or request, a study found, they enjoyed a 40% higher level of satisfaction.
How can Web Based CRM help?
Often times an email will suffice as a follow up after a service call or sale. A Web Based CRM system can automate much of this for you. A good system will allow you to set certain triggers to have an email (or even a series of emails) go out over a given period of time. The emails can be set to look as if you crafted the email yourself and personally sent it out to them. All of this can happen automatically and is recorded directly in the customer's record for future reference.
Sending a handwritten note within 5 days after a significant interaction is another great way to increase customer satisfaction.
How can Web Based CRM help?
A CRM system can never fully replace you. This is one that you will have to do on your own. (hand-writing the note to the customer)
BUT, your CRM system can generate a task reminding you to actually write and send this letter. Another great way this software can help you to stay organized and deliver "What Clients Love".
Categories: BigContacts, Contact Management Software, Sales and Selling Tags: Big Contacts
Choosing the right CRM software for your business - Story From: BigContacts Product News
CRM software has so many features and dimensions to it that it is more important than ever that you take a systematic approach to the process of choosing a vendor. This is the only way to ensure you find the best fit for your company.
If you look at this review process on two levels, you can better evaluate and rank your options. There is the provider level, and the product level. There are certain things you want to look for and demand that the provider offer to you if you are going to purchase software, and there will be a certain set of features that the product will need to offer in order to meet your specific business needs.
Below are a few of the questions that you will want to cover as you go through this review process.
Provider Level Criteria
- Customer Self-service – are there resources available that make it easy for you to locate answers to your questions 24/7?
- Help Functionality – you want a help/support suite that is intuitive, yet comprehensive in nature. You should be able to find answers to virtually any question you may have about the software.
- Support – a minimum level of support should be included with the price of the software; including email ticketing support and live chat. It’s good to pay attention to how responsive a vendor is during your selection process.
Keep in mind that you are buying more than just the software - you’re also buying the service and support that this vendor will deliver. If you’re uncomfortable with the service or support, then don’t invest in the software. - Training –Training videos should be available so that you can learn at your own pace, and the company should at least offer live training to you and your team even if it is for an additional charge. This is very important as there may be situations that are specific to your business that you need answers to that a generic video cannot deliver.
- Intuitiveness of system – the system should be so easy to use that anyone on your team can jump right in and start using it. A good system should require very little training to at least get started.
- System navigation – really pay attention to how many clicks & tabs (on average) you need to use to perform your key functions within the system. These are the things that you will be using day in and day out to manage your prospect and customer relationships. It may not seem like a big deal at first but over time the number of clicks and tabs you must navigate to perform your key tasks each day can have an impact on how much you can get done and the ground you can cover as you work through your day.
- System Features - when evaluating any system, it helps to look at it from the perspective of the Customer Lifecycle, which encompasses the essence of managing and growing your business.
The Customer Lifecycle is made up of 3 main phases:
I. FINDing the right prospects
What tools/ modules does the system offer to help you to more effectively capture and organize leads?
II. CONVERTing more Prospects to Customers
What tools/ modules does the system offer to help you more effectively:
Organize key information about your prospects
Track opportunities through each stage of your sales process
Deliver targeted and timely messages to ensure that you stay top of mind to your prospect and they move through their buying process
Manage automated tasks/ reminders to your sales people to ensure that they touch base with the prospect at just the right times throughout the sales process – ensuring that no opportunity falls through the cracks
III. KEEPing more customers
What tools/ modules does the system offer to help you more effectively touch base on a regular schedule with your customers? All this with the goal of:
Staying top of mind with your customers so that next time they go to make a purchase they will think of you
Reminding customers that you care about them and appreciate their business
Managing your workflows and tasks to ensure timely customer service and follow-up
Making your final decision
After you have completed your review and ranking of several systems, you should now have a thorough side-by-side comparison to make your most informed decision.
Every decision has its advantages and disadvantages. The challenge is to figure out which choice will provide you with the greatest net advantage based on your priorities and specific business needs.
Questions? Give us a call
For answers to your important CRM questions, give us a call at 1.888.286.6578 - (Monday - Friday 8am - 5pm EST). We would be happy to help.
Categories: BigContacts, Contact Management Software, Sales and Selling Tags: Big Contacts
Commence CRM a Robust Offering for SME’s - Story From: Commence CRM Blog
TINTON FALLS, N.J. /WiredPRNews.com/ November 21, 2010 –- Commence Corporation a leading provider of Customer Relationship Management software for small to mid-size enterprises has evolved into a robust CRM offering that now includes Help Desk and Project Management applications. “CRM is all about capturing, managing and sharing vital customer information with the people and departments that require [...]
Categories: Commence News, Contact Management Software, Customer Service Software, Enterprise CRM, Project Management, customer-management-software, hosted-crm, online crm, sales force automation Tags: Commence CRM
Contact Management Users Express Interest in Commence Online CRM - Story From: Commence CRM Blog
Commence Corporation, one of the leading providers of Customer Relationship Management (CRM) software, is experiencing a higher than usual interest in their online CRM software from users of traditional desktop contact management software. “There are thousands of users of the older desktop software programs such as Act, Goldmine, Maximizer and others”, says Larry Caretsky, president of [...]
