Archive pour la catégorie : Townsend Tips

One of the most common requests we receive from new customers during implementation is “How do I get my data into my BPA CRM Application?” We love this question because it allows us to demonstrate BPA’s powerful, easy to use framework, seamlessly integrated with your out-of-the-box SharePoint features and functionality. By using the datasheet view, we can easily import your information into your CRM application. I will demonstrate the process by walking through the basic steps of importing your information.

Usually, the first step in any implementation is to gather all of your business critical information and prepare it for import into your new CRM tool. Data you may want to import could include accounts, contacts, products, or any other spreadsheet of information important to your business. Once the data has been collected and cleaned, it is time to import!

The first step is to take advantage of our intuitive, carefully designed templates. You can now begin to match up columns from your spreadsheet to the columns currently in our SharePoint list. Let’s say you’re going to import your Accounts first. You can compare the columns to the BPA CRM applications Account list. Many of the fields you need will be ready to go. You may need to create a custom field to fit your business. That is easy to do. And, reviewing the SharePoint fields may flag information for you that you would like to begin collecting. Once all of the columns are aligned between your spreadsheet and SharePoint, your Excel data is mapped and ready.

Next you can begin the import of data. This standard SharePoint functionality is accomplished by editing your list in datasheet view. By navigating to your Accounts list in datasheet view, we see that we are, in essence, going to be copy and pasting between two spreadsheets. As long as your columns match up between the excel spreadsheet and SharePoint, copying and pasting 100 records at a time will allow you to import the data in chunks and manage any errors with data type conflicts and so forth. When complete, you can navigate to the Accounts link on your BPA CRM application and view all of your imported data in action.

By using standard tools like Microsoft Excel to get your data into the CRM application, you are afforded a familiar way to compile, manage and prepare data for import into your system. Whether you’re a seasoned SharePoint developer or a savvy front end user, using the BPA CRM

Why is empathy valued more highly today when it comes to CRM? Here’s a clue from the Temkin Group’s 2014 Experience Ratings report: companies across the board struggle with their customer’s emotional experience.

• Across 19 industries studied, scores for emotional experience lagged behind the functionality or accessibility customer experience scores.
• The highest-rated companies have a rate only in the 70% range (“Okay”).
• Many companies (especially health care, wireless, and Internet providers) rate no higher than the 30%-40% range.

These are alarming stats if you feel that customer experience has a direct impact on the bottom line, whether you are focusing on B2B (business to business) or B2C (business to consumer) CRM. Improving customer experience means improving customer retention – which has a much better ROI than expensive efforts to acquire new customers.
But how does a customer’s emotional experience relate to empathy, and how does all this messy emotional stuff affect your CRM anyway?

Merriam-Webster defines empathy as “the feeling that you understand and share another person’s experiences and emotions.” Empathy is the building block of relationships, and CRM stands for Customer Relationship Management after all. CRM must help build those relationships, with empathy for both customers and front-line employees built in from the ground floor, not stuck in later.

Today we build relationships quickly with the use of technology, especially mobile technology. Forrester Research’s Top Trends of CRM in 2014 notes that “The Mobile Mind Shift Will Force CRM To Evolve Quickly.” It goes on to say that implementing mobile solutions “requires navigating a complex set of technology, process, and people decisions.”

In that list, the people decisions have to come first. Your CRM solution must allow you to use your technology as tools to build your relationships. This means thinking about people’s experiences and emotions early on in the process of adopting a CRM strategy and technology. Your CRM should be the structure with which you develop important relationships.

BPA is a leader in providing tools that mean better relationships, better collaboration and more effective CRM. BPA mobile solutions offer flexibility, convenience, and ease of use so you can focus on the important thing: building relationships.

Did you know that you can collect information via forms on your public website, and then submit that data into your SharePoint site?  The BPA Web Connector provides an easy-to-configure tool to do this.  No complicated coding.  No advanced connection strings.  Just design your form and copy and paste the resulting code into your website page.  The BPA Web Connecter has some really unique abilities, such as being able to include fields from multiple SharePoint lists.  Select any columns from your SharePoint site and have them collect information from your users on your website.  This simple tool has been used in many cases, such as a contact form to:

• Collect contact details for following up with a potential customer
• Complete a recruiting form for job applicants that includes the ability to select from a list of job positions
• Upload a resume with your online application

There are many uses for forms and the BPA Web Connector makes the creation process as simple as it can be. Collect business critical statistics and customer data with the click of a few buttons!
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