Return of SideACT as ScratchPad in SageACT! 2012

Longtime users of SageACT! CRM software will remember an "old" feature called SideACT, which ran in the taskbar and allowed quick access to some popular task commands. Well, good news for those with much patience - in the new version of SageACT! they've added that back, and now it's called Scratchpad.

How to get Help in ACT!

Although SageACT is very user friendly - once you get familiar with it - getting started can be overwhelming for a new user. ACT has a few different areas, and levels, of help available. First, however, if you're looking to convert or customize ACT, unless you have unlimited time and are comfortable in all the areas of ACT, your best bet is to get ahold of a consultant to do this for you. They can do it relatively quickly, and correctly, saving you an incredible amount of time and frustration. You'll be more efficient with your database, and in the end you'll save much more in time and money by getting them to help out. Contact me for more information, but for general "how-to" issues, here's a few areas to keep in mind:

1. In ACT, Help>Online Manuals - there's two reference manuals that help with getting started.  The New User Quick Start and Quick Reference Card will assist people in getting familiar with the program itself - where things are and how to access and work in certain areas.
2. In ACT again, the Welcome screen (View>Welcome) and Help>Feature Tours are a little more in-depth.  Like the title says, these focus on individual features, and help users utilize ACT to work for them, helping them become more efficient.
3. Anytime Learning online courses at http://www.sageu.com/act/anytimelearning/ - again, more in-depth and more focused on specific areas, these are a product sold by ACT and are video based.  Very good for "handing off" to a new users so they can learn at their own speed
4. The online KnowlegeBase - which has very in-depth technical and instructional articles for pretty much anything.  Most likely, not something you're going to give to a new users, this is more on the technical side - very detailed information for understanding how the systems works, or troubleshooting issues.

Hope this helps, again, contact me with any questions - I'd love to help...

SageACT! Connect Cloud Service

The new release of SageACT! 2012 makes available an additional product called SageACT! Connect. This is a subscription-based product that syncs *your* individual ACT! database to a hosted site, which then makes the data available to some smartphones, or a portal accessed via a browser. I'll go over some of the basics, and show you how I use it.

SageACT! Google Integration

September of 2012 marked a new release of SageACT! - version 14, or as most people call is 2012.  As an avid Google user - in fact, I run most of my day-to-day activities in GMail and GCal - the addition of Google integration is most welcome.

This post is not so much about the setup and inner workings, rather more of a "what you get" in the integration.

ACT to ZoHo Conversion - What Gets Converted

I've spent quite a bit of time this year doing ACT to ZoHo CRM conversions.  i.e. People with an existing database in ACT! that they want "moved" - migrated is a better term - to ZoHo. What I'd like to do is provide a short synopsis of what exactly gets converted/migrated, and what to expect in the new system.

Zoho CRM Professional Edition

Zoho's suite of full-featured, online collaboration tools has matured quite a bit over the past several years. The service rivals Google Docs in its power and sophistication. The company's foray into CRM (customer relationship management) software is slightly less successful, as I found in my tests. Even so, the service offers a highly functional system at a very low price, and is particularly effective for existing Zoho users as well as current Google Apps customers.

Editions and Pricing
Zoho offers three basic CRM packages.

3 SwiftPage Tricks to Help your eMarketing

If you want to get better use out of SwiftPage eMarketing, here's three tips & tricks that are easy to implement. Additionally, if you are currently using another email marketing program such as ConstantContact, you might want to take a look at SwiftPage (if you're an ACT! user, or keep all your contacts in Excel, it's a must!!!) - contact me and I can show you the benefits of switching.

What’s New in ACT! by Sage 2011

Automate key activities. Sage ACT! Smart Tasks handle the things you need to get done every day. Think of it like a personal assistant that sends e-mails for you and puts activities on your calendar so your customers get the service they expect, with little work required by you. Smart Tasks just get it done.

Unlock a rich source of new leads. Add rocket fuel to your sales and marketing machine with Sage ACT! Business Info*. Sage ACT! Business Info pulls highly targeted prospect lists and business info from Hoover’s™ and puts it directly into Sage ACT!. It helps you fill in the gaps in your database and gives you access to more than 65 million companies and 85 million executives.

Eliminate double entry. Sage ACT! manages all the details of your business relationships and Microsoft® Outlook® manages emails, basic contact details, and meetings across your team. Now you can have the best of both worlds and share your Outlook and Sage ACT! contacts and calendar using two-way sync.

Also, get in-depth information about Sage ACT! E-marketing:
With Sage ACT! E-marketing, you can do so much more than simply send emails and track open rates. It’s about knowing your customers. Capture leads with web forms on your website, nurture those prospects automatically with Drip Marketing plans, and quickly identify your hottest leads using a ranked call list that tells you which prospects are most interested—right from the contact record in Sage ACT!.
See if a demo roadshow is coming near you...

The History Behind Nimble

The History Behind Nimble

When to Upgrade

While you are used to your CRM program, it's ins and outs, quirks and nuances, there does come a time when you either want to, or have to, upgrade.  I've been working in the IT industry since 1994, and believe there are 4 main reasons why people upgrade - not just CRM systems, but office suites, browsers, operating systems, etc.

Social CRM: Does it mean what it says?

This is a good article describing other facets of CRM - namely that it's not only pre-sales and sales process software, but keeping in touch with your clients as well *after* purchase.  By integrating social media you can track what they are "talking about" and react to their needs.

Social CRM: Does it mean what it says?