Since CRM functionality is built right into our Epicor BisTrack™ software, the history and communication with each and every customer is visible to every BisTrack software user.
Graham Rigby, sales director of products for lumber and building materials at Epicor Software, offers these insights:
ProSales Magazine: Why are more and more lumber and building materials suppliers adopting a CRM solution?
Graham Rigby: Until recently, implementing software in a lumber and building materials (LBM) business meant automating the back office to help speed transaction management and reduce costs. With home-building now picking up, LBM suppliers are focusing on capturing more of those home starts and growing their top line revenue. Sales force automation through a CRM system is helping our customers pursue more sales opportunities, respond faster, and significantly improve sales productivity and win rates.
ProSales Magazine: How does CRM help?
Graham Rigby: An integrated CRM system helps in two ways. Firstly, it allows company-wide visibility to improve awareness, collaboration, and responsiveness-and often reduces the workload on inside and outside sales people who would otherwise spend time responding to customer questions about order status, delivery updates, credit questions, etc. With CRM solutions, everyone in the organization is empowered to find the answers to these questions, allowing the sales team to focus on selling product. Secondly, if a CRM solution incorporates sales automation functionality, it will help accelerate sales opportunities through the pipeline. That's the really big payoff.
ProSales Magazine: What makes the Epicor CRM solution uniquely qualified to help?
Graham Rigby: Most sales force automation tools used by LBM dealers are generic, third-party solutions that do not fully integrate with the company's back-office applications. That's a needless limitation. Since CRM functionality is built right into our Epicor BisTrack™ software, the history and communication with each and every customer is visible to every BisTrack software user. And, unlike most basic CRM systems, ours starts the sales process, not with a transaction or a contact, but with an identified opportunity. The system then uses sales automation tools, such as event-triggered reminders, and Outlook® integration to help propel an opportunity through the sales cycle.
More importantly, our CRM solution is deployed in the cloud, and that aids your sales person at the jobsite. It lets outside sales people use mobile devices (such as smartphones, tablets and laptops) to quickly capture data, record an opportunity, trigger a follow-up, double-check inventory levels, or submit an order with a tap or swipe. It's a powerful tool that helps the sales rep truly serve as the team's field quarterback.
ProSales Magazine: What's the field reaction to Epicor's CRM software?
Graham Rigby: Sales reps rave about the way the BisTrack CRM software simplifies key parts of their job and makes them more effective. They win more business because they know more. We've heard story after story of how our CRM solution maximizes sales opportunities and helps spike growth. One customer told me they tripled conversions on pending quotes by using BisTrack software to remind sales people to follow-up. The team now has a better way to analyze sales, spot opportunities, rapidly respond to them and track them through completion. Once a rep discovers what our CRM solution means to their commission check, they're sold on the benefits of this technology.
Sales managers also appreciate the added level of insight and visibility into sales metrics this technology gives them. You can't fix what you can't see, and this technology provides a clear view of the critical sales function.
This Executive Viewpoint was written by ProSales Magazine. Click here to read more articles from the publication.
Posted by the Epicor Social Media Team.
In this Executive Viewpoint, the author expresses his viewpoints and opinions about the Lumber and Building Materials market. This Viewpoint is sponsored by Epicor Software Corporation, and the contents of this document are for informational purposes only and are subject to change without notice. Epicor Software Corporation makes no guarantee, representations or warranties with regard to the enclosed information and specifically disclaims, to the full extent of the law, any applicable implied warranties, such as fitness for a particular purpose, merchantability, satisfactory quality or reasonable skill and care. The results represented in testimonials may be unique to the particular customer as each user's experience will vary. This document and its contents, including the viewpoints, dates and functional content expressed herein are believed to be accurate as of its date of publication, April 2016. Epicor and BisTrack are trademarks or registered trademarks in the United States and in other countries. Outlook is a trademark of Microsoft Corporation.
