Sydney based telecommunications company, Multelink, producers of the SmartPhone, have installed FrontRange Solution’s flagship CRM product, GoldMine FrontOffice 2000™ to provide the company with the tools to track and close sales leads and cement its reputation as a customer driven organisation.

According to Multelink’s marketing manager, Nick Crews, FrontOffice 2000 has improved the closing rate on sales leads by nearly 50 %. He added that in addition to the bottom-line there have been other hidden benefits to the product. “The improvement in customer service and the organised, efficient image we now project to the customer is priceless,” he said.

Multelink is a medium-sized Australian company specialising in the high growth telecommunications and e-commerce sectors. Its core product is the SmartPhone, an intelligent telephone service that offers e-mail and uses least cost routing to offer the best price for call charges in the marketplace, regardless of time of day, destination or ‘plan’.

Multelink is using FrontOffice 2000 to improve the efficiency and sales conversion rates of its sales-force based in Sydney and Melbourne. The company currently has licences for 15 Sales and Marketing and 5 Service and Support users but expects this to grow rapidly in line with its own expansion.

Mr Crews states: “Originally we were looking for a prospect management tool to track all our potential sales leads. We wanted to regiment the customer response systems across the sales team and monitor performance and sales conversion rates within the team. Our business is in the start up phase and so it’s crucial that we keep sales leads hot and convert all our opportunities.”

FrontRange Solutions Vice President Asia Pacific, Archie Wilson, said that many smaller or growing businesses have the perception that CRM is just for the “big end of town”. “CRM is not so much a function of size, but rather of the market a company operates in and the nature of its products. CRM solutions are suited to any organisation that operates in a highly competitive market or where the lifetime value of its products is relatively high. Multelink is a good example of this,” he said.

Following a recommendation from a business acquaintance Multelink approached FrontRange Solutions and discovered they had a product that not only fitted their database needs, but also went much further.

“There was more to the FrontOffice 2000 package than we initially expected. The software not only maintains a sales lead database but also helps close a sale. It guides our sales representatives through the sales closure process by issuing prompts about when to ring a customer or send a follow up letter,” he said.

As well, Front Office 2000’s Service and Support module automates day-to-day call centre functions by enabling users to quickly log calls and resolve customer issues.

Flexibility is key

FrontRange Solutions has developed its range of products with the varied needs of its customer base in mind. Successful CRM implementations fundamentally change business processes and to be successful CRM software needs to be flexible enough to adapt to companies of differing sizes in a range of industries.

Following initial discussions FrontRange Solution Partner, IJM & Associates, was called-in. A series of briefing sessions and meetings ensued where processes and systems were analysed in order to develop a fully customised product. No two CRM implementations are the same just as no two customers are the same.

When the company opened a new office in Melbourne it proved no problem for the centralised database - sales staff from Melbourne simply open the FrontOffice 2000 database by remote access in order to update their files and retrieve information.

A painless process

FrontRange Solutions is one of the only companies producing CRM products designed specifically for the small to medium business market. The level of support and service offered was a decisive factor in Multelink’s decision to implement FrontOffice 2000.

“We were particularly impressed with the training and implementation systems that FrontRange has in place” states Nick Crews. “One of our main concerns when implementing a new system is the level of disruption to our customers. IJM & Associate’s engineers installed the system over two weeks and the process was very straightforward and hassle free. The training program was also very thorough and efficient and this helped our sales staff ‘buy in’ to the new system with few teething troubles.”

Growing up together

According to Archie Wilson, FrontOffice 2000 will also grow with the needs of the company. “All products are designed to allow additional capacity and functionality to be added at a later date”. He added that the Multelink implementation was a good example of a company moving from a purely sales focus towards a wider CRM goal.

“To minimise the risk of failure, the most appropriate method of implementing CRM is to use a phased approach, breaking the larger CRM project into smaller, discrete parts. The sales force is a good starting point because at the end of the day CRM is a sales tool.”

Results driven

For a piece of software that specifically sets out to improve the bottom line it’s only natural that the product’s success should be judged by its return on investment. Nick Crews states: “We have monitored the performance of the software very closely since installation and with our increased closing rate we think the software will very soon pay for itself. Even more valuable has been the feedback from our clients who have commented on how easy we are to deal with. Overall we are very happy with FrontOffice 2000’s performance.”

About Multelink

Multelink is a Sydney based Australian high-tech company specialising in the high growth telecommunications and e-commerce sectors. Its core product is the SmartPhone, an intelligent telephone service that offers the best price for call charges in the marketplace, regardless of time of day, destination or “plan”. Rather than the restriction of joining a single telco, SmartPhone automatically selects the best call rates from 27 Telecom companies, offering potential savings of up to 50% off long distance and international calls.

The phone can also send and receive email via pull out keyboard, in-built screen and a personal network address, e.g. phonenumber@MULTeLINK.com.au. - without the need for an ISP, a PC, browser or modem. The charge for e-mails is a flat 25 cent rate to anywhere in the world. More information about -Multelink is available at www.multelink.com or by phoning 1300 655 218.

About GoldMine 5.0

GoldMine 5.0 is a crucial Sales Force Automation tool enabling businesses to gather, store and analyse customer information in order to capture and retain customers. This product bridges the gap between complex, expensive sales force automation software and lower-end Contact Managers.

Users of GoldMine 5.0 are able to obtain an instant view of the status and history of customers as well as store and manage key documents. In addition, marketing staff are able to manage leads and efficiently distribute material using the automated processes for sending literature and the leads analysis tools. Leveraging the sales and marketing potential of the Internet also is made easier with the Web data capture and email distribution tools.

About FrontRange Solutions (formerly GoldMine Software Corp.)

Founded in 1989, FrontRange Solutions is a leading provider of front office solutions to enable businesses of all sizes to buy, sell and support customers with Web-based applications designed for the New Economy. The company sells its products and services through a direct sales force, value-added resellers and other distribution partners.

FrontRange Solutions has its headquarters in Colorado Springs, Colorado, USA. The Asia Pacific subsidiary is headquartered in Sydney and has offices in Melbourne and Brisbane. For more information, visit www.frontrange.com