White Paper - Web based CRM, Web Hosted SFA

ContactAdministrator.com Sales Force Automation (SFA) and Customer Relationship Management (CRM) White Paper The management team of Contact Administrator began developing automated lead and customer relationship management systems for “Fortune” type clients in 1988. The early versions of what we now call Contact Administrator began with the idea of “systematizing the selling process” and creating the ultimate “expert system” that integrated the best skills and processes used by successful sales people to effectively open, close, and service prospects and customers.

In the beginning, the need for systematizing the selling process was apparent to even the most traditional minded sales executive who knew, by experience, that a sales force is comprised not only of sales “superstars” who can effectively manage all aspects of the selling process (opening, closing, servicing), but also of more moderately skilled sales people who have a proficiency in only one or two areas of the process.

To be sure, sales superstars do exist but even their success is limited by their ability to continue to fully implement the entire selling process, over time. After all, it is hard to open new accounts, if you have to spend all of your time servicing existing accounts. Conversely, it’s harder still for “service” skilled reps to service clients that they are not able to open or close. And let’s not forget about sales “opener” skilled reps trying to continue the process into closing and servicing.

These are age old sales management and sales rep dilemmas, and they always lead to the same avoidable results: salespeople moving from one company to another because they can’t find the right fit for their skills within the organization; commission maxed superstars either being promoted out of the process or becoming frustrated and leaving in search of “greener” pastures; and also, the ultimate failure, sales reps being terminated for poor performance. All the while, prospects and clients were being lost to competitors, and it was all due to correctable skill and time mismanagement problems.

Yes, the need for a systematized solution for the effective management of prospects and clients was obvious to even the most traditional minded sales manager.

Although the early systems were initially developed only with a “sales” focus - qualifying and distributing leads to sales reps for follow-up and reporting to final disposition - it soon became apparent that this new “closed-loop” approach to managing prospects and customer was capable of providing everyone in the organization with much more than initially envisioned.

The systematized approach was a treasure trove of information that could be used to increase the productivity and success of executives and managers of every department in the organization. Management now had daily reports that could tell them the current state of not only their own department but also provide every other department with pertinent information; sales, marketing, customer service, accounting, human resources, and operations. So, it was only a matter of time until the system was expanded to include use by every executive and manager in the organization, then their staffs, and then every employee who “touched” a prospect or client – our current CRM solution, Contact Administrator.

Today, there are many competitors of Contact Administrator on the market having, more or less, the same basic features and benefits. And, why wouldn’t these systems all be similar? We’re not talking rocket science here, right? Yes, but those of us who were there at the beginning of the process had a vision of where these systems might eventually evolve and, guess what, our competitors haven’t gone there yet. And guess what else…we believe that Contact Administrator is going to be the first one to get there.

Amazingly, years after the development of the initial automated processes for the effective management of prospects and clients and CRM, Contact Administrator competitors do not yet have a workable methodology for handling even the most basic dilemmas of the sales management process….but Contact Administrator has found such a methodology, and there is a lot more to come!

Here is just one example the Contact Administrator advantage…

In addition to all of the bells and whistles offered by other CRM system, Contact Administrator also predicts what sales opportunities will eventually turn into closed sales…before the lead is even allocated to a sales person. That’s right! The system has a proprietary three level process that collects information from prospective customers and calculates the probability that the lead will turn into a sale, based upon unique strategic criteria…and it does it automatically. The “Predictor” can even select and allocate the opportunity to the sales person who is most likely to close the deal.

So, what does this sales “Predictor” capability mean to our clients?

Leads can now be allocated to Reps on a “Success Maximized” basis

No need to rely solely on sales rep “guesstimates” for forecasting

Lead Sources can be automatically tracked by quality, not just quantity

Marketing messages can be tested and proven based upon actual and verifiable results

Human and Monetary Resources can now be evaluated, allocated and justified on an objective and quantifiable basis

The following is a listing of some additional features that provide Contact Administrator with an advantage over our competitors:

Proprietary “Forms Wizard” allowing development of an unlimited number of forms and data fields/qualifying questions and answer fields for each product or service offered

Easy Import and Export of User and Project Information to and from Existing System(s)

Ability to manage not only Contacts but also Opportunities that contain Project criteria

Automatic distribution of leads to salespeople based upon unlimited qualifying criteria

Source to Current Date Tracking of Every Sales and Customer Service Interaction

Automatic "Tickler" Emails to Sale Channel Reps to Perform Scheduled Actions

Instant Access to Important Rep Channel Activity Schedules

Easy Access to Comprehensive Analytic Reports

Easy Storage and Access to Project Proposals, Documents, and Invoices

Electronic Delivery and Record of Actual Invoices Sent and Payments Received

Automatic Calculation of Sales Channel Forecasts

Automatic and "Current Date" Status of Actual Sales Channel Achievements

Internal Email System Linking and Tracking Users Activities on a Project Specific Basis

Administrator Email Broadcasts to Specific User Groups or Individual Users

System Log to Indicate Who, What, When, Where and Why of User Usage

User Access to Information is provided on a "Need to Know" basis to in-house staff (Executives, Managers, Customer Service, Rep Channels, Accounting) and even customers

And these features provide only a hint of what is to come. Stay tuned for more.

In the meantime, feel free to contact Tom Scullin, at 610-594-2218, to learn more about the “Predictor” and other proprietary features of Contact Administrator.





.....Past, Present, and Future


Contact Administrator - Web Hosted CRM SFA can easily import customer and contact data directly from your existing applications. With Contact Administrator, you can access all your critical data from any computer at any time. Reload this page for more facts. Contact Administrator takes the security of your data seriously. Download our Security Datasheet. Special Feature Highlight: CRM Sense SFA Specialty Mortgage CRM Specialty		ContactAdministrator.com Sales Force Automation (SFA) and Customer Relationship Management (CRM) White Paper The management team of Contact Administrator began developing automated lead and customer relationship management systems for “Fortune” type clients in 1988. The early versions of what we now call Contact Administrator began with the idea of “systematizing the selling process” and creating the ultimate “expert system” that integrated the best skills and processes used by successful sales people to effectively open, close, and service prospects and customers. In the beginning, the need for systematizing the selling process was apparent to even the most traditional minded sales executive who knew, by experience, that a sales force is comprised not only of sales “superstars” who can effectively manage all aspects of the selling process (opening, closing, servicing), but also of more moderately skilled sales people who have a proficiency in only one or two areas of the process. To be sure, sales superstars do exist but even their success is limited by their ability to continue to fully implement the entire selling process, over time. After all, it is hard to open new accounts, if you have to spend all of your time servicing existing accounts. Conversely, it’s harder still for “service” skilled reps to service clients that they are not able to open or close. And let’s not forget about sales “opener” skilled reps trying to continue the process into closing and servicing. These are age old sales management and sales rep dilemmas, and they always lead to the same avoidable results: salespeople moving from one company to another because they can’t find the right fit for their skills within the organization; commission maxed superstars either being promoted out of the process or becoming frustrated and leaving in search of “greener” pastures; and also, the ultimate failure, sales reps being terminated for poor performance. All the while, prospects and clients were being lost to competitors, and it was all due to correctable skill and time mismanagement problems. Yes, the need for a systematized solution for the effective management of prospects and clients was obvious to even the most traditional minded sales manager. Although the early systems were initially developed only with a “sales” focus - qualifying and distributing leads to sales reps for follow-up and reporting to final disposition - it soon became apparent that this new “closed-loop” approach to managing prospects and customer was capable of providing everyone in the organization with much more than initially envisioned. The systematized approach was a treasure trove of information that could be used to increase the productivity and success of executives and managers of every department in the organization. Management now had daily reports that could tell them the current state of not only their own department but also provide every other department with pertinent information; sales, marketing, customer service, accounting, human resources, and operations. So, it was only a matter of time until the system was expanded to include use by every executive and manager in the organization, then their staffs, and then every employee who “touched” a prospect or client – our current CRM solution, Contact Administrator. Today, there are many competitors of Contact Administrator on the market having, more or less, the same basic features and benefits. And, why wouldn’t these systems all be similar? We’re not talking rocket science here, right? Yes, but those of us who were there at the beginning of the process had a vision of where these systems might eventually evolve and, guess what, our competitors haven’t gone there yet. And guess what else…we believe that Contact Administrator is going to be the first one to get there. Amazingly, years after the development of the initial automated processes for the effective management of prospects and clients and CRM, Contact Administrator competitors do not yet have a workable methodology for handling even the most basic dilemmas of the sales management process….but Contact Administrator has found such a methodology, and there is a lot more to come! Here is just one example the Contact Administrator advantage… In addition to all of the bells and whistles offered by other CRM system, Contact Administrator also predicts what sales opportunities will eventually turn into closed sales…before the lead is even allocated to a sales person. That’s right! The system has a proprietary three level process that collects information from prospective customers and calculates the probability that the lead will turn into a sale, based upon unique strategic criteria…and it does it automatically. The “Predictor” can even select and allocate the opportunity to the sales person who is most likely to close the deal. So, what does this sales “Predictor” capability mean to our clients? Leads can now be allocated to Reps on a “Success Maximized” basis No need to rely solely on sales rep “guesstimates” for forecasting Lead Sources can be automatically tracked by quality, not just quantity Marketing messages can be tested and proven based upon actual and verifiable results Human and Monetary Resources can now be evaluated, allocated and justified on an objective and quantifiable basis The following is a listing of some additional features that provide Contact Administrator with an advantage over our competitors: Proprietary “Forms Wizard” allowing development of an unlimited number of forms and data fields/qualifying questions and answer fields for each product or service offered Easy Import and Export of User and Project Information to and from Existing System(s) Ability to manage not only Contacts but also Opportunities that contain Project criteria Automatic distribution of leads to salespeople based upon unlimited qualifying criteria Source to Current Date Tracking of Every Sales and Customer Service Interaction Automatic "Tickler" Emails to Sale Channel Reps to Perform Scheduled Actions Instant Access to Important Rep Channel Activity Schedules Easy Access to Comprehensive Analytic Reports Easy Storage and Access to Project Proposals, Documents, and Invoices Electronic Delivery and Record of Actual Invoices Sent and Payments Received Automatic Calculation of Sales Channel Forecasts Automatic and "Current Date" Status of Actual Sales Channel Achievements Internal Email System Linking and Tracking Users Activities on a Project Specific Basis Administrator Email Broadcasts to Specific User Groups or Individual Users System Log to Indicate Who, What, When, Where and Why of User Usage User Access to Information is provided on a "Need to Know" basis to in-house staff (Executives, Managers, Customer Service, Rep Channels, Accounting) and even customers And these features provide only a hint of what is to come. Stay tuned for more. In the meantime, feel free to contact Tom Scullin, at 610-594-2218, to learn more about the “Predictor” and other proprietary features of Contact Administrator.
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