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For many small and medium Kiwi businesses, one of the greatest challenges is generating new business. When we work with businesses we use a very simple model, the marketing funnel pictured above.
For every stage particular systems and software can help. For example search advertising can help raise awareness (the top of the funnel), but if its not backed up by lead generation and nurturing (the middle phase), it can fall flat.
How can Voyzu Software Consulting help?
We love sales and marketing, call us on 09 956 4774 today for a free consultation, we'd love to hear your dreams and challenges
I've heard it said that a business is predominantly a collection of systems. Of course it's the people who make a business, but if you look at business simply from an assets point of view, you could make the case that your business systems are one of your biggest assets. All businesses have systems; I wrote last week about the sales and marketing system which is just one of many systems a business runs. What system do you use to deliver great service to customers? Your system for answering email, for sending email, for filing GST ...and so on, and so on. Like intricate cogs in an antique watch, systems connect to other systems, all working together to achieve an outcome: in the case of our watch the desired outcome is that the hands of the watch show the accurate time, in the case of a business the outcome is for the business to thrive.
I’ve always had a fascination with systems. Below are three quick bullets that summarise some of my key learnings over the years
I am a big believer in the power of visualization. There really is no downside to taking a moment to pull out from the hustle and bustle of your business week, and sketching down the systems you use and how they interact with each other. A business or systems coach can be invaluable here, as they have the objectivity to ask powerful questions. If you can see it, you can improve it!
The Japanese work “Kiasan” literally means “change for the better” and expresses the concept that small, incremental improvements made consistently day after day, week after week and year after year can make a massive difference. Think of continuous improvement like compound interest. It may start small but if applied consistently the yield can be huge.
This may seem a strange point to make, having so carefully built up quality systems, why deliberately break them? However disruption in a business context is not about tearing things down, it is about applying different thought processes and paradigms to your business and its systems. Challenge yourself and your team. Continuous improvement is about incremental change, a steady incline on the improvement graph. Innovation on the other hand is about rapid advancement. A great business has a steady flow of improvements, and also the occasional leap forward.
How can Voyzu help?
Want to chat systems? Drop us a line
At Voyzu our goal is to help kiwi small and medium businesses punch above their weight using smart, connected systems & software. There’s a reason that “systems” comes first in that statement. Software underpins systems, the two go hand in hand. Simply implementing software without taking care to understand the systems around that software may get your bill paid as an IT Consultant, but it's not what we are about at Voyzu. We look at the whole picture. Software makes a great servant but a terrible master!
Of all the systems your company has, the sales and marketing system is often the most important - it's the process by which you attract new business. However oftentimes this system is one of the least understood company systems, or seen as the preserve of large companies who have a fat marketing budget. However the reality is that the Sales and Marketing system can be implemented and streamlined, like any other system. Let's break this system down using a common paradigm, the sales and marketing funnel
A simple visualisation of the sales and marketing funnel. Image Credit: Chris Lennon
The sales funnel is depicted a few different ways; I am a fan of simplicity so I’ve drawn a very simple diagram with three phases. The real world of course has a way of not fitting neatly into our boxes - but nevertheless having a paradigm like this to help you visualize your activities will help you be more effective. The model has three phases:
In the Awareness phase your goal is to increase the number of folks who have heard of your brand. You won’t know most of these people - as this phase is all about marketing; think radio ads, sign-writing and the like. It can be tempting to give up on driving awareness because you aren’t getting direct results, however this phase is key as people are far more likely to buy from a company they have at least heard of than someone completely unknown.
In the Consideration phase you will generally know who you are targeting. Here your goal is to persuade. You want to let your customers and prospective customers know that you are alive and well, and ready to add value to their business. Ask yourself this question: when was the last time you touched base with your contacts list? And when was the last time your competitors got in touch with them? On the software front a simple CRM that helps you track and communicate with prospects and leads can be a valuable investment.
Sales is all about the ask. This is where you directly ask for a customer’s business. Here the first two phases, awareness and consideration play a big role. You are far more likely to make a sale to a prospect who is aware of your brand and regards your product as good value, than you are to make a sale to someone who has never heard of your product.
As Kiwis this direct ask often does not feel comfortable to us. Infact is can feel downright uncomfortable! This is where having a sales and marketing system can help. Rather than framing the interaction as a one-off, uncomfortable moment, you frame it as simply part of running your company’s sales system.
A CRM is key to running a successful sales and marketing process. Salesforce is a well regarded CRM but can be overly complex for the limited time that NZ SMEs have to spend in the sales and marketing area. Often email marketing software makes a perfectly good CRM. Our current recommendation in the SME space for email marketing software is Zoho Campaigns. It is quite user-friendly, reasonably priced, with a very viable free plan.
When we do one of our free consultations we use this model to help you identify and streamline your sales and marketing process, and the software that powers these systems. Give us a call on 09 956 4774 to find out more
* At Voyzu Software Consulting we are vendor neutral, meaning we only recommend software that works for your needs, not the needs of software vendors.
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Where will the AI road lead us? Image Credit: AI generated
Note: This blog was written by Chris Lennon. A human being :-) No AI-generated content here.
AI is a hot topic right now, but AI itself is not new and has its modern day origins in the 1950s It was the invention of Large Language Models (LLMs) such as ChatGPT in 2023 that re-ignited public interest in this area. In this blog I will give some helpful thoughts and tips around an area that is so prevalent in much of our business conversation these days
Will AI take over the world?
Anything is possible … but in a word - “no”. What we are calling “AI” today is predominantly Large Language Models. These models can give the impression that they are in some way alive - listening to what we say, thinking and then responding. However under the hood these models are simply huge databases of content (they periodically download the internet), and complex mathematical models are applied to generate content that is most relevant to the question asked or prompt given. The model is not thinking as we would understand thought, nor does the model have any emotions or desires. Which is not to deny that this is some impressive stuff - but when you reduce it all down - its still good ‘ole mathematics; zeros and ones - the same technology that has powered computers since the 1950s
Will AI replace my job / business?
While AI is unlikely to produce our robot overlords quite yet, there is no denying that AI is good with language and images. Just as a calculator can do huge mathematical calculations, so an LLM is capable of summarising text and producing creative output, drawing on processing power and a knowledge base (the entire internet) that dwarfs the limited brain-power and knowledge we have. Recently Klarna, a payments processing company laid off 700 workers - replacing them with AI chatbots. This is some seriously disruptive technology and underestimating its future impact on our work or our businesses would be a mistake.
My recommendation would be to review areas of your work that are repetitive, don’t require much in the way of decision-making and possibly involve language or images in some way. Could those areas be automated? This would free time for you to concentrate on areas where your uniquely human skill set can be applied - for example building relationships, coaching others etc.
What should my stance towards AI be?
I am recommending some cautious adoption of AI technologies. Love it or hate it, AI is here to stay and it makes sense to get to know this new technology, at least at a very high level. Give Microsoft’s bing search engine a try if you haven’t already - it is powered by ChatGPT As an interesting side-note OpenAI - the creators of ChatGPT was recently acquired by Microsoft - something original OpenAI investor Elon Musk hasn’t been too thrilled about.
AI models are good at summarising text. So if you have a large document to review - for example an IRD taxation white paper, a legal case study etc, consider providing this to an LLM such as ChatGPT or Claude and asking it to summarise key points. But be cautious. LLMs have a tendency to “hallucinate” - that is, to make stuff up. Make sure you double-check any information you are going to pass on to clients or take action on
You may want to consider using AI to generate some images or text e.g. for a website or a newsletter. Again, double check all content. LLMs such as ChatGPT can produce overly wordy, artificial sounding language - you can mitigate this to a certain extent with your prompt. For example you could begin your instruction with “In a direct, conversational tone …”
What are some tips to use AI effectively in my business?
Many software products, such as Microsoft’s office suite, Microsoft 365, and more recently Google Workspace are beginning to build AI into their products. This means you don’t need to do anything specific to take advantage of advancements in AI. If you are using AI more directly e.g. to summarise information or generate content then the best way to get a good result is to provide a prompt that is clear. Think about what exactly you want, and then speak to the LLM model as if you were giving instructions to a very (very!) junior employee. If the model still doesn’t get your meaning, then include an example.
How can Voyzu Software Consulting help?
If you are considering adopting AI in your business then we’d love to hear from you. Drop us a line!
What is CRM, actually?
CRM stands for “Customer Relationship Management” and from a customer, sales and marketing perspective can be thought of as the Operating System (O/S) of your business. The “C” (Customer) in CRM can initially be a little confusing, as CRM software plays a vital role in the management and acquisition of leads / prospects, however CRM software covers past, present and potential customers. CRM systems allow businesses to learn more about their target audiences and how to better cater to their needs, thus enabling both retaining customers and driving sales growth. The market size for CRM software was estimated at $69 billion USD in 2020, meaning that there are a large number of CRM systems available, all offering different features. At a very high level, the three areas of functionality you may find in a CRM are listed below:
1. Customer Data Platform
At the heart of every CRM system is a database of organizations and individuals. A well organized and up-to-date database of your company’s contacts, be they organizations or individuals, existing customers or potential customers is a foundation for sales and marketing operations. The contacts database of a CRM will enable you to classify your contacts; essential to knowing who, how and when to contact existing and potential customers. An effective contacts database is:
Up to date People move companies, move address and change contact details. Your CRM should be plugged in to every aspect of your business, so that information can flow back to your CRM
Duplicate free Duplicate records cause confusion and can lead to a poor customer experience.
Comprehensive The more information you have on your customers and leads the better you are able to support them.
Integrated. Your CRM software should integrate with as many of your business functions as possible, this enables a powerful ‘single pane of glass’ view of a customer. Some CRM systems are also able to integrate with systems outside of your organization such as social media platforms.Exploitable. Your CRM data is one of your biggest business assets. The data held in your CRM should be able to be visualized and analyzed. This analysis can help drive strategic decision making
2. Sales team and opportunity management
A company’s sales force, large or small, represents a significant investment. Companies want to ensure that business opportunities are being well managed and their sales teams are effective. For this reason some CRM systems offer organizations the ability to manage and report on the opportunity pipeline and manage their sales force.
3. Marketing automation
At the “front end” of some CRM systems is the ability to reach customers and especially potential customers. For this reason many CRM systems are able to plug into a variety of sales and marketing channels (sometimes known as an Omnichannel strategy):
Campaign management
Email marketing
SMS messaging
Social media
Website
Online advertising / digital marketing. Reaching channels such as search advertising, website affiliate channels and so on.
4. And more?
CRM has become a bit of a catch-all term when it comes to business software. For this reason you will find products that bill themselves as CRM software including areas that have not been traditionally thought of as part of a CRM. If you are looking for a CRM you need to be clear as to whether you are looking for an all-in-one solution or would benefit from more powerful, specialist solutions for these functions. Features you will find in some CRMs include:
Customer Service and support. Including features such as knowledge management, self-service portal, help desk etc
Contact Centre management. Including features such as Agent and queue management, inbound call routing etc
Product and price list
Quoting and invoicing
Project Management
Office and collaboration. Including meetings, calendar management etc
Popular CRM software in the New Zealand SME market
Popular CRM software for small and medium sized organisations in New Zealand include:
Salesforce Salesforce is the ‘OG’ of CRM software, however its complexity can mean a time investment in getting the most out of this software.
Hubspot. The full Hubspot suite can be expensive, however the company does offer starter plans.
SugarCRM SugarCRM started out as free, open-source software but are now a private company with their own software
Zoho Zoho offers a large range of business modules, including CRM
How Voyzu can help
We love CRM. Infact we have built our own CRM software, which we will be releasing soon! We’d love to hear about which CRM you have chosen or are considering. Get in touch with us now
Get in touch to discuss how we can help with your telecommunication needs
CRM stands for “Customer Relationship Management” and from a customer, sales and marketing perspective can be thought of as the Operating System (O/S) of your business. The “C” (Customer) in CRM can initially be a little confusing, as CRM software plays a vital role in the management and acquisition of leads / prospects, however CRM software covers past, present and potential customers. CRM systems allow businesses to learn more about their target audiences and how to better cater to their needs, thus enabling both retaining customers and driving sales growth. The market size for CRM software was estimated at $69 billion USD in 2020, meaning that there are a large number of CRM systems available, all offering different features. At a very high level, the three areas of functionality you may find in a CRM are listed below:
At the heart of every CRM system is a database of organizations and individuals. A well organized and up-to-date database of your company’s contacts, be they organizations or individuals, existing customers or potential customers is a foundation for sales and marketing operations. The contacts database of a CRM will enable you to classify your contacts; essential to knowing who, how and when to contact existing and potential customers. An effective contacts database is:
A company’s sales force, large or small, represents a significant investment. Companies want to ensure that business opportunities are being well managed and their sales teams are effective. For this reason some CRM systems offer organizations the ability to manage and report on the opportunity pipeline and manage their sales force.
At the “front end” of some CRM systems is the ability to reach customers and especially potential customers. For this reason many CRM systems are able to plug into a variety of sales and marketing channels (sometimes known as an Omnichannel strategy):
CRM has become a bit of a catch-all term when it comes to business software. For this reason you will find products that bill themselves as CRM software including areas that have not been traditionally thought of as part of a CRM. If you are looking for a CRM you need to be clear as to whether you are looking for an all-in-one solution or would benefit from more powerful, specialist solutions for these functions. Features you will find in some CRMs include:
Popular CRM software for small and medium sized organisations in New Zealand include:
We love CRM. Infact we have built our own CRM software, which we will be releasing soon! We’d love to hear about which CRM you have chosen or are considering. Get in touch with us now!
How it works
For the basic service we will set you up with a New Zealand phone number (a “landline” number), which will divert to your mobile phone number. After approximately 10 seconds (this timeframe is configurable) the call will divert to another number you specify (and so on if you wish).
In addition to this basic set-up other routing workflows are possible (e.g. Press "1" for accounts and so on)
Cost
Cost consists of three components:
-An initial setup fee
-An ongoing fixed (subscription) fee
-A very small (cents) per-minute charge for inbound calls to the landline
The exact cost will depend on your set-up. This service is very flexible and uses can range from tradies to call centres. Our prices are significantly lower than you may expect to pay for a service such as this one. contact us to book in a free consultation
Frequently asked questions
Do I need to purchase any hardware?
No, this solution is fully cloud based. This means no clunky hardware to manage and move.
Can call routing be different for calls outside of business hours?
Yes. Our cloud based software service is extremely flexible and many different routing options are possible. We will discuss your exact needs in our initial consultation
I don't have anyone available to route calls to. Do you provide Virtual Agent services?
This may be possible and will depend on the nature of your business. Lets talk!
Does the per minute inbound charge apply even if I answer the call?
Yes. The inbound per-minute charge is a fixed charge that applies regardless of how the call is routed.
Is there any cost to outbound calling?
This service is in-bound only. Outbound calling is not affected and thus not charged for.
How does billing work?
Billing is monthly, via Credit Card
Is there a minimum term?
No, this is a flexible service with no minimum term, you can cancel at any time.
Get in touch to discuss how we can help with your telecommunication needs
The first email was sent over 50 years ago, in 1971! Email became popular with the rise of the internet and was embraced by individuals and organizations alike through the early 2000s. Ever since that time we’ve heard that that email is going to be replaced by whatever the latest hot communications tech on the scene is. Yet here we are, in the mid 2020s and email is still going strong! For most of us our inbox is the starting point for our working day. Yes we use other communications channels, but the bedrock is still email
For this reason, although email marketing can be thought of as just another marketing channel, and therefore part of a marketing or CRM system we’ve given it its own section in our list of services.
Whether you have a CRM already and are looking for dedicated email marketing software, or are considering subscribing to a CRM which has in-built email marketing features, drop us a line and we can give you some quality advice and guidance. Get in touch with us to discuss your email marketing needs
How it works
For the basic service we will set you up with a New Zealand phone number (a “landline” number), which will divert to your mobile phone number. After approximately 10 seconds (this timeframe is configurable) the call will divert to another number you specify (and so on if you wish).
In addition to this basic set-up other routing workflows are possible (e.g. Press "1" for accounts and so on)
Cost
Cost consists of three components:
-An initial setup fee
-An ongoing fixed (subscription) fee
-A very small (cents) per-minute charge for inbound calls to the landline
The exact cost will depend on your set-up. This service is very flexible and uses can range from tradies to call centres. Our prices are significantly lower than you may expect to pay for a service such as this one. contact us to book in a free consultation
Frequently asked questions
Do I need to purchase any hardware?
No, this solution is fully cloud based. This means no clunky hardware to manage and move.
Can call routing be different for calls outside of business hours?
Yes. Our cloud based software service is extremely flexible and many different routing options are possible. We will discuss your exact needs in our initial consultation
I don't have anyone available to route calls to. Do you provide Virtual Agent services?
This may be possible and will depend on the nature of your business. Lets talk!
Does the per minute inbound charge apply even if I answer the call?
Yes. The inbound per-minute charge is a fixed charge that applies regardless of how the call is routed.
Is there any cost to outbound calling?
This service is in-bound only. Outbound calling is not affected and thus not charged for.
How does billing work?
Billing is monthly, via Credit Card
Is there a minimum term?
No, this is a flexible service with no minimum term, you can cancel at any time.
Get in touch to discuss how we can help with your telecommunication needs
A simplified, high level view of the Voyzu Framework Image Credit: Chris Lennon
The Voyzu Framework is a Rapid Application Development (RAD) software framework. It has been designed to enable software developers to rapidly develop high quality web applications
the Voyzu Framework, like any modern web application, needs to address aspects such as security, scalability etc. However there are certain design principles that the Framework puts special emphasis on:
How it works
For the basic service we will set you up with a New Zealand phone number (a “landline” number), which will divert to your mobile phone number. After approximately 10 seconds (this timeframe is configurable) the call will divert to another number you specify (and so on if you wish).
In addition to this basic set-up other routing workflows are possible (e.g. Press "1" for accounts and so on)
Cost
Cost consists of three components:
-An initial setup fee
-An ongoing fixed (subscription) fee
-A very small (cents) per-minute charge for inbound calls to the landline
The exact cost will depend on your set-up. This service is very flexible and uses can range from tradies to call centres. Our prices are significantly lower than you may expect to pay for a service such as this one. contact us to book in a free consultation
Frequently asked questions
Do I need to purchase any hardware?
No, this solution is fully cloud based. This means no clunky hardware to manage and move.
Can call routing be different for calls outside of business hours?
Yes. Our cloud based software service is extremely flexible and many different routing options are possible. We will discuss your exact needs in our initial consultation
I don't have anyone available to route calls to. Do you provide Virtual Agent services?
This may be possible and will depend on the nature of your business. Lets talk!
Does the per minute inbound charge apply even if I answer the call?
Yes. The inbound per-minute charge is a fixed charge that applies regardless of how the call is routed.
Is there any cost to outbound calling?
This service is in-bound only. Outbound calling is not affected and thus not charged for.
How does billing work?
Billing is monthly, via Credit Card
Is there a minimum term?
No, this is a flexible service with no minimum term, you can cancel at any time.
Get in touch to discuss how we can help with your telecommunication needs
A simplified, high level view of the Voyzu Framework Image Credit: Chris Lennon
The Voyzu Framework is a Rapid Application Development (RAD) software framework. It has been designed to enable software developers to rapidly develop high quality web applications
the Voyzu Framework, like any modern web application, needs to address aspects such as security, scalability etc. However there are certain design principles that the Framework puts special emphasis on:
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