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Hitachi Becomes Customer and Reseller for JAGGAER’s Global Source-to-Contract Digital Transformation Solutions

Partner Management & Channel Enablement

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December 4, 2018

Hitachi Becomes Customer and Reseller for JAGGAER’s Global Source-to-Contract Digital Transformation Solutions

JAGGAER, the world’s largest independent spend management company, announced that Hitachi, Ltd. (President & CEO: Toshiaki Higashihara, hereinafter “Hitachi”), a Japanese multinational technology, information, transportation, and machinery conglomerate, has become a reseller of JAGGAER’s Source to Contract (S2C) suite of spend management solutions. Hitachi is an existing JAGGAER customer.

Hitachi became a reseller because of the positive experience and power of JAGGAER solutions. Hitachi selected JAGGAER’s Strategic Sourcing, Supplier Value Management, and Contract Lifecycle Management capabilities because of the platform’s integration, ability to easily share information, and feature-rich applications designed for the needs of a global organization.

Additionally, JAGGAER provides cost reduction capabilities and reduced procurement risks to enable Hitachi to realize the ‘best in class’ mandate of its Center of Excellence. JAGGAER solutions will allow Hitachi to improve its supplier management capabilities and S2C operations by developing a highly competitive supply chain through standardizing processes, and organizational structures.

“JAGGAER’s solutions will help us transform our supplier relationship and management, which represents one of the fundamental backbones of our global organization. Their powerful technology mirrors our own approach to innovation: developing the right professional tools that are proven in the market and will stand the test of time. They bring global visibility, power and advanced insights to our many distributed locations,” says Masashi Murayama, CPO & General Manager, Hitachi Ltd.

“Hitachi joins the ranks of many global companies that have selected JAGGAER because of the industry focused solutions that we provide for digital transformation. Advanced insights and supply chain visibility have become critical parts of the dynamic and challenging global commerce equation, and are cornerstones of our solutions suite. We look forward to a long relationship with our technology customer and newest reseller partner,” says Anthony Larratt, Managing Director, JAGGAER APAC.

JAGGAER is the world’s largest independent spend management company, with nearly 2000 customers connected to a network of 3.7 million suppliers in 70 countries, served by offices located in North America, Latin America, throughout Europe, the United Kingdom, Australia, Asia, and the Middle East. JAGGAER offers complete SaaS-based Source to Pay eProcurement solutions with advanced Spend Analytics, Sourcing, Supplier Management, Contract Lifecycle Management, Savings Tracking, and intelligent workflow capabilities. JAGGAER has pioneered spend solutions for over two decades and continues to lead the innovation curve by listening to customers and analyzing the market. Our solution suites are trusted by the world’s largest manufacturing, education, health care, retail, consumer package goods, logistics, construction, utilities companies and public service organizations.

Xeeva Selected for “20 Most Promising Procurement Solution Providers” list by CIOReview Two Years in a Row

Sales & Marketing

STS News Desk

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December 4, 2018

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Xeeva Selected for “20 Most Promising Procurement Solution Providers” list by CIOReview Two Years in a Row

Xeeva, Inc., a global provider of award-winning AI-powered procurement software, announced that it was featured on CIOReview’s 2018 list of the “20 Most Promising Procurement Solution Providers” for the second straight year.

Domo Top Platform Choice for Analytics and Business Intelligence with a 4.4/5 Rating

Annually, CIOReview selects the top 20 solution providers offering the best tools and services in the procurement landscape. The list is designed to help CIOs identify the right procurement solution for their organization. It is assembled by a panel of distinguished CEOs, CIOs, VCs, analysts, and CIOReview’s editorial board.

Xeeva was among the solutions chosen because it is at the forefront of tackling industry challenges. Its full tech suite creates a unified team with automated buying for faster execution and classified spend data for unlocked insights. By doing so, it eliminates organizations’ frustration of always being stalled by the tactical and allows them to focus on what matter most – growing their business.

With the help of its patented AI, the innovative solution simplifies and streamlines the procurement process to drive hyper-efficiency, massive savings, and sustainable results. Xeeva’s innovative technology doesn’t make small, incremental improvements to the procurement process. Instead, it shifts the entire paradigm of what’s possible in procurement.

“There’s a growing awareness in the market that procurement can be complex and hard to manage without the right technology,” said Dilip Dubey, Xeeva’s founder and CEO.

Dilip added, “That’s why our world-leading procurement solution uses AI at its core. It’s not a workflow or automation software but rather the AI is embedded throughout our entire solution to drive actual results. We’re grateful that CIOReview has once again recognized us as leaders in this charge, thanks to our powerful AI technology.”

It’s been a year of great recognition for Xeeva and its procurement technology. Earlier this year, it was named a 2018 Gartner Cool Vendor for Procure-to-Pay Applications, and it won a SaaS Award for Best SaaS Product for Supply Chain/Warehouse Management, among others. Along with that, Xeeva raised over $40 million in funding this past April to accelerate its growth and amplify its ability to transform how organizations manage spend. This is also the second time CIOReview has included Xeeva on its annual listing of the “Most Promising Procurement Solution Providers”.

Founded in 2014, Xeeva is a global provider of intelligent cloud-based procurement software and financial solutions for indirect spend and MRO. Used in over 45 countries and available in 18 languages, their software suite automates the source-to-pay process with open communication for procurement, sourcing, and supplier management. Xeeva’s innovative and patented technology is driven by advanced artificial intelligence and simplifies the procure-to-pay process with a focus on driving results – leading to increased productivity, improved compliance and control, and a sustainable bottom line impact.

ZoomInfo Enriches Its Company Information with New Real-Time Firmographic Data

STS News Desk

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December 4, 2018

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ZoomInfo Enriches Its Company Information with New Real-Time Firmographic Data

Company Newsfeed and Hierarchies provide users with deep company data that drives sales efficacy

ZoomInfo, the leading growth acceleration platform for sales and marketing teams, announced the availability of several new features, including Company Hierarchies and Company Newsfeeds. The new features refine the user’s knowledge of their key targeted profiles and strengthen their understanding of customer portfolios.

ZoomInfo’s Company Newsfeed gathers hundreds of articles bringing users up-to-date information relating to their targeted accounts. As soon as new articles are collected and curated, users may access them through the ZoomInfo platform. Company Newsfeed provides sales and go-to-market teams with a deeper understanding of their prospect companies, improving efficiency throughout their daily workflow.

Company Hierarchies transform ZoomInfo’s data to give users a clearer picture of a company’s portfolio, including parent companies, subsidiaries, and acquisitions. This is particularly important for larger enterprises that may include these units within their broader organization.

“Sales and go-to-market teams need a deep understanding of their customers and prospects – and the companies that they work for,” Hila Nir, Chief Marketing and Product Officer, ZoomInfo, said. “With today’s new features, ZoomInfo is enriching its firmographic data with detailed and real-time information that will help teams find that next lead and target it more effectively.”

ZoomInfo also announced the availability of custom mapping for Microsoft Dynamics, SalesLoft and Outreach and field-by-field updates for ReachOut, its Chrome extension. The integrations enable sales professionals to export custom data directly from ZoomInfo into those platforms, increasing sales efficiencies and reducing the time spent on manual processes. Outreach and SalesLoft customers can export directly into Sequences and Cadences, respectively, integrating ZoomInfo data directly into customer and prospect communications.

With field-by-field updates, customers using customer relationship management and sales management platforms that integrate with ZoomInfo can now choose what fields to update without cutting and pasting from the ReachOut extension.

ZoomInfo’s Growth Acceleration Platform combines the world’s most comprehensive and searchable B2B contact database with integrated tools to help companies optimize sales and marketing effectiveness, jump-start growth, and maximize profitability.

“New Rules” for Customer Service Worth Paying For”, by Aspect Software

STS News Desk

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December 4, 2018

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“New Rules” for Customer Service Worth Paying For”, by Aspect Software

Aspect Software’s 2018 Consumer Experience Index Reveals “New Rules” for Customer Service Worth Paying For; Focus on Happy Agents, Channel Choice, Hybrid AI-Agent Experiences

Willing to pay for a delightful experience: Two-Thirds of consumers are willing to pay for great customer service, 31% willing to pay as much as 10% more for exceptional service
Channel choice is king: Consumers say interacting on their channel of choice is the most important aspect of a personalized experience
Happiness matters: 62% of consumers say engaging a happy customer service agent will make them happy; 72% would rather speak/chat with a happy agent (vs. and uninterested agent) and have an interaction take longer

A majority of consumers are willing to pay for a great customer experience according to the 2018 Aspect Consumer Experience Index survey. And while consumers said effectiveness is the single most important aspect of that ideal interaction, this year’s annual survey findings show that catering to engagement preferences and experience-created emotions can be the key to unlocking long-term loyalty and sustained business from customers.

The Channel Is the Experience

Forty-five percent of consumers (and 66% of Boomers) said the most important aspect of a personalized experience is being able to interact with brands on the channel they want – even more important than knowing their name or their transaction history. But consumer expectations vary widely between agent-engaged- and self-assisted interactions. Forty-one percent of consumers who conducted self-service interactions had higher satisfaction expectations compared to doing the same with an agent. But consumers who conducted interactions with agents had a 70% satisfaction expectation compared to conducting the same via self-service.

While consumer interest in self-service isn’t declining anytime soon, the personal, human touch still packs a considerable punch when it comes to inspiring customer satisfaction, and ultimately, loyalty.

The Agent Experience Is the Customer Experience

The Aspect Index survey reveals strong proof that agent positivity and commonality of experience play a big part in creating experiences consumers want. For example, 61% of consumers value talking with someone who has gone through the same experience they have more than they care whether the representative is employed in the company’s contact center or if they are a gig/contract worker.

And, proving the theory that happy agents equal happy customers, 62% of the respondents said talking or live- chatting with a happy customer service agent would also make them happy.

Most consumers (72%) said they would rather interact with a happy agent and have their experience take a little longer than interact with an uninterested agent and have their experience go a little faster.

Empowering Consumers to Self-Serve Is What Endears Them to the Brand

Nearly half (48%) of the consumers surveyed don’t define getting a question answered or a request completed without speaking/chatting with a customer service agent as customer service. However, 38% of the respondents and 50% of Millennials view the option of performing self-service as a natural part of the brand experience and as a positive attribute of the organization.

Further, seven-in-ten consumers said the most important component of AI/self-service interaction is being able to seamlessly transfer to a live agent should they desire. In other words, consumers want everything ‒ AI, their choice of channel, and engaging, knowledgeable agents.

Skynamo Study: Over a Third of Field Sales Reps Feel…

“The growth of AI and self-service interaction, combined with an increasing number of digitally-native consumers is slowly changing the customer service landscape, and with it, the definition of customer service itself,” said Nancy Dobrozdravic, Vice President of Marketing, Aspect Software. “As much as consumers are demanding self-directed and intelligent-assistant driven experiences, consumers reveal that agents remain a vital component of the larger customer experience. These findings could indicate symbiotic relationships, where fulfilling self-directed interactions boost the brand while agent-assisted engagements underpin customer satisfaction and loyalty. Such considerations are central to how we evolve the entire digital transformation discussion.”

Currently, Aspect helps enterprises break down the walls between people, processes, systems and data sources, allowing organizations to unite around the customer journey. By developing fully native interaction management, workforce optimization and self-service capabilities within a single customer-engagement center, we enable dynamic, conversational interactions and create a truly frictionless omnichannel customer experience. Leveraging the agility of our worldwide cloud infrastructure and over 40 years of industry ingenuity, Aspect conveniently and easily connects questions to answers while helping enterprises keep service levels high and operational costs contained.

“Becoming a Customer-Centric Leader” at 2019 SFDC, By Debbie Qaqish

Content Sharing

Sudipto Ghosh

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December 4, 2018

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“Becoming a Customer-Centric Leader” at 2019 SFDC, By Debbie Qaqish

Revenue Marketing™ Agency, The Pedowitz Group (TPG), announced Chief Strategy Officer Debbie Qaqish will present, “Time to Step-Up: Leading the Shift to Customer-Centricity” during the Salesforce 2019 World Tour in Atlanta (December 5) and New York City (December 13). During her sessions, Debbie will explain the mindset, skillset, and toolset required for today’s customer-centric marketer.

Debbie writes a regular column for AMA B2B Insights, MarTech Today, and MarTech Series.

Revenue Marketing™ Agency, The Pedowitz Group (TPG), announces Chief Strategy Officer Debbie Qaqish will present, “Time to Step-Up: Leading the Shift to Customer-Centricity” during the Salesforce 2019 World Tour in Atlanta (December 5) and New York City (December 13). During her sessions, Debbie will explain the mindset, skillset and toolset required for today’s customer-centric marketer. Attendees will gain a fresh perspective on their role in leading and operationalizing the vital shift to customer-centricity.

The Atlanta tour on December 5 will be held at the Georgia World Congress Center with 1,500+ expected to attend. Debbie will speak from 12:45 – 1:05pm ET. Register here. Sessions are free and open to the public. The New York City tour on December 13 at the Javitz Convention Center is expected to attract 5,000+. Register here to attend Debbie’s session, 9:15 – 9:35am.

“In today’s customer-driven economy, embracing a customer-centric model is now a business imperative for survival and growth,” Debbie notes. “Leading and operationalizing a customer-centric philosophy represents the single biggest challenge and the single biggest opportunity facing marketers today.”

The Pedowitz Group is a registered Salesforce.com Marketing Cloud partner and a Platinum sponsor for the 2019 Salesforce World Tour in Atlanta and New York. Visit TPG in Atlanta at the Georgia World Congress Center in booth # 127 and in NYC at the Javitz Convention Center (check marquis for booth #).

About Debbie Qaqish

Debbie Qaqish has been inspiring B2B marketers to embrace revenue accountability for over 35 years. As Principal Partner and Chief Strategy Officer of TPG, she manages global client relationships and leads the firm’s thought leadership initiatives.

Debbie authored the award-winning book – “Rise of the Revenue Marketer.” She is Chancellor of Revenue Marketing University and host of Revenue Marketing Radio, which showcases marketing executives from companies like GE and Microsoft sharing advice on marketing transformation. Her second book, “The Rise of the Strategic Marketing Operations Function,” will be published in early 2019. A PhD candidate, Debbie teaches an MBA course at College of William & Mary on Revenue Marketing.

For the last six years, Debbie has been named One of the 50 Most Influential People in Sales Lead Management. She has also won SLMA’s Top 20 Women to Watch distinction for four years. Kapost named Debbie among the Top 40 Most Inspiring Women in Marketing. FierceCMO Magazine named Debbie one of the Top 10 Women CMOs to Watch.

Debbie writes a regular column for AMA B2B Insights, MarTech Today, and MarTech Series. She speaks regularly at industry events including Scott Brinker’s MarTech Conferences and serves on the Board of Advisors for the Sales Lead Management Association.

The Pedowitz Group (TPG) wrote the book, and is the undisputed thought leader on Revenue Marketing™. As a partner, The Pedowitz Group (TPG) helps companies plan, build and optimize their revenue engine by delivering services in MarTech, demand generation and marketing operations. TPG believes that Marketing is the driver of customer engagement that fuels the revenue engine. The Pedowitz Group customers have won over 50 national awards for their Revenue Marketing excellence.

Skynamo Study: Over a Third of Field Sales Reps Feel Hindered by Technology

STS News Desk

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December 4, 2018

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Skynamo Study: Over a Third of Field Sales Reps Feel Hindered by Technology

Technophobia is rife in the sales environment because tools aren’t designed for use in the field among sales reps

Over a third, or nearly (38%) of UK field sales reps believe technology is “more of a hindrance than a help”, according to new research from cloud-based mobile sales software provider Skynamo. This hindrance is creating technophobia in the sales environment, fuelled by the bad experiences reps have had using the tools deployed by their organization. 18% state that cumbersome technology directly impacts their ability to enter work-related data accurately.

Skynamo is a provider of a cloud-based field sales management software and mobile sales app for manufacturers, wholesalers, and distributors with reps who service or sell to an existing customer base.

In its survey, Skynamo found that sales organizations are placing a high reliance on ‘low-tech’ such as Excel spreadsheets (48%) and email and instant messaging (41%) for day-to-day updates. Many of these spreadsheets and emails are printed onto paper and used as the basis for formal reporting. A further 7% admit to relying on purely paper-based filing and handwritten notebooks. All these disjointed tools contribute to distrust in the data that field sales reps and their managers are using to make informed sales decisions.

Just under half of sales reps (43%) are required to use more sophisticated and professional customer relationship management (CRM) platforms from vendors such as Salesforce, SAP, Microsoft Dynamics, and Zoho. A further 29% have to use enterprise resource planning (ERP) software/accounting packages like Sage, as well. The stipulation to enter data into multiple systems means inconsistencies are rife, especially as these tools can’t always be accessed easily while reps are out on the road.

“With more than 20% of the UK population employed in sales it’s jaw-dropping to think that more than a third of these men and women are being let down by technology,” said Brian Howe, Alliances Director at Skynamo.

Brian added, “For salespeople on the road it’s really no wonder that they find technology a hindrance. In so many cases the wrong tools are implemented for field sales reps who need an application designed specifically for use on a mobile device and to support their unique set of tasks while on the road.”

“Massive advances in technology, including Cloud Computing, Mobile Phones, and the Internet give us all the essential components to make it easier for salespeople to access everything they need to present and update accurate information – but this isn’t happening! Improving the technology available to support reps selling in the field has the ability to reduce idle time and hours spent on admin, so they can spend more time in front of customers building relationships and selling,” continues Howe.

For field sales reps to sell effectively they need access to accurate information about products and customers, the latest pricing and stock information, and the ability to act on that data. The solution is a single interface that they can use to easily access the data and functionality they need to do their jobs well instead of jumping between various systems on their mobile device to check and update data.

“Often problems experienced with technology in the field sales environment are rarely due to any fault of the technology itself and more due to the way it is being deployed in conjunction with other tools. When technology is trusted, mobile-first and field sales focused by design it is easier to get users to adopt. Sales professionals need a single interface to easily access and update the information they require to do their jobs well instead of jumping between various disjointed systems when they are on the road,” concluded Howe.

RESEARCH METHODOLOGY

Skynamo captured the views and opinions of 251 UK field sales professionals in October 2018 with the help of market research consultants Censuswide. For the purposes of the survey, field sales professionals were classed as men or women spending at least 75% of their time on the road selling products or services to customers.

Accenture And Amazon Web Services Extend Enterprise Transformation Leadership With Expanded Services…

Verisk to Acquire Rulebook

Sales & Marketing

STS News Desk

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December 4, 2018

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Combined power of Rulebook acquisition and Sequel enhances Verisk’s position as a leading provider of insurance software solutions to the global specialty market

Verisk (Nasdaq:VRSK), a leading data analytics provider, has signed a definitive agreement to acquire Rulebook, an industry-leading provider of business intelligence and software solutions for the London Insurance Market.

Rulebook’s proprietary, uniquely distinctive pricing engine can be used for internal pricing and underwriting as well as external distribution for the specialty insurance market through its Rulebook Hub platform. Rulebook also has a data analytics offering that develops business intelligence solutions for clients to enable historical, current, and predictive views of business operations.

Rulebook’s pricing engine is used by some of the leading carriers in the London specialty insurance market to build underwriting rules for complex specialty insurance products through a simple, easy-to-use web-based platform. Through its platform, Rulebook provides clients with greater accuracy and better control over the pricing and distribution process, thus facilitating consistency and improving regulatory reporting and compliance.

“The acquisition will expand Verisk’s existing offerings to the specialty insurance market by adding Rulebook’s proprietary pricing and management information engines to Sequel’s specialized software suite,” said Ian Summers, CEO of Sequel.

Ian added, “These enhanced offerings will provide our customers with more efficient methods of distribution and significantly improved data analytics capabilities. The complementary applications give us a unique opportunity in our sector to complete the value chain, driving data through the process from broker to underwriter and quote through to claims settlement.”

“We’re very excited to join Verisk, as this will accelerate our growing business by providing greater access to global markets and Verisk’s existing international customers,” said Andy Galli, managing director of Rulebook.

Andy added, “We offer a unique value proposition that will be further enhanced by leveraging synergies and collaborating with other Verisk businesses and their data analytics.”

Mark Anquillare, COO of Verisk, added, “Rulebook is a Verisk-like business that furthers our goal of providing leading solutions to the global insurance market, including a comprehensive chain of solutions to specialty insurers for mitigating risk and optimizing total cost of operations.”

The purchase price is $87 million in cash, funded through cash on hand and existing bank facilities, subject to typical closing adjustments. The transaction is expected to be accretive to 2019 adjusted EPS. In addition, Verisk expects the acquisition to generate an attractive return in excess of Verisk’s cost of capital. The transaction is expected to close in the fourth quarter of 2018, subject to the completion of customary closing conditions.

Verisk will discuss the transaction and Rulebook’s solutions and business in greater detail at its upcoming Investor Day on December 6, 2018.

The Rulebook suite of products is the combination of a powerful rules engine and an insurance underwriting and broking desktop, together with a comprehensive analytics capability that enables clients to transact with and learn from their data for even the most complex lines of specialty insurance business. Rulebook supports companies primarily in the London Insurance Market but increasingly internationally.

Verisk is a leading data analytics provider serving customers in insurance, energy and specialized markets, and financial services. Using advanced technologies to collect and analyze billions of records, Verisk draws on unique data assets and deep domain expertise to provide first-to-market innovations that are integrated into customer workflows. Verisk offers predictive analytics and decision support solutions to customers in rating, underwriting, claims, catastrophe and weather risk, global risk analytics, natural resources intelligence, economic forecasting, and many other fields. Around the world, Verisk helps customers protect people, property, and financial assets.

Ramp and Microsoft Bring Customers Enterprise…

Domo Top Platform Choice for Analytics and Business Intelligence with a 4.4/5 Rating

Sales & Marketing

STS News Desk

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December 4, 2018

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Domo Top Platform Choice for Analytics and Business Intelligence with a 4.4/5 Rating

Domo^® , a leading provider of the leading cloud-based operating system for business, announced it has been named a 2018 Gartner Peer Insights Customers’ Choice for Analytics and Business Intelligence Platforms. The Customers’ Choice program is based on recognition of vendors submitted by verified end-user professionals and considers both the number of customer reviews and the overall user ratings.

With an overall rating of 4.4 out of 5 stars, as of November 2018, some of the 144 verified end-user reviews from business analysts to heads of digital marketing to chief technology officers, highlighted Domo’s scale and enterprise-grade security, ease of use and AI and machine learning capabilities:

“Domo puts all of a business’s data to work for employees throughout the company. It enables all employees to engage with real-time data, increasing everyone’s productivity and ability to act on the data—including partners outside of the organization. It also delivers optimized web-scale enterprise-class security and administration for businesses of all sizes.” – Sr. Analyst, Services
“The best BI software for every user. Integrated solution that provides a one-stop shop to manage the business. Domo has a great UI.” – Business Analyst, Transportation
“We evaluated over 10 business intelligence vendors over a period of 5+ months and choose Domo for its engaging design, ease of use, and flexibility of function. They are constantly adding new features in the realms of AI and machine learning to stay on top of the trends businesses are looking to utilize. Absolutely superb customer service.” – Data Analyst
“Quick win for business: DOMO! Information flows throughout (an) organization with ease.” – AVP, Finance
“Got quick results. Easy to use across multiple sources of data. This tool has been very easy to implement. The support–both locally and from their corporate office has been exceptional. We have 1 IT resource totally dedicated to the effort and are looking to add more resources.” – Chief Technology & Administrative Officer, Energy & Utilities
“UI experience is awesome. ETL is very fast. Easy way to connect different databases and combine[sp] data from different databases… Easy to learn and create new cards. Awesome user experience and Alerting capability.” – Sr Software Engineer, Finance
“Our experience with this vendor was excellent. We had no problems getting a trial set up and hooking up Domo to a variety of data sources. Support was excellent and the number of pre-built connectors was nothing short of amazing. Easy to implement, completed amazed our stakeholders.” – Team Lead, Digital Marketing

Gartner defines modern Analytics and Business Intelligence platforms as supporting IT-enabled analytic content development, and a self-contained architecture that enables nontechnical users to autonomously execute full-spectrum analytic workflows from data access, ingestion and preparation to interactive analysis and the collaborative sharing of insights.

“Domo is delivering on its promise to put real-time data directly into the hands of everyone across an organization while making it secure and intuitive for IT professionals to administer and deploy,” said Josh James, Domo founder and CEO.

Josh added, “Domo was designed to solve a universal problem that has not been adequately addressed by traditional business intelligence systems or the host of new solutions on the market. We’re honored to receive such strong feedback and what we believe is validation from our end-users. Whether it’s the business decision maker or the IT professional looking to implement technology to drive the business forward, we’re thrilled to see Domo helping our customers put data to work and digitally transform their organizations.”

Gartner Peer Insights Customers’ Choice constitute the subjective opinions of individual end-user reviews, ratings, and data applied against a documented methodology; they neither represent the views of, nor constitute an endorsement by, Gartner or its affiliates.

Domo’s mission is to be the operating system for business, digitally connecting all your people, your data and your systems, empowering them to collaborate better, make better decisions and be more efficient, right from their phones. Domo works with many of the world’s leading and most progressive brands across multiple industries including retail, media and entertainment, manufacturing, finance and more.

Rimilia Announces New Global Chief Revenue Officer, Timothy Ray

SalesTech Interview with David Buchanan, CEO at X2Engine

Interviews

Viraj Talikotkar

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December 4, 2018

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SalesTech Interview with David Buchanan, CEO at X2Engine

Tell us a little about your inclination towards Sales Technology? What has driven you to be a CEO for an organization that specializes in Sales Technology?

I actually founded the first CRM company in 1988 – Aurum Software. Our vision was that companies needed to manage their customer interactions in a centralized approach, so that the entire company shared the same view of the customer, and can create efficiencies and gain insights for business optimization. During my CRM and sales technology journey, I was COO at a Salesforce.com platinum reseller of Marketing Cloud, Pardot and SF CRM. It was there that I realized that many customers experienced sub-optimized results in sales and marketing due to the limitations and costs of working with incongruous platforms.

My 30-year career in software came full circle when one of my employees at Aurum Software –John Roberts – asked me to become an advisor at X2Engine, the creator of X2CRM – which I then acquired in April of 2017.

X2Engine and X2CRM presented an opportunity to come onboard a company that truly understands what the end users really want: a seamless product that provides all necessary tools and services required by a true CRM sales and marketing model. It has been truly exciting to work with a team that has a vision that is bringing a truly innovative and successful product to the table.

Are Sales not possible today without a strong CRM system? If yes, then how has CRM changed the Sales Industry?

Of course, sales will always progress; however, by having a strong CRM system that brings all aspects of the entire customer journey together on a single platform will make the sales process much more successful. With CRM software, especially those that bring both marketing and sales functions together is certain to make the sales process better prepared to handle all the intricacies of the sales process — from start to completion.

What is that thin line between MarTech & SalesTech? How do you design a CRM that maintains that difference even when it is a unified product?

Traditionally marketing was thought of like the arm that provided the tools to the sales team; however, in today’s marketplaces, those lines have nearly disappeared. We now consider marketing an essential component of the entire sales system, and we designed our Marketing Automation and WorkFlow engine to integrate marketing processes throughout the entire system to meet this requirement.

What is more important to you-Building a great product or a strong focus on Client satisfaction?

Even when you provide a great product to clients, you are not certain to have client satisfaction.

Therefore, I think that a total focus on customer success is critical. We have designed our business model to include an option where we will do the entire implementation of X2 including conversion from legacy CRM and MA products.

Essentially, I embrace building the very best product based on understanding the wants and needs of my customers both present and future. X2Engine has purposefully designed a modern software solution plus services and support – as a complete package – to help companies that want to maximize sales and marketing integration.

For instance, we have invested millions of dollars into a migration solution that can replace multiple and disconnected SaaS CRM and Marketing Automation with X2CRM, without losing any data, workflows or existing user experiences. This is our investment in a great product. And as a result, X2Engine has been able to replace massive Salesforce.com and Pardot deployments (for example), in under 6 weeks, where the company does not lose information or productivity.

How can the Sales Industry best leverage on X2CRM?

Sales need to be deeply connected to every aspect of customer engagement. This helps them understand the customer’s interest, immediate need, and urgency. The salespeople who listen and respond appropriately will win the business and uphold the strongest perception. By constructing effortless customer experiences, and then monitoring all activity to then properly monitor and measure the response help sales understand what is the right offer or response and what is the right time to provide it.

X2CRM optimizes the sales process and interactions, by providing complete control and a complete view of the customer because it combines CRM with Marketing Automation and a WorkFlow engine. Sales can leverage X2CRM’s Full customer relationship management, deal opportunity tracking, sales funnel reports, quoting and invoicing, sales pipeline and sales process workflows, and internal alerts, tasks, collaboration, and document management. Plus X2 has handy integrations such as Microsoft Outlook, DocuSign, LinkedIn, and even QuickBooks. It’s a complete toolset for Sales teams to scale and grow.

Could you give us a real-world example of your product(s) when they helped a business resolve a complex problem?

We recently implemented X2CRM with a designer and creator of custom motorcycle bags for adventure touring. The company has a unique customer base and relied mainly on its online presence including web stores and social media platforms to receive and fulfill orders for its products.

The company’s eCommerce engine is powered by X2CRM, which includes an X2-powered Facebook button that allows the company to take orders directly from Facebook, which are then automatically received by the warehouse for shipping and fulfillment – so, in essence, X2CRM is covering all aspects of an ERP system.

The company also uses X2CRM in its overall marketing efforts due to our single-step contact lead/contact collection and our Marketing Automation and WorkFlow processes.

Could you name some tools that X2CRM can integrate with?

X2CRM uses X2CRM REST-ful API that connects to many external applications and interfaces. This second-generation HTTP-based API allows seamless integration with a customer’s existing software and third-party framework, including connections to Google Gmail, LinkedIn, Microsoft Outlook, Twitter and others.

How can enterprises such as yours infuse AI in Sales Technology?

Because of the amount of data that can be captured by CRM processes, AI can be leveraged to provide services that will substantially streamline the sales and marketing processes within a company. If companies have an AI solution already chosen, integrating it into the vast data source collected by X2CRM is simple, because it’s all centralized and structured data – reducing the cost for data mapping and integration.

Analytics powered by AI can not only personalize the customer journey but ensure that automatic triggering of tasks and events that will guarantee that all aspects of the experience are attended to.

Personalized experiences for the customers from marketing to customer services, essentially throughout the customer journey. When tasks and events are automatically triggered, and the correct people within your organization is notified, the chances of final customer satisfaction are increased as customers will no longer be “falling through the cracks” so to speak.

As a business leader do you think AI is the future of Sales Technology?

Absolutely. As I said, the amount of data that must be collected and resolved is substantial. AI can be implemented throughout a customer-centric platform to make sure that the entire experience is beneficial to both the company and the customer.

Could you name some Apps/tools that you use in your day-to-day life?

I use several including Spotify, Gmail, Waze, LinkedIn, Facebook, Snapchat and many others!

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If not into Sales Technolgy, what would be your alternate career choice?

Building spec homes. I own a business that does about one house a year and my good friend runs the company for me. I love the idea of scraping a house and creating a new house that maximizes the utility of the property. The construction process is really fun when you get to watch a project go up to completion.

Whose answers to these questions would like to read from the industry?

The person who has really made the most impact on life, I think, is soon to be if not already, Jeff Bezos. I will never forget one Sunday afternoon, I was napping in my house that is down a county lane in Woodside, Calif., — a place that rarely gets any visitors. I heard a knock on the door, jumped up and stumbled to the door. I opened the door and was shocked to see an Amazon box sitting there. About two weeks later I saw a USPS delivery truck driving around the neighborhood and instantly realized that Bezos had cut a deal with the USPS.

Mindblown!

Thank you, David, for taking us close to your Sales and Customer Success strategy!

About Company
About David

About Company

X2Engine, Inc. is the developer of the seamless enterprise CRM, workflow, and marketing automation platform, X2CRM. The company was launched in 2011 and is now one of the fastest growing CRM companies, with more than 40,000 deployments worldwide.

X2Engine, Inc. offers a variety of services where every aspect of CRM migration and deployment can be handled by X2Engine, assuring every customer’s onboarding experience will be stress-free and successful. X2Engine offers “white-glove” customer service and support that begins with an unrestricted evaluation trial, data-migrations assistance, on-boarding, and training—all of which allow customers complete control over system deployment, customizations, security, and data optimization.

About David

David Buchanan is currently CEO of X2Engine, the company that developed X2CRM. Prior to this position, he was an executive at Bluenile, Pierry and the Founder of Aurum Software (the first CRM company). He holds an MS in Math/Computer Science from Principia College and an MBA and MS in Management Information and Database Management Systems from the University of Arizona.

nFusz Files Patent Application for its Unique In-Video CTA Technology For Mobile Devices

STS News Desk

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December 4, 2018

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nFusz Files Patent Application for its Unique In-Video CTA Technology For Mobile Devices

nFusz Also Adds Chad Thomas as Chief Technology Officer

nFusz, Inc. (OTCQB: FUSZ), a leader in business-focused interactive video, and the pioneer of Augmented Sales Intelligence software has announced it has filed a patent application for its unique interactive video technology, and also expanded its senior management team with the addition of new Chief Technology Officer, Chad Thomas.

The patent application covers the use of in-video, clickable calls-to-action (“CTAs”) displayed on mobile devices, particularly, devices utilizing Apple’s IOS operating system, and Google’s Android operating system. The nFusz technology is unique in that it allows mobile users to interact with clickable CTAs while watching videos that appear in their Facebook, Twitter, and LinkedIn feeds, natively, without leaving the application.

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“Sales, marketing, and advertising professionals have all embraced the power of video displayed within social media feeds,” said Rory J. Cutaia, CEO of nFusz. “Confirming our leadership position in the space, and upping the game, we’re delivering the technology that will enable video clickable calls-to-action right in the feeds of Facebook, Twitter and LinkedIn. This is a tool every sales and marketing professional will want to add to their arsenal.”

The Company also announced that Chad Thomas has joined the nFusz senior management team as its Chief Technology Officer to lead software engineering and architecture.

“I’m excited to be part of such a talented team and to join at a time when the Company is poised for global growth. This is truly innovative technology we’re deploying across multiple sectors and building for scale is what I thrive on,” stated Chad Thomas.

About Chad Thomas

Mr. Thomas has extensive engineering, technology, programming, and software development experience, and a proven track record of innovation and building for scale. Mr. Thomas’ background includes: Architect, designer and coder of MySpace, where he built the platform that accommodated rapid global growth for millions of users; Co-Founder, architect and CTO of Lifespeed, Inc., a revolutionary health and wellness platform that allows families, medical professionals, and caretakers to safely store and share medical history data and participate in clinical trials; and CTO of Swarm Engineering, where he created the technology to allow edge IoT devices to work in a swarm to solve problems in a traditional cloud-based analytics architecture. Mr. Thomas began his career as an Airborne Ranger. Mr. Thomas studied electrical engineering at the University of Nebraska and has an M.S. in electrical engineering and computer science from Massachusetts Institute of Technology.

About nFusz, Inc.

nFusz, Inc. is a recognized leader in business-focused interactive video and the pioneer of Augmented Sales Intelligence software. The company’s flagship product, notifiCRM, is the first interactive video-based customer relationship management (CRM) platform that allows anyone to create, distribute, post, track, and measure interactive videos that increase engagement and conversion rates by up to 600 percent. Video viewers can respond to one or more calls to action by clicking within a video while it’s playing – and no download is required. nFusz products are cloud-based, Software-as-a-Service (SaaS), available by subscription for individual and enterprise users, and accessible on all mobile and desktop devices. The company’s newest products, also based on its interactive video technology platform, include notifiMED, for the healthcare industry, notifiEDU, for the education industry, and notifiNGO, for non-profit organizations

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Technophobia is rife in the sales environment because tools aren’t designed for use in the field among sales reps

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Tell us a little about your inclination towards Sales Technology? What has driven you to be a CEO for an organization that specializes in Sales Technology?

Are Sales not possible today without a strong CRM system? If yes, then how has CRM changed the Sales Industry?

What is that thin line between MarTech & SalesTech? How do you design a CRM that maintains that difference even when it is a unified product?

What is more important to you-Building a great product or a strong focus on Client satisfaction?

How can the Sales Industry best leverage on X2CRM?

Could you give us a real-world example of your product(s) when they helped a business resolve a complex problem?

Could you name some tools that X2CRM can integrate with?

How can enterprises such as yours infuse AI in Sales Technology?

As a business leader do you think AI is the future of Sales Technology?

Could you name some Apps/tools that you use in your day-to-day life?

If not into Sales Technolgy, what would be your alternate career choice?

Whose answers to these questions would like to read from the industry?

nFusz Also Adds Chad Thomas as Chief Technology Officer

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