Managed.IT - issue 52

12 MANAGED.IT 01732 759725 CLOUD SaaS The Cloud is transforming the IT landscape by giving businesses a new way of buying software and solutions. Compared to on-premise deployments, the Software-as-a- Service (SaaS) model provides greater flexibility, requires no upfront investment in equipment, reduces support requirements and ensures users are always working with the latest version of the software. By giving small and medium-sized enterprises (SMEs) access to the same tools as larger competitors, without the expense or management overheads of an on-site solution, the Cloud can bring efficiencies to all areas of a business, including multi- channel customer communications through a solution like Neopost OMS-500 Cloud. With growing demand from customers for greater personalisation and a choice of communication channels, adopting multi-channel communications is essential. However, managing communications across different Multi-channel comms in the cloud channels, including postal mail, email, web and SMS, poses numerous challenges: it can be hard to keep track of what was sent to whom, when and how; and doing so manually is time-consuming, inefficient and open to human error, which also raises compliance issues. Many of these challenges can be solved by introducing an output management solution that automates the business processes behind customer communications, making it easier for businesses to meet customer expectations for personalisation and, in doing so, build stronger customer relationships, enjoy better response rates and reduce waste. Output management software centralises and automates the management, preparation and distribution of customer communications via each customer's preferred channel. Neopost's OMS-500 achieves this by pulling information from different business management systems (such as ERP and CRM), collating it to create richer, more engaging documents and ensuring these are sent to the right person by the media they have chosen. Users can add marketing materials, personalised flyers and overlays with ease to maximise the impact of each customer communication. The cost-saving solution allows you to merge documents into a single envelope, saving money and improving customer satisfaction. Grouping outgoing mail and centralising distribution enables customers to maximise Royal Mail discounts. OMS can be integrated into any mailing process involving folder- inserters and franking machines to automate mail flow management. Integrate and automate Imagine a small chain of real estate agents that have to chase people for tenancy agreement renewals by phoning and writing to them. If they wished to automate these time- consuming, manual processes they could set up a server room in one of their offices and put OMS in there Eugene Concannon, Product Manager at Neopost, explains how the Cloud can help small and medium-sized businesses manage customer communications across mail, email and online