March 2018 Summaries

Philip Mashinchi, Founder of RealtimeCRM, discusses how the company has focused on simplifying data entry for users by integrating Clearbit, a third-party data provider, into their system. This integration allows users to automatically enrich company and contact records with up-to-date information such as company logos, addresses, industry data, social media links, and financial statements, reducing the time spent on manual data entry. By pulling in comprehensive data from Clearbit and Companies House, RealtimeCRM helps businesses identify potential clients' financial stability and other crucial information. The development ethos at RealtimeCRM emphasizes feature additions based on user demand, with a focus on ease of use and utility. The recent introduction of a business card reader and integration with Google Maps further enhances user experience by streamlining contact creation and optimizing client visits. RealtimeCRM aims to offer a user-friendly interface that underscores the advantages of moving from traditional spreadsheets to a more sophisticated CRM solution, particularly for small businesses.

DigitalOcean's approach to sales shifted away from traditional methods, focusing instead on leveraging data-driven sales triggers to engage its developer-focused audience effectively. Despite initially thriving without a sales team, the company eventually hired one as it prepared for an IPO. Emmanuelle Skala, VP of Sales, opted against building a traditional outbound sales team and instead targeted the community of millions using identified sales triggers. By analyzing data, both internal and external teams identified potential growth indicators, such as usage spikes, that signaled a company's intent to further engage with DigitalOcean. The strategy involved syncing these triggers with the CRM to send relevant, timely content to developers, aligning outreach with their interests and activities rather than using mass emails or direct sales calls, which developers tend to avoid. This personalized approach led to a 15-30 percent increase in product usage among those who received triggered messages. The initiative highlights how understanding customer behavior and preferences can yield significant results, as it provided valuable information to the community while boosting revenue.

Clearbit has introduced a new real-time ABM alerting feature to its Salesforce integration, enhancing its capability to provide valuable insights for sales teams. This addition allows Clearbit Reveal to identify companies behind anonymous website traffic and integrate this data into Salesforce CRM, thereby enabling real-time alerts for sales representatives when their targeted accounts visit the website. The feature supports automatic task assignments, Chatter posts, and email notifications when high-value accounts engage with specific site pages, transforming anonymous traffic into actionable buying intent data. Available immediately for Salesforce Enrichment customers with a Reveal plan, this development marks the beginning of ongoing enhancements to the Reveal functionality within Salesforce.