Distributors must be able to see data trends in leads, opportunities, inventory utilization, service issues, expenses, and much more. Data must be managed with point-and-click content additions and drag-and-drop layout.
Distributors typically patch together and then utilize several different business applications and spreadsheets to manage the nuances of this complex industry. Precious resources are often wasted managing multiple systems. According to Larry Caretsky, CEO of Commence CRM for Manufacturing and Distribution, "What is needed is an intelligent, integrated, customizable application to connect the business processes, increase visibility for effective decision making, and extend processes to customers and supply chain channel partners."
Globalization has made competition within manufacturing fierce in recent years. Not only is cost-effective, timely production key to success, but streamlined procurement processes are also essential. Manufactured goods typically require collaboration with several partners, so only manufacturers that have highly efficient business processes will thrive and grow.
According to Caretsky, "Most software companies entered the CRM market with a handful of basic products.
However, end-user companies found these products didn't always meet their unique needs, resulting in a low success rate, which discouraged company leaders. So, software vendors came out with variations of CRM software designed to meet a broader range of needs, with varying degrees of success. CRM software is only successful when it helps a company manage relationships with its customers. But not all software manages customer relationships or provides managers with the same data."
Some software specializes in data mining, so a company can identify characteristics of different customer segments. Other software specializes in collecting and analyzing information from customers who visit Web sites. Still others link with Enterprise Management software so consumer data from accounting, shipping, invoice processing, marketing research, and customer service can be combined to get a 360-degree view of your consumers. Some specialize in matching incoming consumer calls with designated customer service reps, or automatically generating responses to consumers.
Commence (www.commence.com/mfg) offers lean industrial companies complete "Freedom Of Choice" to select the solutions and platform that best meets the business requirements of manufacturers and distributors. The comprehensive CRM Industrial application suite is available for use on premise or on-demand as a hosted service. Industrial leaders often build departmental lean CRM solutions with the award winning Commence Lean Industrial CRM Framework. These choices are why so many industrial companies choose Commence as the solution for managing customer relationships. All Commence Industrial solutions support mobile or wireless connectivity and integration to back-office accounting and ERP systems.
