BrainSell Technologies is please to announce their acquisition of The CRM Connection, the second Colorado acquisition that BrainSell has made this month. The CRM Connection (www.thecrmconnection.com) joins BrainSell with a plethora of CRM expertise, including ACT!, SalesLogix and SugarCRM.  We’re super excited to welcome The CRM Connection into the BrainSell family!

“We are very excited to have joined the BrainSell Technologies team,” said The CRM Connection’s Managing Partner John Kaufman. “Our clients and alliance partners will all benefit from the  additional resources and software solutions they provide.”

Current CRM Connection customers will continue to receive the same caliber of support from their existing contacts. However, customers will also benefit from BrainSell’s extensive team of Sage ACT!, Sage SalesLogix and SugarCRM engineers, as well as ERP and marketing experts if they choose to increase sales with cutting edge technology like Marketing Automation and integrated ERP.

“This is a win-win acquisition,” said BrainSell President and CEO, Jim Ward. “BrainSell brings onboard a top reseller of Sage ACT!.  Heck, they ended 2011 as ACT!’s  11^th largest selling reseller in the U.S. They also have SalesLogix expertise, which is a fantastic added resource to our top SalesLogix team. On top of that, The CRM Connection recently added  SugarCRM into their portfolio, which brings perfect synergies to BrainSell’s portfolio and helps our rapidly growing SugarCRM practice keep up with demand.  Put that together with our two acquisitions of ERP partners this past month in Colorado and we have a fantastic western region team.”

The CRM Connection is based out of Denver, Colorado, but they also have offices in Michigan and New York.

Click here for the full press release.

In the last few years we have all thought that sending e-mail blasts is the way to generate new sales from new and existing customers.

Sure it’s inexpensive to send e-mails but it’s not the only effective way to get your message out.  There is one type of media for marketing that some businesses have moved away from or totally abandoned in this economy primarily due to price!

Direct Mail is still a very viable and valuable part of any marketing campaign.  Marketing Weekly just did a survey and found that 56% of marketers still plan on using direct mail as part of their campaigns for clients to get their message to the desktop or kitchen table. Here are some reasons why:
• Less mail is being delivered so your message/direct mail piece can standout more.
• People are inundated with e-mail and pay per click ads so your direct mail message arrives at their desk and sits there to remind them of you.
• They can’t delete direct mail and usually it will be passed around for others to read.
• Your direct mail piece doesn’t automatically get blocked by anti-spam filters or sent to junk mail folders and ignored.

Your investment in a direct mail piece including postage can be as little as $0.55 to $0.75 each.  Send out 1,000 pieces of mail and if your product or service grabs a bunch of BIG DEALS then you are making up for the cost of the mailing and more!!

It’s also a good way for you to stay in front of prospects and customers without having to get through the email noise out there.  But don’t give up on email.
You should use a mix of media when marketing to prospects and existing customers.  You should be using direct mail, email, fax, telemarketing and follow-up calling to get your message or offer out.

We are here to help you automate your marketing using many different resources of media to deliver your message.  Give us a call at 508-226-4565 to discuss with us how we can help you increase your sales and marketing automation.

Title: Seattle Sage ACT! 2011 Roadshow – October 13
Location: Lynnwood Convention Center (North Seattle)
Link out: Click here
Description: Signup and Agenda: http://www.actplatinum.com/event.html

If you are finding your sales and marketing efforts fizzling instead of sizzling – come to our \”When Opportunity Knocks – ACT! Rocks!\” seminar. This no-cost seminar is designed for every business that could use more business. We will show you that by making connections and using the great tools found in ACT! (the #1 Contact Management program) will allow you to make the most of every opportunity and convert your leads into more closed sales. Plus with the release of ACT! 2011 you will see the new enhancements that will save you time and money.

Inviting business owners, entrepreneurs and professionals to an afternoon packed with information and tips that you can use right away. This seminar is ideal for current owners of ACT! software or if your business is needing a CRM solution.

We look forward to seeing you October 13th!

Bridgette Boyle & the Platinum CRM Consulting Team

http://www.actplatinum.com

Start Time: 13:30
Date: 2010-10-13
End Time: 16:45

Title: Seattle Sage ACT! 2011 Roadshow
Location: Lynnwood Convention Center (North Seattle)
Link out: Click here
Description: Parking: Free
Signup and Agenda: http://www.actplatinum.com/event.html

If you are finding your sales and marketing efforts fizzling instead of sizzling – come to our \”When Opportunity Knocks – ACT! Rocks!\” seminar. This no-cost seminar is designed for every business that could use more business. We will show you that by making connections and using the great tools found in ACT! (the #1 Contact Management program) will allow you to make the most of every opportunity and convert your leads into more closed sales. Plus with the release of ACT! 2011 you will see the new enhancements that will save you time and money.

Inviting business owners, entrepreneurs and professionals to an afternoon packed with information and tips that you can use right away. This seminar is ideal for current owners of ACT! software or if you business is needing a CRM solution.

We look forward to seeing you October 13th!

Bridgette Boyle & the Platinum CRM Consulting Team

http://www.actplatinum.com

Start Time: 1:30 PM
Date: 2010-10-13
End Time: 4:45 PM

Title: ACT 2011 Florida Road Show
Location: BankAtlantic Center, Sunrise, FL
Link out: Click here
Description: Join us at the BankAtlantic Center for an interactive half-day uncovering what’s new in Sage ACT! 2011. The Florida ACT! 2011 Road Show is an opportunity to meet with people from Sage Software and to learn more about the future of ACT!, using ACT! for marketing and sales, and to determine if ACT! is a good solution for your company.

Hors d\’oeuvres will be served and there will be a cash bar. We\’ll also have some great give-aways including lots of free ACT software!
Start Time: 2:00 PM
Date: 2010-10-22
End Time: 6:00 PM

Title: When Opportunity Knocks – ACT! Rocks! (Sage ACT! 2011 Event)
Location: Talking Stick Resort, Scottsdale AZ
Link out: Click here
Description: If you are finding your Networking efforts fizzling instead of sizzling – come to our first \”Networking: When Opportunity Knocks – ACT! Rocks!\” seminar. This no-cost seminar is designed for every business that could use more business. We will show you that by making connections and using the great tools found in ACT! (the #1 Contact Management program) will allow you to make the most of every opportunity and convert your leads into more closed sales. Plus with the release of ACT! 2011 days away, you will be the first to see the new enhancements that will save you time and money. There will be an outstanding speaker that will share their Networking expertise with plenty of tips to make you a better networker. Following the seminar you are invited to walk across the hall and attend the hugely popular Networking Phoenix\’s Signature event, where you can connect with other amazing business owners and professionals, have fun and grow your business.

Inviting business owners, entrepreneurs and professionals to an afternoon packed with information and tips that you can use right away. This seminar is ideal for current owners of ACT! software or if you are looking at implementing ACT! for your business.

Here\’s what to expect:

-> Learn how every business can use an ACT! CRM solution to save time and money to grow their bottom line

-> How to go from lead to close, using tools available to you

Social Media – learn more about the people you meet and do business with
E-mail and Drip Marketing – E-marketing right from your ACT! database
Opportunity Pipeline and Sales Management – gain control and win more business

-> See what\’s new for ACT! 2011

Smart Tasks – automate your follow-up activities
Hoover\’s Integration – get more targeted leads into your database
Outlook Contacts and Calendar Sync – eliminate double entry

-> Q&A

-> Guest Speaker with networking tips that will get you energized for the NetworkingPhoenix.com event following

-> Lots of Prizes, Giveaways and Discounts

Sign-up today at www.actplatinum.com/event.html

We look forward to seeing you September 1st!

Start Time: 14:00
Date: 2010-09-01
End Time: 18:00

There are many solutions to sync ACT! with a smartphone. One of the most cost-effective solutions is wireless sync through Google. The free Google Sync service offered by Google is compatible with the latest mobile devices including BlackBerry, Android, iPhone, iPad, Windows Mobile, and Palm webOS devices. It allows two-way sync of contacts and calendar with your phone. The challenge, then, is getting your ACT! data into Google.

CompanionLink can sync ACT! contacts, calendar activities, notes and histories between ACT! and Google. Once data is in Google, it will wirelessly sync with your phone. The beautiful thing is that there are no recurring monthly costs! Google also serves as a handy backup for your data in case of a computer crash.

All of this can be done for a one-time cost of $49.95 (for CompanionLink Express). For more info and to download a 14-day free trial, visit www.companionlink.com/act

Sometimes the things that seem so obvious to me aren’t quite as obvious to the typical ACT user.  A case in point is sending a fax directly from within ACT. 

 Ten years ago one of the first things I showed new ACT users was how to modify the existing ACT fax coversheet.  Back then most of my clients were using WinFax to link ACT to their fax machine, or printing out a coversheet and feeding it into their fax machine manually.  Today many of my clients are opting to use an online fax service such as MyFax or eFax for the few times that they actually need to fax.  Ironically, those ACT users often spend countless hours wrangling with the service’s interface to create a coversheet when they could just as easily use the ACT fax coversheet.

 The process is a simple one.  Here’s all you need to do to get started:

 Start by editing ACT’s existing fax cover page.  If you’ve previously set Word as your word processor preference you’ll be working in familiar territory here.

1. From the fax recipient’s contact record click the Write menu, choose the E-mail Message (from template) option and then select Fax Cover Page.  For me this is the cool part because I can choose to either print or email any of the ACT templates that I’ve created or modified.  In this case a new e-mail message will appear with your fax cover information in the body of the message.
2. Fill in the subject line following the instructions of your e-fax provider.
3. (Optional) Attach the document that you want to fax.
4. Click Send.

 Boom.  Your fax is sent.  Best of all, a record of the transaction will appear on the recipient’s history tab.

 Karen Fredricks
Karen@TechBenders.com
www.techbenders.com

The new HTC EVO 4G is making quite the splash in the mobile industry today. It features a killer combination of internal specs, a huge 4.3″ screen, and the first 4G high-speed wireless data connection in a phone. Many adopters are going to be looking for solutions to sync the EVO 4G with ACT!.

CompanionLink is excited to offer two methods to sync the HTC EVO 4G with ACT!. Sync securely via the USB cable, or automatic wireless sync via Google. CompanionLink’s sync solutions for the EVO 4G work with DejaOffice, a supercharged CRM app for Android devices. DejaOffice offers many ACT!-friendly features such as contact notes & histories, linking calendar activities to contacts, and multiple category/groups support. The combination of CompanionLink and DejaOffice provides the most complete synchronization solution from ACT! to the EVO 4G.

CompanionLink’s sync solutions for ACT! start at $49.95 with a free 14-day trial. For more info on how to sync the HTC EVO 4G with ACT!, visit www.companionlink.com/evo4g

Title: Build a Bigger ACT Database
Location: ACT Virtual Users Group
Link out: Click here
Description: It doesn’t matter what database software you’re using (ACT, SalesForce, BCM) all database users are looking for two things: updated contact information and e-mail addresses. I’ve tried lots of services – Hoover’s, Sales Genie – and none of them will give you e-mail addresses. But I’ve found a service that will give you e-mail addresses, phone numbers and other current information for free.
Start Time: 6:00 PM
Date: 2010-05-03
End Time: 7:00 PM