Commerce

The 2021 digital toolkit: How small businesses are taking charge (VB Live)


Presented by DocuSign


One of the easiest ways to improve operational efficiency is by building your digital toolbelt. From accepting digital payments to automating your entire agreement process, digital tools can save critical time and money. Learn about the tools you need in this VB Live event.

Register here for free.


Despite the hard-hitting impact of COVID-19, many businesses are coming into the new year in better shape than they could have predicted.

The pandemic actually accelerated the digitization of business operations as companies worked to maintain continuity and stay afloat by beginning to adopt digital tools and processes. But the benefits of digitalization, including efficiency, uptime, transparency, and more, are permanent.

Now that 2021 is finally here, it’s time to build on that advantage. Embracing true digital transformation and automation can help you face upcoming challenges. From simple updates like replacing handwritten signatures with esignatures to implementing customer relationship management or enterprise resource planning systems, digital upgrades can position your business for the best possible outcomes.

Here are just three benefits digital tools bring to your business.

Accelerating the quote-to-cash process

The quote-to-cash (QTC) process is fundamental to the success of your business. It starts when your sales team creates a quote and drafts a proposal for a client, and carries through to when you receive payment.

It entails a number of interdependent tasks and employees, and the risk of introducing errors at every stage is high. Introducing a digital solution helps eliminate errors, smooths out the process, and offers a single platform in which customer data can be collected, processed, and updated in real time.

Most importantly, it helps accelerate the process from when the customer agrees to place an order and the sale is considered closed to when the sale is actually complete, at the point where the cash has been received.

With improved insight and better reporting, your sales reps gain the ability to engage clients more effectively, while your company minimizes order and invoicing issues and improves your data analysis and forecasting. And completing these sales agreements faster means revenue comes in sooner, your buyers are happier, and your business can grow when it has the cash on hand it needs.

Enhancing customer experience

At the heart of your business is the sales and agreement process with your customers. The sales process can be complex and lengthy when you’re still relying on inefficient, outdated manual systems. Delays, mistakes, and misunderstandings directly impact customer satisfaction, and can be the difference between a lifetime customer and a one-time sale.

Over the lifespan of an agreement, a document can be handed off from team to team and company to company several times, reviewed and edited along the way. Each handoff is another point at which costs and tensions rise because of mistakes or delays. And as deals get more complex, more and more people get involved and the potential for error goes up.

The process is too often an inefficient patchwork of disconnected systems. Rather than focusing on ways to streamline the entire process, too many organizations stick to siloed solutions for each individual step in the workflow. That results in major technology gaps that have to be filled manually by sales reps.

Digital contract lifecycle management tools are relatively simple to implement and integrate, providing you a streamlined end-to-end agreement platform that automates tasks, efficiently handles complex workflows, and helps eliminate unnecessary risks. The result is a shorter sales cycle with lower costs, fewer errors, and increased visibility — and a dramatically improved experience for both you and your customer.

Increasing security

The number of data breaches companies are experiencing is growing.  A 2020 study found that 7% of malicious breaches were caused by unauthorized insider activity, and 19% by stolen or compromised credentials. But 23% of all breaches are caused by human error, including negligent actions by employees and contractors.

Managing risk is essential in the agreement process, and customers are demanding more visibility into how companies are managing their credentials and operational integrity, and how they’re addressing the threats that come from unauthorized activity.

Tools like DocuSign Monitor can help protect agreements with round-the-clock activity tracking. It provides near real-time visibility into agreement processes using advanced analytics to track web, mobile, and API account activity across your organization and throughout the agreement process.

Security tools integrated into digital contract management systems help security teams detect potential threats with rules based alerts, and investigate incidents with actionable data that lets teams address verified threats quickly — for instance, closing a compromised account before it can cause significant harm. Because catching threats early minimizes the damage and contains further threats, it’s more important than ever to adopt activity insight and security automation tools.

Tools like these are increasingly easy to integrate into your existing security stack, allowing you to tailor your dashboards and alerts to meet the requirements of your industry, security, and regulatory requirements.

To learn more about the ways digital tools and systems are helping businesses get paid faster, make customers happier, and keep data safe, don’t miss this VB Live event.


Don’t miss out!

Register here for free.


You’ll learn:

  • How to get paid quicker, and hold on to your own money longer
  • How digital tools enhance customer experience
  • How to simplify the agreement process and make business more convenient
  • What digital tools can help you increase security for you and your customers

Speakers:

  • Dave Simon, VP of SMB Commercial Sales, DocuSign
  • Stewart Rogers, Moderator, VentureBeat

More speakers to be announced soon!



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