Webinar: Driving Efficiencies with Digital Credit App Entry

What This Webinar Covers:

Robin Fonck, Strategic Technology Analyst at GreatAmerica hosts Matthew Szczygiel, Client Success Manager at SalesChain, for a complete overview of their joint integration. Matthew will share a demo of the Digital Credit Application Entry process through the SalesChain CRM. Robin and Matthew will also share how GreatAmerica and SalesChain technologies and processes intersect to drive efficiencies and streamline workflows for their mutual solution provider customers.

This webinar includes: 

  • An overview of the points of integration between SalesChain and GreatAmerica
  • Demos of key integrations, starting with the Digital Credit Application process, and followed by overviews of the Pass-Through Charges, Application Status, Lease Data Updates and Digital Signature Integrations
  • An overview of the SalesChain Mobile App
  • A live Q&A session

View the Webinar

Driving Efficiencies with Digital Credit App Entry

SalesChain Releases Version 8.3 featuring Used Equipment Selling Module, Interface Upgrades, Microsoft Single Sign On, and More

Used Equipment Selling Module

We have created a new utility that enables dealers to manage and publish a catalog with pricing details of their used equipment inventory via our direct integration to e-Automate! Our new module grants sales reps the ability to “Sign Out” used equipment and provide “Time to Sell” parameters.  One-click Add Used Equipment to Proposal makes it easy for your sales team to sell used equipment.   

  • This utility replaces all the manual work and aggravation caused by spreadsheets which are often used to manage this used equipment catalog. 
  • Within the Delivery Workflow system, we have added the ability for sales reps to mark the disposition of machine pickups to be “checked out for resale, allowing the dealer to hold the machine for resale for the sales rep. 

Interface Upgrades

 Say goodbye to yellow screens! We began the new year with a group of user interface upgrades. Our team has updated the interface for the: 

  • Contact entry form 
  • Task and task action entry forms
  • Note entry form
  • Email dialogue

Push Sales Rep Assignments to e-Automate

We have created a utility for the sales rep assignments stored within SalesChain to be synchronized or pushed to their corresponding e-Automate customer records.  This optional feature is now available as a part of our nightly integration. 

Enhancements to our e-Automate Integration

Our team has added a new View Invoicespopup window to allow privileged users to view Invoice History and Invoice Details. 

  • We expanded the presentation of Credit Profile and Credit Notes to include the AR Rep name and the Created By user for each note. 
  • We enhanced our Multi-Database integration to include both Prefix and Suffix numbering. SalesChain currently supports customers with 4 e-Automate databases that seamlessly integrate with one instance of SalesChain, providing consolidated pricing, sales metrics, delivery workflow, and commissions across complex businesses.   

Microsoft Azure Single Sign On

This update contains our new API integration to Azure Single Sign On (SSO).  

  • Users can “Log into SalesChain with Microsoft,” so they need only enter their password one time to the Microsoft environment in order to gain access to the SalesChain system.   
  • This feature applies to both the main web interface and the mobile interface.

Workflow Automation

We continue to build upon the success of our workflow utilities by providing new and improved methods and features in the following ways: 

UBB Service Minimum Charge 

  • We added a new feature that allows the dealer to configure and enforce a Minimum Charge amount for service on a machine.   
  • For example, a dealer may configure a minimum charge of $150/month for a particular machine.  The sales rep will then have the flexibility to change allocation and rate as needed so long as the combined value for the single or multiple meters meets the minimum target. 

IT Products and Managed Service Commissions 

We significantly enhanced the commissions utility to allow dealers to break out and pay commissions on IT Products and Managed Services. The commission system can be configured to: 

  • Pay a percent of IT Products gross revenue by either a fixed rate or by the sales rep’s commission rate for all sales reps or individually defined for reps using the commission plan rate. 
  • Pay a percent of IT Products gross profit by either a fixed rate or by the sales rep’s commission rate for all sales reps or individually defined for reps using the commission plan rate. 
  • Pay a percent of Managed Services gross revenue for a defined number of months by either a fixed rate for all sales reps or individually defined for reps using the commission plan rate. 
  • Pay a percent of Managed Services gross profit for a defined number of months by either a fixed rate for all sales reps or individually defined for reps using the commission plan rate. 
  • Pay a percent of “Block of Time” gross revenue using either a fixed rate for all sales reps or individually defined for reps using the commission plan rate. 

MRR Sales Revenue Accumulation 

  • We added a feature to our Order Breakdown CPQ tool that allows dealers to designate a set number of months of Managed Services and UBB Service revenue for sales revenue accumulation and commission basis.  
  • For example, when a sales rep sells a 36-month Managed Services agreement, the system can be configured such that the rep receives 12 months of the MRR towards board credit and/or commission revenue basis.

ConnectWise Manage Integration 

  • Setup Wizard: We are making it easier to configure integrations with ConnectWise Manage by creating a self-help configuration and setup utility that will allow dealers to enter their credentials and receive validated connectivity confirmation. 
  • Enhanced Data: Dealers may now push more data into ConnectWise during order creation. In addition, they can customize details with enhanced configuration preferences.  

Sales Rep Metrics 

As our dealers utilize more detailed sales metrics, we have added the following trackable measurements to our dataset: 

  • Number of representative units sold – This value is the accumulated number of rep-units sold for a given sales rep and period.  Dealers are allowed to identify the “representative number of units” for each catalog item sold.  
  • Number of representative licenses sold – This value is the accumulated number of rep-licenses sold for a given sales rep and period.  Dealers are allowed to identify the “representative number of licenses” for each catalog item sold.  Bundle packages of 25 user licenses can accurately be counted as 25. 

Enhanced Business Intelligence Dashboarding 

We have added four new dashboard templates, making it easier for users to create meaningful data presentations.  The create dashboard user interface was also improved to simplify the process of creating dashboards.  Here are a few examples: 

  • 2 over 2 
  • 3 even over 2 even over 1 over 1 
  • 3 even over 2 
  • 3 over 2 
  • 4 over 2 over 1 
  • 4 over 2 over 2
  • 4 over 2 

Tiered Lookup Utility 

  • We created a new tiered lookup utility that allows dealers to define tier schedules and either direct values or adjustment factors that can be used dynamically. This utility is going to be used for the commissions system initially to provide advanced tiered payout percentages, and we plan to utilize this utility with the service pricing module as well in future updates. 

SAP/Forza Integration 

  • We expanded the SAP integration to include full life service history and meter history.

Credit Desk 

We enhanced the user interface and functionality as follows: 

  • Added column headers to each of the credit application sub-tables instead of relying on just one on the top of the form.
  • Modified the Order link to take the user directly to the Finance tab instead of the default Pricing tab, saving the user time. 
  • We added eight additional fields to the securitized lease desk download that include dealer buy rate and dealer income. 
  • Added a Go to Credit Desk button to the Order/Finance tab form to route administrative users to the credit desk with the order number automatically displayed, saving users time when navigating and processing orders. 

E-Sign Documents 

  • We added the ability for users to view the E-Sign document history report right from the Order Breakdown’s Document tab.  This feature saves the user from having to navigate to the E-Sign Desk, an entirely separate screen, to view a document’s E-Sign History. 

Document Generation 

  • We have added a collection of IT Products and Services data merge fields to support the automated document generation of Managed Service Agreements, lease funding requests and other IT-Specific documentation. 

GreatAmerica Integration 

Our integration with GreatAmerica Financial Services has received a few updates: 

  • Portfolio Buyout and Upgrade Values – We expanded the portfolio integration with GAL to include four additional buyout/upgrade values, providing more options for sales reps to manage lease upgrades.  
  • Credit Application API – We upgraded our SOAP-based credit application submit utility to utilize GAL’s new Restful API, taking advantage of the newest capabilities that GAL has to offer its customers.  This upgrade ensures fast and accurate processing of credit applications and prepares us to enable all the future offerings from GAL. 

DLL Leasing Integration 

We continue to enhance the integration and workflow process in the following ways: 

  • We have completed the beta testing process with DLL’s new credit application submit Restful API utility.  After many months of testing, we are happy to announce the general release of this great feature. 

TCO/MPS  

  • We updated the reports in the TCO module to include additional formatting and totals display. 

30-60-90 Forecast 

We added some additional fields and search capabilities to this forecast report that include: 

  • Delivery Date  
  • Data range option: we added Expired and 0-120 option. 

Lease Pricing 

  • We upgraded the lease pricing module to allow dealers to better utilize the Lease Adjustments feature by including the option for multiple adjustments to be selected for an order.   

Bonus Commissions 

  • We added a new feature to allow bonus commissions to be computed on sales revenue for the period.  We previously required the bonus to be paid on commission earnings revenue (i.e., reconciled revenue for the period). 

Mobile Asset Details 

  • We added the ability to view Accessories that are associated with Assets. 

Fixes and Tweaks

  1. SRA Assignment – We fixed an issue with assigning sales reps to new customers using the Bill To override rule. 
  2. Proposal Wizard – We reformatted this window to better support small laptop and tablet windows. 
  3. NASPO Pricing – We fixed an issue with NASPO pricing that was causing the pricing limit to be misinterpreted under certain conditions.  
  4. IT Product Catalog Search – We fixed an issue with the plain text search feature.  We also improved the drop-down option lists. 
  5. Credit Application Submit – We fixed an issue when submitting a credit application for approval with multiple lease buyout accounts defined that was causing the system to not process the request. 
  6. Bundled Lead Form – Fixed an issue where manually entered GP values were not summing properly on the new 30-60-90 forecast. 
  7. Parent Accounts – Fixed an issue where individual accounts were not appearing on searches for parent accounts. 
  8. Document Data Merge  
    • Added logic to properly reference and display the delivery job customer when it is the same value as the bill to. 
    • Fixed an issue where commission dollars were not displaying properly when no split rep was defined. 
    • Fixed an issue where primary machines were being skipped. 
  9. Monthly Rev Expectations report – We modified this report to expand the usage by not requiring dealers to have every sales rep have their commissions reconciled for the reporting period. 
  10. Fixed an issue where inventory levels where not displaying properly on the EAuto Sales Order Push form. 
  11. Fixed an issue where two of the drop-down boxes were not populating correctly on the EAuto Push Items form. 
  12. MS Catalog Items – Added logic to prohibit user from deleting items that are referenced as system default Block of Time item.  Removing a default item was causing the feature to error. 
  13. MS Exchange Integration  
    • Added a feature to allow dealers the option of only syncing appointments that are associated with Company and/or Contact records.  This eliminates personal and non-associated appointments. 
    • Added logic to exclude outsourced URLs (@yahoo.com, @gmail, etc.) from the automated company association lookup routine.  User or contact emails will be used but final check on company URL will be excluded. 
    • Fixed an issue where excessively long email message subject lines caused an error. 
    • Fixed an issue where activities were not accumulating properly with some recurring appointments. 
  14. Bundled Lead Form – Fixed an issue where special characters caused a display issue. 

Ready to Streamline Your Business?

Use the link below to schedule a discovery call for a demonstration of the SalesChain system. One of our representatives would be happy to assist you, answer your questions and see if SalesChain is the right partner to help you grow your business.

SalesChain’s Log-In Screen Has Changed

  • On Sunday, February 19th, 2023, SalesChain performed an update to the system which features a new log-in screen.

 

  • The updated Log-In process is as follows:
    1. The user will navigate to www.mysaleschain.com.  (Users may also get here by clicking the Log In button at www.saleschain.com).
    2. Enter your Company ID in the Company ID field.
    3. Click Next.
    4. Enter your Username and Password.
    5. Click Sign-In.

 

  • If a user wants to change their password in the future, they can do so using the following steps:
    • Navigate to the Menu sidebar>User Settings>Change Password 
    • User will enter their current password, and then redundantly their new password.  
    • When they are ready, they will click OK. 

 

*Microsoft SSO Login requires system configuration. Please contact SalesChain Support to learn more.

New Log-In Tutorial Video

Ready to Streamline Your Business?

Use the link below to schedule a discovery call for a demonstration of the SalesChain system. One of our representatives would be happy to assist you, answer your questions and see if SalesChain is the right partner to help you grow your business.

Kim Young and Andy Slawetsky: Dealers Sold $1.3 Billion Last Year Using This

SalesChain, founded in 2002, provides cloud-based technology solutions to office technology resellers and manufacturers.

Originally focused on improving sales teams’ information, organization, and automation capabilities, with a particular emphasis on managing lease portfolio turnovers.

After a record 2022, Andy Slawetsky chatted with SalesChain VP Kim Young to find out What’s Happenin’ and what we can expect from them in 2023.

SOURCE: Industry Analysts Inc.

View the Video

Kim Young and Andy Slawetsky Talk SalesChain 2022 and 2023

Video Transcription

Andy: 

What’s happening. Andy here. I’m joined today by Kim Young of SalesChain. How are you? 

  

Kim: 

I’m doing great. How are you? 

  

Andy: 

I am awesome. It is great to see you. We visited you about a year ago up in your offices in Connecticut. And I thought, you know, it’s kind of a good time of the year to check in. Show seasons are starting up and let’s see what’s happening with SalesChain. So first off, maybe just a quick background, who’s SalesChain? What do you guys do? And then tell us what you do for them. 

  

Kim: 

Sure. SalesChain is a business workflow automation tool with a specific focus on office technology dealers. And that’s a mouthful. But we’ve got everything for the front end of the dealer workflow: sales reps, sales ops, everything, CRM, CPQ, links to all the other vendors out there. So I am the VP of sales for SalesChain and have been with them for over a year now and thoroughly enjoyed it. 

  

Andy: 

So, it is very nice that SalesChain isn’t something that’s brand new to our industry. Although it is specific to our industry. Right. So, you guys, last year you celebrated 20 years. I think that was last year, the 20th. Yep, that’s right. Oh, so 20-year anniversary. Tim started this company a long, long time ago and you’ve grown from just a very small little operation to how big are you guys now? 

  

Andy: 

What’s the size? I saw a really nice number that they wanted me to ask you about, so I’m asking, how did you guys do last year? 

  

Kim: 

You know, we did great. We had substantial growth, revenue growth, but also employee growth. We were definitely a VSB. And I’m going to say we’re still in SB. Yeah but moving in the right direction and well over 35% growth as far as our customer base and revenue, and close to matching that with our employees. It’s awesome actually. 

  

Andy: 

Yeah. The number I saw earlier. 25% employee growth. So, you guys are exploding. You had a pretty full office when I was up there. When we were there, Jake and I were out there last year. And so to add 25% on to that, I imagine you’re adding more developers, coders, things like that. Right? You added a marketing person. 

  

Andy: 

We’ve been working with Colton now for the last few months, so it’s been kind of neat watching you guys grow over the last year. One number that did jump out at me was the number of orders that are placed through your system, we’ll back into this. But at $1.3 billion. 

  

Kim: 

I was going to brag on that. If you hadn’t brought it up. 

  

Andy: 

I’m definitely going to bring it up again and you can brag on it. So tell us about that number $1.3 billion in orders from copier dealers. So that’s really all you work with in this channel, office equipment dealers, right? Yes. So your system is software that they use. Let’s back up and then we’ll talk about that number. So your system, it’s ECM. 

  

Kim: 

Yes. 

 

Andy: 

It’s ECM? What is it? It’s content management. It’s CRM specifically. That’s the main thing, right? It’s organized like a sales team. At least that’s what it started as, it organizes your sales team, and everybody gets on the same page you can build. I remember in the demo, one of the cool things I saw as the next sales rep building proposals and you know, if I’m a Ricoh dealer or a Sharp dealer or whatever dealer, they had a configurator where I could literally build the machine on my screen. 

  

Andy: 

It would add cost to it and everything. So but backup and just give us what exactly do you guys do for dealers? How do they use you? 

  

Kim: 

Sure. I mean, we really actually started, believe it or not, when Tim founded the company 21 years ago, it was in the leasing space to automate leasing. He was working for GE Capital when he came up with the thought that that needed some improvement so we actually didn’t even start in the CRM world. We’re put in that bucket because it makes the most sense, because it’s such a front end system, if you will. 

  

Kim: 

But it’s all business workflow automation. It’s CRM, it’s integration into all the industry standard marketing tools out there, but it’s also then full CPQ, like you said, dealers can do everything from one place. And the cool thing about our product is we continue to evolve, as you mentioned, office equipment dealers, and that’s imaging, that’s the imaging space, et cetera. 

  

Kim: 

And it’s what we’ve done and we do well. We’re all the way. We don’t even stop at CPQ. We go all the way through really to cash and even paying out reps, commissions modules. So we are all things workflow to the life of the sales process within an organization. Does that make sense? 

  

Andy: 

Yeah, yeah. So it’s great for our sales rep out in the field because it helps them run their day, right? It helps them keep their customer base, organize it, keeps their proposals organized and having a consistent flow, consistent feel from all the reps throughout the company. Right. Everyone’s proposals. I remember when we were doing this before we had tools like this, everybody’s proposals look however they wanted them to and some were good, but some you know, some needed some help. 

  

Andy: 

And so, if, you know, it’s a good way as a business owner for you to ask for consistency and what your reps are presenting, it’s also a good way as an owner, right? And you get some insight into what they’re doing, their activity levels. Tell us about that. From a management standpoint, how does your tool help them with that? 

  

Kim: 

Well, so here’s where we went in 2022 just to back you up just a teeny bit. You know, you mentioned office equipment and imaging is still such a core for the dealer space. Obviously right, but all we do in this space, as we mentioned a couple of times. So, as we saw all the craziness of the last couple of years, and really since I’ve been on board, it’s been as big a shift I think as from typewriters to email. 

  

Kim: 

Right and these dealers, if they’re going to survive and they’re going to thrive and in doing so, they’re moving themselves into office technology, not office equipment. That’s my opinion. And we’ve moved with them, so we now have a bundled solution selling approach where reps (either different reps or the same reps) within every dealer does it differently. Right. 

  

Kim: 

But bottom line is you can see one single view of your customer, whether they’re I.T services, whether you’re selling them water, whether you’re selling them car chargers for their parking lot, not just copiers and all the things that go along with copiers, documents, imaging, production, all of that, but all the rest of it, too. So, we are now not an imaging space tool. 

  

Kim: 

We are an office technology dealers’ space tool, and we allow management one single view of their customer, because we have the CPQ tool and implement that into it. We also allow the management to see accurate forecasting. And so, it’s one single view across all aspects of their business with accurate forecasting which helps so much with the trickle down all the way back into the ECI and ERP systems and inventory and everything that goes along with it. 

  

Andy: 

Well, so you integrate into all that stuff, ECI and a lot of other partners out there, Great America leasing companies, right? So that’s our space. But you’ve mentioned you’re moving into other areas. And so, what are you doing in these other areas? Managed services? The big one, I think you guys are heading towards, if I remember correctly. 

  

Andy: 

Right. So, you started attending some shows last year. You’re attending some shows this year. And have you started integrating into some of the systems in that space?  

  

Kim: 

So attending the shows really is appropriate once you’ve got the product to show at the shows. And that was I would say our biggest besides our people, which I’m so proud of. So yeah. And I want to get back to that at some point. But I’d say our biggest technology shift really is two things: integrations and partnerships with other best in class vendors in the space. 

  

Kim: 

But then it also developed into a bundled solution. And that bundled solution means we integrate into whatever our customers need us to integrate into. Right. And I’d say ConnectWise Manage was the first and biggest we’ve done in that arena. But people are also wanting front end stuff like RingCentral for click to dial right inside the tools so they can track things from a marketing and an activity tracking standpoint more quickly and easily. 

  

Kim: 

There’s industry-specific as well as non-industry-specific marketing tools out there. Zoom Info, HubSpot Evolved Office, Dominic Pontrelli’s stuff, right? And the need to integrate into all of those things for imaging, but also for the I.T space is what we did in 2022. 

  

Andy: 

Very exciting, very exciting. 

  

Kim: 

So great. I love it. 

  

Andy: 

And your year is huge. We talked about that number before. Let’s bring it back up now that we’ve got a better understanding of what you guys do for the dealers. So, of all the dealers that you have, I don’t know if you’re allowed to say how many are with you or not, but those guys, those companies processed $1.3 billion in orders. 

  

Andy: 

Right. And so that’s an enormous number. Is that a record for you guys? 

  

Kim: 

I think it is the biggest yet and it will be beaten by this year easily, because of the number of onboarding we had in the second half of the year. So pretty exciting stuff. Our growth, we onboarded a bunch of really exciting new customers. 

  

Andy: 

And so, it’s only February and you’re going to have a record year in 2023. 

  

Kim: 

That’s right. 

  

Andy: 

That’s not bad. That’s not bad. So, what do you attribute to this? Why all of a sudden an explosion in growth for SalesChain? You know it’s been here for 21 years. A lot of companies have been using it for a long, long time. But over the last, you know 18 months it’s really taken off. What investments, other than obviously you coming on board, what are some of the key investments that you guys made? 

  

Andy: 

It was. 

  

Kim: 

All me. 

  

Andy: 

All you, and then also what else might it be. 

  

Kim: 

You know honestly, I believe that. So let me let me put it this way. I believe that dealers buy from people and companies that they know and trust, yes. You have to have the technology. We’ve proven that our technology is just phenomenal. It’s truly best in class out there for what these dealers are looking for to run their business as well. 

  

Kim: 

And while you said it’s a great tool for the salespeople, I want to say that I was just on a prospect demo this week, and I’m like, you know what, guys? This is actually more impactful to the sales ops and to the people behind the scenes supporting the salespeople, than it is even to them. And it depends on the dealer which it impacts more. 

  

Kim: 

But this tool impacts them all. But the dealers, the owners, they buy from companies they trust and from the people that they trust, meaning delivering on their word, and giving the right customer service. And I really believe that our messaging and more than our messaging, our revamping in the last two years has caused the attention to gain in the marketplace you know, one sec. 

  

Kim: 

Sorry, I’m recovering from a cold. You have to forgive me when I talk a lot it happens. So, you know, one of our challenges really has been to get the message out there. We are completely revamped, reorganized, and we’re firing on all cylinders since about 2020. And we’ve continued that process by hiring more people, as we’ve already discussed. 

  

Kim: 

So, you know, that being the case, what we have to do is get that message out there, using people like you, having Matt and you mentioned Colton on board. These are great things, and have really helped us get our message to the market about just how different we are. Every company goes through ups and downs, especially when they’ve been around for 20 years. 

  

Kim: 

Right. And we are in the best upswing we’ve ever been in, and it’s just being reflected by word of mouth in the market. 

  

Andy: 

So, you know, looking at that and then we take a look at the year you had, and it was, it was awesome, right? You had great growth. You guys were at all the shows. I mean, I saw you, I felt like I saw you everywhere that I went. You were at a ton of BTA shows, and some of the other major conferences. 

  

Andy: 

So, you’re really investing in the BTA channel, clearly. With the traditional dealers, and you got a lot of success there which I think builds on top of that. Where you know, there’s a lot of peer groups and a lot of these guys talk to each other and when one starts using you and other one notices you guys. So, looking ahead to 2023, you’re already predicting a record year but what are you excited about? 

  

Andy: 

What do you have coming up? What shows are you guys going to be doing? And you know, what’s the big deal, what’s happening with SalesChain in 2023? 

  

Kim: 

Yeah. 2023 is on track to match the excitement of 2022. I think there’s tons of new features, not just the bundled solution and continued integrations, but we’re going to start 2023 out with a bang this weekend. We’re having our release 8.3 push to the market, and, I’m going to throw out there, it’s the biggest product release in our company’s history. 

  

Kim: 

We have implemented, listening to our customers as we do so much in how we grow our products, we are implementing a used equipment desk that is going to be so beneficial to so many customers out there. We are updating, we have even more updates to our user interface, because of some of the developers we hired in 2022 are focusing on that as well. 

  

Kim: 

With many new screens. We’ve improved our security: we have Azure SSO. So now the list is long and exciting, from a features and updates standpoint to our product, and that’s just this month. So, I will tell you that one of the areas that excites me a lot too is what we’re doing internally as a company. So in 2022 this growth, you have to make sure that as you grow, you’re still able to meet your commitments and deliver on what you promised. 

  

Kim: 

And you know, when you grow, sometimes there are times it goes like this when you’re getting there. And in 2023, actually this month, we’re implementing brand new tools internally for our own digital transformation. We’re moving away, just like we are spreadsheet killers for our dealers, right? We’re doing the same for ourselves and putting tools in place for statements of work. 

  

Kim: 

So we have very accurate onboarding fees and onboarding processes. We’re putting in a brand-new project management tool for onboarding that we’ll be able to share out with our customers and make it all automated. And also for customers and special projects. But then on top of that, we’re putting in place a product management tool to better track our product development and our roadmap and make sure that our improvements are trapped in a workflow that makes sense. 

  

Kim: 

So, all those things together, we’re doing our own digital transformation. So, we’re set up to continue this growth into the future with leveling this out. Right. You know what I mean? So yeah, it’s probably the most exciting. 

  

Andy: 

It is. It is amazing to hear all the stuff you’ve been working on. And what really strikes me is not just that you’re introducing new stuff, but that you have to go back to all of these current customers. Right. And explain to them that your solution now does more, and now you have to retrain, so it’s not like you just get to come out with a new version and keep moving forward. 

  

Andy: 

It’s going every time you come out with something and you have to re distribute, I don’t know, just rehash it with everybody. Go through each of your dealers, each of your customers and explain to them the new enhancements, the new benefits, how they use them, what a tremendous undertaking that must be. So this new version, when did you say that’s coming out or has it come out already? 

  

Kim: 

It’s pushing this weekend. We’re really excited about it. 

  

Andy: 

So we’re right on the verge. This is good timing for this interview. 

  

Kim: 

Yeah, exactly. 

  

Andy: 

So other things I know we’ll be seeing you guys at some better shows. Obviously, we’ll be down in Asheville doing our, now our annual, golf outing. 

  

Kim: 

So that’ll be so fun. 

  

Andy: 

Oh, that was a great time. Last year we were down there. We had some great dealers down there enjoying it with us. Dex and Utech and so, hopefully we’ll do another little mini golf outing and some dinner afterwards, just like last year. What else? Any other shows that you’re going to be at? Anything coming up sooner? 

  

Kim: 

I’ll be in Orlando. We’re going to the Sharp Dealer meeting. We’ve made a full commitment to the CDA meetings this year, and hopefully even going to be in Houston for the BPCA. So we’re definitely very committed to the BTA, but have some other user groups we like to work with a lot as well. 

  

Andy: 

Well, BTA is just sort of that central core to everything right? But then given those user groups, those peer groups are fantastic. And CDA I think is probably the biggest dealer and I guess I do agree with that. So that’s a great, great group to be in front of. 

  

Kim: 

Yeah, I had some real good success stories in 2022. 

  

Andy: 

If you have success with one of them, they tend to once you leave the room, they often talk about you. So, if you have somebody who likes you that’s very, very helpful in those meetings. So, this has been awesome. This has been really great catching up with you. I look forward to seeing you at BTA in a few weeks and good luck rolling out this new version. 

  

Andy: 

8.1? 

  

Kim: 

8.3. 

  

Andy: 

8.3. I’m already behind. So 8.3 coming out this week. And good luck with that. I hope it goes smoothly. Any last shout outs that you have for everybody before we shut it down? 

  

Kim: 

Just looking forward to seeing everybody and both dealers and partners and continuing to enjoy getting to know y’all. So thanks. 

  

Andy: 

Kim Young. This was great. Good seeing you. And we will talk soon. Take care. 

  

Kim: 

Have a good one. 

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SalesChain Releases Version 8.2 featuring New Saved Queries, NASPO Pricing Logic, and IT Quote Import APIs

Saved Queries

We have added the ability for users to save named views for various desks throughout the system including in the Accounts desk, the Forecast, the contact view, and the order desk.

  • This new feature allows users to save their searches and return to their favorite reporting views, saving time and effort, and simply making the data work more efficiently.
  • While saving groups in the system gives users the ability to create static lists, saved queries can be dynamic, changing with the information contained in the search.

NASPO Pricing Logic

We have added logic to our order breakdown CPQ system specific to NASPO credit levels.

  • When NASPO credits are applied to a deal, or to a specific machine, the system will reference the established maximum price and will not allow the sales rep to price above that designated level.
  • When NASPO credits are applied, the NASPO price level is shown in the equipment pricing table for easy reference.

Added Ability to Import Quotes to Our IT Pricing Tool

When users are in the IT Products tab of SalesChain’s order breakdown CPQ tool, they can enter a quote number from Ingram Micro, to pull that quote directly into their Saleschain deal via API integrations.

  • This includes products, pricing (normal or special) and quantities. We create a bundle for this information within the Order Breakdown, and the Ingram Quote Number is reflected in the name of that bundle.
  • SalesChain will be adding compatibility for Dell, Synnex, and other distributors and IT vendors in upcoming releases.

Automated Delivery Paperwork & Customer Notifications

We created an automated Delivery Truck notification with automated delivery paperwork packages that are fully electronic signature enabled.

  • Users can configure the system to:
    • Lock the delivery truck schedule prior to delivery.
    • Send a summary of a day’s scheduled delivery instructions to the truck driver prior to delivery.
    • Send an email with a completed set of delivery documentation for each delivery job prior to delivery.
    • Send an email with delivery details to the customer prior to delivery.
  • Timing of all the above functions can be configured to allow the dealer to adjust the system to their own delivery workflow automation desires.

Document Generation

We’ve added a feature to allow users to mark and highlight documents generated through the document generation tab of our Order Breakdown CPQ tool.

  • To distinguish documents of different types, this enhancement has added color coding and tagging functionality to the documents tab.

ConnectWise Manage Integration

  • We enhanced the “Sales Order Push” to include additional properties related to the shipping address and contact.
  • We added additional information to the “Ticket”, including sales rep details.
  • We added a SalesChain to CW Order Status cross-reference to the SalesChain Order Status record so that as the order progresses through the fulfillment process within SalesChain and e-Automate, the order status can be updated in ConnectWise Manage.

IT Distributor Integrations

  • We added an “Exclude Categories” feature that allows dealers to exclude products from the sorting and searching of the IT products tab so that sales reps only see those products they want to sell.
  • We are continuing to expand our integration portfolio to other IT Distributors. This release includes a catalog integration with Clover Imaging Group.

TCO and MPS Pricing

  • Our TCO and MPS pricing tool is officially in beta, and a group of dealers is using and testing these tools.

Manager Approval Process for Orders

We added a manager pricing approval workflow to the Order Breakdown.

  • We added logic that allows dealers to configure orders to require manager approval based on user permissions.

Fixes and Tweaks

  • Fixed an issue where special characters in the e-Automate manufacturer names were causing display issues with charts and certain web page controls.
  • We added a legal name property to accommodate multi-legal entity clients.
  • We added a new clear feature to the account view, forecast, and order desk which clears all search criteria.
  • All mapping functions have been switched over to Google Maps.
  • We patched an issue with e-Automate payment frequency.
  • We made a modification to the e-Automate contract code description.
  • We repaired the issue with the e-Automate inventory display with items push screen.
  • Forecast 30-60-90: We refined the date range selection to 0-120, expired, and 120+.
  • Forecast 30-60-90: We added the ability to filter by the source
  • Through the addition of new merge fields, our system is now able to generate transactional documents that combine copier, service, and IT financial values all in one.
  • Lead Disposition Report: We added the lead’s Source to the filtering criteria and added a column to display this property.
  • Order Desk: We added the lead’s Source to the filtering criteria and added a column to display this property.

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SalesChain Adds Forecast 30-60-90 View – Giving Sales Users Another Option for Viewing their Pipeline

[Southbury, CT] – Business workflow automation and software solutions provider SalesChain has added a new 30-60-90+ Forecasting Desk to their software platform. This new view gives users another interactive option for viewing their pipeline.
“This interactive report was inspired by one of our archived screens – the “Sales Funnel Report by 30/60/90,’” says CEO Tim Szczygiel. The new view features a slim, expected-close-date-based breakdown. Notably, the “Next Step” of each lead is prominently displayed and directly editable with a brand-new pop-up interface for easy sales team communication.

“We love this new forecasting view so much that we started using it internally,” says Customer Success Manager Matthew Szczygiel. “The ability to see and alter next steps right from the forecasting table makes this a conversation piece between a sales manager and sales rep, sales manager and owner etc. When I’m working with our clients, it’s now my recommendation for our user’s default view.”

About SalesChain: SalesChain is the complete business automation solution for office equipment dealers. A CIO Magazine top 10 Workflow Automation Company, SalesChain provides CRM, CPQ, Quote to Cash and more for copier dealers and managed service providers. SalesChain helps dealers create smart data that can be used across the business to create more efficient operations.

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SalesChain Releases Version 8.1 featuring New Forecast 30-60-90 View, Activity Tab Sorting, and Net New vs Existing Activity Sorting

Forecasting

  • We’ve added a new 30-60-90+ Forecasting Desk to give users another option for viewing their pipeline. This interactive report was inspired by one of our archived screens – the “Sales Funnel Report by 30/60/90,” and features a slim, expected-close-date-based breakdown. Notably, the “Next Step” of each lead is prominently displayed and directly editable with a brand-new pop-up interface for easy sales team communication.

BETA: TCO/MPS Toolset

  • The much-anticipated Total Cost of Ownership (TCO) and Managed Print Services (MPS) utility is now in beta. We are beginning the initial round of testing with a select group of dealers who have been instrumental in guiding our design and development efforts.

Business Intelligence – Charting

  • We’ve added a new “Tile” construct to display a specific metric such as Revenue or GP as a number. This allows for additional level of creative display of information within our custom dashboarding tools.
  • Created three new dashboard templates for users to have more options when they create custom dashboards in SalesChain’s Business Intelligence platform.

Statement of Work

  • We’ve created a Statement of Work (SOW) utility to allow dealers to creatively define lists of services offered and to generate marketing friendly documents for customers. This can be used by sales to create a talk track aimed at cross-selling all of the different services your business might provide.
  • Statement of Work options have been added to the Customer Advanced Search utility so that sales can easily search customers that do or do not currently have a particular service.
  • SOW documents generated will be highlighted and attached to the SOW to easily track SOW history.
  • Attachments may also be marked as SOW related and highlighted in the SOW history viewer.

Great America Leasing Integration

  • We’ve upgraded our credit application integration to utilize GAL’s latest Restful API system. This will replace our long stand SOAP-based integration module and opens up the door for more features and future improvements.

Activity Tracking

  • We’ve added filtering capabilities to view New Prospect vs. Existing Customers within the Forecast 30 – 60 – 90 and Forecast by Category Slim.
  • We’ve added colorization to improve the visualization and highlight actions when viewing account activities, scheduled tasks, and more, so prioritized actions can “pop”!
  • We’ve added the ability to filter activities by type within the account view. Users can now filter activities to show only attachments, documents, notes, emails or tasks in addition to viewing all.

Fixes and Tweaks

  • We’ve modified the method of securing the tabs on the Order Breakdown by not showing a tab at all if the user does not have access to the underlying component. This means certain users may not only be permissioned away from parts of the OBD, but they will no longer see the areas they do not have access to, avoiding potential confusion and frustration.
  • We’ve removed the old Help library from the Menu/Help section. This feature has been replaced by SalesChain’s new self-help library.
  • We fixed an authorization request with the DLL integration that was causing the portfolio request to be locked.
  • We’ve updated our integration to HubSpot to support upgrades to their API scopes.

 

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SalesChain Launches new Territory Analytics Tool

[Southbury, CT] Business workflow automation provider SalesChain released a new territory analytics tool to their software platform. This tool will allow dealers to use their software platform to collate, analyze, and make decisions based on sales opportunities in different geographic regions.

According to SalesChain CEO Tim Szczygiel, this tool provides a “spot-in-time analysis.”  It helps dealers understand the range of their opportunities in a particular region, based on zip code, so they can balance their sales rep’s customer base in that area.

The software syncs sales rep territory information input with national census data. This gives users density data, such as total number of businesses in a zip code or a region, along with how many accounts are currently in that region along with the number of leases, and the revenue being generated there. This balancing tool has the capacity to run scenarios with the data to help managers make informed decisions.

Contact SalesChain today to see how our platform can help your business effectively distribute customer accounts by territory and increase your bottom line! Users interested in this feature can contact the SalesChain help desk for more information at (203) 262-1611 or email us at Support@saleschain.com.

 

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Matthew Szczygiel Becomes New Client Success Manager for SalesChain

[Waterbury, CT]: Matthew Szczygiel will occupy the new position of SalesChain’s client success manager effective September 20th, 2022. Matt has been serving the company as director of marketing since March of 2020 and has been an integral part in developing SalesChain’s corporate website and most recent advertising strategies.

Matt will move into responsibilities aimed at helping customers experience success with their implementation and use of the SalesChain platform. He will act as a general contractor and point of contact to help customers navigate through SalesChain, making sure to address all their needs, questions, and/or concerns. He will collaborate with project managers to ensure the successful completion of onboarding, post-sales support, and implementation of any additional products or customization.

“I am really excited to get to know our customers better and see how we can work together in this new role. I am ready to help build and nurture the SalesChain community!” says Matt.

Matt is a graduate of High Point University, where he earned a BA in communications with a focus in electronic media production. He is a resident of Winston-Salem, North Carolina, and an avid videographer.

About SalesChain: SalesChain is the complete business automation solution for office equipment dealers. A CIO Magazine top 10 Workflow Automation Company, their goal is to help businesses see greater profitability and increased efficiency through better automation and synchronized data. SalesChain helps dealers create smart data that can be used across the business to create more efficient operations.

Ready to Streamline Your Business?

Use the link below to schedule a discovery call for a demonstration of the SalesChain system. One of our representatives would be happy to assist you, answer your questions and see if SalesChain is the right partner to help you grow your business.

SalesChain Releases Version 8.0 featuring Bundled Print, IT Product, and Managed Service Pricing

[Southbury, CT] – Business automation software provider SalesChain released version 8.0 of their platform this past Sunday, August 7th, 2022. This release brings an industry-first bundled configure price quote (CPQ) platform for Print, IT Products, Management Services, Telephony, and document management products and services.

“SalesChain is the first and only system that offers a complete CPQ for copiers, printers, IT and managed services, period.” Says CEO Tim Szczygiel “Combining the industry’s best CPQ for print with real-time integrations to distributor inventory and pricing is something that no other system can deliver.”

SalesChain’s bundled solutions platform gives dealers a sales solution capable of supporting multiple product offerings. In addition, the provider has created purpose-built forecasting and lead management tools designed for the relative print or IT sales representative. These tools, along with integrations to ConnectWise Manage and e-Automate can help maximize collaboration and eliminate redundant data entry.

Upgrades to SalesChain’s IT Pricing Solution allow reps to view and compare real-time pricing and availability of products from various distributors. Etilize acts as a configurator, bringing in data on associated accessories as well. A block of time feature allows users to separate monthly service fees from one-time installation charges.

Integration with ConnectWise Manage is at the core of SalesChain’s initiative. Two-way integration between the platforms synchronizes companies, contacts, tickets, opportunities, projects, and orders. This level of functionality means that SalesChain users can now share data effortlessly between ConnectWise Manage and ECI e-Automate – creating one shared dataset.

About SalesChain: SalesChain is the complete business automation solution for office equipment dealers. A CIO Magazine top 10 Workflow Automation Company, SalesChain provides CRM, CPQ, Quote to Cash, and more for copier dealers and managed service providers. SalesChain helps dealers create smart data that can be used across the business to create more efficient operations.

Click here to learn more about SalesChain

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