Tag Archive for: mobile apps

7 Must-Have Apps For Your Small Business

If you’re a small business, we’re sure you understand how important technology is in the business world, which is why we’ve created a list of seven must-have apps. We are sure these apps will help you take your business to the next level and get a higher return on investment. Check them out below.

#1 CRM Software

If you are still running your sales and marketing activities on spreadsheets, an email inbox and Post-it notes, it’s time for you to upgrade – you need to set up CRM software for your business as soon as possible. CRM software is a must-have for every small business, and will help your business run smoother, more professionally, and will give you the ability to scale up your activities. Here are a few CRM software vendors to check out:

  1. Salesforce CRM
  2. Zoho CRM
  3. Oracle
  4. Microsoft Dynamics 365

#2 ERP Software

In addition to CRM software, as a small business, you should also consider investing in ERP software. With an ERP solution, you can eliminate repetitive processes and reduce the need to enter information manually and allocate more company time to sales and business development instead of administrative tasks. Below is a list of ERP software vendors we suggest:

  1. Sage
  2. Acumatica
  3. Xero
  4. Epicor
  5. SAP
  6. Infor
  7. QuickBooks

Check out a complete list of recommended ERP vendors on our SYNC data integration page.

#3 Commercient SYNC

If you’re going to invest in CRM and ERP software, you should also consider investing in Commercient SYNC. It’s an out-of-the box and easy-to-use cloud-based application designed to integrate both your ERP and CRM data, and create one master system for easy data access. Commercient SYNC helps to keep everybody on the same page and allows you to see inventory in real time, search customer records, and complete orders for a simpler, more efficient sales process, and much more. And since it’s cloud-based, it makes it easier for you to grant your employees varying levels of controlled access to the data that you sync into your CRM system.

#4 Slack

Another must-have app that can help you your run your business more efficiently is Slack. It’s a team collaboration and messaging tool that reduces emailing back-and-forth, and offers public, private and direct messaging, file-sharing, phone calls, and message search. Slack can also be integrated with many other apps including MailChimp, Twitter, and Google Drive. It’s especially helpful when everyone’s not in one place.

#5 MailChimp

MailChimp is another must-have app for small businesses. The basic plan is free and it’s easy to use. MailChimp gives you access to dozens of attractive and easily customizable templates that you can send newsletters to a maximum of 2,000 subscribers and 12,000 emails (the free plan). It also allows you to capture leads from subscription forms, and send out automated emails. Additionally, MailChimp can be easily integrated with your CRM, ERP, website, and social media pages, and can also scale with you as your business grows.

#6 Basecamp

If you have remote employees, you’ll love Basecamp. It’s a web-based project management tool that helps you to organize, document and manage your company’s communication in one place that everyone can access and keep updated. It allows you to follow the progress of the work of each individual and find out exactly where everyone is up to in terms of their own virtual project management efforts. With Basecamp, you can you to stay in touch with your virtual employees daily.

#7 IoT Pulse  

Another must-have app for your small business is Commercient’s IoT Pulse. It allows you connect your ERP to the Internet, and provides connectivity with more than 815 Apps for your ERP. With IoT Pulse you can automate tasks, like sending out emails instantly when customers input a new order or generate a new invoice. In addition, IoT Pulse provides integration with MailChimp so you can send new product information to all your customers.

Interested in learning more about Commercient SYNC or IoT Pulse? Our sales reps would love to speak more with you.

5 Mobile Apps To Enable Your Sales Rep

Everybody relies pretty heavily on their smartphones these days, but for salespeople, their mobile devices are their lifelines. Nowadays, closing deals would be practically impossible without them. Smartphones help salespeople organize meetings and trips, push reminders to send follow-ups, route them through traffic, and dozens of other crucial tasks that replace the briefcases, maps, and card files of your dad’s day.

Because mobile engagement is so big and important today, a pretty big pool of productivity apps has started filling up our App and Play stores. We asked our reps to share some of their favorite mobile apps for this post. Here are five in particular that really stood out:

 

  1. Tripit. Salespeople travel a lot and that’s one reason why they should consider using Tripit. This application makes traveling so much easier via push notifications with flight updates, driving directions, and it will even monitor fluctuating airline prices. There’s a free and paid version of the app available. Everything mentioned here is available in the free version of Tripit.
  2. Evernote. If you haven’t heard of Evernote yet, you’ve been living under a rock. Evernote is a virtual notebook that allows you to organize notes, photos, ideas, checklists, and anything else you’d put in your notebook, all in the cloud. With all your notes conveniently located in the cloud you never have to worry about forgetting your trusty old college-ruled notepad again.
  3. GoToMeeting. GoToMeeting Mobile makes it simple to join or start meetings, webinars, and classes from anywhere. This is particularly useful when a prospective client requests a demo in say, Australia, and you’re located in the southeastern United States.
  4. LinkedIn Sales Navigator. LinkedIn Sales Navigator is just one of many insanely useful LinkedIn mobile apps you should consider downloading. LinkedIn Sales Navigator is on this list though because it’s an app that makes it easy for sales reps to create highly targeted lists and take part in some crafty networking.
  5. Salesforce Chatter. Chatter has come a long way since it’s debut in 2009. The app is marketed as a communication platform but users soon discover it can be used for so much more. You can update records, monitor discussions, access files, and even create your own custom apps all from within the Salesforce1 platform. This can be an especially useful app for keeping sales teams on-the-go connected. All you need is the smartphone that’s already in your pocket.

All of the apps in this post are compatible with both Apple and Android devices. Evernote and GoToMeeting are also available for download on Windows Phones.

 

Resources

Tripit

Evernote

GoToMeeting

LinkedIn

Salesforce Chatter