Guide to Cost of Sales Tracking Software

Learn the costs of sales tracking and reporting systems

Sales tracking tools have become a necessity for most businesses wishing to remain competitive within their industry. A sales tracking system that accurately forecasts sales is worth the investment, as accurate forecasts of sales have a huge impact on your business’ bottom line. The pricing and costs of sales tracking and reporting solutions vary widely and will largely depend on your industry and your company’s specific needs. However, the pricing and costs of sales tracking and reporting solutions doesn’t have to break your budget.

Many larger corporations hire statisticians and form departments dedicated to sales tracking and reporting, however experts say this isn’t necessary for most small to mid-sized businesses. Research has shown that smaller businesses can be very successful at tracking their own sales and making accurate forecasts, as owners and managers usually have an intimate knowledge of their history, product or service. Today there are more tools than ever to help businesses track sales and here’s a break down of what’s out there along with the cost:

1. Sales tracking software costs anywhere from $50 to several hundreds.

2. Web-based sales tracking solution is about $10 to $100 per month.

3. Customized sales tracking and reporting solutions can cost thousands of dollars.

Action Steps

The best contacts and resources to help you get it done

Find a low cost sales tracking system, if it fits your company’s needs

The cost of the sales tracking solution you use will really depend on what you need. If you have a sales team that simply needs to manage a client base, track sales and generate basic reports, consider a low cost sales reporting application. This solution typically prices between $50 and $500.

Consider a web-based sales tracking system

If your business not only needs a way to manage clients and sales, but also needs basic forecasting features, consider a web-based solution. Although this will cost more over time than buying software outright, companies offering web-based sales tracking and reporting solutions will often generate automated graphs and charts so you can better use and interpret the data. Fees are usually done on a monthly basis and range from less than $50 per month to several hundred dollars per month.

Consider a costlier customized sales tracking system, if it’s best for your business

If your business’ success is highly dependent or directly related to accurate forecasts, detailed and meticulous data, and well researched ad campaigns, then a customized sales tracking system is worth the investment. Costs here vary tremendously, from several hundreds of dollars to several thousands, and is usually dependent on the expertise and experience of the company providing the tracking. You should find an expert that works with your specific industry.

Tips & Tactics

Helpful advice for making the most of this Guide

When using sales reporting software, make sure that it fits with your industry needs or at least has some degree of ability to be customized to meet your company’s individual goals. There are many sales software choices that takes an ineffective ‘one-size fits all approach.’

Try Web-based online Sales tracking that meet everybody’s budget at Sales Tracking Portal website

Article Source: Shane2010 Blog

As companies reduct IT costs

Cost containment has become a watchword in IT environments because of the perceived conflict between the IT staff (who are often seen as a cost center to be checked) – and the financial officers and executive IT people see as an obstacle to improving IT skills.

The truth, however, lies somewhere in between: while the conflicts on costs and cash outflows occur, some common sense approaches to this issue can help solve problems and improve the bottom line of society, without affecting its efficiency and effectiveness. The following are some strategies for improved IT cost containment.

Find ways to improve and standardize procedures. There was a time when the pace of technological change was so fast that personal computers have been updated once or twice a year. This led many companies to resort to the development of processes and procedures on the fly. ”

The pace of technology is apparently slowing, the changes that are happening are – broadly – ‘improvements’ to existing systems (eg wireless networks that replaces ‘wired’ networks). This is an opportunity for companies to slow down and establish more efficient procedures.

Be open to new technologies. A field of new technologies is virtualization software, which helps the server to do more tasks than originally planned. An expert in IT infrastructure you can use virtualization software to run eight cars outside a single server. For e-commerce company with 400 people, this may mean keeping the same people, but working out only 40 cars. It is true that the total cost savings are not that high savings due to virtualization are about 30-40%, but for larger companies, this can result in a significant amount.

On the other hand, it should be ‘virtual’ will also require expenditure, particularly for more powerful servers and increased network costs, but the long-term savings is worth it.

Be opportunistic. Options to reduce costs are not limited to new technologies and new management practices – it is also a mindset focused exercise and a healthy feedback to identify opportunities that arise.

Contract renewals are one such area of opportunity – especially for large enterprises with heavy IT requirements. Leveraging on these supply needs can translate into significant cost savings, if managed properly.

Moving into a new building is another. Rather than ‘wiring’ the building to use that network, wireless technology can be brought in. Before you say that this is a case for using new technologies, it should be noted that the transition from wired to wireless technology eliminates the cost of hiring people to drill and wire rope all over the place – not to mention the money saved from the distribution with wires and cables.

Involve IT staff in budget planning and establishing financial goals. Critics assume that IT managers and people have their heads in the clouds and rarely bothered to explain the objectives and concerns of the financial cost to them. What is overlooked is the fact that all people – like others – are concerned about the financial health of their businesses because their income and lifestyle depends on the business doing well.

Switching to SaaS instead of deploying traditional software is another company can reduce cost dramatically. SaaS required minimal implementation & maintenance cost gives you flexibility in managing your IT budget. Learn more about how SaaS should reduce your IT Budget.

If you are in Sales department, you may want to check out a SaaS Sales Tracking Software that might suite your need.

Article Source: Shane2010 Blog