Making the Cloud Work for You

As our regular readers know, we talk about cloud computing quite a bit on our blog.  This is obviously because here at The Vested Group, we feel that one of the best cloud solutions for your ERP (Enterprise Resource Planning), CRM (Customer Resource Management), e-commerce, and other web based business management system needs is NetSuite – one of the world’s most implemented cloud computing solutions.  In addition to all of the benefits a cloud solution like NetSuite can provide for your organization, did you know the cloud has much more to offer than you may know?

We recently came across an article published by PC World that listed 21 excellent ideas for making the cloud work for you, with many of these ideas not costing a cent! Because we are such big fans of the cloud ourselves, we are going to share our favorite ideas from this list with you today. 

Make the cloud your default download destination

By default, most Web browsers deposit files in your Downloads folder, and then you turn around and upload those files to a cloud service. You can take out the middleman (i.e., you) by venturing into your browser’s download settings and changing the destination to any folder that’s already set to sync. Now you’ve got an easy, automated way to back up or share your downloads.

Autosave Gmail attachments to the cloud

You already know that some online drives let you forward email attachments, but that’s an extra step. Attachments.me, a free browser plug-in for Chrome and Firefox, offers one-click attachment uploading to Box, Dropbox, Google Drive, or SkyDrive. You can also set up rules so that future emails from, say, a particular contact get automatically routed to a specific service.

Sync browser settings across all devices

You’ve probably spent years building a library of bookmarks, so it makes sense to back them up. Chrome and Firefox offer built-in bookmark syncing, which preserves your favorites (and passwords) in the event of data loss and also syncs them to other PCs running the same browser.

Get extra free space

A free Dropbox account entitles you to 2GB of cloud storage, while SugarSync gives you 5GB. Not bad, but you can always use more. Thankfully, both services allow you to earn extra space without opening your wallet. For example, for each friend you refer to SugarSync, you get an extra 500MB. Dropbox matches that offer, but rewards you with even more space when you complete a “getting started” checklist, connect to your Facebook and/or Twitter accounts, and perform various other tasks.

Stream your music library

Liberate your music library from your PC by sending it to the cloud, making it available anywhere you go (and also acting as a handy backup). One of the best options is Google Play, which lets you upload up to 20,000 songs—including any you might have in iTunes—and stream them to other PCs and devices. Its Windows client automatically syncs newly added music, and there’s a download option in case you need to restore your library.

There are a lot of other great cloud usage tips to be found in PC World’s original article which can be read in it its entirety here: http://www.pcworld.com/article/2036515/21-tips-for-supercharging-your-cloud-storage.html  Have an ingenious idea of your own for using the could? Share your thoughts in a comment below! 

Tips for ERP Selection Success

A few weeks ago, we shared an article that outlined several tips for selecting the right CRM (Customer Relationship Management) system for your organization in Choosing the Right CRM System Made Simple.  As many of you know CRM and ERP (Enterprise Resource Planning) systems can go hand in hand, so today we are going to share some useful tips in selecting an ERP system.

Compare Business Products recently produced a document called 5 Steps to Successful ERP Selection in which they offered some great things to consider when choosing an ERP solution.  We have adapted these tips as follows:

Tip 1 – Perform Internal Due Diligence

A company shouldn’t confuse an identified pain with a requirement that’s defined with sufficient particularity for ERP evaluation purposes. For example, a manufacturer might know that it has a problem with cost control. If it were to approach ERP vendors with a general “costing pain”, each vendor would probably say that its software supports costing. Although the answer might appear to be satisfactory, relying on it could lead to an ill-advised ERP investment decision.

Tip 2 – Define Project Feasibility and ERP Requirements

This tip is pretty much self-explanatory -Feasibility assessment is intended to justify investment decision-making. In effect, it is used to support a go/no-go project decision. Of course, assessing your ERP requirements essentially means you need to define the collection of business requirements for your ERP solution.

Tip 3 – Evaluate ERP Alternatives

The third step in successful ERP solution selection involves doing your due diligence as far as evaluating different ERP systems is concerned. This may seem like a no brainer, but it is a good reminder to follow through and complete your research thoroughly.

Tip 4 – Contract Negotiation

When reviewing ERP contracts, companies should consider whether the structure of the deal reflects their interests. In so doing, they should remember that they’re the ones accepting the financial obligations and assuming the ERP-related risks. To the extent that they’re not comfortable with the terms, they should seek negotiated concessions.

Tip 5 – Change Management

Securing project buy-in and managing resistance to change are critical to the success of every ERP project. Companies should initiate organizational change management initiatives at the earliest opportunity.

Here at The Vested Group, we believe NetSuite offers the best ERP solution, particularly for small to medium sized business.  NetSuite ERP is the world's most deployed cloud ERP solution. It provides proven financial management and ERP that easily integrates with your broader sales and service processes. NetSuite ERP takes your business beyond traditional accounting software, streamlining back-office processes and equips you with the visibility you need to make better faster decisions. Key benefits of NetSuite’s ERP solution include:

• Accelerates the order-to cash process by 50%+
• Slashes the financial close with real-time reporting
• Strengthens procurement with approvals and vendor management
• Improves employee management through self-service
• Drives decision making with personalized dashboards
• Improves accountability and compliance with strong traceability
• Reduces IT costs and delivers automated ERP upgrades
• Elevates productivity with anytime, anywhere access

If you are interested in learning more about NetSuite’s ERP solution, contact The Vested Group today.  We can answer all of your questions and even set up a demo of NetSuite’s products. The Vested Group has offices in Dallas, TX and Tampa, FL ready serve all of your ERP and cloud computing needs!

The History of CRM and Customer Statistics

We’ve been talking quite a bit about CRM (Customer Relationship Management) software on our blog lately because we believe that NetSuite offers one of the best – if not the best – CRM solutions on the market today.  If you run a small to medium sized business and are thinking about using a CRM system, click over to our recent article Do Small Businesses Really Need CRM?  to learn more about the benefits of CRM solutions.  And if you have already decided your organization will benefit from a CRM system, Choosing the Right CRM System Made Simple offers some great tips in selecting a vendor.  Reader education is one of the main goals of our blog, so today we would like to continue exploring CRM solutions with a couple of excellent CRM infographics that we recently came across.

The first infographic we are sharing today, Lessons from the History of Customer Relationship Management, is enormous but definitely worth examining.  This infographic is packed full of interesting information in the form of a timeline that essentially maps out the progression of CRM systems – how they began, improved, and evolved from the early ‘80s to the present day.  This is an excellent read, not just for the interesting content, but to also give yourself an understanding of how CRM systems came to be and where they are headed in the future.

The next infographic we have for you today is also rather long, but again a great source of information.  The Changing Customer explores CRM from the point of view of the actual customers you are looking to engage.  This infographic shares some noteworthy statistics on customer behaviors and how those statistics relate to a CRM solution.  If you or someone in your organization is on the fence about implementing a CRM solution, this infographic would be a great way to supplement your discussions.

As we already stated, if you are looking into CRM solutions, we believe NetSUite is the way to go. NetSuite is the only cloud customer relationship management (CRM) solution that delivers a real-time 360-degree view of your customer experience, from lead and opportunity through to sales order management, upsell, renewals, and service.

In addition to advanced sales force automation (SFA), customer support, and marketing automation, NetSuite CRM+ delivers capabilities well beyond those offered by traditional CRM systems, including quotes, order management, commissions, sales forecasting, and more, all in one comprehensive cloud CRM solution.  Other key features of NetSuite’s CRM solution include:

Customer Service Management Drive service with complete case and escalation management, and accelerate service with knowledge base management, customer self-service and more.

Partner Relationship Management Improve collaboration with partners through partner relationship management (PRM) that delivers joint marketing campaigns, joint lead management, partner commissions and order processing.

Mobile Comprehensive support for mobile devices—iPhone, iPad, BlackBerry or Windows Mobile—ensures that your employees can access NetSuite when and where they need it.

CRM Analytics and Reporting Fingertip access into sales, marketing and customer service information lets you measure and optimize performance—you even get back-office metrics for total business visibility.

If would like to learn more about NetSuite CRM, The Vested Group is here to help!  We have offices in Dallas, TX and Tampa, FL ready to serve your CRM needs.  Contact The Vested Group to schedule a demo today!

More Cloud Myths: Clearing the Air

Even though it has been around quite a while now - and some may even call it mainstream – cloud computing still has an air of mystery around it for some. And as with any misunderstood technologies, cloud computing also carries its fair share of myths.  We’ve shared a few articles on our blog about the myths surrounding cloud computing including Common Myths Surrounding the Cloud and More Cloud Myths Debunked. While these popular myths related to cloud computing will probably always be in circulation to some degree, we recently came across an article that discussed some of the less common myths you may hear about cloud computing.  In an article on CloudTech, guest blogger Nick John discussed his thoughts on some of these additional cloud myths and we are going to share some of his views with you today.

Myth:  You have no idea what cloud computing is.

Truth: Have you heard of Microsoft Office 365 or Dropbox? How about LinkedIn or Facebook? Oh, you have — then you are probably already using cloud-computing facilities!

Myth: Cloud computing makes no sense.

Truth: You can choose a system that works within your limits. Management can be simplified, and there is often little to no change in how your business operates. Remember: by outlining your needs at the beginning of the process, you can get the system that is right for you and that offers a good balance.

Myth: It’s all about saving money.

Truth: Not really. Although, of course, money is a factor, there are other benefits that make just as much business sense, such as scalability, reliability and remote access.

Myth: My critical applications will be gone.

Truth: Not if you outline your critical applications in the early stages of your move and work with your supplier to create a system that allows for transition according to your business needs. Only then can you be safe to take these applications with you on your “next step.”

Myth: I should try virtualization first.

Truth: Though virtualization may improve how existing resources are used, this may be a waste of time if you are just going to move to the cloud in the end. Change can be difficult for any organization, but if you understand the benefits, then you can move forward now.

Myth: Security is standard.

Truth: Not all businesses are going to require the same levels of security, so you need to know what guidelines affect your company and how these can impact you moving forward. By defining your security needs and undertaking a comprehensive analysis of potential risks, you can get the security architecture that fits your needs.

Myth: No downtime.

Truth: Technology hasn’t got quite this far yet. There is still the possibility of downtime, no matter what your supplier says, which is why a service-level agreement is so important. Pick an SLA that makes most sense to your business needs.

If you have questions or concerns about cloud computing, The Vested Group is here to help! We have offices in Tampa, FL and Dallas, TX ready to share the facts with you about the cloud.  Get your organization started on a path to better business by contacting The Vested Group today!

Choosing the Right CRM System Made Simple

Several weeks ago, we shared an article on our blog that discussed the benefits of small businesses utilizing a CRM (Customer Relationship Management) system in an article titled: Do Small Businesses Really Need CRM? .  Take a look at this article if you would like to learn about some of the key benefits of a CRM system for your organization.  If you have come to the decision that implementing a CRM system is the next step for your business, you may be wondering how to choose the right CRM solution to suit the needs of your organization.  There are many great CRM options currently available, and today we are going to share three key things you will want to keep in mind when choosing a CRM solution for your company.

Look for Scalability

While you should definitely take the current needs of your organization into consideration when choosing a CRM solution, it is also important to keep your possible future needs in mind as well.  Make sure you choose a CRM system that can expand as your business grows and your needs evolve. 

Budget for Quality

CRM systems can vary greatly in cost but comparing these systems isn’t always an “apples to apples” equation.  Having a budget in mind is wise, but sure you are examining all of the features of each CRM system under consideration.  The solution with the smallest price tag can end up costing your organization much more than you thought if you have to make costly adjustments and add additional features to make that system work for you.

Research Vendor Options

The vendor you select is as important as the CRM system you choose.  Time spent researching the reputation and experience of vendors you are considering is time well spent.  By investigating references and speaking with past customers, you will get a very clear picture of the vendor you are choosing.  Don’t take this key relationship lightly.

Of course here at The Vested Group, we believe an excellent CRM choice is NetSuite.  NetSuite is the only cloud customer relationship management (CRM) solution that delivers a real-time 360-degree view of your customer experience, from lead and opportunity through to sales order management, upsell, renewals, and service.

In addition to advanced sales force automation (SFA), customer support, and marketing automation, NetSuite CRM+ delivers capabilities well beyond those offered by traditional CRM systems, including quotes, order management, commissions, sales forecasting, and more, all in one comprehensive cloud CRM solution.

The key benefits of NetSuite’s CRM solution speak for themselves: 

▪       Clear visibility into sales, service and marketing performance 

▪       Streamlines quote-to-order processes

▪       Elevates productivity with a 360-degree view of your customers

▪       Improves sales performance through forecasting, upsell and commission management

▪       Drives collaboration with partners

▪       Increases customer service productivity and reduces case resolution times

▪       Manage multinational sales and services organizations, with Global CRM.

If would like to learn more about NetSuite CRM, The Vested Group is here to help!  We have offices in Dallas, TX and Tampa, FL ready to serve your CRM needs.  Contact The Vested Group to schedule a demo today!