TRAINING
- An absolute must! It is ridiculous to spend money on software and customization, and not spend money on the one item that will actually get people to use the system.
- Users who are not confident will not use the system.
- Always include hands-on practice.
- Divide training into functional segments, and have people only attend training that is relevant to their work.
- Ramp up training as skill sets improve.
- Provide advanced training for Power Users.
- Provide a contact who will quickly answer User questions, especially in the beginning.
- Provide specialized Administrator Training.
PLANNING
- Getting User Buy-In
- Include User input when deciding options.
- Ask Users what measure they will use to decide whether or not the installation is a success, then include those items.
- Manage expectations by letting them know what is within scope and what is not.
- Map as many fields as possible to avoid duplicate data entry.
- Automatic formatting of standard fields (phone number, Zip code, Account Name).
- Training!!! This is the #1 way to attain User buy-in.
- Security Roles
- Who will be able to see what information?
- Who will have access to everything?
- Are there entities that need to be restricted to only certain job titles? (e.g: credit card info, social security numbers, etc.)
- Usually upside down from the organizational chart. People on the bottom do the most amount of work and often need the widest access.
- Reports, Views, Charts, Dashboards
- Start at the end and work backward.
- Decide what pieces of info you will want to see, and make sure fields are included to give you that info in a format that will show well in the desired format.
- If there is anything that you will want in the future, be sure fields are included from the beginning so Users are in the habit of completing them.
- Data Integration
- Decide which direction info will flow (A to B, B to A, or both ways).
- Include fields that will be used to integrate with other systems.
- Consider the format of the info that is needed when pushing to another system.
- Determine what info should be read-only, and what should be editable.
- Terminology
- Use terms that make sense to your staff.
- Change the display names of entities as appropriate (rename “Literature” to “Sales Tools”).
- Establish business rules that tell Users how to enter info in text boxes
- Common abbreviations (Co., Inc., Jr.).
- Use of other abbreviations (Hosp., Assoc., Int’l.).
- Whether or not to spell out numbers (First National Bank, Fifth/Third).
- The, A, An at the beginning.
- Establishing naming conventions – Example: Start all case names with product type.
SETUP
- Form Setup
- Only require essential fields so Users won’t see completing the form as a burden.
- Avoid text fields in favor of drop-downs or checkboxes.
- Add fields that are for Users, rather than reports (nickname, pronunciation, pets).
- Contact status is important (decision-maker, deceased, vendor contact).
- List all contact info, and include a way to indicate BEST contact method/time.
- Include extra fields for home phone, home email, etc.
- Preferences area, if relevant (day/time for contact, service provider, contact method).
- Be conscious of when to allow multiples (job roles) vs. just 1 selection (job title).
- Workflow Processes
- Start at the end and work backward.
- Decide what the process will accomplish, then figure out how to make that happen.
- Decide which steps can be automated (email notifications) and which steps will need User input (shipping date).
- Factor in quality checks (automatic escalation after a set number of days of inactivity).
- Get input from Users who will be required to use the process.
- Make sure all necessary fields are present to accomplish the process.
- Make sure you can duplicate the process manually before attempting to automate.
- Testing – Use a variety of login types (Admin, User) and security roles (Admin, Manager, Salesperson) when testing, to assure the process works in all relevant scenarios.
- New entity vs. adding to a form
- Decide when you will need a new entity, and when you can add fields to an existing form.
- Example: Yearly Cost Tracking Info
- If putting just a few months on the Opportunity form will work, great.
- If you need to keep more than a few months, you probably need a separate entity.