ITAM Combines Inventory Management with Useful CRM Functionality

The Netkiller IT Asset Management (ITAM) application not only provides tools that make it easy for businesses to keep track of their company hardware and software, it also includes the functions of a CRM (Customer relationship management).  Accounts, Contacts and Opportunities allow users to manage and generate internal information as well as manage external customers and partners.  ITAM gives companies everything they need to connect with customers including up to date account information and social insights.

Accounts present information on accounts such as who holds the account, the account name, contact information, shipping and billing addresses, industry, website, annual revenue, and a comprehensive history of the account.  In addition, accounts are easily shared within a company so that all relevant parties can be instantly updated with developments to the account, as well as readily access information about the history of the account.

The Contacts functions of the ITAM application provide management tools for an organization’s internal and external contacts, facilitating inventory management within the organization, and customer relationship management for external contacts.  Internal contacts (i.e. staff members) include IT asset information such as Agents or hardware items associated with that contact.  All contacts, internal and external, include detailed information such as the contact’s name, company, phone number, email address, and accounts.  External contacts also include information about Opportunities, which provide detailed tools for leveraging the social aspect of sales and managing the client relationship.

Once contacts and accounts have been added to the application, new Opportunities can also be added to keep track of sales activities.  Opportunities are used for sales automation and customer management.  For example, if a company using ITAM has a customer contact, John Smith, within an account (call it Business X), who is interested in a product and requests a quote, a sales representative within the company would create an Opportunity.  Within that Opportunity file the critical details of the possible sales interaction would be recorded and shared with interested internal contacts; details such as the expected revenue, the time frame, the relevant account, etc. would be organized in the Opportunity.

Once John Smith accepts the quote the Opportunity status would be changed to “success,” but if the customer declines the quote the status would be set as a failure.  This data is then recorded, facilitating the management of the company’s sales process.  Having information about successful Opportunities helps to build a strong understanding of what actions and interactions best lead to sales, without having to do extensive market research, or hire expensive consultants.

Opportunities display important details about the projects a company’s teams are working on, including how much each project is worth, who the teams are competing against, and what stage the project is at. The Chatter opportunity feed provides automatic updates, allowing users to track all associated activities as they happen to close deals faster.

ITAM provides all of the CRM functions most businesses need–it has many of the same functions as the Salesforce CRM, but at a fraction of the price.  ITAM is only $100 a year for the admin account (required), and an additional $10 a year for each Agent.  ITAM is an ideal simple CRM for small and medium sized businesses.  It’s a streamlined system that provides the necessary tools to manage customer relationships without confusion or clutter.  Together with inventory management tools, ITAM gives businesses the ability to run smoothly and efficiently.

For more information, or to try ITAM for free, visit the Netkiller website.