CRM – Something you might hear people muttering, but what is it?
Customer Relationship Manager
What does it do? CRM uses a database to manage customer stuff for you – the stuff usually being business related – managing customers contact details, keeping track of what you sent to who, and what they sent back to you, allowing you to cross reference data, and much more.
These days, CRM systems are often web based, so can be accessed from anywhere you have a computer and broadband connection. Your customer data is held securely in a database, leaving you free to worry about other things.
Todays buzzword comes from South West ICT and Simon Leek – who I had a meeting with this morning. Simon provides CRM solutions to companies using open source software. His clients are all over the UK and range from small businesses to large call centres. I met Simon to talk about integrating some of my telephony systems with his CRM solutions. However, that’s covered by another buzzword – CTI and I’ll write about that soon…
My home/office broadband failed yesterday and it failed again this morning.. Did I have a backup in-place? Well, yes, although not as functional as I’d have liked. Am I now working on making it more functional? Absolutely!
Do you have a backup plan for office broadband failure?
Do you rely on broadband for your business? If you do, then do you have a backup in-place? If not, then why not?
The answer to that might well be that you simply don’t know how, and also that it’s not always as easy as it might be!
We all get very used to always-on high speed Internet access these days, so when it goes, it can be quite a shock! So what are the alternatives these days?
1. Run a 2nd broadband line to a different ISP. A good alternative, but what if the JCB digs up both cables at the same time – which is 100% likely if it’s a cabling fault of that kind… It’s very rare to get what’s called diverse routing of the cabling to an office unless you are prepared to pay a lot of money for it. Sometimes you can get it by using two different telcos – eg. BT and Virgin, but even then, there may be common points where both cables are physically close to each other, so any earthworks involving diggers is still potentially problematic…
2. Use mobile broadband. This is what I use. It’s not perfect and not always avalable, and not very fast either! Where I’m based in rural Devon with my O2 service, I can only get GPRS. In a city you may have the luxury of a 3G data connection.
3. Read a book.
While I did (3) above, I’m working on improving (2), so I may look for a separate USB “dongle” with a 3G connection to a network carrier that has 3G access where I am (Only “Three” as far as I can tell right now), rather than just using my Nokia E90, but then there’s the on-going expense, but what price do we pay? For the average home user it’s hard to justify. For a small/medium office? I think it should be standard, and more modem/router devices have USB ports these days for just such a device, so there’s little excuse!
And what of the fault itself? Well, according to my ISP, BT did a “re-map” of my line. Whatever that means. Personally, I think BT screwed up somewhere as the whole exchange went down, not just me!
So as of this afternoon, customers, clients, users of VoIP telephony provided by Drogon Systems can now make 999 calls!
Well – Once their installation address has been verified, checked, double-checked, sent-in, sent back again and finally buried in soft peat for three months and recycled as firelighters…
I digress, but getting the address right would appear to be crucial to the whole process.
It seems that the Emergency Handling Authority have a very precice idea of what an address is, and it’s not something like “Please Mr. Postie, give it to the Hendersons in the street with the papershop in the town with the big Abbey.” I was quite surprised at the requirements.
For a person they want a “Title”. Is this Mr, Mrs, Ms? No, it’s Sir, Lady, Lord, etc. Then they want the name, and initials must be specified with full-stops, then any honours. You know, OBE, KBE, and so on. (does this mean that titled people get a better class of 999 service? It does make you wonder!) Then the address and how do you specify an address in the UK? Just how many different ways are there? Well, only one according to the EHA and it has 4 parts: Premises, Thoroughfare, Locality and Postcode. These 4 lines of information will exactly specify any address it seems. (Thoroughfare? I ask you. What century are we living in today?)
Businesses? It’s the same in the address department (complete with thoroughfare), the name must be the company name, and there is a separate part for Ltd or plc (and llp) There is also 10 pages of mandatory abbreviations for company names too. If you’re business name is “Wholesale Watchmakers, Weaver and Travel agent”, it should then be “Whsle Wtchmkrs, Weav and Trvl Agt”. I wish I were making this up!
But there you have it, we submit the data, wait for it to be checked and validated, then enable 999 on the clients system and off they go. The validation process takes about a week or less and that’s that!
As of January 2009, Drogon Systems is now a member of the ITSPA – Internet Telephony Service Providers Association. Their website is here.
The ITSPA is the trade association for all matters regarding Internet Telephony in the UK. They liase with various governmental bodies (eg. the Home Office, Ofcom, DTI), as well as their European couterparts.
As a member, Drogon Systems will be adhering to their code of practice, and looking to sign up to their new “Quality Mark” scheme announced at the awards ceremony in December.
The Internet Telephony Service Providers Association (or just ITSPA) is the Trade association for Internet Telephony in the UK.
This December (2008) saw it’s 3rd anniversary and their first awards ceremony, and as I wrote earlier, I entered my DSX-10 into the ceremony under the Best VoIP Hardware category, and although it was short-listed for the award, sadly, it didn’t win. However coming in the same group as the winner, Cisco, isn’t too bad in my books!
The good thing is that we traveled up from deepest darkest Devon to London for the awards, and it was amazing to see so-many people in the room. 150 people from many different companies involved in Internet Telephony in one way or another. If anyone needed proof that there is a future in Internet telephony it was there in that room last Thursday night with representatives from many major companies (eg. Cisco and BT) as well as many of the smaller companies providing services to business and end-users.
So what now? Well, Drogon Systems has applied to join ITSPA and plans so sign up to their newly proposed “Quality Mark” (They tried to call it a kite-mark, but it seems another organisation already has that one!)
So many moons ago when I was looking into VoIP, I heard about the Internet Telephony Service Providers Association. (ITSPA). They’re the trade association which represents VoIP telephony in the UK and I’ve just applied for membership.
This December, they’re hosting an awards ceremony in the House of Commons Members dining room, and one of the categories is “Best Hardware”… So I decided to enter my DSX system and I’ve just found out they’re short-listed it for the award!
So naturally, I’m very pleased about this – more-so as I’ve never really done anything like this, so itrs all jolly exciting! I’ll be off to London on the 11th to see what happens… And if it does’nt win? Well, that’s life. If nothing else, it’ll be good to meet some of the people I’d read about, and even exchanged email with. Put faces to names, put the world to rights, that sort of thing!
I attended a business lunch recently where Graham Hill made a presentation. Who’s he? He’s the Founder and Director of Verbatim The Phone answering Service. Graham is an interesting man with an interesting business – answering phones!
He presented us with some statistics – For example: On average, a business will miss 15% of incoming calls.
He later emailed me a couple of documents:
The Facts behind UK Telephone Behaviour
and
Basic Telephone Skills
So if you thought you knew how to answer the phone, think again!
This is the latest addition to the DSX-10 range, the DSX-10v. V because it’s VoIP only – there is no provision for PSTN hardware in this box – and you can see why – at 215mm square it’s tiny!
Small in size, but big in features. It’s capable of handling up-to 60 extensions with all the features you’d expect from a modern PABX. Call-groups, hunt-groups, music on hold, voicemail, etc. All controlled by simple star codes from any phone, or via a web interface.
And remember, ‘v’ is not just for voice, it’s for video too. This unit supports video phones (eg. the Grandstream GXV3000 and ATL IP400) out of the box.
Ever had a call from someone who just hung up? The chances are that it’s a marketing call system and alas, you’re going to get more …
What to do… Firstly if they didn’t withold their number, then look it up. How? Several ways and they might not even cost you anything. Firstly, find the location – if it’s a UK number (starting 01, 02, or even 08, 07, etc.) Try this site: Magenta Systems. That will tell you where (in the UK) the call originated from. Maybe it was just your long-lost Aunt Flo from Durham?
Then… Google the number. The chances are you’ll either find the companys website (if it’s legit!), or you might find the number listed it a “Who called me” website. One I’ve used in the past is: Who Calls Me.
And if there is a human on the end of the phone? Well, Speak to them. Tell them that you’re not interested (which you won’t be!) ask to be added to their do-not-dial list. They’re paying for the call, so just waste a little of their time and get on with your life.
And if by-chance you hear a robot saying something like “Please press 9 to be connected”, then don’t wory about and rumours that you might hear or read about – there’s no-way you can be charged (yet) in the UK for an incoming call, so go-ahead and press 9 – it’s just their way of making sure there really is a human at your end, and then waste a little of their time, then get on with your life.
Do not call the number back. Especially if it’s an 09 or 070 number. (Note: 070 is NOT a mobile number, it’s a premium rate service!). All that’ll do is waste your own time.
Finally, register every number and address you have with the Telephone and Mail preference services.
Took delivery of a pair of Grandstream GXV3000 video phones this morning with a view to seeing if they work, and how well they work with my DSX PBX system…
And what can I say… I plugged them in, gave them a simple configuration, assigned 2 accounts on my office DSX PBX and made a call.
And they “just worked”. Fantastic!
(OK, so I had to tell the PBX to expect a video phone, but after that it really did just work!)
I have to say they’re even better than I imagined them to be. For under £300 for a pair you seem to get a fantastic amount of technology. The phones have a built-in photo gallery feature – digital photo frame if you prefer. And how do you get data into them? via USB sockets at the back of-course. They even have video and audio out connectors and I’ll plug one into my TV later – just because I can.
They also can take RSS feeds and display them on the screen when idle, as well as act as a simple web browser, although using it is somewhat tricky!
A quick update… Just had a video conversation with someone who has an ATL IP400 Videophone (After a somewhat tricky set-up procedure!) all went as well as it ought to. Shame the ATL phone is twice the price of the Grandstream )-:
