In any online marketing, detailed reporting is vital. It tells us about the work being done. A simple reporting should take no more than 25% of your hours. Columnist Matt Umbro, in his article link, discusses about some ways to minimize time spent on reporting and making it efficient. He tells us about some techniques for better reporting efficiency. They are: Determine what’s necessary; Automate what you can; and have an honest conversation with your client. Read more at: http://marketingland.com/25-rule-reporting-matters-139230

Nowadays, businesses take advantage of the various avenues of digital social networking promotions, but the challenge is to find a mobile marketing strategy. A research from Forrester found that 84% of consumers use their smartphones while in a store to go online — more than in any other location, and therefore retail and mall developer marketers have an opportunity to influence in-mall purchases through targeted mobile engagement. Integration is the key. Columnist Allan Haims, tells us in his article about how to centralize the efforts. Read more at: http://marketingland.com/retail-marketing-strategies-connecting-dots-139673

Nowadays, marketers have mobile strategy for ad landing page and there are three accepted methods to make web pages work on mobile devices.  They are: responsive design, dynamic serving and maintaining separate mobile URLs. Of these three, in responsive design, mobile and desktop visitors view the exact same URL. Columnist Abraham Nord, writes in his article about the advantages & disadvantages of responsive design. The advantages are: 1. Multi-Device User Experience; 2. sharing & saving; 3. Page Management; and 4. Conversion Rate Optimization. Read more at: http://searchengineland.com/pros-cons-responsive-landing-pages-sem-228991

Account based marketing or ABM is the solution to the marketing challenges faced by B2B companies. ABM can target 500 or 5000 accounts at a time. One of the advantages of ABM is that it helps marketing and sales teams are on the same page, thereby, sales and marketing teams share the same goals and the same metrics for measuring progress. Author, Peter Isaacson, in his article link tells us about some key components which are important while implementing ABM. Read more at: http://marketingland.com/account-based-marketing-back-basics-137446

For any business, the impact of the IoT is a lot greater. The supply chain for most companies is not the hottest area of operations. When products are not properly shipped, when things go wrong that they pay attention to the people who run the supply chain. IoT is also transforming the supply chain. David Gillman (an analyst with Studio B.), writes about how it is transforming supply chain management. They are: Real-Time Tacking; Faster and Better Information; More Accurate Planning; Advanced Analytics; and IoT into the Future. Read more at: http://it.toolbox.com/blogs/inside-erp/5-ways-the-internet-of-things-is-transforming-supply-chain-management-69666

Retailers started using analytics to manage their stores and warehouses. They then started using analytics for planning local events and competitor's promotions and campaigns. Through point of sale, they understood individual customers. The only problem they faced was this data was known and analyzed post-sales. Now with mobile commerce, retailers collect and analyze data embedded in mobile devices. So, the challenge shifted from how to collect data, to how to get the user's permission and approval to collect and use the data.  Read more at:  http://it.toolbox.com/blogs/mobile-applications-businesses/mobile-commerce-strategies-contextually-relevant-opportunities-moments-and-environments-69652

To be a business process analyst, one need to have a set of skill. But, one need to have some more specific industry knowledge which will help them to become more successful. Here are five of the most critical skills that will help one to bring value to a company. They are: Communication; Analytical Thinking; Critical Thinking; Group Facilitation; and Relationship Building. Read more at: http://www.business2community.com/strategy/what-are-the-critical-skills-for-a-business-process-analyst-01312272

Visual marketing has become important in today’s business world. It is found that the average consumer prefers visual content compared to word-based interactions. Forbes Insight reports that nearly 60% of senior executives prefer to watch video instead of reading text, if both are available on the same page. But, visual marketing is more than giving consumers what they want and can be a huge asset for marketers who want a sharing response from consumers. Read more at: http://www.business2community.com/content-marketing/the-power-of-imagery-in-content-marketing-01310162

Predictive Intelligence is becoming a trend in today’s world. But, we need to know what predictive intelligence is all about. It is a method of delivering experiences unique to each individual. It also enables marketers to observe customer behavior, and build customer preferences. This information is then used across any web-based channel like the web, email, mobile or even a call center. Read more at: http://www.business2community.com/brandviews/salesforce/what-is-predictive-intelligence-and-why-should-every-marketer-care-01312444

Marketers are facing challenges in leveraging data to deliver relevant and personalized ads, messages and customer experiences. Most digital marketers relied on third-party data to reach prospective customers. Third-party data have been an easy way to reach a large section of consumers. But in today’s environment, it’s no longer enough. Instead, first-party data has become important for a majority of marketers. Columnist Mike Sands in his article writes that there are three main categories of data currently available to marketers: First-Party Data (any data created by a brand’s direct interactions with customers). Second-Party Data, and Third-Party Data.  But, what makes first-party data important, why are marketers prioritizing it over third-party data, and how can it help them achieve more effective people-based marketing? Read on: http://marketingland.com/can-marketers-find-best-customer-data-noses-139308

Nowadays, CRM focuses on SaaS customer relationship management solutions. Researchers at Gartner found that 53% of companies with CRM use on premise systems. On-premise solutions help companies in maintaining control over security, avoiding vendor lock-in, handling maintenance and support in-house.  But, having control over security doesn’t mean that on premise solutions are secured. Companies need to follow security best practices for on premise CRM. Read more at: http://it.toolbox.com/blogs/insidecrm/security-best-practices-for-onpremise-crm-69663

It is predicted that enterprise mobility and BYOD market predicted to hit over $270 billion by 2019. It is also found that 81% of CRM user access software through multiple devices, ensuing in a productivity increase of more than 20% when mobile and social network features are integrated into the CRM. So, you need to choose the right mobile hardware and CRM solution for your sales department. To know more about how to choose the right mobile hardware and CRM solution for your sales department, follow the link: http://it.toolbox.com/blogs/insidecrm/choosing-the-right-mobile-tools-for-crm-in-the-field-69662

Landing pages help any business in taking inbound marketing steps which in turn helps in increased conversions. It is better when paired with good campaigns via paid search and social advertising. Rose de Fremery (founder of lowercase d consulting) writes in her blog about some ways to create a convincing landing page. Read more at: http://it.toolbox.com/blogs/insidecrm/thinking-of-setting-up-landing-pages-here-are-5-things-you-should-know-first-69632

Everyone prefers email. It’s also effective for lead generation and other sales activities. In a research it was found that emails have a 50% higher rate of qualified leads than other avenues, and 20% of income directly comes from emails. CRM tool gathers extensive information on customer contact through email, phone, chat, social media, and other channels. An email-based CRM solution is very important for small & medium sized businesses. Nowadays, several CRM solutions integrate with email and bring benefits to any organization. They are: An integrated view; increased responsiveness; integration with other apps; quick installation and deployment; and unified contact list. Read more at: http://it.toolbox.com/blogs/insidecrm/5-benefits-of-crm-solutions-with-email-integration-69633

Business intelligence can provide visions to businesses which helps them with decision making, in becoming more responsive to their customers and business partners. Cloud-based visualization software is now offering better business value. Rose de Fremery (founder of lowercase d consulting) writes in her blog about the four key benefits that it can bring to businesses. They are: Rapid Time to Value; Flexible Data Integration; Mobile Access to Data Insights; and Expert Guided Analysis. Read more at: http://it.toolbox.com/blogs/insidecrm/4-key-benefits-of-cloudbased-business-visualization-69631

Customers or clients are important in today’s world. If a customer doesn’t have a good experience, they will not only leave your company, but also tell about their negative experience. That is why customer experience has become important for any competition. Jeanne Landau (Director of Marketing, 800response), in her article writes about four things companies need to do to satisfy their customers and earn repeat business. They are: Engage in a dialogue with customers; properly train your employees; provide a seamless cross-channel experience; and invest in the right tools. Read more at: http://www.callcentertimes.com/Home/tabid/37/ctl/NewsArticle/mid/395/CategoryID/1/NewsID/1020/Default.aspx

Supervisory roles are important in any contact center. These roles require the ability to lead and inspire both in personnel management and operational competence. “The supervisor role in the call or contact center is the most critical and demanding of all and often gets the least attention,” says John O’Brien, CEO and founder of Sales Talent Group. But, being good at job will not hold good for supervisory role. It was found that contact center turnover rates averaged 30 to 45% in 2014. The costs associated with combating employee attrition are the reason for high turnover rate. These losses can be prevented by implementing strategic supervisor training. Read more at: http://www.callcentertimes.com/Home/tabid/37/ctl/NewsArticle/mid/395/CategoryID/1/NewsID/1037/Default.aspx

Workforce management is needed in every company and is very important for contact center success. A contact center is at risk of losing revenue if there is no workforce management. But, in spite of this, there are still confusions that discourage companies from investing in a quality workforce management solution. Bob Webb (VP Sales) writes in his article about some common myths about workforce management. They are: Workforce management is an ancillary application; all workforce management solutions are the same with algorithms that can produce a statistically valid forecast; only large centers benefit from Workforce Management - WFM is cost prohibitive for small centers; internal productivity metrics cannot tie in with workforce management tools; supervisors lose control of at-home agents; and customer data is at risk with hosted solutions. Read more at: http://www.callcentertimes.com/Home/tabid/37/ctl/NewsArticle/mid/395/CategoryID/1/NewsID/1027/Default.aspx

There is a myth that online selling means competing on price. But, this is not true. The truth is that every purchase decision comes down to a perceived risk. The online retailers focus only on justifying consumer doubts while tempting shoppers with additional discounts. Sometimes that means low prices and discounts. Columnist David Rekuc writes in his article about some ways one can lower your customers’ perceived risk. They are: Reduce Risk; Offer a free trial; Establish credibility with third-party endorsements; and seek out in-depth, transparent product reviews. Read more at: http://marketingland.com/biggest-myth-online-retail-137618

Baseball is an exclusive game. It has been played for over centuries and hence is defined by the long history of data collected over the years which has hardly changed. We can relate baseball and big data. Baseball combines analysis of historic structured data with real-time event data and sequential insights. The following three factors have a direct analogy in consumer marketing: 1. in baseball, a manager look at batting averages, spray charts, and righty-lefty matchups whereas a marketer might look into historic purchases, create segmentation of behaviors and demographics, and add channel preference.
2. In baseball, a manager might look into real time data e.g. how pitch is affected, player’s approach. On the other hand the marketer looks into how he can capitalize on real-time events.
3. For a pitcher, set up pitch is important On the other hand, in marketing, the flow of emails or offers dictates the next offer or product promoted.
Read more at: http://www.tibco.com/blog/2015/08/10/baseball-and-big-data-marketing-closer-than-you-ever-thought/