Apr 1, 2009

Are You Saying ‘NO’ To A GoldMine Upgrade?

How to Stretch GoldMine’s Utility

You have been dutifully notified of the GoldMine upgrades available.  You probably have been told that FrontRange will no longer support your version of GoldMine.  That is sufficient for some of you to make the change.  Yet, others say ‘No’ to an upgrade.  You agonize over your company’s situation, and your inability to help management see the logic of an upgrade.  What can you do to help them move the company forward and avert the coming problems of an outdated version of GoldMine?  Read further.

Stranded Companies
Most companies count on their GoldMine VAR’s ability to keep them out of trouble.  They don’t care what kind of magic the VAR must perform to get, and keep, them up and running.  They are sure the VAR can.  After all, most VARs have demonstrated exactly that over and over again.  What most companies don’t know is that the VAR’s bag of tricks shrinks to a fraction of its previous size once an OEM ceases to support a product.  How can a bridge be built for these stranded companies to allow them to use the software they love, and rely upon? 

Still Works
Companies cannot understand why they should upgrade when the software they have works “Just fine, thank you.”  They are very happy with what they have.  They don’t see that the new version offers them anything more than they have now, or need.  After all, it’s only a contact manger, right?  They are deaf to new features as long as the software continues to do what it always has.

Never Going to Change
Other companies appear to have thrown out multiple anchors to be sure they never move from that spot.  Their employees may make any change absolute torture for the business owner, painful enough give up on changes.  Or, they may find the new software changeover and training so disruptive to business that they intentionally decide to minimize any changes. 

Not Worth It
A few companies have, or will, go through a detailed analysis of the newest version of GoldMine and their current version, and come away with the conclusion that there is not enough ROI for them to pay for the upgrade.  Yes, there may be some new features that interest them, but in the end there isn’t enough there for them to change. 

They Will Have To Change Anyway
Every one of these companies knows that at some point they will have to make a change. Unfortunately, quite a few of them will move away from GoldMine to another product, abandoning a considerable investment of time and money by their company.  In that step they lose a wealth of contact history and customization, and they probably will not consider the true cost of that abandonment before they make the decision to change.

A Real Reason to Upgrade
What do all of these companies want?  All of them want to operate their business more effectively, more simply.  Only they haven’t been given a strong enough reason to make a change.  If a GoldMine upgrade is tied together with other software, and the combination gives a huge improvement in effectiveness, that may be sufficient reason to change.  Another option is to add BBM to an existing install of GoldMine, since the software works with all SQL based versions back to version 5.7. This can help reduce the cost of upgrading the system and add the ROI needed to justify the expense while still providing much-needed functionality.

A Small Business Revolution
No matter where you go, software companies are touting their small business software, but a little research into these software packages turns up some very expensive solutions - more expensive than most small businesses can handle.  Without a doubt, some of you will not be able to afford our suggestion, but many businesses currently using five (5) or more seats of GoldMine now will be able to benefit from it.  Our recommendation gives small businesses the opportunity to integrate all their operations into a single database.

Dump Piecemeal Business Systems
Over the years, a lot of software has become available which could be assembled into partial business systems, doing some portion of your business more effectively.  Many of you have created special Access or Excel implementations to help you become more effective.  There is nothing wrong with what you have done, but none of these “partial solutions” create a complete business system.  None of them create a central database, into which everything goes, and from which everything else is drawn.  Our recommendation does create such a database.

Unify Into a Single Business System
In the simplest of terms, our product, BestFit Business MGR (BBM), integrates with GoldMine and accounting software to create an End-To-End business system.  Once integrated with GoldMine and, for example, QuickBooks (or MAS 90/200) BBM has inherent in it (A partial list):

• All of GoldMine’s features
• Marketing Campaigns
• Accounting Viewer (Look, don’t touch)
• Sophisticated Product/Service Pricing Tools
• Quotations and Proposals
• Click-and-Accept Order Entry
• Contracts
• Projects
• Work Orders
• Ticketing
• Knowledgebase Creation (dynamically)
• Use of Contractors
• Completed Work Approval
• Order Approval
• Invoice Approval
• Export to Accounting (per Accounting Rules and Approval)
• 250+ Management Reports
• Integration with Word and Excel (with all their respective features)
• All of QuickBooks’ (or MAS 90/200) features

Minimizing ‘New’ Software Resistance
BestFit Business MGR (BBM) operates within GoldMine.  Your users see the same GoldMine interface they have always seen.  BBM places a floating Dashboard in the screen from which users select actions, and which displays important data.  Both global and context-sensitive information are available from the dashboard.  Your logos are inserted into documents and reports using a simple setup utility.

Simplifying Customization
With a program this complex, setup would be very time consuming if every one of the options had to be selected.  We did not want to lose the power of ultimate configurability, but we also did not want to saddle you with a blank slate, so we ship the program with most of the options pre-selected.  Using the normal install sequence, the program works out of the box.  If your business needs a change in setup, you have the ability to choose different options.

Improving the ROI
The value of a complete business system for a small business can be considerably higher than an update of a CRM.  Justifying the expense may be much easier.  Other small business systems software cost more than the GoldMine-BBM combination.  When you factor in all the additional software and equipment they require, the cost moves to several multiples of the GoldMine-BBM combination.  Check the numbers yourself. 

Look through the site to help you determine if the GoldMine-BBM solution fits for your company. We believe that you will find our solution, with it fully integrated and customizable features, will be just what you have been looking for. 

You can always call us today at (503)206-0333 to get a personalized demo of all that BBM has to offer.

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