Stepping up sales

THE CONCEPT OF Web-delivered applications continues to appeal to companies that find the low implementation and operating costs, care-free update cycles, and smooth integration with the emerging Web services model an offer too good to pass up.

The rise of SFA (sales-force automation) services is an irrefutable indication of this trend: SFA vendors are already challenging the big names in the CRM segment with new features that improve usability while keeping costs down.

Salesnet’s online service ranks among the leaders in this growing sector, offering account and contact data and deal management tools that can be accessed from any recent Microsoft or Netscape Web browser. But what really distinguishes Salesnet from competitors such as Salesforce.com and Upshot are its unique custom business processes, which guide sales reps through the procedure of courting prospects, and its wireless access capability from just about any WAP (Wireless Application Protocol)-enabled device (including Palm, BlackBerry, and PocketPC PDAs, as well as smart phones).

Step-by-step selling

Salesnet’s Process Builder is an impressive tool that allows enterprises to define systematic sales processes, directing field reps through the entire sales cycle — all the way from recognizing a lead to closing the deal. The tool enables an enterprise to not only organize its sales activities, but also enforce a common, unified approach.

Building a sales process involves defining a sequence of steps (think of them as sales milestones) such as verifying interest, drafting a proposal, negotiating terms, and, finally, closing the deal. The process you define becomes a kind of dynamic checklist that provides sales reps with “to-do” entries, which vary according to the results of the previous step.

For example, if an initial customer contact reveals that the potential client needs more product information, Salesnet can generate an activity to send out product literature. In effect, Process Builder creates nonbinding sales processes that a sales staffer must select when creating a new deal, but can complete with additional activities as the interaction with the customer evolves. As each activity concludes, Salesnet can estimate the potential dollar value of the deal, based on the results to that point.

A new addition to the Salesnet repertoire is the External Data Capture feature, which allows you to collect leads automatically from customers who visit your Web site. The tool creates a Web form that can be easily added to your site; visitors can use the form and provide personal information and preferences. That information is collected, automatically sent to the Salesnet application, and made available to your sales force, who can then follow up on the leads.

Another strong feature is Salesnet’s user and sales process management tool. You can define users very granularly, giving each one the authority to perform such tasks as administering Salesnet, defining sales processes, importing data, or creating mass mail campaigns. You can also establish mutual access rights for customer data owned by different positions. For example, sales managers could be given read-only access to deals handled by their subordinates but have the right to add or modify contact and prospect data.

Finally, Salesnet boasts a useful feature that lets you download account and contact information to a PIM (personal information manager), such as ACT! or Goldmine, thus enabling access when a Web connection is not available. Data can be synchronized both ways.

For our review, Salesnet prepared a test account containing fictitious prospects, contacts, and deal data, which we accessed from Netscape Navigator 4 and Internet Explorer 5 browsers.

We began by adjusting some basic settings. Salesnet offers powerful administrative features that allow you to adjust screen formats and content to fit your preferences and import data from other databases.

The Process Builder application proved remarkably easy to implement. It took us only minutes to build a sales process, copying steps from an existing template and making adjustments to each step.

Working on a simulated sales opportunity proved how effective the Process Builder methodology really is. After we created a new deal, choosing our previously defined sales process, Salesnet proposed the first step in the process as our initial activity: calling the prospect. We selected “Complete current step” and indicated the result of our activity. Salesnet immediately proposed the next logical step: drafting a proposal. Overall, the procedure impressed us with its intuitiveness and convenience.

We did, however, find the synchronization feature somewhat cumbersome. Although not difficult, synchronizing data requires you to install client software and switch back and forth between different GUIs — an approach that, compared to those of competing SFAs such as UpShot Offline Express, leaves much to be desired. On the other hand, Salesnet does offer a bountiful range of wireless options, which could obviate the need for synchronization altogether.

In all, Salesnet proved to be an impressive performer, capable of significantly streamlining and coordinating sales activities. The service offers excellent functionality, a user-friendly GUI, and a powerful methodology that goes a long way toward enforcing standard procedures. Just think of it: No more missed connections, no more confused repeat calls to the same customer from six different field reps. If it’s true that sales is the life blood of the modern organization, then surely a little standardization can go a long way.

Source: www.infoworld.com