We’ve had web forms built in to Batchbook for some time now. We created them with intent to allow super-simple forms integration that would allow our customers to gather contact information from a web page and have it automagically sent to their Batchbook accounts. In the short term, we strove for simplicity, providing the basics of what folks needed with the intention of integration with a proper form-building service at a future date.
So when our friends over at Formstack let us know that they were working on a way to get data from their incredibly robust form builder into Batchbook, we were super excited. We’ve been using and loving Formstack for a while now and they’ve been great partners in The Small Business Web. The team over there is awesome at what they do and their commitment to customer service is right in step with ours.
Here’s Chris Lucas from Formstack: “The Batchbook integration just made sense from our standpoint. It is one of the most requested integrations we receive from customers and potential customers…and really, we wanted to integrate with another company who’s passionate about the web, loves small businesses, and appreciates their customers like we do.” See, we said they were awesome!
Formstack’s web form creator gives you an easy-to-use HTML form builder that allows your forms to be integrated with your website without any programming, software, or special skills. Click, drag and type your way to professional forms in minutes.
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When we started working on BatchBook waaaay back in 2006, we set out to create the best darn CRM ever. Along the way, we’ve looked to our customers for input as we added partner integrations and feature upgrades. BatchBook customers have driven the development of BatchBook as much as we have.
But we can’t do everything, which is why we made sure that we made our API available to anyone who wanted to build something cool using BatchBook. Today we’re launching a new page on our site that highlights the efforts of people who are updating, integrating and modifying BatchBook in ways we never even imagined.
Meet the BatchMakers!
From our friend Kurt Milam who’s been building a multitude of ways to get data in and out of BatchBook to Michael Doornbos who used SuperTags to build a visual scoreboard for Lunar X Prize participants, we’ve seen some pretty amazing stuff come from the minds of our clever users. And we’re looking forward to seeing more!
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Tags: api, batchbook, batchmakers, Community, integration
It’s back to school time here at the BatchHaus, which means we are welcoming a clever new class of freshman Bluers to these hallowed halls. Let the geek hazing begin!
Here’s a quick introduction to a few folks we’ve recently welcomed to the BatchBlue team:
Linda Mitchell (@bootsielu), a good friend from BatchBlue staff’s Amazon.com days, joins us on the Quality Assurance team where she will be putting our tech team to the test. She’ll be studiously breaking our new Big Secret Product so the geeks around here can have some fun fixing it.
Bradford Shimp (@bradfordshimp & @badboyshrimp) is another one of those people we feel has been part of the team for years. He is a long time customer, active #sbbuzz participant and a favorite Twitter friend. He’s joining our Customer Experience team focusing on helping our newest customers find their way to the super powers of BatchBook.
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Tags: batchblue
We like to think that we make BatchBook flexible enough to meet just about any team or group’s workflow. Sometimes though the flexibility and open nature can leave people wondering how to best take advantage of the features and functions that we provide. One common question we get in the Customer Experience group is people wanting to know how they should be using Notes, Communications and Comments.
While there are no hard or fast rules on how they should be used as each person sets up their account differently, I wanted to share with you how I see them being used in most instances.
I see the Notes area as being the place for the information you need to just keep in mind at a glance when looking at a contact record. I’m getting ready to call them but I need to be reminded how to pronounce their name, or I need to be sure not to call on a Tuesday morning, etc. If nothing else, I know I need to look at the notes before taking any action with this contact.
Comments are more of a collaborative or running commentary about the contact that is visible to your whole team. Some folks will include general info, a link to a relevant article about the company, items that are useful to you and your team in relation to that contact. For example, if a colleague were to see that a vendor you managed added a new product line they could add that in the comments so that when you logged in you would see that information and act accordingly.
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Tags: comments, communications, notes
Jeremiah Owyang recently wrote an article for CRM Magazine Social CRM Vendors Don’t Walk The Talk where he puts a number of CRM vendors through the spreadsheet grinder to see how their social media engagement measures up to the social media features their products espouse. BatchBook was not included in the analysis, though BatchFriend and customer Paul Mabray from Vintank.com was kind enough to mention us in the comments.
I agree with Jeremiah, but I think there is a clear distinction between the CRM companies that are now making a social media play versus the social media upstarts who are incorporating some traditional CRM features such as sales and customer service management into their products as they build them. Jeremiah highlighted a number of products that were developed around older (phone, e-mail, direct mail) marketing tools and are now working to add social media as an additional sales channel. Alternately, there are newer products like Jive, Gist and our own BatchBook that really began as social media communication tools and have added sales features as another layer.
Not surprisingly, those with Web 2.0 roots have more integration with social media throughout our products and throughout our company cultures, as well. As he mentions, social media is not a linear channel that can be “added on” in the same way previous channels have been. It is an intricate web of blogs, comments, tweets, direct messages, friend requests, recommendations, favorites and hashtags each with their own sub-culture and mini-dialect that together shape the direction of a conversation. Whether it’s sales, customer service, or project management, this new dialogue is not fully represented unless you can track all aspects of the conversation, and more importantly, understand their meaning in context with your relationships.
I applaud Jeremiah for calling companies out for more engagement. He makes great points about not only supporting customer and developer discussions, but also showcasing those communities as a vibrant component of the product. He’s also given us a few ideas for pushing our community into a more prominent part of the product. And isn’t that what social media is about? Using a public kick in the pants to move your efforts forward.
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Tags: batchblue, batchbook, crm, social crm, Social Media
