Tuesday, April 27, 2021

The power of relationship selling

In this report—a collaboration between Microsoft and Heinz Marketing—you'll find insights gleaned from over 200 in-depth surveys with top sales leaders. Learn how to achieve desired sales goals, maximize the effectiveness of customer data, and take more strategic steps toward building personal relationships using data-driven engagement tactics.

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The Company Of The Future Has A Soul

Blake Morgan, author and speaker on customer experience, companies, and the future, states that it's clear that the most successful companies will be the ones that focus on enriching the lives of the people associated with it. It's not just about profits—it's about caring for other humans and our world. She says that people are frustrated by governments and their inability to make change as quickly as people want, and that instead people have turned toward corporations and businesses to make a greater, more efficient impact on society. "The company of the future has a soul," writes Morgan, "it has a purpose and contributes to the well-being of its customers, employees and community." Read her entire article and watch her short video, "The Company of the Future Has a Soul" for a richer understanding of what the best companies of the future embody.

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Monday, April 26, 2021

Solution overview video

This video highlights the benefits of using Activate Digital Selling solutions from Microsoft. Make the digital buying experience rich, personal, and efficient with predictive AI and unified customer data.

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Tuesday, April 20, 2021

Gartner Peer Insights 'Voice of the Customer': CRM Lead Management

Gartner Peer Insights compares vendors' customer relationship management (CRM) systems, which can then be used to determine best practices for your own business. This study in statistics provides insight on the best ways to capture and manage leads.

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Customer Lifetime Value and the Subscription Economy

In our digital world, subscription services are more complicated. Specifically, a business's costs, benefits and value of subscriptions are more complex. It's no longer as simple as multiplying the cost of the subscription by the number of months and subtracting the costs associated with acquiring the customer and publishing and delivering the magazine. Think about it: ALL of those methods have changed! A customer's Lifetime Value (LTV) is multifaceted—and it "represents the very financial lifeblood of any business organization trying to succeed in today's 24/7 digital world," writes Phani Nagarjuna. He adds that according to predictions by Gartner, Inc., "virtually all new entrants and 80% of existing vendors will offer some form of a subscription-based business model by 2020." Read Nagarjuna's article, "Customer Lifetime Value and the Subscription Economy" for a deeper understanding of LTV. An updated understanding of your customer's value is foundational to your marketing approach and business in general.

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Buying is a journey

Go beyond transactions and interactions to give your buyers unique experiences that build trust. Transform the sales experience with Dynamics 365 Sales. Features include enabling smarter selling with contextual AI, increasing sales profitably with advanced insights, and improving coaching and sales performance.

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Tuesday, April 13, 2021

4 Reasons Why Social Proof Is Essential to Building Your Brand

Social proof is the idea that people will follow the actions of others—that since so many other people behave in a certain way, it must be the correct behavior. In digital marketing, social proof is highly influenced by comments and reviews on your social platforms. Studies have shown that people are not only more likely to share their experiences about your product or service online, but they are also more likely to be influenced by what other people say and write about you. So yes, it's vital that customers are sharing positive reviews of doing business with you—customer service has never been more important than in the digital age. Maleeka T. Hollaway, in her article "4 Reasons Why Social Proof is Essential to Building Your Brand," states that your social proof demonstrates the degree in which you've helped your clients gain results. "When you can publicly share with your audience how your work or product has created transformations for those who do business with you, naturally, people are inclined to pay attention. Results speak for you whether you are present or not," writes Hollaway. Customers' excitement is often contagious, and you suddenly access the radar of people who might not have even known about your brand, according to Holloway. To read more in depth about social proof and the reasons it's essential to your business, read her entire article. Social proof has never been more important.

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Monday, April 12, 2021

How to accelerate digital selling with Dynamics 365

This video provides an overview of the sales accelerator in Microsoft Dynamics 365 Sales Insights. You will learn how to maintain business continuity with the sales accelerator, a digital-first experience that enables salespeople to work remotely.

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Tuesday, April 6, 2021

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Drive smarter selling and optimize engagement. Microsoft has the tools to make it happen. Subscribe now!

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Council Post: Creating An Effective Case Study: 12 Important Tips To Remember

Case studies are effective marketing tools when done correctly. Not only do you need to select which background details to include in your case study, but you also need to pack it carefully so that it demonstrates you are a problem solver and have desirable skills—without looking like you are merely promoting your business. It's a balance. This article offers 12 key elements—offered by 12 members of Forbes Agency Council—to keep in mind when creating cases studies. For example, Emily Porter's tip is #9 Let the Images Do the Work. Aside from ensuring a case study is focused on the solution to the problem, Porter writes that "nothing brings it to life more than imagery. In lieu of a long-form case study, consider a photo essay with solid captions narrating the case study" in order to keep the audiences truly engaged while illustrating your product's value.

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Microsoft Partner Network podcast: Partner Marketing Pros- Episode Nine (Part Two)

This week's guest is Gerry Murry, a Research Director with IDC's Marketing and Sales Technology service. Marketing technology and related solutions are his specialty and he's got a great pulse on marketing budgets and trends. He confirms that we've seen an increase in social, content and digital marketing and that the significant upsurge in digital marketing is because it's "way less expensive for the reach that you get." Yet he also advises to pay close attention to the privacy and data collection trends that continue to be on the rise. Marketers must be respectful and create positive relationships centered around customer privacy—a priority pillar in this digital business world. Listen to the entire podcast for more insight into marketing budgets and investments!

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Monday, April 5, 2021

Rapidly-growing UK restaurant chain migrates key business processes to Microsoft Dynamics 365

TGI Friday's popular and rapidly-growing restaurant franchise in the UK wanted a more scalable, flexible platform for core business processes. To support its ambitious growth, the franchise is consolidating business operations starting with financial management on Microsoft Dynamics 365. Built-in functionality and ease-of-use mean that TGI Friday's can continue to onboard more business processes while expanding its franchise. Benefits include lower costs, easier access to data, and better insight.

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Big Red Cloud: Targeting pain points

Chief Executive Marc O'Dwyer shares that he started Big Red Cloud, an online cloud accounting software company, because as a business owner of a different company, he experienced problems with his own accounting systems and believed there had to be a better way. Because of these prior pains, he focuses on supporting customers and claims it is the primary reason for the company's success. Watch this video for examples of how Big Red Cloud prioritizes customer service and enjoys a 55% conversion rate from lead to closed sale.

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