The business landscape is constantly evolving. Organizations should thus lookout for new ways to grow their business. One such option, which organizations should leverage to remain competitive, is a ‘Marketing automation software that can help organizations streamline and automate their workflows and marketing activities. Marketing automation software can help improve operational efficiency, which further translates to greater ROI. However, it is crucial to select the right marketing platform that can power up your marketing efforts. According to a research report shared by Frost & Sullivan’s, revenue generated from global marketing automation software stands at $550.7 million and is projected to reach $1.9 billion by 2020  Before zeroing in upon the right platform, businesses need to consider their specific needs. Salesforce Pardot and Marketing cloud are two powerful marketing platforms organizations can leverage to streamline their marketing activities. But before making a choice, it’s essential to delve in a bit deeper to know more about each of them:  Users: While Pardot is positioned for B2B organizations, Marketing cloud is designed for B2C use cases. Since, Pardot caters to the b2b segment, it primarily revolves around lead management as a result of a longer sales cycle. Consequently, Pardot users focus on preparing email campaigns with an objective of lead nurturing. To support lead nurturing, Pardot offers a set of lead grading and scoring tools, which allows users to allot scores basis the actions of customers and their engagement with the emails, website, etc. The features of the Salesforce marketing cloud allow users to offer a completely personalized experience to every customer. From creating roadmaps of the customer journey, planning campaigns and promotion to data management and cross-channel messaging, SFMC with its array of features offers support to different marketing segments. Though the Salesforce marketing cloud has a more powerful and comprehensive marketing suite than its counterpart, it misses out on the sales-and-marketing alignment part i.e. lead scoring. However, it is possible to integrate lead scoring in the Salesforce marketing cloud.  Channels: Since, Pardot caters to the B2B space, users can expect complete support when it comes to channels such as emails, website, and social media. However, cross-channel options are limited in Pardot. The SFMC platform supports various channel engagements as it has in its arsenal several tools that help users to provide support to its customer via every channel including web, SMS, advertising, social media, and email. Each of them can be managed via separate applications on the platform.  Integration: It’s important to know that to leverage the full potential of Pardot and SFMC, a database is required. Though Pardot is commonly integrated with Salesforce’s Service or Cloud (CRM), it also integrates well with Microsoft Dynamics CRM, Sugar CRM, and NetSuite. Offering a full marketing suite, Salesforce Marketing Cloud can be integrated with Salesforce solutions such as Sales, service or Community Cloud besides other CRM systems. Though, the platform doesn’t offer a database as a part of the package, a Data Management Platform (DMP) can be integrated into your Marketing Cloud by paying some extra cost.  Price: Since, Pardot and Salesforce marketing cloud serves two different models i.e. (B2B and B2C), they have different pricing structures. For Pardot, the pricing is available online and is segregated in three different categories i.e. basic, intermediate and advanced, basis the automation features one wishes to access. However, there are no standard pricing options available online for the Salesforce marketing cloud. Though the cost will certainly be more than Pardot, it’s more likely calculated basis the volume of data as B2C companies deal with daily customer interactions and transactions. The pricing for the Salesforce Marketing Cloud also takes into account the cost of implementation and the number of users using the platform.   Which is the Right Fit for Your Business?  Both Pardot and marketing cloud have their share of pros and cons. However, the right platform for your business would depend on your specific business requirement and business type. So, it can be inferred that while the Marketing cloud is ideal for B2C customers, Pardot is appropriate for businesses looking to nurture their sales process by aligning the sales and marketing teams. If you are still on the fence regarding the best fit for your business, you must consider partnering with a reliable  Salesforce consultant.   Girikon – A reputed name in the IT space offers end-to-end Salesforce consulting services for businesses looking for reliable Salesforce implementation and consultation. 

For a business to sustain in this competitive landscape, the sales and marketing teams must align with each other for ensuring better organizational growth in terms of efficiency, productivity and revenue. However, this is difficult said than done as the goals of sales and marketing teams are misaligned, which encourages them to prioritize their own goals over organizational profits. So, how to deal with this situation? The key lies in having a steady flow of qualified leads that the Sales team can close readily, and this can be made possible by having in place a robust lead scoring system for prioritization of leads. What is the Need for Lead Scoring?  Though, the main priority for marketers is to generate constant flow of sales-ready leads, only a small percentage of the leads generated by the marketing team are considered closable. According to statistics gathered from recent industry research, around 40%-50% of all inbound sales leads aren’t followed up by the salespeople. And even if they do so, a lot of time had already passed by for leads to be converted to customers.  Lead scoring, which is a key aspect of lead management helps marketers make the most of all the leads generated. By providing an objective way of sorting through all visitor interactions and ranking them basis their likelihood to buy the company’s products, lead scoring divulges details about the most sales-ready leads besides providing insight about how and which leads should be nurtured. By helping organizations rank their leads basis several behavioral and demographic factors, marketers can determine and focus on the most potential leads.   Evolution of Lead Scoring Tools and Capabilities:  Having information about which leads to follow up and which to ignore can be more of a speculation than science. Lead scoring provides sales and marketing experts a head start on the lead qualification process, which otherwise is time-consuming. Before the recent developments in technology, lead scoring was conducted manually and included making a detailed research on potential customers, recording their details on a database, and finally scoring them.   Today, Marketers have access to tools and capabilities that can help them rank, manage and nurture leads, so that more leads carry a higher probability for positive sales results. Automated capabilities and processes provide powerful ways to handle lead scoring and nurturing to help get the most from every visit to the website.   CRM assisted Lead Scoring:  Since, the task of manual lead scoring was strenuous and time-consuming, CRM (customer relationship management) systems emerged as the savior by automating and simplifying processes. With a robust CRM in place, businesses were able to gather data regarding every single lead and scoring them basis the selected criteria. While integrating a robust CRM system like Salesforce improved the manual way of scoring leads, it still lacked the efficiency required to quickly score leads basis their quality with sales and marketing teams still spending a lot of time gathering details about leads.   This paved way for another innovation i.e. marketing automation. While marketing automation is doing its bit by analyzing and processing a wide variety of data in an automated way, it doesn’t provide the efficacy to differentiate between visitors who are actually interested in making a purchase and those who are simply visiting the site without any intention of making a purchase. This has left space for a new player that offers a solution to all the lead scoring woes i.e. predictive lead scoring using artificial intelligence.   Predictive Lead Scoring:  A Game Changer  Powered by Machine learning and Artificial Intelligence, predictive lead scoring allows businesses to determine the criteria for defining a strong lead, creating models for lead scoring based on the specific needs of your company while adapting themselves in a changing market. The Einstein AI capability of Salesforce provides lead scoring an altogether new approach by streamlining a variety of tasks associated with it. Right from automatically collecting and analyzing CRM data for determining strong leads, creating finely tuned lead scoring models to gathering account insights, using Salesforce Einstein AI for lead scoring will augment the efficiency of sales and marketing teams by saving their time significantly. However, you must get in touch with a reliable Salesforce consulting company for any assistance regarding lead scoring including the creation of appropriate lead scoring formulae.   The Bottom line:  The value of figuring out sales-ready leads is inestimable. However, it isn’t easy to manually analyze humongous data to determine closable leads. A robust lead scoring system will help organizations to align their marketing and sales team while ensure better utilization of resources, improve rate of conversion, and condense sales cycle, which will ultimately translates to increased revenue. This will allow sales and marketing teams to close deals quickly while forge a strong relationship with their customers. As a cloud-powered CRM, Salesforce has become preferred choice of businesses due to the wide array of features, functionalities and components offered by the platform. To make the most of this platform, it’s important to partner with a reliable and experienced Salesforce implementation partner.

Everything that you consume on a day to basis be it food, clothes or any other finished product has to cover a long journey before it reaches the customers. Besides the outlet where you go and make a purchase, there is a network of interrelated elements known as the ‘supply chain’ that works on getting these products at your disposal. However, increased globalization has led to a more complex supply chain ecosystem, which has allowed issues related to trust, speed, and accuracy to penetrate through it. However, the biggest impediment to fixing the otherwise broken supply chains is to find out a way of consolidating data across all the supply chain entities that usually work in silos. The solution lies in integrating disruptive technologies like Blockchain and Salesforce, which can be made possible by partnering with a reliable Salesforce consultant. Role of Blockchain in Streamlining the Supply Chain:                                                  To understand the role of Blockchain in streamlining the supply chain ecosystem, let’s quote the example of temperature-controlled logistics (perishable food and pharmaceutical) that require to be stored and transported within a certain temperature range to ensure they remain preserved till they are delivered to the end-users. However, managing the integrity of the cold supply chain has become challenging with most of the products either getting lost or contaminated during transit as a result of exposure to unsafe temperature ranges. This happens because of the inefficiency of the current track and trace system that fails to provide sufficient supply chain visibility. Blockchain – a distributed ledger technology can help resolve issues pertaining to the supply chain ecosystem by reducing inconsistencies, increasing visibility of products during transit through the supply chain and streamlining processes. This becomes possible as every physical asset that is a part of the supply chain ecosystem is represented as a digital asset on the Blockchain network. This is also known as tokenization of assets, which enables increased traceability of products in the supply chain by helping identify the point where food/drugs have been tampered with so that product that is either tampered with or gets contaminated is removed before it reaches the store shelves. This track and trace feature of Blockchain allows customers to track the journey of a product right from the point of origin till store shelves. With an IoT powered Blockchain system in place, data attributes such as the temperature of food/drugs, location, etc. could be gathered and stored. Since data once uploaded on the Blockchain is immutable, errors could be minimized and quality of products can be ensured.   How does Salesforce fit in?  While Blockchain promises to resolve issues related to trust and transparency within the digital economy, Salesforce offers much more than a robust CRM solution. By offering solutions for streamlining information, task automation, analytics, and enhanced communication, this robust CRM platform has transformed the way businesses operate. Just like Blockchain, Salesforce places the power in the hands of the buyers by increasing transparency through tailored solutions and empowering the sales representatives to provide customers with a better quality of service.   When it comes to supply chain, the Salesforce CPQ that stands for Configure, Price, quote provides the necessary tool-set to transform the complex and bulky Sales process into a streamlined one. By providing a consistent process for quotes, Salesforce CPQ can be leveraged for tracking orders and renewals concerning quotes. By allowing buyers to directly see the status of their orders, trust and transparency are enhanced.    How Does the Integration of Blockchain and Salesforce Work?   The integration of Blockchain and Salesforce paves way for a solution that enables information (regarding orders) to reside on Blockchain. This establishes better visibility, security, immutability and most importantly assurance that all the entities will be operating on the shared data across different organizations. Apart from this, all the existing supply chain actors can access their profile from their individual Salesforce orgs along with with product-related details (quality certifications, etc.).   So, what enables the integration of these two technologies? It is to be noted that the product suite (Blockchain ledger, Ethereum app manager and the Hyperledger app manager) created by Salesforce enables the distributed app suite available on Salesforce instance. While the app fixes a listener on the Blockchain, as well as the Salesforce platform in a way that any data that is uploaded on Salesforce gets added as a transaction on the Blockchain platform and vice-versa, the Hyperledger Fabric is built on components such as the consensus mechanism, smart contract functionality, and oracles. The data gathered by these agents are then utilized by Blockchains smart contract functionality.  In the context of the supply chain, a sales rep can create a new quote while generating a proposal by using Salesforce CPQ. Once the opportunity is won the sales reps can create an order including a list of items to be supplied. The DApp(Distributed Apps) suite is set up in a way that the data gets sent to Blockchain after the order receives a specific status. As data regarding the temperature, location, humidity, etc gets recorded on the Blockchain, it gets redirected to Salesforce following which historical details regarding the product’s journey from packaging till delivery can be observed on Salesforce instance. Such reverse integration allows sales reps to validate the exact location of the order on the supply chain.   Conclusion: Besides the above-mentioned benefits, the integration of Blockchain and Salesforce also enables creation of reports and analytics basis the shared Blockchain data. This will generate new revenue models besides improving supplier/buyer logistics significantly. To sum up, it can be said that the promising integration of Salesforce and Blockchain will not just substitute rigid supply chains but will create a roadmap for the future by working across industries. It’s prudent to get in touch with a reliable Salesforce implementation partner to ensure seamless integration of Salesforce and Blockchain.

As a business entity, your priority lies in improving the bottom line of your business by generating greater ROI. To ensure consistent growth of your business, you need to chart out an appropriate customer satisfaction strategy as customers tend to be the life and blood of every business undertaking. The most important aspect of this strategy should be to have in place a robust system that can provide a single view of all the customer-related data. Salesforce with its rich features, functionalities and ever-evolving ecosystem has become an obvious choice for business owners looking to streamline their otherwise scattered business processes to ensure increased efficiency and productivity. While this cloud-based platform is pretty flexible, easy to use and above all widely accepted across the globe, the real challenge lies in implementing it. This is because the process of Salesforce implementation requires 100 percent focus, dedication, and technical know-how, which practically wouldn’t be possible for you to dedicate while handling other essential business activities. To make the most of your Salesforce investment, you must have by your side a reliable Salesforce Implementation Partner who can help you with successful implementation, conformation, and deployment. Why Should You Hire the Services of a Salesforce Partner? Rather than taking the less expensive route of doing the Salesforce implementation on your own, or hiring a less qualified Salesforce partner, it’s in your best interest to engage the services of a knowledgeable and experienced Salesforce partner. Doing so will help you realize the following benefits: Ensures Business Process Efficiency: To enjoy a better return on your Salesforce investment, proper knowledge of accurately relating Salesforce’s features to your business processes is important. A knowledgeable partner with experience of working in your industry and knowledge of best practices will be able to dive into your processes and connect technology to your business goals. Provide the Right fit: It is to be noted that when it comes to Salesforce implementation one-size-fits-all approach, doesn’t seem to work. A reliable Salesforce partner will ensure you get the most out of your Salesforce investment. Rather than using the common implementation technique, an experienced Salesforce Consulting partner will make the necessary adjustments to provide your organization with the right implementation. Provide Training and Support to Your Team: Getting your team to use a new system can be challenging. However, with a knowledgeable and skilled implementation partner by your side, your team will have an easy go-to resource if and when they have queries while handling the new system. Your Salesforce partner will provide your team with the necessary training for operating the new CRM solution in the best possible way. Help You Capitalize on Opportunities: Reviewing your business systems and developing them regularly will ensure that they align with your business objectives. A skilled Salesforce partner can help you frame up your objectives and the way they connect with your CRM. This will help you develop a roadmap for the future while helping you realize a better return on your investment for the times to come.  Help You Save Money: If you take into account the internal overhead necessary to manage a project, you will realize that a reliable Salesforce partner will not just outperform an internal team but will also be more cost-effective. Quick Wrap-up: Whether you are thinking about implementing a new Salesforce CRM or already have one that requires a bit of customization and configuration, it makes sense to have a skilled Salesforce implementation partner by your side. By leveraging their expertise and experience, you will not just be relieved of the stress involved in doing it yourself but will also reap in the benefits of better process efficiency and ROI.

The business ecosystem has become extremely complex. To sustain themselves in a competitive landscape, it becomes extremely important for retailers to keep growing, innovating and diversifying. This would require them to understand and fulfill customer demands while provide them with a superior customer experience. Unfortunately, the retail marketplace is riddled with slow economic growth and high costs. The problem is further compounded by new age customers who seek personalization, and promotion based pricing, which has made it extremely difficult for retailers to sustain let alone expand and attract new customers. However, disruptive trends associated with retailers, as well as customers have resulted in massive explosion of data, which when processed and analyzed can provide retailers with a sizeable opportunity to understand customer behavior and other valuable insights that can be leveraged for informed decision making. However, processing such humongous and voluminous sets of data has become a tremendous challenge for companies, and will continue to grow in the years to come. According to report shared by Gartner, data volume is set to grow by 800% in the years to come, 80% of which will reside as unstructured data. To make sense of this wealth of big data, retailers require a robust data management solution that can help them retrieve and process data from multiple places. This will help them draw real-time insights for quick decision making while generate true business value. Predictive analytics has emerged as a sure shot solution to all the data woes faced by businesses. By anticipating customer needs based on post-interaction, historical and real-time analysis of big data, customer requirement can be fulfilled in a quick and efficient way. According to statistics shared by Forbes, there has been a whopping increase in number of companies adopting predictive analytics i.e. from a mere 17% in 2015 to a massive 53% in 2017. A combination of machine learning (ML) and artificial intelligence (AI), predictive analytics is growing all the more accurate and insightful. However, several businesses continue to assess this technology with certain degree of skepticism considering it to be too complex, disruptive and expensive to incorporate.  Listed below are few ways how businesses could achieve sales goals and increased customer satisfaction by leveraging this smart technology: Uncover Qualified Leads: Though, the entire practice of lead scoring has been in place since quite some time, they were largely based on guesswork and were extremely time-consuming. With a predictive analytics solution in place, businesses can make their sales and marketing teams more efficient by allowing them to access information such as whether your offering matches a potential customer’s needs, how convinced is your potential client to make a purchase, and similar other details that too in a precise way. This would allow your marketing and sales teams to better determine whether or not a customer is likely to convert and if yes what would be their potential lifetime value. This helps your sales team focus their efforts on the most rewarding areas. Measure Call Outcomes: Till date, many companies rely on manual assessment of data in order to determine the success of a new product campaign or sales strategy. Since, data is manually recorded, it is subjective and prone to inaccuracy. This doesn’t leave much scope for precisely evaluating campaign success. With an automated system in place, calls and activity are appropriately tracked. This allows the sales team of a business to accurately measure their sales performance. Reduce Customer Churn: Predictive analytics is extremely useful in identifying issues and trends that has a large impact on your business operation. This would help you predict when and why customers might consider abandoning you. Such important details will allow businesses to take proactive action to enhance customer experience and serve their needs in a better way. The altering demands of technological forces have influenced the retail sector in the biggest possible way. Predictive analytics has the potential to transform businesses and industries in a way that will make them more productive, competitive and efficient. Used effectively, this technology can turn out to be the key to your outbound sales success and customer satisfaction. In a nutshell, it will act as a magic bullet that may lead to improved profits and better business outcome. As a reputed name in the IT space, Girikon offers robust