Earlier, only sales team used to use CRM to track and organize their activities. Now, the marketing team is also using automation to enjoy better productivity. If we realize the true potential of marketing automation and CRM, then we can increase sales lies & leverage their joint strengths to build a coordinated strategy. This will in turn guide us to a profitable long-term relationship with your business. There are four ways you can maximize the strengths of both systems to boost your sales impact. They are: Building relationships with customers, delivering the right message at the right time, getting a complete view of marketing and sales impact, and maximizing resources for better strategic planning. Read more at: http://it.toolbox.com/blogs/insidecrm/4-ways-to-leverage-your-crm-and-marketing-automation-systems-for-sales-impact-69900

In the last nine months of 2015, we have seen a number of digital marketing trends emerge. Anoop Gupta (experienced in web marketing) writes in his article about the various digital marketing trends. They are:  Content Marketing, Conversion Optimization, Marketing Automation, Mobile & Responsiveness, and Social Marketing. Read more at: http://www.business2community.com/digital-marketing/digital-marketing-trends-emerged-2015-01333320

Packaging is important for any business. But, not every company packs in standard cardboard. So. Shipping companies have different options for packaging. There are five types of packing materials that can accommodate a wide variety of company needs.  They are: Crates and Pallets; Shrink Wrap; Vacuum Packaging; Preservation Packaging; and Shock Mount Packaging. Read more at: http://www.business2community.com/strategy/5-types-packaging-different-business-needs-0969922

Delivery plays an important role in customer experience. Customer-centricity is the buzzword in today’s business. Couriers are just an extension of your service and a smooth reliable delivery is key to secure customer loyalty and repeat business.  So, every aspect of a customer transaction needs to be perfect, including delivery. Online shoppers expect delivery when & where it was promised. Customers expect brilliant service, and price will always be an important factor when choosing delivery methods for multi-channel distribution.  Companies must think in terms of CBA i.e. customer oriented, brilliant delivery and affordable prices if they want to succeed in multi-channel distribution. Ian Newcombe (MD of Multi-Channel Solutions) writes in his article about ABC of courier management. Read more at:  http://www.business2community.com/product-management/abc-courier-management-01330361

The reputation of a business is very important as it takes years to build. The goodwill of a company depends on the reputation. Nowadays, it is also important for a brand to have a good online reputation. So, brands need a reputation action management plan. Amanda Clark (president and editor-in-chief of Grammar Chic, Inc.) writes in her article about some steps to improve your online reputation. Read more at: : http://www.business2community.com/branding/5-easy-steps-to-improve-your-online-reputation-01331568

In a recent research it was found that small businesses with less than 20 people account for 89.8% of all businesses in the USA. Many of these small businesses could not even afford big SEO agency prices. So, how can small businesses get to the top of search engines, manage their social media and grow their own online presence? The answer is they can use free and paid DIY SEO analysis and management tools. Scott Taft (SEO manager at Seer Interactive) writes in his article about these SEO tools. TO know more, follow: : http://www.business2community.com/seo/10-top-seo-analysis-tools-small-businesses-01333092

Nowadays, for holding conferences and meetings, business is utilizing apps and software that enable web conferencing. Organizations have discovered that VoIP service helps other than phone calls and improve communication. Businesses are taking full advantage of web conferencing through VoIP. It is saving time and cost for businesses. You can improve customer experience by connecting with them via web conferencing. Most VoIP web conferencing services allow you to record web meetings for later review and this in turn will help you to review questions asked by clients and customers, or to improve a presentation.  Read more at: http://it.toolbox.com/blogs/voip-news/5-benefits-of-using-voip-for-web-conferencing-69847

Customer data are needed to understand and anticipate their customer’s needs. But, as companies are collecting data frequently, customers are becoming concerned about the security of their personal data. In exchange of data from customers, brands need to provide a transparent information gathering process and better security measures. Lucas Jones (Marketing Executive) writes in his article about some ways that will safeguard sensitive data and foster trust with your customers. Read more at: http://www.socialmediatoday.com/technology-data/ljones/2015-09-16/addressing-elephant-room-9-tips-keeping-your-customer-data-secure

The concept of brand loyalty is becoming less important due to the advancement of e-commerce. So, brands must stay competitive by collecting data to build a more in-depth analysis of visitors to their website. Researchers found that 82% of consumers want personalized shopping experience. So, how to get perceptive data on customers and use it to improve conversion rates? The simple answer is by creating buyer personas. Read more on why buyer personas are important by following: http://www.socialmediatoday.com/marketing/ljones/2015-09-17/using-personas-connect-your-buyers

Social media is important in today’s world and is also playing an important role in pre-launch publicity. If any organization can create a presence of their app before it is launched, then they can increase interest and initial users will be generated. The most important thing to be considered before your app launches, is to get your audience to sign up to be notified when your app launches, and for this you must create a social media account at first. Read more at: http://www.business2community.com/mobile-apps/7-ways-to-launch-your-app-on-social-media-with-a-bang-01328719

Mobile apps are becoming very crucial for any business. Big brands are making a huge investment in mobile apps as a part of business strategy. Once you have launched your mobile app, you should track ad acquisition channels, you should know how users are behaving in-app and what features they’re interacting with, engage and re-engage customers at every step of the user lifecycle, and grow app user loyalty. But, the starting point of making any app should go back to RFP i.e. request for proposal. The RFP is important in choosing a mobile analytics and marketing solution.  Bryn Adler (Content Marketing Manager) in her article writes about the key points which should be included in RFP. Your RFP should include: Acquisition tracking, Analytics & reporting capabilities, marketing & messaging features, Data organization, and Predictive Analysis. To know more, follow: http://www.business2community.com/marketing/5-key-components-of-a-solid-mobile-marketing-rfp-01328182

Remote agents are becoming popular in today’s business world. They are becoming popular because of lower contact center costs; improved customer service; improved employee satisfaction and retention. The other advantages are - operating costs such as lower starting wages and reduced benefits, less need for brick and mortar facilities and support staff, increased labor pool with flexible scheduling options, and reduced training costs associated with increased agent retention. There are three essential tools for managing remote agents. They are: Agent Self-Scheduling Tools, Real-time Agent Adherence, and Online Productivity Tools. To know about these tools, follow:  http://www.callcentertimes.com/Home/tabid/37/ctl/NewsArticle/mid/395/CategoryID/1/NewsID/1054/Default.aspx

Customer relationship management software is a highly profitable investment for organizations of all sizes. Today's workforce is increasingly relying on mobile. Forrester reports that 29% of employees use three or more devices, and may work from multiple locations worldwide. Technology-savvy workers use mobile apps and are critical productivity tools. While early CRM mobile applications were difficult to use, and offered limited functionality, today's mobile CRM tools can be every as useful as their desktop equivalents. To know about the reasons why a mobile component matters more than you think, follow: http://it.toolbox.com/blogs/insidecrm/why-smbs-cant-afford-to-ignore-mobile-customer-relationship-management-69841

Most CRM Softwares are of advanced level but, companies rarely try the advanced features of their business software. Few companies do more with their CRM system than use it as an advanced to-do list and calendar application. There are many benefits for companies if they take advantage of advanced features in their CRM systems. Here are a few features that most companies should consider implementing. They are: Integration with ERP; Integration with Customer Service; Integration with Websites; Consistent Mobile Use; and Predictive Analysis. Read more at: http://it.toolbox.com/blogs/insidecrm/taking-crm-to-the-next-level-a-quick-survey-of-advanced-features-69843

In a recent research by Gartner, it was found that failure to respond to customer complaints via social media channels can lead to a 15% increase in client loss. Customers get agitated if your brand fails to respond to social media complaints and that includes ignored emails or phone calls from customers. Social listening capabilities in your customer relationship management software (CRM) can provide your organization with the ability to tap into these conversations and comments immediately. You can understand sentiment and other measures of how you stack up to your competitors with the help of social listening. So, social listening matters to any organization even more now. Read more at:  http://it.toolbox.com/blogs/insidecrm/3-reasons-your-crm-needs-social-listening-capabilities-69840

A good way to stay organized and increase sales is to Keep track of your clients with customer relationship management (CRM) software. This is true for any business. But, the question is how you can keep track of your clients. The answer is to track customer data. This can be done with the help of CRM software. You can do that with the help of CRM mobile app, by tracking leads, tracking sales, and by sharing customer data. To know more about how you can use a CRM to track customer data, follow: http://it.toolbox.com/blogs/insidecrm/5-ways-crm-tracking-leads-to-more-sales-69832

Retaining old customers is the most profitable task of any small & medium sized business. According to Forrester Research, it was found that retaining 5% more customers can increase profits by 25-125% and it costs five times more to acquire a new customer than it does to retain an existing client. Customer relationship management (CRM) software can be a vital tool for organizational client retention. Companies use CRM tools for preventing customer defection, increasing client satisfaction and improving cross-selling efforts. Read more at:  http://it.toolbox.com/blogs/insidecrm/5-ways-crm-is-key-to-smb-customer-retention-69833

Voice over Internet Protocol (VoIP) was first developed in 1995, and since then it has come a long way. The main VoIP trend of 2015 is the adoption of VoIP by mobile device makers, and this, along with other trends, represents a growing role for VoIP in all businesses. Mobile VoIP is helping to increase employee efficiency. Unified communications (UC) is the new buzzword in business nowadays. UC allows integration between both text- and voice-based communications, including VoIP, teleconferencing, document sharing and even customer management systems. This integration helps in effective communications networks in an organization. Call analytics using VoIP are best used when paired with a customer relationship management system. To know more about these VoIP trends, follow: http://it.toolbox.com/blogs/voip-news/global-voip-trends-and-what-they-mean-for-your-business-69828

Millennial working population is the largest group working today. Research shows that these young workers are ready to put in long hours—but they also expect mobility. According to a recent survey, it was found that for Millennials, the greatest perk for them is to work remotely. Mobility is an important consideration for them and not just a perk. In another survey, it was found that productivity increased when employees worked from home. Read more about how employees benefit from mobility: http://it.toolbox.com/blogs/voip-news/five-ways-unified-communications-can-improve-employee-mobility-69827

Are you investing in a new CRM solution or want to replace the existing customer relationship management solution? You must consider several points before taking your proposal to the next level. If you consider these points, it will help in the future. First, you must compare the features against their ease of use; then you must consider how the information is presented, and lastly, you must consider is how well the CRM solution will grow with you. Read more at: http://it.toolbox.com/blogs/insidecrm/3-considerations-when-justifying-a-crm-solution-67771