How the recession has created smarter businesses well positioned in any economic environment

Businesses of all sizes continue to face a challenging economic environment, with slack demand and higher customer expectations than ever before. Balance sheets and budgets are under more scrutiny and in an effort to navigate the global economic waters, companies are on a continuous hunt to cut, save, invest and change as they look to survive the downturn and emerge as a stronger business.

In particular, times like these are really tough for small to medium-sized enterprises (SMEs), striving to survive and many are looking for ideas to save money and improve employee productivity.

As I speak to our customers around the world, I'm amazed at how nimble and adaptable businesses have become. Many are addressing these challenges with innovative and cost effective remote access and collaboration solutions in the software-as-a-service (SaaS) model. SaaS and other cloud computing offerings are helping companies address these challenges. What is most interesting is the opportunity to emerge from the recession, better positioned for long-term success.

Providing instant and high-quality support worldwide

One of our customers, UK-based Backup Technology, provides online backup disaster recovery and business continuity solutions for organisations throughout the UK, Europe and the U.S.

Using Web-based, remote support technology, Backup Technology's team of technical staff is providing timely, high-quality support services to customers no matter where they are located, by instantly initiating a support session and remotely accessing the customer's desktop to qualify and fix a problem.

Rather than setting up and staffing regional offices to support its dispersed, global customer base, any member of the Backup team in the UK can instantly support any customer in the world, at any time. Without the remote service, Backup's workforce would have to be supported by as many as 10 engineers to cope with customer demands. Instead, significant cost savings have been generated, while the productivity of the existing team of engineers has increased.

Customer satisfaction is also at an all time high, as global clients are guaranteed the same care and attention that is given to customers located closer to home.

Flexible working to retain the best talent

Radio advertising agency RadioWorks operates in a fast-paced, competitive industry, so it's essential that they retain the very best talent to guarantee a first-class level of service to their clients.

Using Web-based remote access software, RadioWorks has been able to offer flexible working options for its entire staff. In addition to aiding employee retention, the flexible work arrangement is boosting employee satisfaction and efficiency.

The remote access software enables employees to easily and quickly connect to their work computer from home, and work just as if they were at the office, with access to files and emails so they can avoid travelling into the RadioWorks London headquarters at peak times. And because the software can be used from any Internet browser, staff can access any urgent documents or files that may be required while at client sites, thus preventing the need to return to the office or have a colleague email the documents.

It's this type of flexibility that is essential to business success. RadioWorks is succeeding in a highly competitive business by empowering their employees to work from anywhere. It's resulted in greater loyalty from their staff, which in turn has promoted greater client satisfaction.

Maximising customer acquisition strategies

Every business struggles with the challenges of managing spending and enhancing productivity during economic downturns, and finding new ways to grow is on the minds of all business owners. The acquisition costs of acquiring new customers can be expensive. But we've learned from CruiseWest, a small, family-owned luxury cruise line, that it's possible to acquire new clients without ever asking them to leave the comfort of their living rooms. CruiseWest developed an innovative way to use Web events to attract new passengers and build loyalty from previous customers. The company designs "pre-cruise" Webinars for prospective passengers to show off the cruise experience.

These prospective passengers get together online with a CruiseWest cruise director who provides a virtual tour of the ship, with introductions to the crew and fellow passengers. With a simple, easy-to-use solution, CruiseWest has found a unique way to expand its reach and market potential, and differentiate itself from competitors. In addition, they have significantly increased their brand image and high standards with customers.

Companies across industries are moving to radically overhaul their marketing and sales efforts by adopting Web-based services. dotMailer, one of the UK's leading email service providers, also has transformed its marketing strategy by placing Webinars at the heart of its lead generation and customer relationship activity.

The email marketing company is using Webinars to easily and cost effectively provide a range of product training and demonstrations to prospects across the UK. By staging as many as five Webinars a month, dotMailer is communicating on a mass scale for the first time, resulting in increased productivity for their sales and support teams and greater reach for their lead generation efforts.

This is not only a great way for dotMailer to reach their audiences quickly and cost effectively, it's also more convenient for the prospects and customers themselves as they don't have to travel to attend training sessions. Instead, they simply log onto the Webinar from the comfort of their own desk.

Delivering high levels of customer service

Another great example of how an innovative SME can thrive in challenging times by focusing on the customer experience is the Big Oxford Computer Company. This Web development and design business, with just 15 full time employees, strives to offer a personalised service to build and maintain long-term relationships with its clients.

Online collaboration has become a powerful differentiator, enabling the team to deliver high levels of customer service by communicating design concepts and demonstrating new applications to clients through highly interactive online meetings. By sharing their computer screens with clients, Big Oxford Computer Company consultants can present ideas while the client is viewing the designs on their own screen, and instantly and seamlessly guide customers through complex forms and demonstrate an application that is in development.
The company has significantly reduced travel for face-to-face meetings, thereby improving employee productivity, while enhancing customer service and communication through increased contact and more constructive interactions.

Many companies are finding that by using online meetings to communicate with customers, prospects and employees, they can actually be more productive than by meeting face-to-face. With online meetings they can keep in touch more easily, frequently and affordably, and save valuable time in the process which increases their productivity.

Access and collaboration services level the economic playing field

These business cases underscore the value of easy-to-use SaaS-based access and collaboration technologies for spurring innovation and adoption across their businesses, leading to greater productivity, ROI, and an excellent customer experience. With these services, smaller businesses can level the economic playing field and compete and win as never before possible with larger businesses. They also have the flexibility to establish their businesses wherever they choose, and hire the best talent anywhere they can find them.

A critical factor for succeeding with these access and collaboration services is choosing tools built specifically for the SME user. They must be affordable, easy to deploy and simple to use, so businesses and individuals can purchase them either online or through a brief conversation with a knowledgeable sales person – and be up and running in minutes. SaaS-based remote access and collaboration services should meet the following criteria:

• Low-cost subscription-based fee structure: Insist on a low cost, flat-fee pricing model for predictable costs. Many Web conferencing providers have overage charges and these costs quickly add up.
• Easy implementation: Choose services that are extremely easy to use and that do not require training or consultants to deploy.
• Purpose-built for the solution: This is a key factor in an excellent customer experience. Many services are simply scaled-down versions of enterprise software and these should be avoided. Insist on solutions built specifically for the application and the needs of SME users.
• Reliability: Focus on vendors that have a wide network of data centers for an always-on experience and on those that offer 24/7 customer service for technical and account-related issues.
• Scalability: Services that are easy to use and deploy will enable new users to be added quickly and seamlessly, driving faster adoption throughout the organization. This is important for any size business, and especially for high growth small businesses.
• Industry standard security: End-to-end industry standard SSL security is essential for safeguarding information.

Finally, a free-trial option is advantageous so that businesses can try before they buy. Fortunately, because SaaS access and collaboration services offer a quick ROI, businesses can experience rapid results even in the trial period.

Smart businesses are using the dynamics of today's challenging economic times to more profitably focus their attention on delivering an excellent experience for their customers and employees. It's a trend that is set to outlive the slowdown, enabling them to have more flexible business practices that enhance staff productivity and competitiveness. These businesses are succeeding as never before possible, positioning themselves to compete and win for the long-term.