The Global Association for Contact Center Best Practices & Networking

NEW YORK, Aug. 15, 2011 -- M5 Networks, the market provider in business phone systems, and Bluewolf an agile business consulting firm, today announced the release of M5 Business SMS for Salesforce. The first of its kind, M5 Business SMS allows users of M5 phones to send and receive text messages directly from their business phone number. M5 Business SMS for Salesforce will enable M5 clients to integrate SMS messages directly into their Salesforce.com customer-relationship management (CRM) software.

"SMS messaging continues to grow in popularity as the next generation of the workforce and consumers embraces mobile technology," said Dan Hoffman, CEO of M5 Networks. "With M5 Business SMS, our customers can communicate with text messages as well as phone calls, and those with Salesforce.com can also automatically log and associate SMS communications with their business data."

Businesses face several challenges as they look to incorporate SMS into their customer care strategy. One major concern is that texting usually requires the use of a mobile device, and therefore a mobile device phone number. In many cases, the mobile devices are owned by employees, inviting a host of potential problems. Even SMS applications that don't require a mobile device require the use of a separate phone number, meaning the customer has one number for talk and another for text. Adding to this concern is the fact that messages sent from mobile devices or applications outside of the CRM system of record are difficult to record, manage and review for quality.

Accessible within the Salesforce application, M5 Business SMS for Salesforce addresses these problems by enabling M5's clients to integrate text-based communication with customers into their Salesforce.com CRM software's Service Cloud, making SMS messages another measurable service channel. Incoming SMS messages will automatically become part of cases, improving the tracking of conversations and creating a complete record of customer communications. Because the business phone number is used for SMS messaging, the need for a mobile device or separate phone number is eliminated.

"Text messaging can be a potent tool for businesses that wish to provide a new, more responsive type of customer service," said Eric Berridge, Bluewolf co-founder and principal. "However, businesses must keep in mind that even a simple text message is part of their overall client experience and therefore must be managed and documented."

With approximately 87 percent wireless penetration in the United States, and an estimated 8 trillion text messages expected to be sent in 2011, it is not surprising that businesses are increasingly considering SMS messaging as part of their overall communications strategy.

"Texting is a way to immediately engage with candidates by reaching out to them on the device they always carry," says Ted Elliot, CEO of Jobscience. "M5's Business SMS, used within our Jobscience Talent Relationship application built on force.com, will be a powerful addition to our TalentCloud solution."

The number of customers who rely on mobile devices for communication is increasing rapidly, with 23% of the US population forgoing landline phones altogether. Almost all phones, even those that are not called "smart" can send and receive text messages.

"Given that 90% of text messages are opened and read compared to 40% of email messages, M5 Business SMS will offer our clients a number of competitive advantages," added Brent Barbara, M5's Vice President of Client Solutions and Alliances. "Texting is ideal for service issue or order status updates, appointment confirmations, purchase authorizations or for just asking if now is a good time to talk. With Generation Y's preference for texting, we expect its use for business to continue to explode."

Posted by Veronica Silva Cusi, news correspondent
Source: http://www.prnewswire.com

About Salesforce.com:
Salesforce.com delivers software-as-service offering a family of on demand solutions for integrated sales force automation, campaign management, customer service and support, and document and file management to help companies meet the complex challenges of global customer communication. The company has introduced sforce, a new service that will change how applications are built as significantly as salesforce.com changed how applications are delivered.

About M5 Networks:
M5 Networks is redefining what a business phone system can do. As the market leader in managed, hosted Voice-over-IP (VoIP), M5 Networks allows companies to work the way they want to, while connecting them to their customers, their applications and their businesses. M5's Smart Business Phone System converges the industry's most flexible and reliable phone software, ActiveService™ tools, and the ability to integrate with business-critical applications.