Some have made the claim that application development in the cloud is like a new language for application development. I disagree. It’s more like an entirely different planet. Application platforms run in the cloud have tremendous advantages.

The cloud erases all the barriers between users and developers that were once imposed by the physical realities of computer hardware. The idea is something Plato would approve of. It’s as though the pioneers of software development were, even until now, only working on an imperfect physical product—a product which was, Plato would assert, a bad copy of a higher, purer process taking place in the heavens.

In a strange way, the ‘heavens’ are here now with cloud computing. Custom application development in the cloud is radically changing the way we think about how software is developed, distributed and used. Cloud platforms do have their limits, of course, but the good news is that those limits are fully customizable, and aren’t dictated by hardware limitations.

Whether your development platform and delivery method are traditional, entirely cloud-oriented, or some of both, it’s imperative to take a good look at your options in using the cloud to your best advantage in developing new products.

Cloud platforms allow users to access exactly the resources they need, resources that can expand or contract according to the needs of business. Standard apps can be tweaked, or custom apps can be developed, so that you get the functionality you desire without redundancy or unncessary clutter in your workflows.

Sorensen Media, a specialist in online video, has seen tremendous benefits from cloud-based application development.   “Using [the cloud] gives us tremendous flexibility and it has greatly reduced operations overhead, specifically our headcount has been dramatically reduced – by a factor of at least 2 FTEs [full-time employees],” says Charles Sismondo, Vice President of Engineering.

Not only does cloud-based application development allow for targeted customization, it also serves as a medium of product delivery. Once the application is complete and “live,” the same cloud resources that were used to help create it can be used to deploy applications to end users.

This changes everything about how the application is improved and redesigned over time. Users can provide real-time feedback about how the program components work or don’t work, and the development team has the ability to respond instantly. This is game-changing for the users because it means the end of waiting for patches or new versions—and the downtime and lost revenue that invariably follow. Developers can make repairs and necessary editions to the application even while the program is being run by end-users. The changes can be made so subtly that the users scarcely know anything has changed, but they do enjoy increased performance and a more streamlined experience.

Cloud computing provides large, complex software solutions to companies, without requiring them to purchase expensive equipment, or maintain the software and infrastructure with an in-house tech team.
One of the best uses for this computing architecture is customer relationship management (CRM), a way of capturing valuable customer data, organizing that data and using it to improve sales forecasting, marketing campaigns and customer service. What many people don’t realize, however, is that companies’ unique needs can be met through application development—something that was very difficult and expensive to do with server-based software.

Cloud computing makes the process of having custom designed applications—for non-standard programs, internet communication applications, troubleshooting, specific data processing, management and storage, instant software upgrades and accounting processes—simple, easy and affordable.

In addition, once your custom applications are designed, they are managed by outsourced data centers and can be accessed by all authorized employees, using any Internet-ready device. This means that the apps are easily and quickly rolled out, and have a high rate of user adoption. Upgrades are automatic and require no downtime, and if you need more server capacity, it’s easy to add it.

Customized application development allows companies to fashion new applications to fit their needs, but these apps are also designed to match or integrate with legacy systems used by the company, so as not to disrupt workflow. Moreover, efficient application development allows some companies to outsource tedious work, further lessening company expenses.

Practical Application:
Plantronics is a designer, manufacturer and marketer of lightweight communications headset products, which needed a more comprehensive view of its customer, including a central data repository of partner and customer data. It also required a CRM system with support for multiple languages and currencies, as well as one that could integrate with its existing knowledge base, MRP and marketing systems. They needed all that, and they needed it fast.

After shopping around for CRM vendors, Plantronics settled on one that offered integrated sales force automation, marketing, customer service and support applications. It selected a number of applications from an online exchange offered by the vendor, but also chose to have a knowledge base app custom-designed, in order to provide its customer support personnel with call scripting and solution guidance, which has helped CSRs close more tickets with greater customer satsifaction.

These applications were seamlessly integrated with Plantronics’s legacy architecture, including Oracle MRP, Silverpop email marketing, RightNow and the corporate Web site. Data continuity was maintained despite a fast rollout—the system was deployed to over 400 users in less than 6 months, and has a very high adoption rate. More than 80 percent of customer calls to Plantronics are now logged to cases.

Simply put, application development that occurs in Web-based environment provides customer solutions that just make sense. These apps represent a cost-savings as well as a streamlined, secure and accessible way of capturing and storing data, and performing workflows. Application development can lead to more effective customer solutions—because it encompasses company solutions.

We’ve seen some amazing innovations in the development of customer relationship management (or CRM) systems over the past few years, and I’ve written about many of them here. Ignoring these changes could mean that your company gets left behind—in many areas.  Today, let’s talk about how these changes can help your enterprise resource planning (ERP) systems be as effective and profitable as possible.

Cloud computing removes the hardware and software barriers that have, until recently, hampered CRM applications. For instance, as sales and customer service teams are often working on different locations and using different systems to access customer information, there tends to be a duplication of efforts, potential for miscommunication, and other inefficiencies. Recent innovations have rendered these problems solved.

When CRM systems are run “in the cloud,” everyone is able to access the same information at the same time, and additionally, that information is constantly updated and refreshed. Those who access the data using their cloud-based CRM apps are able to alter that information on the fly. There’s no need for interdepartmental memos, the cumbersome duplication of e-mail attachments or other hindrances. There’s also no duplication of effort, since the whole CRM branch of the organization is, almost literally, on the same page.

Second, the nature of these applications is changing for the better, partly because of cloud computing, but also because of changes in customer expectations. The recent downturn in the economy has had a big impact on the way consumers think and what they demand, changing the dynamics of the customer relationship.

Consumers are now much less patient with a brand they perceive to be unresponsive to their needs. Many companies are finding that toll-free numbers which lead to labyrinthine menus just aren’t worth the hassle. Consumers either want to speak with a knowledgeable, competent human being who can solve their problem, or they want to get the information they need on their own. In other words, half-baked call centers just don’t cut it anymore.

To help offset the increase in costs here to meet demand, many organizations are turning to self-help solutions, including searchable knowledge bases that can be accessed online, video tutorials, live chat and other web-based solutions.

One of the many benefits of running your CRM systems in the cloud is that your CRM systems, along with your entire ERP architecture, can now grow with your business. CRM applications developed and run in the cloud can change according to your changing needs. This makes them ideal for small, startup and seasonal businesses who might struggle to have the necessary server capacity during peak times, but underutilize server capacity the rest of the year. With cloud computing, you can scale up or down as necessary without any hassle.

Software developers can update your systems as often as necessary, eliminating the necessity of installing patches or waiting for upgrades. Applications can be developed specifically in response to your company’s needs, too. Custom applications are more targeted and efficient, and they let your business run as efficiently as possible.

I’ve said it before, and I’m sure I’ll say it again: cloud computing is nothing less than a revolution in software architecture. Enterprise resource planning systems are only one area in which this revolution is manifesting itself.

Application development simply means the development of computer programs that can help your business manage data, communicate across multiple channels, maximize customer contact information, or otherwise engage in the day-to-day practices that a successful company employs. How can application development, or app dev, as it’s sometimes called, benefit your business? Here are seven of the many ways.

1. You become the master of technology rather than a slave to it.

For example, let’s say you run a vintage clothing store. You can have an application developed that automatically searches online classifieds for free clothing giveaways, estate sales, and flea markets in your area—alerting you to low-cost merchandise stock that you can use to sell in your store.

Application development is a technology solution to help your business run more smoothly or achieve the most success. You are the one who chooses the technology that you think will best fit the needs of your company.

2. Applications you have developed are tailor fitted to cater specifically to your needs.

No two individuals are ever exactly alike, and the same goes for businesses. No two businesses can ever have the exact same problems—or the same solutions. Application development makes it easier for your specific concerns to be addressed, without burdening you with unnecessary features.

3. You get the functionality you are looking for, without having to pay more money for massive hardware and infrastructure.

By integrating new technology with existing technology used in the workplace, you need not buy expensive new hardware. Instead have streamlined and simple cloud-based apps built for data storage, help desk knowledge base, sales force automation, billing or any other facet of your business.

4. It personalizes the type of service you offer to your customers.

Manage customer relationship with ease using application development. Capturing a 360-degree view of your customer, as well as being able to automatically generate promotions and discounts that salespeople can offer based on the customer’s needs, is the best way to build customer satisfaction. They will feel more valued by the company because you provide specifically what they need. Meeting their needs is often the primary reason for your new application designs.

5. Application development saves time and money.

Paying for just the functionality you need, of course, is going to represent a financial savings over prepackaged software solutions, only a part of which you may actually use. And because cloud-based applications are generally user-friendly with intuitive dashboards and interfaces, training time—as well as troubleshooting time—is reduced. Get your employees up to speed faster.

6. It evens the playing field for big and small companies.

Companies with less capital are able to work side by side with the big companies because cloud-based computing can eliminate the need to purchase expensive servers and other hardware, multiple copies of pricey licensed software, and the IT techs to take care of it all. Application development as it runs in the cloud offers flexibility and scalability, so small companies are more easily able to go with the flow of business without worrying about capital investments.

7. It allows the mobilization of your company.

Applications that are designed to enhance communication, facilitate consumer  relationships and enhance efficiency won’t do you much good if you have to be sitting down in front of a certain computer every time you use them. Instead, work globally using mobile devices. Cloud-based apps can be accessed by any personal device with an Internet connection. It makes outsourcing easy, further reducing capital and costs.

Once you start making use of application development and apps that run in the cloud, you may wonder why you ever purchased software off the shelf in the first place.

Traditionally, developing and maintaining database applications has been a time-consuming and frustrating process. A good friend of mine discovered this several years ago, when she worked for a Fortune 500 company with its headquarters in New Jersey and 15 plants across the U. S. She was the Billing Manager at one of the plants, a title which also encompassed responsibilities for system operations.

When a new, more powerful system was installed, it was expected that there would be a few bugs. What no one was prepared for was how long it would take to make even simple changes to a database. First, a request had to be sent to corporate, who had to make the change on their system and then download the update to each and every plant before it would take effect. The average time was about two weeks—that is, if it was a very minor fix.  Sound familiar?

One of the first things my friend noticed when the new system went live was that, for reasons unknown, the names of the freight lines were being severely truncated on the invoices, despite the fact that the fields were properly sized. This wouldn’t have been so bad, except that three of their most used carriers printed out as obscene or highly questionable words on the invoices. Since the information on carriers was entered at the corporate level so it could be tied to various tariffs, rate schedules, and payables, there was no alternative except to send out the invoices as they stood, four letter words and all, for the two months it took to get the problem fixed and the update deployed.

During the same time frame, some plants were already running out of room on their local servers. Others were experiencing extremely slow performance, due to increasing the number of users to handle a sudden surge in business. Daily activity was sent by modem to corporate, but because it took longer than had been anticipated, most attempts failed on the first few attempts.

Such problems were not all that uncommon during that era. Programmers developed databases in a vacuum, working on stand-alone machines without live data. Once they tried to deploy applications in the real world, in real time, all the bugs came scurrying out and threatened to devour the IT department. And, until cloud computing, there was not a lot of improvement.

Moving your database application development to the cloud offers you several advantages. You don’t need to replicate or synchronize databases on various servers, because everyone is accessing the same program. Changes or updates can be made without the delay time necessary to distribute them to all users.

You don’t have to guess at how much room you will need, because applications in the cloud are scalable, growing as you need more space. Users can access the applications from anywhere they can connect to the Internet.

Perhaps most significantly, the cost savings can be substantial. Not having to purchase individual licenses for every user can save you a lot of money by itself. Add to that the fact that you may no longer need a dedicated database administrator, and you begin to see how the savings can mount up.

Depending on the platform you choose, you will likely have little or even no restructuring of data. Most applications can be migrated with their format and integrity intact. You can also find features that can enhance and optimize your database performance.

More and more companies are discovering the benefits of developing database applications in the cloud. Take, for example, The Avascent Group, a consulting company. Despite the fact that they had no in-house IT department, they needed the ability to synchronize data, such as contracts and customer information, and still allow certain users to build and manage select applications themselves. Within a matter of days, they achieved their goals, and they also quickly realized significant savings in purchased IT support.

A properly developed database is crucial to the success of all of your applications. One that is developed and tested in real time, with actual data, will normally be superior to one built in isolation.

Choosing a CRM consultant for your company is a little like selecting a personal physician. You want to know that they are well qualified and experienced in your areas of concern, and prepared to handle the issues that arise.

After being hired, the CRM consultant should look over your current operating strategy, make their diagnosis, recommend repairs and additions—and get results. These results should enhance and magnify the company’s marketing and sales operations and increase customer relations effectiveness. The outcome of all this work should be an increase in customer  and employee satisfaction, increased revenues and sales, causing less customer turnover.

When considering who to hire as your CRM Consultant, be sure to include these factors:

• Find a company that knows your business, top to bottom. Being familiar with your business problems and structure gives them a head start that saves you time and money.
• Experience definitely counts. If you can find a CRM consultant that is experienced enough to step right in and get to work, that is the best situation for you. No time will be lost while they do research and try to get a handle on how to use CRM for your business—after all, that’s what you’re hiring a consultant for, right?
• If your company has acquired another company or companies, the consultant will need to understand how to merge multiple company systems.
• Another time when bringing a CRM consultant can be beneficial to the company is when major price changes are being made. Cover all bases to assure coordination of prices on all levels.
• Hiring CRM consultants to run training programs is helpful. With their experience, training and upgrading the skills of current employees can be smoother and faster.
• CRM consultants should be prepared to offer consulting services, training, coaching and workshops or seminars/webinars. Ongoing training keeps contact center staff current with new ways to provide excellent customer service using new technology.
• Many CRM consultants are very technology-oriented. To implement and run systems properly, the technology knowledge must be balanced with person-to-person skills. Understanding people is central to the whole concept of customer relations management. Even though there is much technology involved in new methods for tracking customers and retaining and sorting data, there is no substitute for the ability to relate this technology to the people the CRM consultant will serve. This includes employees and customers.

Consultants have been used in business since business began. There is much merit in hiring a consultant, but some elements can be done prior to their arrival to help reduce costs during the process.

A good customer relationship management consultant can help you get the most out of your cloud-based CRM platform, and can make the transition to the cloud from an on-premises system go smoothly. Finding the proper consultant can work wonders for the bottom line and customer satisfaction. It is well worth the time to search for the right consultant.

In days gone by, a business could just set up shop on a corner and wait for customers to visit. These days, things are not that easy. A business is expected to have its own Web site that customers can visit whenever it’s convenient for them. Customers no longer have the luxury of being able to travel from store to store – in today’s busy world, they expect what they need to be available within a couple clicks of the mouse. Businesses have to be nimble in order to stay ahead of the game.

The good news is that your business can have the tools it needs to thrive in today’s online world by using database application development. The database stores information about your products and services. When a customer goes to your Web page, the system retrieves information from the database and presents it in a format that makes it easy for customers to read and place orders. A key benefit of this is that when you have new products and services or just need to change your pricing, you just update the database—most are point-and-click, and easy to configure—rather than having to update your Web code and rework the entire site.

Just ask VF Imagewear, a global apparel company whose brands include Wrangler, Lee, North Face and many more. They had 26,000 accounts’ worth of customer data, scattered over six business units across the world, which had to be consolidated into a single shared system. Additionally, the company needed integration with their existing order management and other systems. With database application development as part of an overarching cloud-based customer relationship management system, they were able to gain better sales pipeline visibility, better customer service, cost savings, and improved customer feedback routing. Their entire workflow architecture was streamlined, and they’ve seen an improvement in their bottom line as a result.

Companies offering products from glass to plastic surgery to food have joined the e-business revolution with amazing results. Most companies will decide to let a specialist handle the design of the website itself. That way, they are guaranteed an attractive, up-to-date, e-business solution that will drive customers straight to their door, and make it easy for them to find their way around once they’re inside. I highly recommend having experts design your site for you. That way, you can focus on growing your  business.

Face it, you’ve got more important things to do. With custom application development, you can get the exact look and feel you are looking for without a lot of hassle.

What I really like about database application development is the relative ease for Mom and Pop shops—those corner stores I mentioned earlier, who might not have the chops to embark on a huge marketing campaign—to latch into the power of the internet. As their business grows, they are able to stay with the times, thanks to the power of application development. I strongly believe that any business who wants to succeed and then some invest its energy into database application development.

Not too many years ago, developers gave little thought to whether one application could share data with another. After all, most transactions and data input occurred on-site. If the location was a subsidiary, information on sales and expenses was transferred at period intervals. Once received at headquarters, the data often had to be keyed by hand into a completely different system.  Clearly some advances needed to be made.

The next evolution was to establish one platform for all branches. Data from remote locations could then be transferred by modem directly into the corporate mainframe. This helped some, but in most cases it was still just a one-way transfer. Changes or adjustments made at the corporate level had to be entered by hand at each remote location. New customers had to be “mastered up” at every location that might ship, bill, or accept returns from that customer. Production had to be recorded at both the plant and corporate level, and usually more than once at each. Inventory would have to be increased, raw materials decreased, and an entry to calculate the cost of goods sold would have to be made.

This arrangement was never very satisfactory, but companies made it work to one degree or another— until it was time to join the Internet community. The World Wide Web made it easier, in some respects, to share information between departments or branches, but in other ways it simply added a whole new level of hassle. For example, customers needed to be able to access data or enter orders, but that access had to be restricted to just the files necessary to accomplish the task. In many businesses, this resulted in yet another application that would communicate with certain files required for the online task to be completed.

As the need to integrate more and more applications became obvious, new methodologies were developed. Scrapping the legacy applications was seldom a viable option, but creating programs to allow them to “talk” to each other was difficult as well. To solve the problem, software companies developed products that could receive input from the various applications and allow others to access it in a usable form.

Enterprise application integration is the term used to describe the use of software and architecture to establish a middleware, thus allowing different programs to communicate with each other. The applications may be in different languages or even different operating systems. By enabling them to share information, the need to update data in several different applications reduces the time spent to alter redundant data.

Redundant systems create redundant work. Just ask COLT Telecom. COLT, one of Europe’s major business communications providers, operates in 13 countries and 32 cities. Twelve data centers stored information independently, which resulted in more than 10 instances for every application, with each having a “silo” of data that was cut off from the others. No overall view of customers was available companywide, since the information was entered into several different systems. In short, it was a mess.

By integrating their enterprise applications, COLT Telecom’s systems were finally linked and could be centralized in one location, requiring only a single instance of every application. The company can now analyze its sales base more effectively and respond to issues in a more timely manner.

While it is now possible for programmers to develop a system that is already integrated, as new applications are developed these, too, run the risk of becoming isolated. For example, five years ago, programmers would not have built in an application to accept input from Twitter or Facebook, because neither one of them existed. Middleware will always be useful as technology evolves. Who knows what the next generation of applications will bring?

Custom application development is an area that can boost your office’s productivity while shaving expenses. You may already have an IT infrastructure in place, and you may not yet be willing to completely forego it in favor of the cloud—and that’s OK. For right now, let’s talk about how a cloud-based custom app can help your current infrastructure run more smoothly and productively.

Let’s say you want to implement a knowledge database, posting it to your Web site so that all of your customers can quickly and easily find answers to their questions. The goal of this is to empower customers, drive traffic to your website and capitalize on upselling opportunities, and to free up customer service agents who may be spending valuable time answering FAQs. While you could purchase a boxed software solution to do this, you will also have to upgrade your servers. You’ll have to install the software across the company, and you may need to train employees on how to input data. All of this means a lengthy rollout—and lost revenue in the meantime.

Instead, you could contract with a content management Software as a Service (SaaS) provider, to use a cloud-based app that requires no installation, no physical maintenance, no licensing fees, and no complicated training period. These types of apps are pay-as-you-go, user-friendly, scalable and customizable. The application development process may seem daunting, but it can be easily broken down, and in the end you’ll have a system that better meets your needs than software you buy shrinkwrapped.

Practical Application:
BOK Financial had gone through a number of mergers and acquisitions, which meant that their information systems were a jumble of different training programs, front-end information systems and CRM processes. They needed a streamlined, efficient and integrated system. When they chose their cloud-based provider, they used a custom-designed architecture that enabled them to integrate the CRM applications with the corporate data warehouse, a legacy commissions software, and the existing security framework. BOK has seen its CRM usage nearly double in a matter of months, and has allowed employees in all departments to access and share critical information with intuitive, actionable dashboards.

So are you ready to help the infrastructure of your business by exploring the possibilities of custom application development? The first step in the process is to define what you want to accomplish with your application. Don’t forget to account for the flexibility to modify the application as your business grows. This is what is known in the development environment as scalability—the ability of your application to handle more work as your business becomes more successful. You want to be able to quickly adapt and add more servers as demand for your product grows. You don’t want the performance of your system to be adversely impacted when more users are accessing your Web site.

These days, most custom application development takes place through the cloud, or the Internet, where these applications will eventually run. This is less costly, more flexible, and often easier to use than prepackaged software or custom software development. Applications that run in the cloud are less complicated to roll out to employees, too, since they are user-friendly and can be personalized by individual end-users. Additionally, middleware can help you integrate cloud-based and on-premises software, Software as a Service, and applications, whether those apps are proprietary legacy ones, off-the-shelf solutions, or custom developed applications.

One of the major selling points of customer relationship management (CRM) systems is customization. In the past, companies that wanted to utilize a CRM platform had to purchase software off the shelf; frequently there were many applications bundled together, which meant that the company paid for everything, regardless of whether or not they would actually use it all. It was expensive to purchase multiple copies of licensed software, and upgrades could be complex and time-consuming. Then came cloud computing, which involves the use of applications that run remotely, through the internet. Upgrades take place automatically, without employee downtime; apps can be shared across all channels without the use of multiple software bundles, and all data can be easily accessed, whether the employee is telecommuting, traveling or located across the globe.

Additionally, cloud-based CRM systems are extremely customizable. They can support sales and marketing processes along with customer support. The systems can be customized by fields, forms, views, and reports. They feature automated workflow processes and are able to use Jscript automation for forms.

CRM is designed to present a user friendly interface for managing customer information and interactions. Systems can be customized to meet needs of different departments, from customer service and collections to telemarketing and sales. The goal is to provide information about customers and prospects, manage the data collected, and ultimately sustain and increase sales activities. It can be used for any company department, including collections, directory services, and financial departments. The systems are data-driven.

Typical customizations include layout changes, custom fields and custom views. An app can be customized to present workflow development and custom reports and define business processes. Keeping in mind the need for CRM to be very user friendly, here are 5 best practices for CRM customization:

1. Know what sales and marketing processes need to flow into the CRM application. If you do not map out what is needed, the application you end up with will not match the needs of your business. Once a system is in use, options for customization may be addressed. Take time and work with your vendor before and after you make a decision on what CRM to purchase.
2. Know in advance which user needs and reporting needs must be met. Get input from users about what they need before any customization is done, to help make that customization accepted and useful to those users.
3. Test the system before it goes live. Make sure it functions properly and does not interfere with other activities.
4. Make sure data that is entered is clean data. There can be problems moving data from one application to another. There can be duplicate listings or wrong data placed in empty fields. A good CRM application will account for these kinds of glitches, but of course it’s best to avoid them from the beginning if at all possible.
5. Don’t rush to integrate CRM systems with other applications. It is good to be able to combine data from multiple applications to get a better, more complete picture of a customer. Loosely coupled systems are better than rigid interfaces. Being linked to other systems allows the CRM system to perform more functions and access more data.

Practical Application

CRM customization has worked well for Divisions Inc., a property management services company in the United States. They customized their CRM system to incorporate photo libraries. This allowed field representatives to use BlackBerry software to send photos from mobitheir le phones to customer email inboxes, as well as to store photos in groups for later recall. Photos are also linked to Google Maps. This capability brings customers what they want faster—which, of course, results in increased customer satisfaction.

Customizing a CRM platform can be one of the best decisions your company can make. Why not find out more about the benefits of custom application development, and what it can do for you and your customers?