Commence CRM – The Perfect CRM Solution for the Middle Market

Posted by Commence on April 14, 2011 under CEO Corner | 8 Comments to Read

For more than two decades Commence Corporation has been providing high quality affordable CRM software for mid-size companies and small enterprises. While certainly not a household name like Salesforce.com CRM or Microsoft Dynamics CRM, Commence CRM is utilized by several thousand companies serving more than 30 industries in 22 countries around the world. Commence Corporation’s success is driven by pinpoint product positioning and by delivering a top rated CRM solution at an attractive cost.

Commence is cleverly positioned as the CRM solution for companies that require more than basic contact management and sales automation and forecasting functionality, but not the cost and complexity of enterprise level CRM product offerings. Commence CRM offers a well designed user interface which makes the product extremely intuitive and easy to use.

Commence CRM is a true middle market CRM solution. In addition to the basic contact management and sales automation and forecasting features provided by low-end small business solutions, Commence offers a level of functionality traditionally only found in enterprise level products such as: lead management, activity management, marketing campaign management, a document library, project management, a help desk solution with a knowledgebase, FAQ and customer portal, an accounting interface, analytical reporting and integration with most popular mobile devices. The full set of CRM application modules rivals that of Salesforce CRM at a fraction of the cost. “We simply have a better, easier to use and less costly alternative for the middle market” says Larry Caretsky, president of Commence Corporation. “Those that look at our CRM product offering quickly agree.”

Commence CRM is offered as a cloud CRM solution or an on-premise CRM program and lists Salesforce.com and Microsoft Dynamics CRM as its major competitors. For more information about Commence CRM for the middle market, visit the company’s web site at Commence.com.

Commence Announces New Product Release with Year End Celebration

Posted by Commence on December 30, 2010 under Commence News | Be the First to Comment

Tinton Falls, N.J. December 30, 2010 — Commence Corporation a leading provider of Customer Relationship Management software for the mid-market is doing a bit of celebrating to end the 2010 fiscal year.  The company has recorded a record number of new customers and just completed the release of a new version of their cloud based CRM product that incorporates a Project Management application and a Customer Service portal.

“The new applications add significant value for our customers” said Larry Caretsky, President of Commence Corporation “ and continue to differentiate Commence in a very crowded market.  The Project Management solution is designed to enable project managers to properly assign resources, manage project delivery dates, stay within budget and address issues before they become a significant concern and impact deliverables. The integration of this information with all other CRM data provides authorized personnel with complete access to full account, contact and project information.”

“The Customer Service Portal is all about enabling our customers to provide customer self service to their customers by allowing customers to update their profile, check the status of a service ticket or access the company’s knowledgebase for information anytime and anywhere.   This capability significantly enhances the quality of service Commence customers can offer to their customers and should give them a leg up on their competition”.

The company concluded the year with a company luncheon that included several international dishes followed by a highly competitive miniature golf tournament inside the company’s corporate headquarters in New Jersey.  “We don’t have the luxury of going outside this time of the year” says Caretsky, “so we had the course set up inside our offices.  We also offered prize money for first, second and third place which made the tournament highly competitive.”

About Commence:

Founded in 1988, Commence develops and delivers a diverse suite of award-winning CRM solutions that integrate people, processes and technology.  Delivered via the popular software as a service (SaaS) model or implemented as on premise software, Commence CRM solutions are used by thousands of businesses to streamline sales and customer service front-end business processes. As a result, Commence clients increase workforce productivity, generate positive customer interactions and reduce operating cost.  More information about Commence can be accessed at www.commence.com or by calling Commence sales at 1-877-COMMENCE.

Media Contact:
Nicole Reed
info@commence.com

CRM Software Selection Made Easy

Posted by Commence on September 29, 2010 under CEO Corner | 4 Comments to Read

Selecting a CRM software solution can be a daunting exercise, but this quick breakdown may help to pave the path for your evaluation and selection.  CRM solutions generally come in three flavors and with two deployment options.

There are quite a few Basic small business CRM applications, or what I like to refer to as productivity tools. There are Mid-market CRM solutions and Enterprise level CRM systems.  Vendors traditionally offer their CRM solutions as either web based under the Software as a Service (SaaS) model where you pay a monthly fee, or on premise.  A few now offer both deployment models.

Basic CRM software

These programs were at one time called contact managers and are generally designed to be productivity tools.  They provide the ability to manage your contacts and accounts, your calendar, e-mail, notes, history and even create a sales forecast. In addition, they also traditionally include a mail merge feature that allows you to quickly produce letters and merge the name and address fields.  Many also enable integration with popular mobile devices like the BlackBerry, iPhone and the new Droid via a synchronization program that resides on your PC.

Designed primarily for the small office, home office market (SOHO) these are affordable and worthwhile companions for businesses with limited requirements.  The downside to these applications is that they are traditionally sold as out of the box or ready to use crm solutions that are not scalable and are limited with regard to customization.

Mid-market CRM software

Mid-market CRM software takes contact management to the next level and has a strong focus on automating the sales process. They offer a robust set of functionality for lead qualification, lead management, opportunity management, pipeline management, sales activity management and sales forecasting.  Sales reporting is also very good, with both text based reports and analytics on sales activity and sales performance.  Many now also offer marketing management applications that enable marketing professionals to create pre-scheduled direct mail and e-mail marketing campaigns targeted at a specific group of companies or people.  The sales and marketing functionality is fully integrated with the contact management software allowing you to capture, track, manage and share vital customer and prospect information with the people and departments that require it to efficiently do their jobs.  The strength of mid-market CRM systems is their ability to fully integrate information from multiple departments therefore providing all authorized employees with a 360 degree profile of customer and prospect information.  Some mid-market programs also include a help desk or customer service tickets application.  Adding service history to the customer contact and sales data can play a vital role in improving sales execution and customer service.

The mid-market CRM software space is highly competitive. What separates many of the products from each other is their ability to integrate with disparate systems such as accounting and ERP systems, the ability to customize the applications, mobile support and the experience level of the vendor’s implementation and service staff.  Unlike basic low cost CRM software packages, many of these products are quite comprehensive and require a commitment from sales management and the proper training in order to realize the value they can bring to your business.

Enterprise CRM software

Enterprise CRM systems cover much of the functionality mentioned above, but are designed to support large numbers of users. The programs are quite comprehensive and offer a deeper level of sales, marketing and customer service functionality.   They may offer multiple sales processes for example, one for customers and one for prospects, security permissions down to the field level and the ability to manage high transaction levels.  Project management functionality is often found in enterprise level systems along with integration to social networking sites.  These systems are also highly customizable and offer (APIs) Application Programming Interfaces that enable the integration of a large array of disparate systems. Enterprise CRM software also traditionally supports multiple languages and multiple currencies making them ideal for large companies that operate globally.

If you are a large Fortune 1000 company with requirements for multi-language and multi-currency support your choice will become very clear as there are a limited number of quality vendors to choose from.  If you’re a small to mid-size company the choices are so numerous that it’s difficult to differentiate one from another.   You may want to review my free report, Don’t Make a CRM Buying Mistake, 7 points to Consider Before Selecting Your CRM Solution.

About the author: Larry Caretsky is the President and CEO of Commence Corporation, a leading provider of web based and on premise CRM software for small to mid-size businesses. Caretsky is considered an expert in the subject of CRM and has written several white papers on the subject. They may be accessed via the company’s web site at www.commence.com. Commence supports several thousand customers in more than 22 countries around the world and has outlets in North and South America, Europe and Asia.

Commence CRM Offers Solution for Stranded Goldmine Customers

Posted by Commence on February 4, 2010 under Commence News | 2 Comments to Read

February 4, 2010 - Commence Corporation has announced a competitive upgrade program for small businesses currently using the Goldmine contact management software.  More than a year ago FrontRange announced that they would no longer be enhancing their standard contact manager product, leaving many small and mid-size businesses with the option to migrate to the company’s more expensive product or seek an alternative solution.

“Many of these businesses have simply stayed put and have continued to utilize discontinued versions of the Goldmine software”, said Nicole Reed, Customer Manager at Commence Corporation, “but with the release of the Microsoft Windows 7 operating system, these older versions will no longer work. This has generated a number of calls to Commence Corporation from Goldmine customers seeking a migration path to newer, supported CRM software.”

Commence offers a robust contact manager along with a suite of CRM software applications for managing sales, marketing and customer support. The Customer Management software is available for deployment on-premise or hosted under a “software as a service” or SaaS model.  Commence also supports the Microsoft Vista and Windows 7 operating systems along with the upcoming Microsoft Office 2010 software.

Larry Caretsky, president of Commence Corporation, welcomes the addition of these customers. “Commence has been servicing SME businesses  for twenty years,” noted Caretsky. “A good portion of our business comes from companies that have outgrown traditional contact management software such as Sage ACT software and Goldmine software. These companies need more then a simple contact manager, but not the cost and complexity of enterprise CRM software. We are positioned right in the middle of the two, which has served our business very well over the years. Our CRM solution is comprehensive yet intuitive and affordable, and can be deployed over the Internet,” says Caretsky.

About Commence Corporation:

Commence Corporation is a leading provider of Customer Manager software. The company’s products are designed to provide small to mid-size businesses with flexible solutions that leverage the Web to offer an integrated platform for managing sales execution and customer service. Commence supports several thousand customers through a worldwide distribution network, with outlets in North and South America, Europe and Asia. For more information see www.commence.com or call 1-877-COMMENCE.

CRM for the Big at Heart

Posted by Commence on February 3, 2010 under CEO Corner | 3 Comments to Read

Commence Corporation helps small to midsize businesses tackle the CRM challenge

Picking a CRM software vendor is tough. It’s even tougher when you’re part of the small to midsize market, where technology budgets are limited and horror stories of complex, drawn-out CRM projects abound. While the watchword of midmarket CRM buyers was once something akin to the President’s “irrational exuberance,” today it is “caution,” as companies demand solutions that are affordable, easy to implement and easy to use and that deliver a quick return on investment.

“The CRM industry has been plagued by vendors offering overly complex solutions to solve basic business problems. This has resulted in a low adoption rate and failed customer expectations,” says Larry Caretsky, president and CEO of Commence Corporation. “The concern for most businesses today is not a lack of technology, but rather how they can leverage technology to improve their internal processes and, ultimately, their bottom line.”

Caretsky should know. His company has been in business for 22 years and has witnessed all the trends in customer relationship management. And with that kind of experience, Caretsky figured out long ago that rapidly deployable, cost-effective CRM solutions – even when they weren’t in vogue – were the only way for customers to quickly and affordably reap the benefits of their investment.

Commence Corporation has taken a unique approach to meeting the key objectives of most small to midsize businesses – namely, by streamlining internal business processes, improving sales processes and delighting customers. The company starts with the fundamental knowledge that most mid-market customers must first address the problem of data capture, data consolidation and data sharing.

Typically, vital customer information is spread throughout these organizations in contact management software, back office systems and Excel spreadsheets. “Employees spend a significant amount of time trying to determine where or who in the organization has the information they need to address customer inquiries,” says Caretsky. “Management recognizes this problem and realizes that in order to increase sales and become a more efficient sales and service organization they must get the right information into the hands of the right people, at the right time.”

The Commence CRM software does just that. Customer information, captured from multiple channels, is stored in a unified database where it is immediately available to all authorized personnel through two product features: a digital dashboard and a multiview capability. “This enables them to be constantly aware of account activity and take proactive steps to ensure customer satisfaction,” says Caretsky.

At the same time, Commence helps companies increase sales using a sales process template that is built into the system. Preset sales stages allow the sales team to begin classifying new sales opportunities from the beginning. The product also offers sales teams the ability to utilize a structured sales methodology for lead scoring and evaluating each sales opportunity. And it helps make sales reps more productive by providing a tool to automate routine tasks. “It’s like having an administrative assistant working directly for you,” says Caretsky.

Building brand recognition via the use of direct mail and email marketing campaigns is also incorporated in Commence CRM as a component of the marketing software module. By scheduling repetitive marketing campaigns small to mid-size businesses can be assured that their company, product or service is in front of prospective buyers at all times.

“Today’s basis for business growth is the successful management of long-term relationships with customers on a one-to-one level,” says Caretsky. “When the customer becomes the center of your business, customer-centric strategies, processes and technology solutions can unlock the value of these relationships.”

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