What Is Sales Automation And How It Helps Businesses

By Author: Mark Watson
Total Articles: 37
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Businesses deal with repetitive tasks on a daily basis and they take a lot of time, but have to be done. The good news is that there are solutions available on the market that automate some tasks, making it easier to keep track of them and focus on other business aspects. Sales automation manages to take these time-consuming tasks off your shoulders and help them make more efficient as well. Human error occurs in manual labor and in some cases it can be highly risky and harder to resolve. Especially when it comes to online payment, this is out of the question. A merchant portal processes payments and you can keep track of every transaction, at all times. 

What Is Sales Automation 

Sales automation represents a set of tools implemented by businesses to automate certain tasks. There are different solutions on the market, depending on what providers have to offer and what sales force requires on a regular basis. Certain tasks are time-consuming, but in the same time very important and they cannot be overlooked at any point. Some examples include tracking contacts, scheduling appointments and meetings, updating sale ...
... opportunities, sending follow-up emails. Automation applications enable sales force to generate estimates, send quotes and proposals and eventually close the deal. 

More to it, sales members have access to orders and can keep in touch with customer regarding the status, when they will arrive and will be delivered. In case a customer calls to request information, sales have all data at their disposal, as every client has an account and it is easier to track information and improve customer experience. In the eyes of customers, businesses will be valued and thought as professional. In essence, every one of them wants to be considered essential and respected and this is possible when sales know contacts and offer updated information and follow-ups. 

What Is a Merchant Portal? 
 
A https://www.iriscrm.com/features/customer-support merchant portal  is where businesses create accounts to accept payments and monitor activity. All companies with online shops should invest in such a solution, especially if they want to offer clients the possibility to pay online. In fact, it is a new way of communicating with clients. Through the portal, it is a lot easier to handle complaints, send offers and payment advice letters, and more. Every user receives bills electronically and based on the chosen provider, there are a set of other features worth considering. 

A successful portal has many characteristics, including the following:
•    Authorization systems
•    Payment gateways
•    CRM (Customer Relationship Management)
•    ERP systems 
Another important factor is deciding where to implement the portal, the ERP, CRM or in the acquiring system. Businesses don’t want to switch merchant account providers simply because they realize at a certain point that they don’t have the full variety of credit card processing services. The provider should be able to take your business online, of if you have an online business, then take it offline. 

Some providers have developed solutions for businesses in all fields, with different requirements. They are a one-stop center for everything required to run the business efficiently. They offer https://www.iriscrm.com/features/sales-tools sales automation  solutions to respond to even the most challenging environments and business sectors. Entering and managing data is essential and once this is done, the tools help categorize and filter it based on various criteria. For instance, the tool distributes leads based on city, state, product category, sales person, and more. This is very useful for sales personnel that are on the field and need to know their potential clients and how to reach them. 

Prioritizing leads is crucial, because some are more likely to convert than others. How do you know which ones fall into the category? With the help of sales automation. Sales can input data based on their own criteria and the ones scoring the highest points are more likely to make a purchase. Sales alerts are also included, especially when leads take action. This way, sales know how to react and help them decide on products, get in touch to see whether they need more information. Tools provide valuable reports, allowing sales managers to find out more about the sales process, follow-ups, what is in the pipeline, forecasts and general updates made by sales. 

Sales are reticent to administrative tasks, because these take a lot of time and they rather be on the field. However, sending proposals, quotes, contracts and other documents, is necessary at a certain phase, especially when the negotiation stage arrives. These tasks can be automated as well, with arranged electronic documents and having a system that generates pre-formatted files. Thus, sales can focus more on negotiating terms and effective communication, rather than on the actual paperwork. 

There are many such electronic solutions that help businesses at every stage and for every process. Choosing a merchant portal is another important decision and there are always some questions you can ask and information to verify, before taking the final decision. For instance, PCI-compliance is an important consideration and this means that merchants need to adhere to standards imposed by the Payment Card Industry. 

Fraud protection has to be considered by every provider, because thieves will do anything to obtain payment information. To reduce the risk of compromised data, the merchant portal needs to adopt security methods such as fraud management filters and encryption. You can always ask the account provider what they do in such cases and how they protect sensitive data. 

To avoid any complications and misunderstandings, it is best to take all precaution measures and make sure to clarify with the provider all aspects. Every business manager wants to benefit from fast processing funds time and it is good to know how long does it take for funds to clear. Every merchant portal uses proprietary payment systems and in case you already have specific software installed, make sure compatibility is assured. The provider should point out this aspect from the beginning, as soon as you offer all data and insight on your business and what tools you use. 

Mark Watson is a professional content creator for iriscrm.com. The payment processing platform was specially created to grow your business, being the leading in this type of industry. Don't hesitate to visit the website for more details.