Customer Story
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When PremCom enlisted Pipeline CRM they already had enough experience with CRM software to know exactly what they were looking for. Short for Premise Communications, PremCom is a leading provider of communication and network services. When the company began in 1992 they couldn’t possibly have envisioned how the world of network and communications was about to unfold. Nonetheless, they made it their mission to stay ahead of the game and over the past quarter of a century have gone from strength to strength.
PremCom is a client-focused organization that prides itself on integrity and customer satisfaction. The company’s salespeople are committed to finding the best solutions for their clients by taking a unique and creative approach to each set of needs. This has enabled them to build strong, positive relationships with their customers and the local community. After many years of slogging away with sales software that did not fit their requirements, they knew it was time for a change.
Pipeline CRM Onboarding Services handles the CRM implementation for PremCom, giving the company pipeline visibility of 100% and getting systems up and running in a matter of weeks.
“It was all installed on the computer and it worked well. But our biggest challenge with CRM is that we do a lot of communication via email. So to keep track of that was really difficult.”
PremCom ditched GoldMine for Act! in the hope that its partially-hosted hybrid solution would provide the answer. However, as the company grew, they began experiencing issues in relation to billing, invoicing, and time tracking. So they brought in a service-oriented software called Tigerpaw. When Tigerpaw introduced a sales CRM module, PremCom made the decision to put their CRM eggs in Tigerpaw’s basket too. How did it work out?
“Tigerpaw was incredibly painful,” says Suzanne. “Approximately six months ago, I said I really firmly believe that staff should get off of Tigerpaw and use something hosted that we can work with.”
"It's a big project switching to a different CRM. Onboarding Services figured it out, as opposed to me learning it all first and then making a decision."
Suzanne asked around for suggestions before narrowing down the prospects for a new CRM provider. She says the usual suspects were banded together initially but then a mutual acquaintance from the communications industry reached out to her. He advised her to look at Pipeline CRM and two other solutions. “So I said, okay, I will look into that. But I procrastinated,” admits Suzanne. “It’s a big project switching to a different CRM.”
One of the major considerations for Suzanne in choosing a CRM was the time it would take to get up and running.
“I was going to be the person in charge of it. And I didn’t want to be. I didn’t have time, because I really needed to build a sales force.” She researched the different options and decided to try out demos with three different solutions – Pipeline CRM being among them. She threw one out almost immediately, as its limitations were on full display.
In the end, it was the level of support that Pipeline CRM Onboarding Services could offer that sold it to PremCom, along with how easy the system is to use.
“There was a cost to do the implementation,” Suzanne says of Onboarding Services. “And looking back, I probably could have done it myself. But it was really nice to tell somebody, this is what my thoughts are, this is how we’re doing it. They were able to just go in and figure it out, as opposed to me learning it all first and then making a decision.”
One of PremCom’s main priorities when deciding on a new CRM was forecasting.
“The forecasting was huge,” Suzanne says. “We rely heavily on what we are going to close this month.”
Reporting directly to the CEO of the firm as well as having regular communication with big vendors meant that Suzanne needed access to accurate information quickly and easily. Her biggest challenge with finding the right CRM was that the forecasting had to be good.
Onboarding Services was crucial in assuaging her fears. Working with the Customer Success Team, Suzanne was able to communicate exactly what PremCom needed to achieve. She spent some time with her dedicated Pipeline CRM consultant detailing the company’s approach to forecasting. Soon thereafter, her implementation consultant advised her that custom fields could be set up. This was reinforced by a demonstration about set up and further suggestions for the functions that PremCom was lacking.
Suzanne reflects “I’d say ‘I wish I could do this.’ And she’d reply, ‘well, you know, that field is right there.’ And I’d think, ‘oh, ok, that’s easy!'”
"I could have done it on my own and I probably would have done it but I wouldn't have known if I'd done it right. And I wouldn't have had that person to just lean on."
“Some people don’t like change,” Suzanne says, regarding introducing Pipeline CRM to her salespeople. After discussing this with her dedicated Customer Success Manager at Pipeline CRM, together they started creating a plan of action for training the rest of the PremCom team.
Suzanne met with her people individually and went through the benefits of the new system. “I said to them, look at all the things that we can do. And they did and they were fine. Everybody loves it. Everybody loves it.”
And it makes keeping track of what her salespeople are doing effortless. She can see each person’s activities on one screen and if someone leaves the company, their communications with customers are still easily accessible within the system.
When asked whether it was worth choosing Onboarding Services for the implementation of Pipeline CRM, Suzanne is unequivocal. “A hundred percent. I could have done it on my own. And I probably would have done it. But I wouldn’t have known if I’d done it right. And I wouldn’t have had that person to just lean on.” Having a dedicated Pipeline CRM specialist there to show her how things were done made it a much smoother process.
Using Onboarding Services also enabled PremCom to have Pipeline CRM successfully implemented in a really short space of time. Suzanne had an initial meeting with the Customer Success Team on the 13th of June.
“By Monday the 17th we were doing training with the sales staff,” she says. “And I wanted to be live by July 1st. So less than a month. It was very quick and my dedicated Manager was amazing. Even during the times, I managed to make a mess of things.”
Three months down the line, PremCom is an extremely satisfied Pipeline CRM client.
“I absolutely love it,” Suzanne says. “I’m just so glad to deal with it. From a sales perspective, we go right to Pipeline CRM for everything.” And when asked about visibility into the sales pipeline itself? “We’ve achieved sales pipeline visibility 100%!”
"I absolutely love it. Now, from a sales perspective, we go right to Pipeline for everything."
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