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An online quoting system focusing EXCLUSIVELY on the unique needs of sales reps. |
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Articles
Sales Force Automation Tools Designed for Reps and Agencies Are ComingIn the past 20 years software and hardware development has improved enough to make once expensive and high maintenance software available to smaller companies. One of the ways it is delivered is through online hosting services. With the arrival of cell phones and laptops, hosted services have bridged the communication gap to allow the road warrior to work anywhere. With the Internet, sales reps can access their data from any location without the overhead and headache of maintaining their own systems or remote connection software. It’s a different world where high-powered sales force automation software is available to users at every level of functional need and price point. How does that affect reps and agencies in their day to day activities? Let’s make a wish list for a sales force automation system that would satisfy a rep’s needs and see if it’s reasonable to expect that a hosted system could deliver that at an acceptable cost. Judging from my past experience as a CFO for manufacturing companies, reps and agencies have a demonstrated need for:
The benefits of such a system would be improved communication with principals and customers, streamlined sales processes, getting a clear view of the sales pipeline and gaining a competitive advantage over reps still doing things the “old way.” Finally, the rep would own all the information contained in the system forever; it would not be in the control of a principal. It could also help secure desirable lines of product, since you could demonstrate success in your markets and show that you can efficiently and effectively serve the kind of customers that principals are seeking. The side benefits are that you don’t have to buy or install any software and system upgrades and improvements are all handled by the software provider. Fulfilling the demands of such a system would require the kind of system sophisticated manufacturers have, but we can expect that systems like this can and will exist at a reasonable price point for reps and agencies, especially given the relative ease one can modify the program . RepQuotes provides reps with a hosted location to work from and to modify the interface appropriately. Hosted systems are are cutting-edge technology, and those that satisfy unique needs at a reasonable price are here today. When researching systems you should expect a reasonable subscription fee, a free trial period for testing, discounts or lower fees for multiple users and a discount, or extra months free, if you pay for a year upfront. The interface should be reasonably intuitive and the training to include web-based tutorials or in a webinar format. Basic reports are included, but custom reporting, and data import services may cost extra. For more sophisticated users, systems should allow you to export your data into a spreadsheet format that you can download to other media. This puts the transaction data directly in your hands and allows you to analyze your own data or create your own custom reports. Copyright © 2007 TrueSales Corporation, All rights worldwide
Tony McConn, CPA is President and co-founder of TrueSales Corporation and developer of http://www.RepQuotes.com, a quote-to-order management tool specifically designed for the needs of independent reps and agencies. He has also been an ERP system implementation consultant and a CFO for manufacturers in a variety of industries. TrueSales also features enterprise level quote to order management software at http://www.wrighttools.com and product configurator software at http://www.configuratorplus.com |
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