To say that technology has taken over the world is an understatement. In the grand scheme of things, 50 years is a blip on the timeline of history. Salespeople used to go door-to-door to sell their items 50 years ago.
They used the phone, the newspaper, and good old-fashioned walking a beat to see potential clients and deliver a prepared spiel in the hopes of closing a deal or, at the very least, securing a lead. Their "technology" consisted of a Rolodex full of business cards and phone numbers. Not any longer. Now, software exists that can accomplish all of this in the blink of an eye.
“These days, software has replaced the need to hunt for leads. There are programs, Salesforce, for example, which brings customers and companies together. Such programs also help with inventory, marketing, e-Commerce, website management and so many duties that once had to be done by hand.”
-Mikel Lindsaar, CEO and Founder of StoreConnect
StoreConnect, a Salesforce-exclusive e-commerce AppExchange package, is upending the online SMB market by putting Salesforce at the heart of e-Commerce 3.0, the next evolutionary step for online businesses. Moderno Solutions, one of New Zealand's top Salesforce consulting firms, employs StoreConnect to help online retailers—or e-tailers, as they're known in the industry—fully integrate the world's #1 CRM program(1) with their online presence, and therefore with their company and consumers.
“The problem we see with most e-commerce platforms is that they predominantly sit independent of other business systems. This limits the ability to be able to market and service customers unless a costly and lengthy integration project is put in place, By having all transaction data sitting within the Salesforce® platform you can provide really personalised and relevant marketing based on transaction history.”
-Moderno founder Gareth Baker.
COVID-19 has sped up digital transformation as more customers look to purchase products and services online. Local evidence of this comes from NZ Post, where they saw a 45% increase in Q4 of online shopping, notes Baker. When we first saw StoreConnect, we quickly jumped on the opportunity to partner. Salesforce has also recognised this announcing StoreConnect as the Global Winner of the Salesforce Partner Innovation Award for Retail. says Baker, who worked at Salesforce for 10 years.
By honing their Salesforce, service, marketing, communities, and business system integration skills, this alliance will give small and medium-sized businesses (SMBs) a competitive advantage over the world's projected 212.98 million SMBs (2).