Published on: September 12, 2016Category: Zoho CRMLast Updated: April 17, 2023 Comments: 0
Too many emails? Use Zoho SalesInbox to sort and prioritize them
Lately, I’ve been wanting to delve into the new Zoho CRM a little more deeply. On the surface, the new CRM looks wonderful with its new facelift, but beneath the surface (or, with just a few mouse clicks), one can see that Zoho did much more with the new CRM than simply alter its appearance. Next on the list of new features I really like is Zoho SalesInbox, a variation of the Zoho CRM email integration.
[caption id="attachment_2165" align="alignright" width="300"] You don’t want this.[/caption]
Zoho SalesInbox tackles a common problem with most businesspeople, especially executives: their email inboxes are filled to the brim with all manner of messages, some of them relevant, some of them very pressing, and others completely impertinent. Having to sort through them may not take that much time, but, spend enough mental energy doing even menial tasks and you’ll soon find yourself depleted.
SalesInbox takes away a little bit of that menial thought labor by automatically sorting your emails into groups: Emails from contacts related to Deals, emails from other Leads and Contacts, emails from people not in your CRM, and emails from colleagues.
Again, it’s only a slight reduction in work, but you’ll quickly get into the habit of scanning your screen from left to right, just like a line of text – and, you won’t be nearly as fatigued with the tedium of sifting through new messages.
Salesinbox provides cool new features to help you sort
Flag certain contacts to automatically put mail from them into a column of your choice.
Flag emails from Contacts related to Deals of your choosing (for example, Deals with an amount over $10,000) so they appear in your inbox first.
See how contacts have progressed through your sales funnel with at-a-glance details.
And, perhaps the best (and most obvious) feature of having a Zoho CRM email integration…
4. Automatic lead creation with the click of a button – or, with a workflow rule.
This is great if, for example, you’ve made a post in an outside forum or any other place you can’t easily insert a Zoho webform: Let clients know to email you using a certain word in the email subject line, like “quote.” The system will create a new lead any time someone not already in your CRM uses the word “quote” in the email subject line.
Just on its own, this feature of the Zoho CRM email integration is fantastic: it effectively ends manual entry if you can tell the system your requirements for becoming a Lead. Just imagine how much time you’d get back in your day!
Speaking of workflow rules, you can have the system remind you to work on those bigger deals when they email you.
[caption id="attachment_2168" align="alignright" width="300"] Okay, maybe overselling it, but I’ll bet this comes in the next build.[/caption]
This feature is the next-best thing to having a personal assistant: if someone you deem important emails you and you haven’t replied in a time frame you specify, the system can remind you to email those people back.
As well, you can program the system to let you know when someone else hasn’t replied to you in a while. Maybe you’ve had a client fall through the cracks because you simply didn’t follow up as zealously as you could have… Well, that doesn’t even have to be a factor anymore.
There’s even more to Zoho SalesInbox that I haven’t covered here, so for a full breakdown I suggest taking a look at Zoho’s own article on the subject.
Published on: August 26, 2016Category: Zoho CRM, Zoho ProjectsLast Updated: April 24, 2023 Comments: 0
New Zoho CRM is back with a vengeance after its facelift
If you haven’t already heard about the new Zoho CRM interface and new Zoho CRM features that were all rolled out in earnest over the past few weeks, you’ve probably been living under a rock – or, you’ve just been really busy. Don’t worry! It happens to me, too.
Before Zoho rolled out the new UI, however, they very quietly rolled it out to their partner network so we could all become familiar with it before we started helping people build out their own systems. And, let me tell you: it is gorgeous. But, that’s not even what I wanted to talk about.
Zoho proves with this new iteration of their CRM that beauty is much more than skin-deep. I’ve put together 5 ways this Zoho CRM changes the game completely – and puts you firmly in command of your system.
1. Schedule a script to run independently instead of as part of a workflow rule
This is really nifty. Zoho workflow automation has always been handy, but, up to this point, if you wanted the system to carry out a task for you, that task would have to be based on some other action taking place, like the creation or editing of a record. That would make it impossible for you to run a custom script that wasn’t based on an action – like, say, to sync data from Zoho to Google Drive (or some other cloud-based system) at the end of every workday. But, with this new capability, there’s no more limitation in that arena, and you don’t need to base a scheduled script upon performing an action!
2. Automatically trigger leads to convert based on set criteria
Workflow rules now extend to lead conversion, so if your Lead record matches that special criteria you set for qualification, you don’t even have to press convert anymore. For people who have hundreds of things going on – and might be prone to forgetting to convert their Leads to Potentials – this is a lifesaver, but, it’s also good for new salespeople who might not be sure what your exact lead conversion criteria are. If you tell your CRM what those conditions are, it takes the work off your salespeople’s plates.
3. Set multiple layouts per module
Have you ever wished you could add another layer of granularity to your record separation game? With the new CRM, you can plan separate page layouts for any module in Zoho – even custom ones! This comes in handy if, for example, you deal with multiple kinds of leads. While you’ll want to keep track of all your sales activities, you probably won’t want to take potential partners down the same sales funnel as your regular prospects. The new Zoho CRM allows for multiple completely custom page layouts so you can take every kind of Lead, Potential, or Account down the sales path that’s best for your business.
4. Gamify your CRM activities!
Sales gamification is a great motivator, as I’ve mentioned before. In the new Zoho CRM interface, Zoho takes the same great idea they’ve applied to Zoho Projects (and on which they developed an entire app in Zoho Motivator) and applies it to the CRM – and, as it is in Projects, it’s a great tool to drive proper use of the system. If you don’t believe it, just imagine this: After starting a contest, all your salespeople start taking notes on pertinent records, converting Leads to Potentials, and completing tasks in the CRM… It might sound like a pipe dream, but with Gamescope for the CRM, all you have to provide is the incentive; the CRM takes care of the contest itself (and provides fun, encouraging notes to users who complete enough CRM tasks even if you don’t provide a prize to the daily victor).
Any mobile CRM app is a great idea: All sorts of working people benefit from accessing their database on the go, whether it’s technicians out in the field or executives looking to stay abreast of current happenings from outside the office. But, from the Zoho CRM mobile app it wasn’t always possible to see all your custom reports dashboards in one place… And, now it is. So, rather than have to thumb (or finger) through pages of data from a smaller screen, you can just do the same thing you’d do in the office – look at your beautiful reports and know at a glance how your business is running.
But, wait… There’s more!
Zoho, the overachieving developers they are, have done much more than this in the new Zoho CRM design, so for a full breakdown I recommend taking a glance at the article Zoho put out on the subject. Or, better still, if you aren’t using Zoho yet, sign up for a free trial.
Published on: July 20, 2016Category: Zoho CRM, Zoho CRM PlusLast Updated: January 25, 2024 Comments: 0
Looking at Zoho CRM Plus? Time to get Motivated!
If you’ve been putting off buying a subscription to Zoho CRM Plus because it didn’t include Zoho Motivator, you just might be in luck very soon.
In the coming months, the powers that be at Zoho Corporationmay be planning to lump the sales gamification app in with its CRMPlus package, which already includes a veritable boatload of apps and features – and, at no extra charge, either.
The cool thing about Zoho Motivator is that, whereas some Zoho apps included with CRMPlus are only good for specific kinds of businesses, Motivator will improve any business that has a sales team. It broadcasts statistics and goals on a TV monitor (which isn’t included, unfortunately), letting you know who’s in the lead. Encouraging a little friendly competition never hurt – and, if office morale is in a little slump, you’ll be shocked at how much this little tool helps boost productivity!
Wait – What’s in Zoho CRM Plus?
Currently, CRMPlus includes Zoho CRM, your powerhouse for storing client data, especially where everyone stands in your sales cycle, as well as these apps:
Zoho Campaigns – For sending out mass emails, drip marketing campaigns, and tracking open rates. A great tool for organizing mailing lists and sending targeted content.
Zoho SalesIQ – This attaches a chat bubble to your website, so you can easily engage website visitors, or leave an open line of communication for them to ping you instead. Totally invaluable for any website meant to sell a product or educate.
Zoho Social – For your social media blasts. Social connects to Twitter, LinkedIn, Facebook, and Google+, allowing you to blast out your social media posts on a whim, or use the calendar feature to plan ahead and “smart” post scheduler to blast at the best times for your readership.
Zoho Support – Perfect for organizations that get a lot of, well, support requests. Your clients can use a dedicated email address, and an administrator makes sure requests are routed to the most appropriate people on your staff. Threads can be stored and transferred to a knowledge base that other customers can look at before they write in, too.
Zoho Projects – For companies with complicated projects with lots of collaboration and individual tasks, Projects is the go-to. Administrators can invite team members to different projects, create task lists, and ensure due dates are met. The “feeds” feature allows team members to comment on each other’s work, which helps collaboration. Pretty great tool for the job.
Zoho Reports – Takes what’s possible with CRM Analytics and expands on them further. Unlike CRM Analytics reports, Zoho Reports allows for 3rd party integrations and much more detailed reporting. If custom reports are your game, you’ll enjoy this app.
Zoho Survey – Fine tool for customer feedback. Survey allows for custom surveys, reporting on results, and even integration with Zoho Campaigns for even easier reporting.
So, in other words, you’re already getting a ton of bang for your buck for $69/user/month (or $57/user/month if you pay annually)*. With the addition of Zoho Motivator potentially on the horizon, you’re essentially getting another Zoho app for free. …And, in my humble opinion, it’s one of the more useful apps, so, again, if you’re one of those folks who put off buying CRMPlus licenses for your team because you thought adding Motivator would be too expensive, well…fret no more! *Prices updated June 2021
Zoho Motivator’s new feature: Scorecard analytics means team building!
One thing that Zoho didn’t have to do but did with Motivator is add scorecard analytics to the mix. Essentially, the scorecard analytics feature takes the salesperson’s activities and gauges what skills that person is best at – and, by also exposing team members who don’t excel at a particular skill, you can group team members whose skills need some work with team members who excel – according to real sales numbers! – and watch your whole team improve.
Even if you choose not to have team members work together in that fashion, it’s still good to know which people are good at which skills, as you never know when that information will come in handy:
Say you learn two of your team are great at following up with leads, and three others aren’t so great at calling, but they’re great at sending emails (and, you’ve checked metrics and see their emails get a lot of opens). You now know who to put in the trenches when a business partner of yours shares a big lead list with you. And, you also know who to utilize for an engaging email campaign!
Now’s the time to motivate your team!
Nothing saps motivation like the heat of summer and the promise of vacation waiting just outside the door…and, conversely, nothing feeds it like the heat of competition and the promise of an awesome prize broadcast right on the office TV monitor. You can breathe some life back into your team with Zoho Motivator and get a bargain on all your other Zoho apps with CRM Plus. If you’re not signed up for Zoho CRM yet, give it a try for free here!
Note: as of 2019, the Freemium QuickBooks integration is deprecated. We’d be happy to help you with a similar version of the integration – please contact us.
Howdy folks,
We’ve been working on perfecting our do-it-yourself (DIY) freemium QuickBooks integration for Zoho CRM for many months, and we’re really happy to finally announce that it’s complete and ready for you to use!
DIY freemium QuickBooks integration for Zoho CRM
If you’re not in the loop, the DIY freemium QuickBooks integration is a lighter, free version of our QuickBooks Desktop integration. (And, it also works for QuickBooks Online.) Whereas our premium QuickBooks integration allows for syncing Accounts/Contacts, Products, Invoices, Sales Orders, Quotes, and Purchase Orders (among other items), the DIY freemium integration allows for syncing Accounts/Contacts and Products, perfect for businesses that need some syncing functionality but don’t need Invoices or Quotes passed from Zoho to QuickBooks or vice-versa.
What are the pros?
We think there are a lot of great things about this freemium product:
It’s completely free – We call it freemium because it works just like a premium option, but we’ll never charge you for it. Rest easy!
It’s easy to configure – Rather than depend on our engineers to complete your project, you can map your data and control the entire integration by yourself. Not only is this simple to do, but it also saves a lot of time.
It saves time – If you create an Account/Contact in QuickBooks or Zoho CRM, you don’t have to worry about entering that name again; it’ll just pop right into the other system. Whether it’s just saving you a minor inconvenience or a half hour every day, this is never a bad thing.
It saves overhead – Do you spend lots of time manually copying data from one system to another? Well, imagine being able to use that time to do something productive – to finish a nagging project more quickly, for example – while this integration does that work for you. You or your staff might even get to leave work a little earlier each day because of it.
What about the cons?
Nothing’s perfect, of course. Allow us to elaborate:
The Freemium CRM QuickBooks integration doesn’t provide as deep a sync as one of our premium integrations. We think we’re pretty nice people over here, but at the same time, we can’t give away the farm. If you need more functionality than just Accounts/Contacts syncing and Products syncing, you’ll need to use one of our premium integrations. However, we’re going to roll out some Premium DIY integrations, too, so you’ll soon get the best of both worlds. Keep your eyes peeled for those!
We can’t customize it. As this is a completely free, completely self-contained product, we can’t provide any additional customization for it. That doesn’t mean customization is impossible, of course – you’ll probably just need to buy one of our premium integrations if you want something more than the freemium product.
Why are we giving this to you? Is there some kind of catch?
Even if you didn’t ask this question outright, I know you’re wondering why we’d give you the Freemium CRM QuickBooks integration. Are we just really benevolent people? Of course we are! But, that’s not why we’re doing this.
The reality is we know there’s a need for a level of syncing below what we offer for our premium Bronze QuickBooks integration – and, we also know that the integration can be cost-prohibitive for some.
We’re betting that if you’re willing to give our Freemium CRM QuickBooks integration a try, you might be willing to knock on our door if you need other Zoho integration help as well, or if you need help with any other Zoho issue that might arise.
Of course, you’re under no obligation to do so… but, we hope that you’d at least consider us.
Aside from that, Zoho themselves like it when we have customers using our products, regardless of how much they spend to use them, so we’re always keen on acquiring new customers, regardless of how much they end up spending.
So, the long and short of it? No catch!
Ready to get free?
If you haven’t done so already, try the Freemium integration out with your QuickBooks! Just use this page here to sign up and start syncing.
And, as always, email us or drop us a line – (888) 207-4111 – if you have any questions about anything you see here, or if you think you might need a dose of Zoho consulting, some training, or some support!
Published on: December 23, 2015Category: Zoho CRMLast Updated: April 24, 2023 Comments: 0
G2Crowd: Zoho CRM is Heating Up Winter 2016
Howdy, folks! I have a feeling it’s going to be a big year for Zoho CRM in 2016. Here’s what’s going on:
G2Crowd has just released their Winter 2016 CRM Grid Report. G2Crowd, for those not in the know, is an organization that compares different software brands, packaging satisfaction reports and reviews across their website, and occasionally releasing digests like these.
As you can see, the grid contains a list of usual suspects and some pretty interesting data about them:
Salesforce leads the way in market presence and ranks behind only a few less-popular options in customer satisfaction. No shocker there; Salesforce’s massive price tag comes with loads of customizability and support to boot.
Sage CRM, Netsuite, MS Dynamics CRM, and SugarCRM show high adoption but comparatively (and, to me, surprisingly) low satisfaction rates.
Insightly boasts a much higher satisfaction rate but a lower adoption rate than those older players, which makes some sense as Insightly is a newer product overall.
Hubspot CRM is quite close to Salesforce in terms of adoption and satisfaction, with Hubspot boasting a satisfaction rate comparable to Salesforce in spite of a comparatively larger disparity in terms of market presence.
And, most compellingly:
Zoho CRM has nearly as much adoption as Salesforce, with a satisfaction rating only slightly lower than the behemoth. From afar, Zoho and Salesforce are outliers, sporting higher combined adoption and satisfaction rates than most any other system out there.
Pretty nifty! I’d love to spend time analyzing all the competition out there, but, this entry isn’t quite the place for that. (However, if you’re curious about how Zoho stacks up against a few solid competitors, you can check out this Zoho CRM Comparison Guide.) I’d love to address why Zoho’s had such a surge in popularity over the past years, though, and also delve into what this all means to you as a (potential) consumer.
What’s so hot about Zoho right now?
Amidst so many different competitors in the CRM field, what makes Zoho such a compelling option? It turns out to be a variety of things working together.
It’s cloud-based. On-premise systems were great when they were the only option; nowadays, cloud-based systems allow users to access their data from anywhere with a reliable internet connection, which makes Zoho CRM perfect for the 21st-century businessperson, one who’s probably out of the office more than in, one who needs to be on the go. Other companies, like Sage, for example, have been slow to release cloud-based CRM options – but, Zoho has been an up-and-comer in that regard since its inception.
It’s à la carte. With Zoho, you have all sorts of customization and integration options – not just for the CRM itself, but for its slew of add-ons (apps). Some CRM systems come with a marketing automation tool if you’re lucky, or, conversely, you might be saddled with a bunch of features your business doesn’t really need. Zoho eliminates that sort of mess by allowing administrators to choose exactly which proprietary or 3rd-party apps they’d like to use from a list that grows on an almost monthly basis.
It costs much less than its competitors. Often, money talks more than other factors, and, in spite of Zoho’s array of custom features and applications, the program gets a good amount of mileage simply on the basis of its price. The most popular Salesforce bundle clocks in at $125 per user per month, while Zoho’s basic bundle comes in at a measly $20 per user per month (not including the free version). Obviously, popularity alone doesn’t mean equality in other regards (like features, support, etc.) – and, Salesforce being the most expensive option around makes it an extreme example – but, in terms of an overall comparison, the numbers hold up across the board: you get way more bang for your buck with Zoho.
You can do it yourself or use a consultant for support. Zoho isn’t designed specifically to be easy, but, especially ambitious business owners or project managers can implement Zoho CRM, board users, and automate workflows themselves. It’s a far cry from Salesforce (again, an extreme example), where you need to consult your account representative every time you need to make a change and then jump through additional hoops after that. On the other hand, if DIY’s not your style, you can choose from a laundry list of Zoho CRM consultants who can help with implementation, general support, training, and any other Zoho need.
This combination of features and options makes Zoho CRM ideal for a business that needs a system that can start big and robust or small and scalable – and, also for ambitious project managers who’d like to implement their own CRMs for simple tasks. Its home in the cloud makes it perfect for traveling businesspeople. And, its price is good for anyone.
Looking to warm up your business?
It certainly bears mentioning that if you’d like to utilize Zoho CRM but aren’t too keen on the whole do-it-yourself thing, you have options available. Using a CRM deployment package through ZBrains saves you the hassle of having to set everything up yourself, which ultimately gives you more time to run your own business. We’ll handle the hard stuff for you – including support.
Why not go through Zoho directly for Zoho Support?
As enticing as it may be to cut out the middleman and do everything yourself – and simply contact Zoho for support issues – it’s not quite as glamorous as it seems.
Here’s the thing: Zoho is a big company. They have clients all over the world, but yet – and I know this from dealing with them directly – they’re stretched pretty thin in the support realm. They have a lot fewer people working in those support trenches than you might think; it’s really no surprise they’ve outsourced all implementations (deployments) to resellers like us. (I’m guessing the vast majority of Zoho employees are coding and testing all day, which is why they’re able to churn out new products so quickly.)
Anyhow, they’re nice folks, of course, but they’re pretty overburdened. Unless you have loads of time to kill on the phone or waiting on email replies, it’s always a better option to go with a team that’s more devoted to helping you.
What do you get with ZBrains that you don’t get with other Zoho consultancies?
Well, a few things, actually! In this day and age, it pays to be a little different. We’re a Zoho Premium Partner, so that means we provide custom Zoho integrations as well as expertise with Zoho Creator, which means you can integrate a host of popular platforms with Zoho CRM and use our help to create your own custom programs and apps.
As with Zoho itself, all these add-on options are offered on an à la carte basis – but, it certainly helps knowing they’re there.
That about wraps up this post. Considering its market saturation and customer satisfaction thus far, 2016 looks to be a banner year for Zoho, and, if you choose it for your business…it might be a banner year for you, too! What are you waiting for? 😉
Published on: December 1, 2015Category: Zoho CRMLast Updated: June 13, 2023 Comments: 0
Howdy, all.
Today’s post is brought to you courtesy of James Converse, Chief Solutions Architect here at ZBrains. James has worked with Zoho for years, and has done CRM implementation even longer, so he’s a real powerhouse of knowledge; I’m happy he was able to contribute to the blog.
No one knows more about setting up your lead scoring CRM, or lead scoring consulting in general here than James, and, while this piece is a little more technical than some on the blog, the tips included for Zoho lead scoring are easy to implement and use to your advantage inside Zoho CRM – today, even.
As always, call (888) 207-4111 if you have any questions or need help.
Cheers,
Jeremy
___________________________
Are you tired of spending time on leads and prospects that don’t buy? If so, then this article is for you! To be honest, I think we’re all a little guilty of jumping the gun when we get excited about a new lead or prospect. After all, it’s in the DNA of a good salesperson to get a excited about a new opportunity. The purpose of this article is to explain how to score or judge leads based on YOUR qualification criteria. By doing this, and storing the lead score in your Zoho CRM system, you can search, sort, and filter on the lead score, allowing you to quickly hone in on the opportunities that have the highest chance of closing. Additionally, the lead scoring system is based on the FACTS, rather than what the prospect is telling you.
Before we get into how to implement a lead scoring system in Zoho CRM, I’d like to clear a few things up about Zoho CRM and lead scoring. Going to whip out my Certified Zoho CRM Consultant hat for this one.
Lead Scoring Consulting: What is a Lead Score?
A lead score is a number assigned to each lead and prospect, which rates these records based on certain factors. The higher the score, the more likely the company/person is to buy from you.
What’s the difference between a Lead and a Potential in Zoho CRM?
Consultants define these two modules in different ways, but the easiest way I can describe it is the Leads module is for the marketing funnel and the Potentials module is for the sales funnel. From a system standpoint, the Leads module does NOT have pipeline history, whereas the Potentials module DOES. That being said, if you want a Zoho CRM record to show up in your forecast, it needs to be a Potential, not a Lead. On an almost daily basis, I see implementations of Zoho CRM where the Potentials module is not being used at all, which completely defeats the purpose of using a CRM in the first place! If I can give one piece of advice to anyone using Zoho CRM, it would be to use the Potentials module.
What is a prospect in Zoho CRM?
When a Lead is converted into a Potential in Zoho CRM, but that Potential has not been “Closed Won,” it is considered a prospect. When a Potential is set to “Closed Won,” it is considered a Client or Customer. To convert a Lead to a Potential, simply click on the lead and then press the “Convert” button at the top of the page.
Defining a Qualification Process
Now that you know what and where the “Convert” button is in the Leads module, you can substitute the word “Convert” for “Qualify” – when you are converting the lead, you are qualifying it, and the putting it into the sales funnel. At the very least, DO NOT CONVERT LEADS THAT AREN’T QUALIFIED. If your marketers and lead generators continually convert leads that are not qualified, it’s a big problem because the odds of closing an unqualified prospect are slim to none.
You probably know what the right questions are for your business, but at a minimum, I would use what’s called a BANT qualification, which stands for budget, authority, need, and timeline. A good salesperson likely has a much smoother way of asking these questions, like this:
Is this a funded project? How big of a problem are we trying to solve? (Budget)
What is your role in this project? Is there anyone else involved in this project? (Authority)
How will this product/solution help you/your organization? (Need)
When are you looking to launch? (Timeline)
How to Design a Lead Scoring CRM System
Now for the good stuff! If I take those questions above and define a set of possible answers, I can associate a number to each of those answers. Then, I simply add up the numbers to determine a score. Personally, I like to set a maximum lead score of 100 because I can associate it one-to-one to a probability percentage. Then, when I compare my actual probability to my score, I can adjust my scoring system accordingly. By studying and adjusting the score over time, you’ll be able to nail down a pretty accurate score for every lead that comes in the door.
To keep it simple, let’s associate 25 points to each of the four questions above:
Q1. Answers for Budget: Small (5 pts), Medium (15 pts), Large (25 pts)
Q2. Answers for Authority: Director (5 pts), VP (15 pts), C-level (25 pts)
Q3. Answers to Need: Small (5 pts), Medium (15 pts), Large (25 pts)
Please note any answers that are “None” or no answer at all result in a score of ZERO.
How to Implement a Zoho Lead Scoring System
To do this, you’ll need to know a little Deluge syntax. If you don’t want to fumble with it for two days, then get help from a Certified Zoho CRM Consultant. After you’ve defined the scoring system, create a Formula type field in the Leads module of Zoho CRM. Use the “IF” function to create conditions for your score, putting the actual score after the “THEN” clause. For example:
IF(CONTAINS(${Leads.Budget},’Medium’),15,0)
You’ll have to nest several “IF” statements to cover all the options of a single question. You’ll also have to add up the results of these “IF” statements with the “+” function (duh).
Make sure to copy the fields and formula over to the Potentials module in Zoho CRM because after you qualify the lead and convert it, the answers to the questions can change, thus changing the lead score in Zoho CRM.
Once you’ve debugged your lead score field, run a few tests to make sure it’s calculating correctly. Unfortunately, formula fields don’t go retroactively in Zoho CRM, but you could always open them in Zoho Sheet View and run the calculation in the spreadsheet.
Lastly, add the lead score field to your Views in both Leads and Potentials, sorting highest to lowest. The key part about having an accurate score is collecting the information, i.e., the answers to your questions. Don’t hesitate to call those prospects that haven’t answered your questions and just ask them. If your prospects don’t have answers, chances are you’re wasting your time with them.
To let you know about our upcoming DIY integration for Zoho and QuickBooks.
The Zoho QuickBooks integration video
We made this in hopes that it would help the good number of you who’ve been calling and emailing in with questions about how the Zoho QuickBooks integration functions. It was high time we put out something like this, and, we really appreciate how patient you’ve all been.
The video should help to answer some of the really basic questions about how the plugin works. Once you’ve watched that and you have some additional technical questions, we’ll (still) be glad to talk to you about those.
Anyway, you can check out the Zoho QuickBooks integration video below!
If you have any additional questions after watching the video, don’t hesitate to call is at (888) 207-4111. Or, submit your information right here and we’ll reach out to you ourselves. Subscribe to our YouTube channel, too, for fresh video content.
The Zoho QuickBooks DIY integration is coming!
We’re very excited about this, as we’ve been working on getting a do-it-yourself version of our QuickBooks integration to you for a good, long while – and, I know many of you, business owners and resellers alike, have been waiting for this very patiently. And, we’re very thankful for that.
The DIY integration is slated for launch on January 1st, so, keep your eyes peeled.
To accompany the integration, we’ll have a full page of information so you’ll see exactly what the product consists of, as well as a video detailing how it all works and how you can install it on your system.
If you’re new: What does it do?
Of course, not everyone who reads this blog has been poring over it for months. For those of you who don’t know, a QuickBooks integration with Zoho is designed to sync information across the two platforms. The amount of information that gets synced depends on which package you’re looking at; it happens that a lot of people were waiting for this free integration to arrive, either because they simply didn’t require the synching power of our premium integrations, or because the premium integrations were outside their price point.
Of course, Zoho CRM isn’t the only one that can sync with QuickBooks…but, we think it’s the best one for a number of reasons. (Method CRM, for example, is supported by Intuit directly and integrates with QuickBooks, but is not nearly as customizable as Zoho.)
A few fast facts for the freemium integration:
Here’s a little primer to get you started:
The DIY freemium integration utilizes the QuickBooks Web Connector to sync data between Zoho and QuickBooks, just like our premium integration.
It will allow you to sync Accounts/Customers and Products between Zoho and QuickBooks in a bi-directional sync.
It will come with its own tutorial video detailing how it all works and showing you how to install it.
It’s completely free – no strings attached.
Keep it locked here for future notifications!
We may have more news on this before the final release date of January 1st, so, follow us on Twitter, Facebook, and LinkedIn to get the latest updates and other fresh content. (Use the buttons at the top of this entry.)
As always, please call (888) 207-4111 if you have any questions about the freemium integration, the Zoho QuickBooks integration video, or if you need additional Zoho consulting, support, or Zoho training options.
Published on: November 5, 2015Category: Zoho CRMLast Updated: April 17, 2023 Comments: 0
Zoho Sales Gamification is here!
Welcome Zoho Motivator!
Note: As of February 2020, Zoho Corporation has discontinued Zoho Motivator. Rather than continue developing the app, Zoho has moved many of its features (and then some) to Zoho CRM. This gives users a more unified experience, and allows for easy sales gamification access without needing two different Zoho apps. Read on for our full-write up of Zoho Motivator, but look for many of these features inside Zoho CRM.
Zoho Motivator might be my favorite new Zoho app as of late. Most Zoho products fulfill a business need or make a process easier, but, only Zoho Motivator can take something like sales and turn it into a game through bona fide Zoho sales gamification. But, what’s so hot about sales gamification?
Well, picture this.
You go into an office day-in and day-out. You strive to reach your sales goals every day or every week. …And, sometimes you have a head honcho breathing down your neck the whole time. You get a paycheck every month, but…it’s just not fun anymore. The energy in your office is lacking, and, it’s getting lower by the second.
Obviously, this doesn’t sound very fulfilling or healthy. What can you do? Or, better yet, what can your boss do to turn this situation around?
It’s actually pretty easy.
By using sales gamification via Zoho Motivator, you give your sales team a new lease on life, and get them doing things you always wanted but never imagined possible. All it takes is a little positive reinforcement and a little competitive nature, both of which Zoho Motivator gives you the power to provide.
Sales Gamification Means Something for Everyone
Zoho Motivator turns an ordinary selling stint into a contest. This comes complete with statistics for your team members, detailed analytics for a sales director, and the ability to really up the ante with prizes linked to sales milestones. Furthermore, you can broadcast it all on your office TV monitor (or multiple monitors) for some real in-office fun.
Detailed stats mean quicker sales
Your sales team members will feel like stars when they can access all their statistics from the Zoho Motivator app. Team members can use these stats to compare themselves to their peers and use historical data plotted on graphs to measure their progress over time. They can even see comprehensive pipeline views that show how long their prospects spend in each sales stage, giving them an idea of where they can improve their own processes. It’s also important to note that many of the stats provided by Zoho Motivator, like pipeline velocity and close ratio, can’t be found in Zoho CRM or QuickBooks alone.
Sales gamification means teamwork!
Having the very idea of sales turn into a game with Zoho Motivator makes it intuitive for a sales team to band together in order to achieve the highest success rate. Team leaders can use dashboards to look into their own processes and offer key advice to team members in need. Or, they can just use them to offer congratulations when one of their own closes a big deal.
When teams compete, you win
Having your sales team members band together is great when you have a strong team leader. But, having two sales teams face off against each other in a little friendly competition? Even better, and even more fun for everyone. You can sweeten the pot by adding publicly viewable prizes to each sales level a given team reaches. Or, simply leave a pot of gold at the end of the month for the team with the highest revenue to take! The possibilities are many.
Your own sales channel can really MoTVate your office
Zoho Motivator’s healthy flow of statistics and analytics into the lives of your sales team members will do a lot to help them have fun and work towards sales goals . But, broadcasting live sales stats on a screen in your office makes things even more fun! With the spotlight thrust upon them, your sales team members will have reason to work even harder.
Are you feeling motivated today?
At ZBrains, we know that sales gamification can invigorate a stagnant sales environment, and Zoho Motivator is the perfect tool for the job. If you need help with Zoho consulting, support, or training, give us a call at (888) 207-4111.
The cloud-based Insightly has a variety of easy-to-use sales features designed to make office life a bit easier than you might be used to when it comes to fussing with a CRM system. And, when comparing it to Zoho, it seems a battle of Insightly vs Zoho CRM might be the closest thing we’ve seen to a draw yet. Both of these cloud-based CRM systems seemingly have it all: great sales tools, marketing automation abilities, social integrations, and, of course, the ability to sync with other programs.
So, how do we determine a victor?
We’ll take a deeper dive into the specifics of Insightly vs Zoho CRM so we know exactly what’s going on. Come on down!
Round One: Sales Tracking
A CRM’s sales monitoring capability is its bread and butter, so, it’s very important for your customer relationship management system to come with a fully stacked system. In this regard, both Zoho CRM and Insightly are no exception.
Both Insightly and Zoho CRM have basic sales modules like Leads and Contacts, as well as built-in calendars for viewing appointments and other events, the ability to search your entire CRM for any bit of text, file sharing, and – of course – custom fields.
To augment its powerful CRM-wide text-searching tool, Insightly packs a great feature, contact tagging, which is exactly what it sounds like: It allows users to tag CRM contacts with text of their choosing, making finding contacts that fit in a certain group or have certain characteristics all the easier to find – and reach out to – in your system. Zoho CRM does not have a feature like this.
And, to answer Insightly’s specialized tagging feature, Zoho CRM gives its users the ability to create entire custom modules, allowing for customized functions (and fields) and, for that matter, a truly unique workflow experience. Insightly users can’t create custom modules.
Both Insightly and Zoho CRM contain another useful feature called feeds, which sets the normal CRM engine in a collaborative, social network-like environment. This allows users to follow certain tasks and contacts, and allows users to communicate easily with each other through commenting and tagging.
All other things being equal (and, they do seem to be that way), it’s difficult to compare the value of contact tagging to that of custom module creation, as different types of businesses will clearly require different functions from their CRMs. For that reason, this round is a tie.
Round Two: Marketing Automation
Second only after keeping track of sales, marketing automation is a huge part of what value a CRM system can bring to a business. As sales tracking allows the business to take in information, marketing automation allows that business to reach out to groups of its customers without much work on the part of a salesperson at all – hence the word automation.
Both Insightly and Zoho CRM provide for themselves similarly well in this arena. Both systems provide users mass emailing capability, the ability to create email templates, and web-to-lead capability in the form of customizable webforms. These are fairly standard features of a CRM system.
Zoho CRM and Insightly can each integrate to social networks as well, giving its users access to those networks (and the ability to see which networks its clients and prospects use) without having to navigate between multiple windows. In this regard, Insightly comes out on top, boasting integrations to many social networks, including Facebook, LinkedIn, Google+, and Twitter, while Zoho CRM only provides integration capability for Facebook and Twitter.
Zoho gets a leg up on Insightly, however, with its Zoho Campaigns add-on, which doesn’t have an equivalent in Insightly. Zoho Campaigns allows for mailing list synchronization straight from Zoho CRM, and houses email templates designed especially for marketing campaigns. The Zoho Campaigns engine also provides detailed analytics on individual campaign performance, allowing users to know exactly how effective their marketing efforts are.
Although Zoho Campaigns ends up adding to the overall price of Zoho CRM, the fact that users can organize automated marketing campaigns at all inside Zoho CRM gives this round to Zoho.
Round Three: Project Management
Project management capability inside a CRM is key for service companies involved in budgeted or fixed projects, whose members often collaborate with each other. The project management arm of a CRM can house data imported right from the CRM itself, and vice-versa; it provides a more detailed view of projects and the amount of work (and hence productivity) applied to each project.
For something that provides such value, it’s important that any competitive CRM have this sort of function. And, thankfully, both Zoho CRM and Insightly have project management capabilities.
Aside from standard task listing and team member assignment functions, both Zoho CRM and Insightly can keep track of project milestones (smaller tasks within tasks), can be programmed to send out email reminders when certain tasks are approaching their due dates or when someone adds to a conversational thread. Both Insightly and Zoho CRM allow users to view past completed projects – but, Zoho CRM only allows this functionality for an additional fee. (Zoho users can still access Zoho Projects in a more limited capacity for free.)
Obviously, price is important in the grand scheme of things. (We’ll cover price as a whole later in this article.) For that reason, Insightly wins the Project Management round.
Round Four: Mobile Power
In today’s business climate, the ability to take your business outside the office is just as important as working at your desk, if not more so. By using mobile apps that connect to their CRMs, business owners and salespeople can perform most any task they would in the office from the palms of their hands, making CRMs that have mobile capability much more accessible at trade shows and other out-of-office situations.
Both Zoho CRM and Insightly have mobile apps associated with them, making them perfect for those sorts of scenarios. Zoho CRM has a family of mobile apps, including Zoho CRM itself, a Leads app, and a dedicated Card Scanner app for business cards. (You can read more about all three of these by looking at this Zoho mobile CRM apps page.) Insightly has a fully functional mobile CRM app itself (found here) that has a built-in business card scanner – and, the whole thing can be viewed as a widget, adding convenience that Zoho’s mobile app doesn’t provide. For this reason, the mobile round is a tie.
Insightly vs Zoho CRM Bonus Round: The Cost
Product cost notwithstanding, Insightly vs Zoho CRM has been quite an even match; both CRMs provide a great assortment of features, both are very customizable, and both have robust sales and marketing tracking features.
Bearing that in mind, one would think the deciding factor in the match to be the cost of the products. Let’s take a look at some real numbers:
To include the features listed here, Zoho CRM costs $20 per user per month*. This also includes unlimited CRM records.
For the features listed here, Insightly costs exactly the same: $49 per user per month.
With these two products so evenly matched, it seems we have our first bona fide tie. While Zoho CRM emphasizes customization and plasticity to draw in customers, Insightly emphasizes ease of use and consolidation – and, in this case, both products succeed.
However, before jumping to conclusions, it’s important to note that Zoho offers an entire suite of business apps for less than the cost of Zoho CRM – only $37/user/month when paid annually*. This offering, called Zoho One, contains 40+ apps under the Zoho umbrella, and the number grows nearly every month. Apps include not only the aforementioned CRM, Campaigns, and Projects, but Zoho Books as well. This variety of apps to use, all with the ability to integrate to each other as needed, lends much more power to Zoho as a choice overall. (The only caveat to this choice is that all of your organization’s W-2 employees are required to use Zoho One, so it isn’t a good fit for everyone – but it does help in many cases.) *Pricing updated June 2021
Before you make a decision about which CRM, Insightly vs Zoho CRM, to implement with your business, note that this article doesn’t compare things like ease of use or quality of customer support, which are quite subjective. Do your due diligence before jumping into anything and you’ll be better off than you were before because of the knowledge you will have gained.
Whether you have questions or you’re ready to get started, feel free to connect with one of our Zoho Certified Consultants anytime!
Published on: October 12, 2015Category: Zoho CRMLast Updated: July 1, 2024 Comments: 0
Boost Your Business with Zoho’s New CRM Mobile App
Zoho has just announced a trio of exciting new products designed to let you take your whole business on the road! These mobile apps will not only prove invaluable to business owners looking to access important company information from their phones, of course – but, they’ll also allow salespeople to collect and manage prospect information easily at trade shows, and even scan business card data to relay to Zoho CRM.
Zoho CRM Mobile App – your entire business in your hands
The Zoho CRM mobile app allows for immediate access to your Zoho CRM, whether you’re on the road or just away from your home base. The app works on Android, iPhone, or iPad, and allows you to make business decisions and even collaborate with your team just as you normally would from your computer.
Standard tasks like emailing and calling directly from the app are, of course, available. As well, the app allows for data access even when not connected to the internet (for example, when your mobile device is in Airplane Mode) and synchronizes the data automatically as soon as your device is reconnected.
Cool feature: Visit your customers
The Zoho CRM mobile app comes with a great feature that can alert you when you’re close to your prospects’ businesses, so you can visit them (with built-in driving directions) if you’d like. This is a great tool if you have an hour to kill before or after a trade show in a client-dense area, or, simply for when you aren’t sure how to get to a client’s office.
Scanning badges at trade shows can be a major hassle; you need to have the right equipment and generally follow protocol like waiting until the end of a trade show to get more prospect information, or waiting around with a stack of business cards. The Zoho Leads mobile app makes the whole process much easier. It works as a trade show scanner app, letting you transfer information into your Zoho CRM immediately, and even allows for following up and managing your new client details directly from the app.
How does the Zoho business card scanner work?
All you have to do is scan your prospects’ badge QR codes, or just take a picture of their badges or business cards from your mobile device; the Zoho Leads mobile app imports all relevant data to the app (and to your Zoho CRM) automatically. You can then assign lead owners and even send followup emails to your prospects right from the app. Pretty nifty!
(If you’re unable to scan badges, business cards, or QR codes, you can also add lead details manually.)
Cool feature: See your success rate right away with Zoho Campaigns integration
It can sometimes take a little time to see just how successful your trade show efforts were. However, with Zoho Campaigns integration with your Zoho Leads mobile app, you can add your prospects to special mailing lists immediately and serve them fresh content to gauge their level of interest in your company.
Zoho Card Scanner Mobile App – like Leads, but streamlined
Want the card-scanning functionality of the Zoho Leads mobile app without the extra bells and whistles? The Zoho Card Scanner mobile app is right for you. The Zoho Card Scanner mobile app allows users to automatically import business card or QR code data directly to Zoho CRM just by scanning a badge or taking a picture of a card.
Neat features:
The Zoho Card Scanner mobile app reads business cards in seven different languages: English, Spanish, French, German, Dutch, Russian, and Swedish.
Similar to the Zoho CRM mobile app, the Zoho Card Scanner mobile app locates your prospects’ addresses on a map so you can see how close you are to their businesses.
You don’t want this.[/caption]
Okay, maybe overselling it, but I’ll bet this comes in the next build.[/caption]
