Written by Darrell Etherington. Lately I’ve been on a bit of a streamlining kick. That is, I’ve been trying to find simple, elegant solutions to multiple problems in one convenient package. Easier said than done, unfortunately. The problem is getting everything you need in one place, in ...

What's a good, desktop-based (not web) CRM program? It should also be able to sync with a Palm Treo and over the local network and integrate with multiple Microsoft Office versions. I offer computer help to a local financial planner from time to time. To manage his contacts, he uses the CRM program ...

Many major retailers have been criticized for being slow to adapt to industry—especially Web-based—changes. But it’s not hard to see why when we see how the industry treats e-tail pioneers such as Amazon and Facebook.To be fair, both Amazon and Facebook got spanked for going too far in res...

Just a heads up that if you are working with the Demo VPC provided on the Microsoft downloads site, that you should be aware that it expires in April 09. Never fear, the CRM team are working hard putting the final touches on a New and Improved VPC that will be available for download very shortly. It...

I’ve been talking with a lot of CRM folks lately, including executives leading the CRM product groups at large companies like Oracle and Sage.  I’ve also spent time speaking with those running startups like Batch Blue and Mercury Grove.  And recently at this year’s Small Business...

As a student of well-thought-out, creative E-Commerce initiatives, I was naturally excited to hear that as deep-pocketed and serious a chain as J.C. Penney was declaring an “innovative online experience” that was “one-of-a-kind” and demonstrated “leadership in the onlin...

Facebook officials learned a hard lesson this month when the social networking site snuck in a privacy policy change that could have allowed it to access users’ content—and use it forever for pretty much anything Facebook could think of—even after users had deleted it from their accounts. ...

As punishment for the careless disposal of items containing personal information, CVS Caremark must pay a $2.5 million fine and establish a “comprehensive information security program” to protect both paper and electronic documents containing sensitive data, according to a government set...

Reversing an 18-month trend, consumer satisfaction with in-store retail products and services ticked upward in the fourth quarter of 2008. But similar good news wasn’t on the menu for E-tailers. After a three-year period where consumer satisfaction with online-only retail companies steadily cl...

Why use CRM? Freelance writers need to do the same kind of marketing that big companies do: Keeping track of prospective clients Monitoring current projects and deadlines Developing new relationships Making sure nothing slips through the cracks (See my article 27 proven freelance marketing tips for ...