CRM - March 2008 - (Page E3)

Sponsored Content March 2008 3 The Operational Impact of Web Conferencing Sales and marketing are two hands that work in concert and — in the best of circumstances — march to the same beat. But while their overall goals are similar, the methods of achieving those goals may vary. Marketing focuses on communications and lead generation; sales focuses on lead processing and selling. But one distinct tool they both increasingly are finding invaluable for refining and improving their methods is web conferencing. Businesses are only beginning to measure the impact of their use of web conferencing for sales and marketing. Yet while relatively new to the scene, a few things are clear: web conferencing is beginning to help thousands of organizations with their efforts to reach customers — and to do so in a variety of ways. Are the methods — and benefits — for each functional area the same or different? To identify how businesses are using web conferencing to sell and market more effectively and scale their efforts, and to assess the current “state of the art” in using web conferencing in the sales process, Wainhouse Research and Citrix surveyed over 1,000 knowledge workers and business owners during July-September 2007 regarding their attitudes towards and use cases for web conferencing to support formal and informal sales and marketing efforts, with both internal and external audiences. Respondents include workers in sales (25%), marketing/PR (12%), management (11%), IT (10%), administration (7%), professional services (6%), consulting (4%), and engineering (3%). Smaller numbers comprise professionals in support, training, finance, manufacturing, and HR. All respondents were able to contribute to the impact of web conferencing on their sales and marketing efforts. Two out of three say web conferencing for sales & marketing reduces unnecessary travel, while two out of five say that it enhances productivity and improves demonstration capabilities. HOW IS WEB CONFERENCING AFFECTING THE SALES & MARKETING OPERATIONS CYCLE? • ONE IN FOUR (27%) USE IT TO PROVIDE AD HOC DEMONSTRATIONS. • ALSO, ONE IN FOUR (23%) USE IT TO ACTUALLY CLOSE BUSINESS — A SIGN THAT WEB CONFERENCING CAN BE USEFUL IN EVERY STAGE OF THE SALES AND MARKETING CYCLE. HOW DOES WEB CONFERENCING AFFECT SALES? • WEB CONFERENCING’S SINGLE GREATEST IMPACT IS TO REDUCE UNNECESSARY TRAVEL (60%) WITHOUT DIMINISHING Training and outbound communications are both important to sales and marketing, as the data shows that two of the top four applications for web conferencing are in sales and customer training; the other two in communications. • TWO OUT OF FIVE (41%) ORGANIZATIONS CONDUCT SALES TRAINING. CUSTOMER CONTACT. • TWO OUT OF FIVE (41%) CITE ENHANCED PRODUCTIVITY AND ALMOST THE SAME NUMBER (39%) CITE IMPROVED DEMONSTRATION CAPACITY. • IMPROVED INTERNAL SALES TRAINING AND EXTERNAL TRAINING EFFORTS ARE SEEN BY ALMOST ONE THIRD. • ALMOST THAT MANY (37%) DELIVER WEBINARS. • INCREASED PROSPECT CONTACT IS ALSO COMMON. • ONE IN THREE (34%) USE WEB CONFERENCING TO DELIVER SCHEDULED DEMONSTRATIONS OR CUSTOMER TRAINING. • INCREASED REVENUE GROWTH AND OTHER BENEFITS MAY TAKE LONGER TO REACH CRITICAL MASS.

Table of Contents Feed for the Digital Edition of CRM - March 2008

CRM - March 2008 Contents Front Office Feedback Reality Check Customer Centricity The Tipping Point Re-shoring Contact Centers NetSuite’s Sweet Ride Takes Another Turn SaaS X.0? destinationCRM Dashboard Retailers Dream Big Detroit: Driven to Distraction Required Reading The Markets Within the Masses In Search of... Selling CRM to Your Sales Force Quixtar’s Quick Fix Travelocity’s New Traveling Companion Chasing Down First-Call Resolution Governing Better Marketing Secret of My Success Re: Tooling Connect Pint of View

CRM - March 2008

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