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March 24th, 2021 by Jessica Wert
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When you think about information in your business, what does that mean to you? Does it mean knowing the sales volume for last quarter? How about what your target customer wants to purchase in the next six months? Whatever information you are looking for in your business is almost always backed by data. So, can you have information without data? The answer is no. You can certainly have lots and lots of data with no information. Example… you know that massive spreadsheet you have with 3,000 lines of data on it; what do you really know from that… do you have information to make better decisions for your business? Probably not. Turn your data into Information; make a plan, set goals, and take action. Make a Plan: Talk with leadership at your company and come together on the common goals. Once you agree on what you want to know, start mapping out how you’ll get there. Create data sets, meaning segment your data. Will you target customers, old customers, prospects, competitive users? You should also make a plan for how you want to consume the information. What reports, programs, or analytic tools can you utilize to get the best results? CRM tools are the top choice for data segmentation. Not only can you quickly put your data into usable buckets, you can then measure and take action with it. Set Goals: When you have goals with your data, it creates more value around it. A goal example can be wanting to target the South East region with a new product launch. You will need information out of your data to tell you who your audience is, are they ready to buy, how do they want to receive your information, and will they be repeat customers. Another goal can be your sales teams quota. When you have information from your data, you can set clear and achievable goals because you have defined true market saturation in each territory. Take Action: Set up dashboards in a CRM tool to show the trends and analysis of your data sets. Manage forecasts and quotas with real information that has the data to back it up. Harvest more detailed data with targeted marketing campaigns to build complete customer profiles. Arm your sales team with the knowledge to predict when a customer will be ready to buy so they can strike at the right time. Above are just a few examples of how to turn your data into information and stay ahead of your competition. Connect with a Simplesoft Consultant at 937-885-1204 or support@simplesoft.net.
Simplesoft Solutions, Inc. is a customer relationship management (CRM) business consulting and software development firm in Cincinnati/Dayton OH surrounding areas. We provide implementation, integration, development and training for Infor CRM. We have built our business on an ability to creatively adapt CRM to meet the varying needs of our customers’ businesses. We have been helping our customers develop stronger relationships with their customers through improved sales, marketing, customer service, and support processes since 1994. Comments Off on Can you have information without data?
March 4th, 2021 by Jessica Wert
![]() Infor CRM offers lots of great tools for IT and Administrator users. Learning these tools can be extremely helpful to keeping your database clean and useful. One of the functions we love is Group Manager. What is it? Group Manager provides a list of Groups and the tasks needed to manage those Groups. Use the filters to narrow the list of Groups and the Group tasks you want to view to manage Groups. Where is it? Navigate to the Administration menu and you’ll see Group Manager as an option. Why and How do I use it? You can clean up unused Groups here. In List view, you can see the last time the Group was modified. It’s always a good practice to clean out Ad Hoc Groups as they’ll slow your CRM load time. You can perform these actions:
Connect with a Simplesoft Consultant at 937-885-1204 or support@simplesoft.net.
Simplesoft Solutions, Inc. is a customer relationship management (CRM) business consulting and software development firm in Cincinnati/Dayton OH surrounding areas. We provide implementation, integration, development and training for Infor CRM. We have built our business on an ability to creatively adapt CRM to meet the varying needs of our customers’ businesses. We have been helping our customers develop stronger relationships with their customers through improved sales, marketing, customer service, and support processes since 1994. Comments Off on Group Manager in Infor CRM
June 30th, 2020 by Jessica Wert
![]() Don’t let your data go down a black hole. Keeping data clean and useful in CRM’s is usually a tough task for companies. You have multiple departments and users accessing and using the data. Simplesoft Solutions assigning someone at your company to be a Data Steward. Who are data stewards? Why do you need data stewards? What qualities should a data steward have? Related Blog Posts: Keeping Data Clean – Bulk Updates Follow the Keeping Data Clean series, subscribe to our blog
Simplesoft Solutions, Inc. is a customer relationship management (CRM) business consulting and software development firm in Cincinnati/Dayton OH surrounding areas. We provide implementation, integration, development and training for Infor CRM (formerly Saleslogix). We have built our business on an ability to creatively adapt CRM to meet the varying needs of our customers’ businesses. We have been helping our customers develop stronger relationships with their customers through improved sales, marketing, customer service, and support processes since 1994. Comments Off on Keeping Data Clean – Infor CRM Data Steward
June 5th, 2020 by Jessica Wert
![]() Being a part of many successful CRM implementation launches, and observing many that werenât successful, we have learned what it takes to make a project successful. Our team has collected some general guidelines that can help increase the chances that your project will be successful. If you are planning a CRM Implementation project in the future, here are some points of consideration that will aid you in making it a success: 1. To begin, create a clear definition of your needed and desired CRM project outcome. Knowing your desired outcome is reflected in the famous saying, âBegin with the end in mind.â The importance of knowing what you want cannot be underestimated in its value when tackling a new project. We can discern quickly when a customer doesnât spend enough time on this step. Make sure you think through the business processes that you are currently using and consider what you plan to be using going forward with a new CRM tool. The more you think through your project end goals, and how your team wants to get there, the less likely you are to incur additional and unexpected costs from scope changes or scope creep during the process. This clarity and focus will assist you throughout the entire project life-cycle, ensuring you actually end up with the tool you wanted to have in place. 2. Ensure commitment and buy-in from your internal team, especially leadership stakeholders and those who will be responsible for implementation. The idea of a putting a new CRM system in place is often different than the realities of doing so. If you have ever been a part of organizational change with a group of people, you know this not always welcomed by all involved. Not only is it important to have a Project Champion on your team, it is imperative that you have support from the top leadership down, both in word and in deed, that is, they become part of the whole process and adoption. People will follow those who lead, if it is done well and comprehensively. Some people adapt quicker to change, or welcome change, more easily than others. When implementing a new CRM system, it is as important to engage the champion users, as it is those who might struggle with change. The more buy-in and support you have, the greater the likelihood you will enjoy the success of change once the project is complete. Most people have to see what is in it for them; so implementing change from that standpoint is very important. 3. Have a planned budget that accounts for your entire CRM project needs. There are always unseen costs in new initiatives. Plan for those unseen costs with the understanding that it is common for a project to come in somewhere in the range of 10% under, or 10% over the original budget. In addition to planning for overage, understand there might be things your team realizes during the project life-cycle that motivate a change request or an additional set of desired features. Sometimes it is difficult to see the art of the possible, until you are already immersed in the project. If you didn’t budget for the unexpected, be prepared to say, âNo,â until you have a budget for the additional items later. 4. Carry clear understanding of the variety of internal resources needed on your team for successful CRM implementation. Sometimes customers can help their project success along by planning for the internal resources on their side that will be needed to launch a new project. Understanding that your team and resourcesâ availability has such impact on the success of a project is important and can help frustration not to build when resource availability becomes thin at certain points of the project. The following resources should be considered and planned for in any CRM project implementation: – An infrastructure and hardware that is supported by the new product, compatible with the product and up to date. – A project team, including IT, with dedicated time, expert knowledge and empowered to be successful. – Security barriers managed to allow access to your companyâs hardware and enables work to be completed efficiently and timely. – A realistic change management plan in place as part of the CRM implementation. 5. Dedicate an Internal Project Champion to spearhead project and accompanying change management. When everyoneâs schedules and energy are pulled in many directions during the project, it is important to have an internal person with the bandwidth to champion and drive your project along. This person will serve as the point person, and often times your teamâs project manager, and is a very important change agent in the project launch experience. Making sure this person has the ability to dedicate energy, time and focus to your new project can make all the difference in a projectâs success. What that means, in reality, is making sure they have the time and resources available to perform this role without it being a second job or an additional load that is unbearable. 6. Set a realistic project timeline that accounts for other organizational plans happening simultaneously. Picking the timeline with a realistic completion deadline is one of the most important considerations to make when planning a project. A timeline that is too short can cause unnecessary stress and can set up a situation that is untenable for even the best project teams. No matter how much planning you do in advance, it is impossible to account for every risk or issue that may arise. In addition, it is important to consider other initiatives going on within your company, and plan accordingly. Many companies will plan a project around a particular event or relative to other dependencies. What often sounds good in theory can often turn into a greater challenge than anyone accounted. Choose a timeline where your change management can best succeed all around. 7. Have a clear Training and Implementation Plan for end users that will ease their apprehension of the changes that are occurring. When you are dealing with people, any kind of change can feel threatening, especially if it is change you did not choose and are not controlling. Planning for the kind of change a new CRM system can bring requires being intentional and making sure you have accounted for its timing and impact on daily work processes. This is an area that you want to neither shortcut nor belabor. Many times we see changes that come with a new CRM system impact various groups within the same company differently. Therefore, the training required for each group can also vary. If you do not plan enough training, people will not be comfortable and will possibly avoid using the system, and if you plan too much then it could be difficult to keep their attention. Expert trainers are well versed in helping plan the right amount for your team; and because this is their area of expertise, they can be a true asset to making sure you have the best plan for success in place. When beginning a CRM implementation project, it is so important to plan for success. That doesnât happen on its own. Having a team that is dedicated, insightful, and engaged, and also one that follows seasoned best practices can be all you need to produce your desired outcome! Happy planning! IF you would like to learn more tips, or have a CRM topic you would like us to write about, please contact Simplesoft Solutions, Inc. Remember to check our CALENDAR and register for free training, demo sessions, and the Heartland Users Group Events. Don’t miss an update, subscribe to our blog.
Simplesoft Solutions, Inc. is a customer relationship management (CRM) business consulting and software development firm in Cincinnati/Dayton OH surrounding areas. We provide implementation, integration, development and training for Infor CRM (formerly Saleslogix). We have built our business on an ability to creatively adapt CRM to meet the varying needs of our customers’ businesses. We have been helping our customers develop stronger relationships with their customers through improved sales, marketing, customer service, and support processes since 1994. Comments Off on 7 Steps to a Successful CRM Implementation
March 25th, 2020 by Jessica Wert
![]() When you have several users entering information into CRM, the likelihood of duplicate records goes up. There are several reason’s duplicates happen; lead conversion, double entry, Xbar settings not set up, users not knowing proper searching techniques, and the list goes on. The good news is it is very simple to clean all this up with learning how to merge properly. Your CRM data steward should know all the places merging is available so that they can not only clean up the mistakes but teach users how to convert leads and add contacts without creating a duplicate. Data Steward or Admin Access Users: These users should have the access to merge together 2 separate records together. This is used when a duplicate Account or Contact has been created. You should always merge rather than delete since it will capture all the histories and information from both records and bring them into one. Merging Tip: Always select the record you want to merge first, then hit CTRL and click on the main record. Once you right click and select Merge, the below table will show. The main record will show on the right side of the grid and will be called the target record. Anything with the radial button selected will merge into the new record. Watch a Quick Video on Merging. Standard Users: These users should be fully trained on converting Leads, searching for matching records when adding new, and Xbar configuration settings. Making sure the standard users are up to speed on this will greatly reduce the amount of duplicate records created. Watch this video on how to manage handling and avoiding duplicates in your database. Want to learn more about effectively using your Infor CRM? Reach out to one of our certified Infor CloudSuite CRM trainers at support@simplesoft.net  Don’t miss an update, subscribe to our blog.
Simplesoft Solutions, Inc. is a customer relationship management (CRM) business consulting and software development firm in Cincinnati/Dayton OH surrounding areas. We provide implementation, integration, development and training for Infor CloudSuite CRM (formerly Saleslogix). We have built our business on an ability to creatively adapt CRM to meet the varying needs of our customers’ businesses. We have been helping our customers develop stronger relationships with their customers through improved sales, marketing, customer service, and support processes since 1994. Comments Off on Keeping Data Clean – Merging Properly
November 29th, 2016 by Janetta
![]() Infor hosted a customer focused webinar  to summarize their excellent work with Infor CRM in 2016. Kevin Draggoo, Product Manager for Infor CRM, shared new functionality for each of the areas of Infor CRM and explained that 262 customer requests for features were included in this year’s work so far. Customer and partner input is very important to Infor CRM and it shows in the priority placed on feature requests made by customers. Kevin provided detailed information about all the improvements made in Web, Mobile, Xbar, Dashboards, along with Ming.le. Included in the most recent service pack (04) of Infor CRM is Contour. Infor CRM Contour is a proximity search and mapping tool. This tool will allow sales and service users to maximize their time on the road. They can search an area for surrounding prospects and customers then map the most efficient travel routes. Infor CRM Web includes the new and more robust Entity Manager which allows the administrative user to add fields, filters, and metrics to any entity. It can also be used for bulk updates and imports. More and more functionality is being brought into the Web for the admin users including Ticket ACI control, and password complexity just to mention a few. Mobile v3.5 was released early in November and it includes Offline capability with the concept of a Briefcase. You commit the items you need while offline to your Briefcase. The current functionality is read only and the next phase will include read/write ability. There are also several UI enhancements. A special note to current customers, Mobile v3.5 requires v8.2 or higher of Infor CRM. To review the webinar “Everything New in Infor CRM” use this link. To see a demonstration of the most up to date functionality, register here. Remember to check our CALENDAR and register for free training, demo sessions, and the Heartland CRM Users Group Events. If you need help upgrading to Infor CRM v8.3.0 or Mobile 3.5.0, let us know! We can assist in a minor capacity or provide all the technical heavy lifting. Dayton/Cincinnati, OH | Charleston, WV | Charlotte, NC
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August 23rd, 2016 by Mark E. Perone
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This is the scene in the majority of CRM deployments. Why? Fully developing a CRM Solution has 4 parts:
Process: Activity to Progress First Steps: Know the strengths and weaknesses of your workforce. Once you decide who is going to be in your work groups and an impromptu assembly line starts to establish itself. Aligning people by job task for practical efficiency isnât the simplest of change management exercises, but it is the most effective way to evolve progress without squandered activity. By assigning people similar duties, each person should start to depend on the information presented by the person preceding their job task. This creates a natural course of accountability and helps you stay more focused on comparative job task analysis. You might consider outside help with the breakdown of organizational activity to guide process orientation. Because our products have intelligent flexibility native to their functional workflow, nearly any company can adapt current workflow into our software solutions. Built into our software suite is the unique perspective of the user from varying organizational silo’s accessing our solution. The Simplesoft Solution is positioned to leverage the activity of your company from the top down or bottom up. What this means to you: System use for every representative level in your organizational hierarchy is provided a place at the enterprise software table. We have high level big data visibility down to work in progress insights to orient standard users on predetermined key performance indicator dashboards. Many of our clients have found the starting point for CRM implementation is mapping out organizational processes. Mapping out your process Look for more articles in our series âThe Rear View Mirrorâ and learn more ways to improve CRM adoption from Simplesoft Solutions. We will focus future articles on each pillar of Strategy, People, Processes, and Technology. If you need help upgrading to Infor CRM v8.3.0 or Mobile 3.4.0, let us know! We can assist in a minor capacity or provide all the technical heavy lifting. Remember to check our CALENDAR and register for free training, demo sessions, and the Heartland CRM Users Group Events. Comments Off on CRM User Adoption with Business Processes in the Rear View Mirror
June 6th, 2016 by Mark E. Perone
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This is the scene in the majority of CRM implementations. Why? Have a Vision and Know Your Processes to Maximize CRM Utility The most important part a decision maker can play in any software implementation is to make sure all stakeholders are considered in the CRM decision making process. Requiring the organization to document its day-to-day operations is a critical step in making sure all stakeholders and their current processes will be supported by any new enterprise software. There are a number of qualifying questions all company leaders should be asking regarding the way business is being done today. Questions to ask as you develop a CRM implementation Strategy:
By choosing a new CRM solution, the course of business will change forever for all employees.  Yes, ALL employees. Whether directly acting in the CRM solution or using information contained in the system, organizations are forever changed when consciously reorganizing customer information under a CRM. Involving frontline users in the definition of software requirements and even in the selection process will improve the ease of implementation and adoption. The idea of implementing a CRM, after all, is streamlining employee interaction with customers and developing a detailed method to study your customer relationships. Specifying who will do what, when, and why are the precursors to generating a process orientation. As a tenured Infor CRM channel partner, Simplesoft Solutions has driven business solution implementations and training for companies large and small. Throughout our 20+ year history, we have determined a companyâs vision statement for CRM is the first step to comprehensively defining the framework for the entire solution. We work with our clients using a Balanced Scorecard focusing on four pillars of Strategy, People, Processes, and Technology. Proper planning and implementation in all four areas is key to strong CRM engagement. Look for more articles in our series “The Rear View Mirror” and learn more ways to improve CRM adoption from Simplesoft Solutions. We will focus future articles on each pillar of Strategy, People, Processes, and Technology. If you would like to discuss upgrading your system, or to see a free demonstration, please contact Simplesoft Solutions. Remember to check our CALENDAR and register for free training, demo sessions, and the Heartland Saleslogix Users Group Events. Comments Off on CRM User Adoption with Stakeholders in the Rear View Mirror
April 26th, 2016 by Janetta
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All of this work is very similar to a previous profile (see below) designed for the tasks involved with the work of a data scientist role. http://oceansofdata.org/our-work/profile-big-data-enabled-specialist The projected quantity of data is growing each year and the clique that data is âeverywhereâ in a sense is true. There is a strong need to promote data literacy and incorporate data-driven thinking into our daily lives. Our economy is increasingly defined by data as is our knowledge and skills for using it effectively. Our stakeholders and customers are demanding an increase in results that help make sense of the data in place. Simplesoft was pleased to be able to contribute to the larger picture by having a tenured consultant like Paul share his data expertise. Paul has a unique set of skills to lend to this project with his 20 years of data consulting expertise and his more recent experience teaching at the collegiate level. Paul was energized by his participation in this valuable work and commented, âIt was a real honor to contribute to the work in the world of data and databases. Organizations of all kinds are looking for data to help them transform their business model and increase productivity. I am grateful for the opportunity to be a part of this highly important discussion.â Simplesoft has highly skilled data specialists with a range of experience in system integration, business intelligence, CRM, and marketing automation tools. We are looking forward to seeing the finished work. If you would like to discuss upgrading your system, or to see a free demonstration, please contact Simplesoft Solutions. Remember to check our CALENDAR and register for free training, demo sessions, and the Heartland Saleslogix Users Group Events. Comments Off on Simplesoft Contributes to Job Profile for Data Professionals
February 9th, 2016 by Paul
![]() We are having trouble with remote client changes making it âto/fromâ the remote client during the Synchronization process. Do you have any suggestions for troubleshooting the process? Yes. Many times synchronization issues can be due to configuration settings or permissions. A good place to start is figuring out where the change files are breaking down and working to resolve from there. The following is a procedure for figuring out where the change files are failing to move properly. Sometimes an unexpected reboot of servers can cause issues. How to âfollow the TEFâ from remote to Synchronization server: Remote client Computer tasks ===================== 1. Start on the remote side and already synced up 2. Make sure the remote sync is off and set the Sync Options to not âSend changesâ 3. Have the remote create an account, let’s say âXYZ Corporationâ for generic tracking – Identify the AccountID on the Detail tab – confirm it is saved etc. (F5/Shift-F5) 4. Confirm the TEF file created and review in TRNVIEWER if needed 5. Confirm the size of the file and name and make a copy if needed. (Preferred) C:\Documents and Settings\All Users\Application Data\SalesLogix\Sync\Outfiles C:\ProgramData\SalesLogix\Sync Main Office Computer tasks ===================== 6. Place the synchronization server service on pause or stop (Preferred) – Reset option to âSend changesâ on the Remote client 7. Synchronize the Remote client and send changes to the server 8. Confirm the TEF file transferred to the Infiles (FTP/Network) and review in TRNVIEWER if needed – Confirm the size of the file and name is the same and make a copy if needed – You can sort by sitecode with the file type to filter by the specific user 9. Cycle the synchronization server manually 10. Confirm/make sure that the new account gets to the host in the client application Find the Account and confirm the information by the AccountID on the Detail tab Synchronization Server tasks ===================== 11. Confirm that the Account is being sent to other remotes as appropriate (I.E. Team membership or Account Ownership) – One thought would be to run the synchronization manually and see the new account going to team members – An additional task would be to confirm the account on an additional remote client Remote client Computer tasks (Assuming the Account is received on the remote client) ===================== 12. Create an opportunity for the Account for number 3 step 13. Repeat the steps, for the following of the TEF files (Steps 6 through 10) 14. On the remote, make updates to the account and opportunity 15. Repeat the steps, for the following of the TEF files (Steps 6 through 10) – Use history actions, create activity changes, key fields etc. 16. On the remote, make a change to the Phone Number for the account and the Probability field on the Opportunity 17. Repeat the steps, for the following of the TEF files (Steps 6 through 10) Note: We are looking for symptoms where the TEF files are not being created, moved to another folder, (for example Rejected or Archived), TEF files with errors, sitecode issues, malformed TEF files etc., Keybase issues with a naming mismatch, or missing files waiting for sequence processing during a synchronization of service. All the settings need to be set back to the original settings after testing. — How to use the TEF Viewer ===================== Open SalesLogix Transaction Viewer (Default location is C:\ProgramFiles\SalesLogix\Trnviewer.exe) Log in as the Admin user Click the “Foldername” folder and click Open (you can filter to the specific user by choosing them from the bottom dropdown) Click the TEF in question and click Open Simplesoft can assist with this process by helping to analyze the TEF files with you. If you are requesting help from Simplesoft or Saleslogix/Infor CRM, you will need to compress the following files and send with your request: – syncerrors.txt and log file for the just completed sync from the Host server – syncerrors.txt and syncstatus.txt text files from the Remote client computer and any Saved TEFs on host  (copy of them before they get processed) It takes some time to work through this list. Other testing can be performed as needed. âWe cannot solve our problems with the same level of thinking that created themâ If you would like to discuss upgrading your system, or to see a free demonstration, please contact Simplesoft Solutions. Remember to check our CALENDAR and register for free training, demo sessions, and the Heartland Saleslogix Users Group Events. Comments Off on How to Follow a TEF for Synchronization Review
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