Salesforce CRM

I've used Salesforce software for CRM while working in SuperHeroCorp as Digital Marketing Manager. I used this software to deal with customers mainly using chat and email options and limited hands-on voice call options. Salesforce is a complete CRM software package. Along with this, I don’t think you’ll need anything else except Slack platform and a pair of headsets (Slack is chat software that allows you to talk to your colleagues and other departments around the world)  

 The Version I had used was having an integrated outsource communication software“NewVoiceMedia” and numerous options to resolve customer issues on the spot. From this software

I could quickly check the following things;

1. No. of interactions customer had throughout his journey with the company

2. Details of the previous chats 

3. Action that the previous agent has taken to resolve a customer concern

4. Automated templates that ask the customer to hold on more when the agent took a little longer to resume chat beyond a given wait time.

5. Change the location for delivery.

6. Track the rider.

7. Chat popup alert tone.

8. Chat with the rider.

9. Voucher issuance / Generating Refund / Transferring chat to other agent or department

10. A quick review of recent order details

11. Updating special instructions to the restaurant upon customer request

12. A notepad to note down things for a reminder

13. Call-log to log the details of calls done.

14. Colorful highlights on chat tabs as yellow/green/red to indicate new chat/customer replied/customer is waiting for reply.

15. Voice call option

16. Easy access to updated SOPs

17. Sending and receiving emails including photo and videos

The Best thing I liked was that it was user-friendly. The interface was like an online teenage chat room with vivid colors and a big font size. Its processing speed was also excellent, and it doesn’t take long to access information. I had even dealt with 05 chats at a time and resolved everyone's issues within 20minutes. 

One thing had always disturbed me in it while dealing with many customers at a time; you need to open many backends to probe their issue. It usually creates a lot of confusion to do all this stuff on a single screen. It doesn’t have any option to drag the opened window to another screen so that you can feasibly cater to the customer individually.

As a recruitment agency(Nigel Wright Group), we find Salesforce to be an effective CRM as it allows us to manage job applications, interviews, client and candidate information and fees generated. The Salesforce reporting tools allow us to create, share, and analyze reports based on a vast range of information within our database. One negative aspect of the software is that it can be difficult to set up and configure exactly for your company’s needs.

I am the Chief Executive Officer of Card Accounts and as a small business owner who has used Salesforce in the past, I am aware of the pros and cons of the software. Experience of using that particular software - Pros, Cons and Overall: In my experience, salesforce is an intuitive software that gives you the freedom to customize some functionality to suit your business needs. It allows for the automation of the purchase funnel, making it easier for you to adjust your sales strategy. One of the biggest advantages is the ability to track staff activity and the status of work being carried out - which helps with forward planning. The only disadvantage from my point of view is the cost. Other systems came in at a considerably lower price.

At Hosting Data we have used SalesForce for over three years and in general we are really pleased with how it works for our online business. As a predominantly remote working team, this cloud-based solution is perfect for our employees who require access to the CRM around the clock. It’s compatible with pretty much all browsers and on both iOS and Android so our team can access SalesForce regardless of their browser and handset preferences. The biggest pro of using SalesForce is the huge range of customization it allows, each team has slightly different reporting requirements and with SalesForce we are able to tweak its functionality to suit each team. I can’t think of many cons of using SalesForce, but I would definitely say it’s one of the pricier options on the market, but I do think it’s good value for money. I have often found it difficult to speak to someone when I need technical support but notice they resolve issues pretty swiftly regardless.

I previously used Salesforce CRM for my website - Lewis & Son, and it was not a good fit for my growing small to medium business. Any features that I developed a desire to implement came at a prohibitive cost that could not be justified by the sales I forecasted.

Pros: Super flexible and can be customized to the business needs

Cons: Cost, Complex if you are a startup.