3 min read
Big businesses and multinational corporations have more resources to develop in-depth sales tracking tools that optimise their pipeline and drive new revenue growth. Sales reporting software provides a bird’s eye view of a company’s entire sales cycle, but taking advantage of critical data and customer buying patterns can be drastically more difficult for SMEs than their larger counterparts. However, technology is now offering new options for small businesses looking to capture key data and improve their decision making and set the stage for longterm growth.
Since there are literally thousands of SaaS sales products on the market and new ones popping up everyday, it’s important to understand the critical features that will bring the most value to your company. Here are 3 benefits to look for in your sales reporting software hunt:
Automated notifications
By now, you’ve undoubtedly collected dozens of accounts for SaaS products, all of which were destined to be game-chaning productivity enhancing SaaS solutions for your business. You have to-do list reminders, internal communication platforms, social media sharing tools and accounting software to name a few. It’s easy to forget which software does what and miss critical tasks that hinder your success.
Valuable sales tracking software should automatically notify you of upcoming events or urgent trend alerts. By using a calendar view, you can follow your leads through the entire sales cycle and strike while the iron is hot. The automated reminders will also reduce the chance of human error and keep you focused on your longterm objectives.
Quick-start friendly
Your small business needs tools that make your job easier, not more difficult. It’s important that the sales reporting software you choose plays well with your existing business software suite so you can avoid disruption to your daily routine during integration. It’s worthwhile to ensure the new tools work well with Microsoft Office (including Outlook) and other programs within your current infrastructure.
It’s hard to understate the importance of simplicity when you’re incorporating new technology. Your team is busy managing their current workload and you’ll want to avoid placing a new software in their hands that demands a high learning curve. Choose a sales reporting product that is known for being intuitive and easy to use.
Customisable software
It’s important to realize that your team has developed its own particular way of doing things. Over time, business processes evolve so the method of operations can be significantly different from one company to another. The sales reporting software you select should be adaptable to your specifications without much trouble.
However, you don’t want to get carried away and simply choose the sales software with the most features in order to select the most “customisable” solution. Software-as-a-Service products with hundreds of customisable modules can quickly get too complex to provide real short-term value. Make sure your software can be personalised to meet the needs of your various team members. Data visualisation and analytical tools are the main areas to focus on here. Be sure to have a deep selection of graphics, charts and plotting tools so the data being recorded is easy to interpret.
Our picks
One of the fastest growing data reporting tools on the market is Tableau. While it’s not quite at the same level as Microsoft and IBM in the world of business intelligence, Tableau offers the ability to pull real-time data from your sales process and display the results in customisable reports. You can track individual sales reps performance, quickly set up personalised dashboards and get really creative forecasting potential sales targets.
Another sales software tool that we recommend is Prophet OnDemand, especially for small businesses that use Excel for recording and reporting key data. This software by Avidian Technologies is specifically known for its flexibility and ease of use. It comes pre-loaded with 50 or so sales reporting templates and hundreds of customisable variations so you can track the data necessary to optimise your sales funnel.
Implementing a sales reporting software for your small business is a great way to keep your team aligned and avoid missed opportunities. It’s also ideal for taking a proactive approach to pulling value from the mountains of data your business continues to produce. With the right tools and a leadership team that is always looking towards the future, you’ll be well-equipped to seize new opportunities and see the trends that will influence your future sales growth.
