News

News

• December 16, 2015 16 Dec'15

  Box-Salesforce partnership brings ECM features to CRM

  A new partnership will bring the cloud file-sharing capability of Box to Salesforce.

• December 14, 2015 14 Dec'15

  Creating an effective content marketing strategy

  Marketers need to put customer experience at the center of content marketing strategy. Technology and process should take second place.

• December 01, 2015 01 Dec'15

  Salesforce Analytics Cloud still slow to take hold

  Released with much fanfare in 2014, the Salesforce Analytics Cloud has encountered some company successes, but also more tepid response than expected. What's holding it back?

• November 20, 2015 20 Nov'15

  Oracle Marketing Cloud updates mobile capabilities

  Updates to the Oracle Marketing Cloud aim to give marketers and salespeople more mobile customer engagement options, as well as testing capabilities for marketing content.

• November 18, 2015 18 Nov'15

  Salesforce Marketing Cloud now sports predictive analytics tools

  Upgrades to the Marketing Cloud enable marketers to score customer behavior and adjust marketing campaigns to re-engage, or boost interest among, customers.

• Sponsored News

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• November 12, 2015 12 Nov'15

  Oracle announces cloud-based CRM knowledge management

  Oracle expands knowledge management tools for its service cloud; SalesforceIQ for Small Business gets Desk.com customer service integration.

• November 11, 2015 11 Nov'15

  Old-school technology companies getting left behind in cloud disruption?

  Larry Ellison fired a shot across the bow, saying traditional companies like IBM and SAP are no longer competition for Oracle. An expert discusses cloud disruption in this podcast.

• November 06, 2015 06 Nov'15

  Salesforce IoT cloud may already be proving its value

  Microsoft is among the companies trying to use Salesforce IoT cloud and Thunder event processing to turn big data into smart data.

• October 27, 2015 27 Oct'15

  Oracle Marketing Cloud updated, with focus on data

  Oracle's latest updates to its Marketing Cloud are designed to help marketers make better use of data to segment and target customers, as well as manage campaigns more efficiently.

• September 21, 2015 21 Sep'15

  Salesforce Wave can yield results -- when your house is in order

  Getting analytics applications like Salesforce Wave ready to yield insight to adjust business behavior can be challenging. You need to get some foundational issues in place.

• September 21, 2015 21 Sep'15

  Dreamforce 2015 conference coverage

  Salesforce continued to tout products such as Wave and Lightning at Dreamforce 2015 while also introducing users to new ones like its IoT and Health Clouds.

• September 18, 2015 18 Sep'15

  Microsoft-Salesforce partnership paves way for Salesforce IoT Cloud

  The Microsoft-Salesforce partnership, which integrates Lightning with Office 365, is paving the way for a much bigger deal: IoT Cloud.

• September 14, 2015 14 Sep'15

  Will Salesforce Wave Analytics' upgrade be persuasive for users?

  After a year on the market, Salesforce Wave, the BI platform, gets an upgrade. But there are continuing question marks about its value.

• September 04, 2015 04 Sep'15

  Salesforce Lightning strikes with app development for business users

  When Salesforce rolled out its development platform, Salesforce Lightning, it showed promise. But what are the real-world applications of it today?

• September 01, 2015 01 Sep'15

  Salesforce launches Service Cloud Lightning Console on eve of Dreamforce 2015

  With Dreamforce 2015 approaching, Salesforce is applying its new Lightning application to customer service, with the Service Cloud Lightning Console.

• September 01, 2015 01 Sep'15

  FinancialForce project management tool boosts Lexmark's ECM services

  When Lexmark took on FinancialForce to manage its technology services projects, its ability to provide services blossomed

• August 25, 2015 25 Aug'15

  Salesforce launches Lightning Experience

  Salesforce Lightning gets a facelift; Oracle Marketing Cloud buys Maxymiser.

• August 13, 2015 13 Aug'15

  Salesforce Community Cloud adds Buy button for e-commerce options

  In an effort to make sales even easier, Salesforce has incorporated a Buy button into its Community Cloud.

• July 24, 2015 24 Jul'15

  Oracle Sales Cloud update aims to boost sales, efficiency

  Oracle updates its Sales Cloud to increase sales; Infer announces new lead gen product; and Xactly Strategic Services aims to drive workforce management.

• July 17, 2015 17 Jul'15

  CRM in marketing success hinges on emotional connections

  In this book excerpt, consultant David Forbes advocates that companies focus on understanding what motivates consumers when marketing their products.

• July 01, 2015 01 Jul'15

  The death of the mall could spell rise of mobile retail economy

  While malls are dying, lifestyle centers could signal the next chapter for retail -- aided by mobile technologies.

• July 01, 2015 01 Jul'15

  Service for Apps brings in-app support to Salesforce Service Cloud

  Service for Apps allows Salesforce Service Cloud users to embed live agent support and a knowledge base within their applications and other CRM news.

• June 18, 2015 18 Jun'15

  Salesforce releases Wave Analytics Apps and Sales Wave Analytics

  Wave Analytics Apps, the latest offering from Salesforce, makes crunching the numbers easier through tighter integration with Salesforce 1.

• June 17, 2015 17 Jun'15

  Salesforce updates Marketing Cloud with new Journey Builder

  Salesforce has released a new version of the Marketing Cloud, with a spruced-up Journey Builder, enabling marketers to tailor interactions with customers based on real-time behavior.

• June 12, 2015 12 Jun'15

  Customer identity management still thorn in side of e-commerce

  As mobile e-commerce gathers steam, companies are struggling to make it a frictionless reality for customers and pain-free for themselves.

• June 08, 2015 08 Jun'15

  Who will buy? Data-driven sales teams aim to know

  A handful of companies are giving reps analytics tools to chase down promising leads, diagnose sales performance and forecast business opportunities.

• June 04, 2015 04 Jun'15

  Goldmine CRM software wins with desktop as a service

  Goldmine CRM Software turns to desktops as a service (DaaS) model to update existing applications to the cloud, saving itself from irrelevancy in an ever-growing field of competitors.

• May 28, 2015 28 May'15

  Salesforce ties Wave analytics tool to big data platforms

  Salesforce is getting more involved in big data analytics, with new partnerships that open up its cloud-based Wave analytics technology to Hadoop and other big data systems.

• May 22, 2015 22 May'15

  Cloud telephony, omnichannel service main trends at ICMI Expo

  At the ICMI Contact Center Expo, users were interested in how to make their centers more efficient while serving customers in whatever channel they choose.

• May 14, 2015 14 May'15

  Nordstrom mines Beacon benefits in personalized customer service

  Nordstrom is trying to bridge the gap between online and physical shopping experiences for its customers through Beacon technology.

• May 11, 2015 11 May'15

  Contact center analytics still an afterthought for many

  Analytics tools have been incorporated into various enterprise departments. So why are contact center analytics still considered novel rather than vital?

• May 08, 2015 08 May'15

  Entrepreneur takes road less traveled in technology-driven business

  Ken Kelly didn't plan on taking over his father's company. But a few classes in Microsoft Office paved the way to a multimillion-dollar small business.

• May 07, 2015 07 May'15

  When startup success is built on startup failure

  A startup that launched to great fanfare and venture capital attention started to crumble less than two years later. How did the CEO pick up the pieces?

• April 30, 2015 30 Apr'15

  Adaptive expands CPM offer; Salesforce in HCM market

  Adaptive Insights offers new templates for corporate goals, sales and finance; fast integration with Salesforce for analytics.

• April 30, 2015 30 Apr'15

  Could Oracle, Microsoft, or IBM buy Salesforce?

  Only a few companies could afford to buy Salesforce.com. Is a buyout on the horizon, though?

• April 17, 2015 17 Apr'15

  Customer self-service a must-have for Oracle Collaborate attendees

  Companies now see online self-service options as a must-have for customer experience strategy.

• April 13, 2015 13 Apr'15

  Microsoft Convergence focuses on analytics, cloud

  Microsoft Convergence attendees explored the new cloud-based Power BI analytics tool at the conference.

• April 13, 2015 13 Apr'15

  Salesforce aims to increase number of Salesforce consultants, SIs

  In this Q&A, Salesforce channel chiefs Tyler Prince and Neeracha Taychakhoonavudh reveal the vendor's strategy for growing its consultants/system integrator channel.

• April 08, 2015 08 Apr'15

  Bouquet Training hones contact center agent skills

  Bouquet Training, a module in the Bouquet CDM platform, enables managers to customize contact center agent training courses based on customer feedback.

• April 01, 2015 01 Apr'15

  New digital marketing trends for 2015 emerge with full force

  Companies are enlisting a variety of data, such as consumer location and demographics to join digital marketing with in-store, physical experiences.

• March 24, 2015 24 Mar'15

  Has Microsoft cloud strategy evolved?

  Microsoft is trying to lead customers to the cloud with hybrid offerings, such as Microsoft Dynamics CRM. But will that succeed?

• March 19, 2015 19 Mar'15

  Philadelphia chief customer service officer honed skills in private sector

  To clean up Philadelphia, Rosetta Lue uses technology to be responsive to citizens -- and customer experience principles to treat residents like VIPs.

• March 11, 2015 11 Mar'15

  Pet supply company furthers multichannel strategy by moving to cloud

  Pet Supplies Plus needed to consolidate a handful of legacy systems and move to the cloud to better serve its customers in a multichannel fashion.

• March 09, 2015 09 Mar'15

  Personalized marketing and customer trust go hand in hand

  Marketers strive to provide personalized experiences to their customers. But customers will only reveal personal information in exchange for trust.

• March 03, 2015 03 Mar'15

  Security is a sticking point for mobile payment adoption

  Companies jumping on the mobile payment bandwagon need to tread carefully as consumers are still skeptical about the security of their data.

• March 02, 2015 02 Mar'15

  Cultivate art and science in your sales management strategy

  Mark Roberge, chief revenue officer at HubSpot, uses serious data analysis when hiring sales staff. But science doesn't crowd out instinct.

• March 02, 2015 02 Mar'15

  Contact center knowledge management gives agents clickable intel

  Contact center agents are supposed to help customers with issue resolution. But that's tough when agents lack good working knowledge of products.

• March 02, 2015 02 Mar'15

  Mobile customer service gives citizens a voice with government

  Philly 311, a new mobile customer service app for the city of Philadelphia, helps citizens report neighborhood incidents and engage more deeply with city government.

• February 10, 2015 10 Feb'15

  Customer data becomes the turf for companies' competitive advantage

  Corporations are using customer data to gain a competitive edge in the market, but new analytics technologies pose privacy downsides.

• February 06, 2015 06 Feb'15

  Salesforce Partner Program for Consulting Partners redesigned

  In channel news this week, Salesforce made changes to its partner program for consultants; Infinio launched its first partner program; Kaminario updated the Accelerate Partner Program; and more.

• January 20, 2015 20 Jan'15

  Sales management strategies: Leading from the trenches

  Russ Hearl built a sales team from three 'lone wolves' to a fleet of 40-plus reps. How? By taking a Henry Ford approach to sales management strategy.

• January 13, 2015 13 Jan'15

  Adobe Campaign pushes consumer personalization further

  Adobe Campaign, the marketing automation tool in the Adobe Marketing Cloud suite, enables companies to use customer data to tailor marketing efforts.

• January 12, 2015 12 Jan'15

  Customer personalization now part of closing the deal

  Companies want to use data to personalize customer interaction and boost sales. But data silos have left some adrift.

• January 08, 2015 08 Jan'15

  Social engagement opportunities about more than selling

  In this book excerpt, thought leader and author David Giannetto discusses ways companies can cost-effectively identify and gain customers.

• October 14, 2014 14 Oct'14

  Digital transaction management: The 'last mile' in paperless business

  Companies often regress to paper processes because they aren't ready to digitize the 'last mile' of signature. Enter digital transaction management.

• May 15, 2012 15 May'12

  Call center agents’ behavior should be focus -- not clunky metrics

  A consultant at the recent ACCE call center expo urged call centers to drop the glut of performance metrics and favor a human approach.

• May 02, 2012 02 May'12

  IBM’s plans are in Tealeaf with purchase of CEM analytics firm

  IBM is strengthening its CRM footing with the acquisition of Tealeaf Technology.

• April 02, 2012 02 Apr'12

  Gartner: Companies must master Master Data Management best practices

  Companies should put aside internal differences to get handle on MDM, a Gartner researcher says at the group’s CRM conference.

• March 29, 2012 29 Mar'12

  Cross-channel communication CEM support: A work in progress

  Industry experts say companies need to step up plans for cross-channel customer service or risk damaging customer experience management strategies.

• January 05, 2012 05 Jan'12

  Employee focus transforms customer experience management strategies

  CEM initiatives suffer when employees can’t provide their perspectives on customer concerns.

• January 03, 2012 03 Jan'12

  Planning and allocating resources for customer experience management

  Customer experience management (CEM) crosses multiple departments and IT systems. How should organizations tackle the enormous task of mapping out a CEM transformation?

• November 29, 2011 29 Nov'11

  Customer experience analytics: Separating hype from fact

  SearchCRM expert Donna Fluss compares the latest types of customer experience analytics applications.

• September 28, 2011 28 Sep'11

  Experts say CEM technology can build single view of customer

  Communicating with customers through multiple channels is not a luxury, it’s a necessity. Find out how companies use CEM technology to craft a single view of the customer across channels.

• July 11, 2011 11 Jul'11

  Red Cross boosts donor relationships with new CRM system

  The American Red Cross hopes to infuse new life into its donor marketing program with an overhaul of its CRM and call center operations.

• July 05, 2011 05 Jul'11

  Front-office technologies in CRM: the new rule of three

  Technology has come to the front office in more ways than one. In fact, three front-office technologies -- social media, analytics and video -- are reshaping the landscape.

• March 22, 2011 22 Mar'11

  PCI DSS offers call center PCI compliance tips

  The payment card industry compliance standards body has released a new document to help contact centers protect sensitive customer data.

• August 26, 2010 26 Aug'10

  Running customer service on Facebook takes tools and training

  Rosetta Stone has launched a program to use Facebook as a customer service channel. It’s all part of a company-wide initiative to be more social.

• April 26, 2010 26 Apr'10

  Switching your focus from B2B to B2C with social media and CRM

  Getting the word out to your customers isn’t just a matter of buying simple advertising anymore -- it’s about engaging with them socially. Denis Pombriant explains the ideas behind this new trend.

• January 27, 2010 27 Jan'10

  10 steps to a practical social media business strategy

  Leveraging social media is an increasingly important -- and rewarding -- project, but it takes careful planning. Columnist Allen Bonde explains.

• January 18, 2010 18 Jan'10

  SAP demos new Twitter integration

  Like many in the CRM market, SAP is seeking to tie emerging social media networks into its CRM software. In this video demonstration, SAP shows off its Twitter integration.

• December 14, 2009 14 Dec'09

  The five dimensions of a social media persona

  Taking a "persona" view toward social media channels can help marketers build campaigns and craft the right tone for their message.

• November 10, 2009 10 Nov'09

  Social media and CRM -- The marketing perspective

  In his first article evaluating the marketing side of social CRM, Allen Bonde offers up some definitions and a framework for discussion.

• October 20, 2009 20 Oct'09

  Siemens’ long journey to CRM: Custom to SAP to Oracle and more

  At one point, Siemens had 500 CRM systems across the company. It has tried custom development, SAP and now Oracle CRM in an attempt to standardize.

• June 10, 2009 10 Jun'09

  Using Web 2.0 technology to build customer loyalty

  Web 2.0 technologies are changing the way companies build customer loyalty and customer satisfaction. In this podcast, Don Peppers talks about Web 2.0 technology must-haves, how to use social networks to improve customer satisfaction and how ...

• May 14, 2009 14 May'09

  New SAP CRM ordering system helps Coke roll out new dispenser

  A new beverage dispenser designed to revolutionize Coke's distribution system demanded a new way for the soda giant to service customers.

• September 08, 2008 08 Sep'08

  Gartner: Measuring the customer experience takes more than one metric

  At its annual CRM Summit, Gartner detailed seven projects that will improve the customer experience.

• May 05, 2008 05 May'08

  The ROI of speech analytics for the call center

  Because speech analytics is new and relatively unknown both within the call center and across the enterprise, it can be perceived as a risky investment. But early adopters have found that speech analytics has a rapid three- to 12-month payback, high...

• March 25, 2008 25 Mar'08

  Designing a call center metrics strategy

  In this podcast, get advice from Lori Bocklund and Steve Suhn of Strategic Contact on the top 10 metrics to consider in the call center.

• March 21, 2008 21 Mar'08

  Understanding call center schedule adherence

  Learn how call center schedule adherence should be measured in this podcast and discover why it is important for call center scheduling and staffing.

• March 21, 2008 21 Mar'08

  Understanding blocking rate for the call center

  In this brief podcast, hear a definition of blocking rate in the call center and learn how to incorporate this metric into your call center strategy.

• January 22, 2008 22 Jan'08

  Creating Customer Value: A series with Peppers and Rogers

  Customer strategists Don Peppers and Martha Rogers offer expert advice in these podcasts. Listen on your computer or download for quick tips on long-term and short-term customer equity and building trust with customer strategy.

• October 08, 2007 08 Oct'07

  Call center centralization vs. decentralization analytic framework

  Call center centralization can be cost-effective for centers of a certain size. In her latest column, Donna Fluss outlines a framework for call center managers who are considering call center consolidation.

• May 07, 2007 07 May'07

  Managing remote call center agents: 14 best practices

  Many organizations are embracing the concept of remote call center agents, but the most significant concern is how to manage these agents without personal contact from the call center supervisor. In her latest column, Donna Fluss outlines best ...

• April 26, 2007 26 Apr'07

  Improving the customer experience: Call centers making an emotional connection

  Call centers are seeking to improve the customer experience by identifying and measuring customer emotions. Call center agent training and carefully crafted customer surveys can improve the emotional connection with customers, but the business is ...

• April 12, 2007 12 Apr'07

  Single-instance or multiple-instance CRM deployment -- Which is right for you?

  Microsoft is planning to offer on-site, multi-tenant CRM hosting, and Gartner is predicting that companies will move between single- and multiple-instance CRM architectures.

• January 03, 2007 03 Jan'07

  CRM success relies on managing a project post-implementation

  CRM managers need to monitor and steer a CRM project after the implementation to ensure success, according to Gartner.

• November 09, 2006 09 Nov'06

  Call center agents -- six simple steps to help motivation

  Managers can keep agents motivated by starting off right with hiring, putting trust in agents and sharing budget concerns with call center workers.

• August 04, 2005 04 Aug'05

  SSA Global buys into CRM with Epiphany acquisition

  SSA Global will initially focus on selling Epiphany CRM to its existing customer base and that could spell bad news for Epiphany customers, according to one analyst.

• July 12, 2005 12 Jul'05

  Chrysler gives self-service a tune-up

  A self-service portal helps technicians for the automotive giant solve problems themselves before calling for support.

• May 23, 2005 23 May'05

  Philips keeps reins on CRM

  When venturing into direct-to-consumer online sales, an SAP CRM project threatened to spin out of control, but a focus on goals led to success.

• December 30, 2004 30 Dec'04

  The principles of performance management

  Performance management is more than just monitoring employees or technology -- it's about a culture of "continuous improvement."

• December 01, 2004 01 Dec'04

  Three requirements in a data consolidation project

  Data consolidation is moving slowly despite the clear benefits. A successful project requires three main ingredients -- a CEO mandate, enterprise-wide commitment and an investment of time and money.

• September 23, 2004 23 Sep'04

  Partnering with the proper PRM provider

  A successful PRM initiative requires tools that your partners want to use and business processes that are aligned with their needs.

• June 23, 2004 23 Jun'04

  At long last, Salesforce.com goes public

  After a delay, Salesforce.com debuted on the New York Stock Exchange this morning. The move is expected to bolster the hosted model and investment in high tech.

• April 14, 2004 14 Apr'04

  FedEx delivers CRM

  After several acquisitions and continued growth, the shipping giant absolutely, positively needed a better way to listen to its customers.

• January 28, 2004 28 Jan'04

  What you should know about RFID and CRM

  Vendors like SAP are touting the potential benefits of integrating RFID with CRM initiatives. But are any visionaries turning that talk into action?

• November 21, 2003 21 Nov'03

  Six degrees of sales separation

  New social-networking applications designed to close deals are based on the premise that every salesperson has a Kevin Bacon or two in their lives, but just need help finding them.

• November 11, 2003 11 Nov'03

  The top 20 call center performance measures

  This article will examine the "top twenty" performance measures commonly associated with personnel and the processes in today's multi-channel center.

• November 03, 2003 03 Nov'03

  Siebel, IBM deliver room service to Marriott

  The new software designed to help Marriott manage bookings will eventually roll out to others in the hospitality industry as part of Siebel 7.7.

• July 18, 2003 18 Jul'03

  PeopleSoft completes J.D. Edwards acquisition

  This morning PeopleSoft completed its acquisition of J.D. Edwards, throwing another wrench in Oracle's takeover plans.