Little Improvements > Big Features

Sometimes it’s the little things that count.

What do I mean? Well, the Benchmark CRM is chockfull of enterprise features: Assignment Rules, Automations, Permissions, Sharing Rules, Content Library… the list goes on. But what about the little tiny improvements that make your workflow better every day? We focus on these things just as much as chasing a powerful feature that maybe only 10% of our user base will ever use.

Exhibit A: the email notifications icon

We changed the way you’re notified about incoming email replies from your CRM contacts & leads. It used to be this notification would refresh itself from page to page as you toured through the CRM, doing your work. But some users let us know about their actual daily workflows. Sometimes a phone rings, a customer walks in, or maybe fed-ex is at the door. You’re not jumping from page to page in the CRM, but sometimes just sitting on the same page for minutes or longer. So why doesn’t that notification just light up the minute there’s an important reply incoming? Why can’t it be more like an instant notification like Facebook or Twitter?

So we changed it. Now that notification is its own autonomous ever vigilant sentry. The notification for the incoming email will light up even if you’re on the same page without any effort from you.

Exhibit B: email addresses in list view

One prominent user had a simple suggestion:

How come when I see my contacts or leads on the dashboard, I can’t just click on their email addresses to email them?

Why not indeed? Now any contact or lead’s email address in the list view is actionable. Instead of clicking the name to view the record to click the email compose button, all you need to do is click the email address. It even opens the CRM email editor in a new tab so you don’t lose your place.