The Mobile Revolution

The mobile revolution is here and now. As with many other technology revolutions, this one began in the corporate world where only the financially elite could afford to benefit. We are amidst a paradigm shift where small-to-medium size business (SMBs) are also beginning to take advantage of on-demand access to information. Prices for mobile devices and service agreements have steadily fallen in the past five years and are at a point where the general population can take advantage of mobile solutions at an affordable cost.

Most people just want a solution that works without the hassles of maintaining it or constantly making changes to the settings. Mobility for small businesses means having on-demand access to customer contacts, notes, history, appointments, tasks and activities. It means having the ability to manage this information on their mobile device and not be required to update or re-enter these changes in their office contact manager or CRM application. In an ever-increasing mobile workforce, access to this type of information can mean the difference between winning or losing opportunities and customers.

Cost Is Key

Mobility is great, but at a given cost. As a small business, you don’t have the financial resources to implement, and more importantly, maintain an enterprise-level service. Many small businesses even lack the IT resources to manage shared calendars or web email access, let alone a complete mobile CRM solution.

With lean profit margins and a tight budget, SMBs need to be able to afford this type of solution and mark it as a simple line item expense. You don’t have the big budgets or the cash equity that larger enterprises do to create a business case around spending thousands of dollars for a productivity solution. You need to be able to see your investment break-even immediately as well as keep a close eye out for the total cost of ownership behind your solutions and technology. Some enterprise-level solutions offer great features but the accrual of long-term costs render the productivity solution as exactly the opposite – counter-productive.

Mobile Solutions For Under $80

CompanionLink Software, a leader in mobile synchronization solutions, has a line of affordable software products for businesses and people that want to mobilize their contact management and CRM solutions on a tight budget. Their products synchronize your customer database, calendar, tasks and activities with your mobile device. This gives you on-demand access to information so you can remain productive even when you’re away from the office. Their products also have a wireless sync option that automatically keeps your mobile device and office database updated through a wireless connection. With this option, you never need to connect your mobile device to your computer – it’s completely hands-free. CompanionLink currently offers this option for all Windows Mobile and PocketPC devices, but plans to extend this service to all Palm and BlackBerry devices in the near future.

All of their products are developed and priced with the SMB market in mind – minimizing the total cost of ownership. Free software updates are provided so your software is guaranteed to work with all the latest mobile devices and CRM applications that emerge in the market. They also extend free, live (and USA-based) technical support for as long as you own their products.


About CompanionLink Software, Inc.

CompanionLink Software, Inc. is a leading developer of data synchronization solutions for mobile phones, PDAs and other handheld devices. They specializes in contact management synchronization and are also a leading OEM sync provider for companies like Royal Consumer Electronic Products and ACT! by Sage. For over 10 years, CompanionLink’s solutions have helped synchronize and mobilize information across multiple devices, computers, and applications.

CompanionLink Software, Inc.: http://www.companionlink.com/products/companionlink.html Yankee Group Research Survey on Mobility Trends: http://www.yankeegroup.com/public/products/decision_note.jsp?ID=14644

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