New Customer-Centric Software Unveiled To Boost Insurer CRM

While security products stole much of the spotlight at the recent Comdex technology exposition in Las Vegas, at least two exhibitors were touting products designed to help companies be more “customer-centric.”

Atlanta-based Navision announced the release of a new product and the upgrade of another.

The new product is “Navision Attain,” which the company says provides financial management, manufacturing and distribution, customer relationship management, sales, marketing and service “integrated into one solution to provide mid-sized companies with tools they need to grow their businesses.”

According to Navision, the new software allows users to streamline daily administrative tasks and to use the Internet to respond to new revenue opportunities. It also helps users identify new revenue generating opportunities via “market and customer information that is fully integrated with business and financial information.”

The software enables users to personalize relationships, and to have simultaneous access to continuously updated online data, the company said.

According to Navision, Attain includes new financial management tools that help customers tailor the application to their specific needs. Other features include improvements in fixed assets and costing for advanced requirements. The software offers multi-language capabilities, as well as functionality that supports supply chain collaboration, e-commerce, CRM and service management, the company noted.

A Navision representative said the average price for Attain is $30,000 to $35,000, plus $25,000 in implementation services.

Navision also announced an upgrade of “Navision Axapta 2.5″ in the U.S. market. The product's new features include “Product Builder,” a “product configurator” with Web enablement, fixed assets and “other new functionality that capitalizes on existing advanced technology for improved CRM, sales automation and commerce management.”

Axapta is an enterprise resource planning tool. ERP refers to an integrated information system that serves all departments within a company or “enterprise.” According to Navision, “by connecting information throughout the aspects of an enterprise, Axapta is increasing business efficiencies and enabling better business decisions.”

New features in the upgraded Axapta include CRM that enables automated marketing campaigns, faster and more precise configuration of product offerings to customers and vendors via the Internet, and enhanced tools to manage all types of fixed assets, including tangible, intangible and financial fixed assets, said Navision.

Other new features include a new extendible commerce business language incorporated into transactions, and instant compatibility with international currency and language requirements, the company added.

“Axapta is a complete integrated business solution that helps users manage finance, trade, logistics, production, products, human resources, knowledge management, CRM and e-business within one application,” said Navision.

Average pricing for Axapta is $50,000, with implementation fees running from 1 to 1.75 times the software pricing, a Navision representative said.

Further information on both Navision products is available at www.navision-us.com.

Meanwhile, Arbitrel Inc. announced “Orange eCampaign,” “an intelligent e-mail based messaging and marketing platform.”

Orange eCampaign is a Windows-based automated e-mail marketing management application that uses a system to keep track of who reads messages and when, as well as the number of times an associated Web link is clicked, said Santa Ana, Calif.-based Arbitrel. This helps increase the effectiveness of Internet communication and marketing campaigns.

“Respondent data is collected and summarized in an easy-to-read graphical report generated by eCampaign,” the company noted, adding that no programming background is required, “thus reducing the time to market for developing new e-messaging and e-marketing campaigns.”

“eCampaign is so easy to deploy and learn that anyone comfortable with sending e-mails can learn it in an hour,” according to Steve Lee, president and CEO of Arbitrel. “If youre in sales [or] marketing, or in a customer management/service function, you can deploy and send your first eCampaign in a day. That is a major step forward for the eCRM technology evolution.”

ECampaigns Java-based technology entails rapid e-mail delivery and a tracking engine that can deliver up to 100,000 messages in an hour, said Arbitrel. The application enables businesses to create, send and monitor e-mail and newsletter campaigns and to personalize each message via easy-to-use editing tools.

An Arbitrel representative said pricing for the Enterprise Edition of Orange eCampaign begins at $15,000, but may range up to six figures, depending on the amount of customization required.

Further details are available at www.arbitrel.com.

Reproduced from National Underwriter Property & Casualty/Risk & Benefits Management Edition, January 14, 2002. Copyright 2002 by The National Underwriter Company in the serial publication. All rights reserved.Copyright in this article as an independent work may be held by the author.

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