Author: Dave J.

Tracking CRM suppliers

The sales machines for CRM software is truly amazing in its complexity. After filling out a lengthy form in Word and emailing it to Goldmine, ten days later I get this reply:

In case you don’t have this information already, you can contact our local partner XX at 555-1212. They can assist you with any questions etc.

So why did I fill out the survey form? Wouldn’t it be better to forward the form to the local partner and have them contact me?

After three emails with the CRM consultant in New Jersey asking me to call him (and not bother with the form he originally sent), I did. We had a good conversation…he got answers he wanted, I did as well. Turns out he is following up from an inquiry two years ago by one of our field sales people.

Thanks Jim

I had known about TinyURL, having seen others use it, but I never thought about using it to solve a problem with a link that is too long in my website. Seems the example they use is a MapQuest link, too!

TinyURL.com – where tiny is better!

Enter a long URL to make tiny:

MapQuest is much better

Straight-forward linking instructions, no pop-ups! The linking instructions help you strip out other server commands out of the link you would normally see in your browser.

They, and everyone else except maps-on-us, show our location down the street, but at least I can get people to our small industrial drive.

Every company needs a map to their offices, right?

Wanted to post about Jakob Nielsen’s complaint about URLs being longer than 75 characters. I was going to tell my tale about having to hunt for a web-based map that I need to link to so people can find our company. Let me start there. When upgrading the site, I wanted to ensure the map link was up-to-date (I think it was wrong due to server changes by the mapping service). But the new URL wouldn’t be accepted by FrontPage because it was over 255 characters! I haven’t tried that link in Dreamweaver, but I may have to.

My elegant solution was to link to another mapping service MapsOnUs, which had a short URL for the map page I generated. But in checking this morning, I find that the URL includes a user code, that it won’t let everyone use. My cookie for this user code must have expired because now I found that I get dumped on a generic “enter address here” form. Crap!

As I study their poor website, I find that as a business, I have to subscribe to fancy mapping services starting at 2K a year, or pretend that I am a non-commercial site, in which I can link to their site. No middle ground.

And the MapsOnUs site really sucks, too. The “business svcs” link on their home page drops you to a PDF file. Their linking instructions are long and complicated. And to top it all off their “contact us” page gives text directions to their offices, but no link to a map!

Top Ten Web-Design Mistakes of 2002 (Alertbox Dec. 2002)

Please read the whole list, but here is my pet peeve. I’ll address #9 in another post.

7. Infrequently Asked Questions in FAQ

Too many websites have FAQs that list questions the company wished users would ask. No good. FAQs have a simplistic information design that does not scale well. They must be reserved for frequently asked questions, since that’s the only thing that makes a FAQ a useful website feature. Infrequently asked questions undermine users’ trust in the website and damage their understanding of its navigation.

A nice quiet afternoon and then…

I hear a rumor that Thomas Register is dropping their rates by almost two-thirds. This after I signed at the higher rate. I suspect that these rates are being offered only to use to buy position in TR’s web listings and not for actual print space. That would make sense, otherwise they would be at risk for a major backlash.

Until I hear more…Merry Christmas.

I finally got something out of my brain that has been there every time I listen to NPR. Why don’t they offer premium services on the web for their paying members? See my comments here:

Rick E Bruner’s Executive Summary blog”

Rick’s original idea about NPR on MP3s.

New B2B angle

I think I’m going to have fun analyzing the marketing of the CRM software sellers. I had inquired about SalesLogix the other day, to which a company rep promised me literature and a contact from a specialist. No call or literature yet, but I got an email from one of their software consultants. The email is another form, similar to one I got from Goldmine. The disappointing thing is that it doesn’t really introduce themselves.

So, I want to know more and go to their website. From the website I learn they also sell Goldmine. But I can’t find out where they are located! Even on their training sign-up page there is no indication of a location. Don’t people want to make sure the consultant is somewhat local? I do. Are they trying to avoid the issue? Probably. Am I going to pursue their company, not likely.

So what does one do? Google them! Now I know they are from NJ. And I found a nice article by their President that would be a welcome addition to a rather useless website.

Majestic Consulting Group

A moving blog!

The B2blog has found its new home. Now I just need to get Googled!

The answer

Just got this email:

Thank you for your interest in our award-winning CRM software GoldMine and FrontOffice. You recently accessed our web site. Could you please take a few minutes to complete the attached form so I know what you are looking for in a support application? Please save the document before sending it back to me. Thank you.

And I get a one page form to fill out about my needs. The game begins.