Big Data - Small Business : Part II

Last week we discussed what Big Data means to your small business or nonprofit. It is now commonly touted that "90% of all the data in the world has been created in the last two years." Even if you feel you are a tiny star in the universe of big data, you would probably agree that your own company's data inputs are growing. But if your information is segmented in different little orbits, you are not getting the benefits you should from your data.  

Salesforce.com is a standard-bearer in the big data movement.  Cloudy and the consultants at Redpath have helped many businesses consolidate their big data, simplify their business, and automate their business processes using salesforce.com.  Here is what we have learned along the way:

Challenges: What are the obstacles you may face as you integrate all your data inputs into salesforce.com?

1) User Adoption

• Big data success depends on your users to input the information.  (Read more about user adoption strategy here and here.)
• Users and departments who have previously been more independent may resent what feels like additional oversight of their work.

Bottom line: It is critical that users understand WHY changes are being made, and that they are given incentive and opportunity to buy in to the process.

2) Volume

Bottom line: How will you process and understand the huge quantities of data you will now have access to?

3) Assumptions

• Are you ready to see the truth if the data shows you that your assumptions about your business are not correct?

Bottom line: Get ready for paradigm shift.

Next time, Cloudy has some important tips for you to harness Big Data for your business.

If you would like to talk to a Redpath consultant, Click Here. 

Big Data - Small Business : Part I

What does Big Data mean for your Small Business or Nonprofit?

Big Data simply means bringing ALL the parts of your business into ONE PLACE.

No matter the size of your enterprise, you are juggling many data sources and data points:

Customers * Clients * Leads * Lists * Registrations * Customer Service Issues * Social Media Contacts * Important Relationships * Vendors * Partners * Content * Board Memebers * Web Inquiries * Marketing Initiatives * Documentation * Email and Marketing Analytics * Event Attendees * Roles and Responsibilities in your organization * Accounting and Financials * Spreadsheets and multiple databases * The list could go on...

At least a handful of these are certainly familiar to your business, and perhaps you can think of more. 

Have you brought ALL of your business under one salesforce.com roof?  Probably not! Historically, it was very common for businesses to manage their data in a segmented way. Even though it is now possible to get your Big Data into one place, many have not taken the leap.  

Why aren't more businesses managing more of their business in salesforce.com?

1) Many do not realize it is possible.  

With the salesforce.com sales cloud, service cloud, and custom cloud, along with 2,000+ Apps on the worldwide AppExchange marketplace, it is possible to manage every aspect of your business in salesforce.com. Despite the name, salesforce.com is NOT just for sales!

2) Many more do not understand the benefits.  Here are just a few:

• Efficiency: Make better use of your resources. Grow your business without growing your workforce.
• Effective project management: Catch problems and identify potential growth areas earlier rather than later.
• Visibility: Understand what is working and what is not. Identify your best customers. Put your focus in the right place. Gain insight into what is really most important.

Tune in next time for Big Data - Small Business : Part II and Part III, where we will discuss some challenges and some helpful pointers to guide you on your journey to harnessing your Big Data.

If you would like to talk to a consultant about your big data dreams, Contact Us!

Cloudy's Favorite Apps: Mass Edit + Mass Update + Mass Delete

What do you do when you want to edit the addresses of a couple dozen contacts?

Or what if you need to update the Stage of numerous Opportunities at once?

Or might you wish to quickly delete all Leads who have had no activity in the past year?

This is the type of important data management that keeps your salesforce.com vital, but if it is a hassle, it might not get done.  These jobs are too small to bother with data loader, but as you search, open, and edit each record individually, you will surely wish there was a better way.

One of Cloudy's favorite FREE apps makes this possible:

Mass Edit + Mass Update + Mass Delete -- the name says it all!  After the easy installation of this app, all you need to do is go to the Search Layouts page of the standard object where you would like to use this button.  (Step by step instructions appear in the install guide on the app)

The new buttons will appear on any list view on those object tabs. For specific data management tasks, you may want to create filtered list views that narrow down a list to the records you want to Mass Edit/Update/Delete.  ie. "All Contact with No Mailing Address", "All My Opportunities in Negotiation", or "All Leads with No Recent Activity".  You will have a chance choose specifically which records you are going to edit/update/delete from a list by checking the box next to the record.

Here is an example of a "Mass Edit" view of Contact records.  
From here it's a snap to edit all four records at once and then save!  
Use Mass Edit when you want to Edit multiple records at once, but with different information for each one.  For instance, each contact above likely has different phone and address information.

Here is an example of a "Mass Update" view of Opportunity records.  
From the list view, select several Opportunities to update, and on this page choose the field to update (Stage), and the value to update to.  Use Mass Update when you want to update multiple records with the SAME information.  For instance, I can change all of these Opportunities to "Closed Lost".

BONUS:
Once you are in the groove of using Mass Edit + Mass Update + Mass Delete for your small-batch data management needs, you might wish you could use the buttons on custom objects, or that you could customize the Mass Edit fields available.  Since this free app is an "Unmanaged Package", it is possible, and easier than you might think, to extend its capabilities in these ways. You can find some how-to help among other app users on the "reviews" tab of the appexchange listing.

If you need more customization, training, or help, please Contact Us!

For instructions on test-driving an App in your salesforce.com sandbox:
Test Drive an App in your Salesforce.com Sandbox

More of Cloudy's Favorite Apps:
Dupe Catcher
Conga Composer
Form Assembly
Rollup Helper