At Pipeline.so, we use our own platform. And one of the most powerful aspects of the CRM that we genuinely could not live without is how it allows us to build and maintain a remote sales team.
Our team members are spread throughout the world, from Canada and the US to Mexico, India, and Spain. But thanks to the platform, everything just runs like clockwork. We clock in according to our own time zones, see what’s happened while we’ve been asleep, and get to it.
Mike, the founder of Pipeline.so, literally makes money even while he sleeps. And here’s how.
Centralized communication
The backbone of everything is communication—any business, whether in-person or remote, succeeds or fails on the basis of its communication. In fact, 86% of employees and executives say that bad communication is the main reason for workplace failures.
You should just treat this as the golden rule, because it’s just as true internally as it is when it comes to customers.
Our customer-facing specialists at Pipeline.so are Osiel (based in Mexico) and Nick (based in Canada). These two are exceptional at what they do and always willing to help as much as possible, both internally and when working with clients.
But that alone is not enough.
When Osiel has a conversation with a customer (current or prospective), Nick needs to be able to see what’s happening if Osiel isn’t available.
That’s where our conversations tab comes in:
All conversations with clients are recorded in one centralized location. This includes the calling, SMS, emailing—and even shows each sales agent’s individual calendar. If Nick can’t make an appointment, Osiel can get up to speed with what’s going on and easily take over.
It’s the only way to provide the high level of customer service that sets us apart!
Optimal workflow
Sales is not just about conversations with customers. That’s the part we love the most as it allows us to see how we’re making a difference in their lives and their companies.
But, as with any business, behind the scenes there’s a lot going on. At any one point in time, we have numerous leads at different stages of the pipeline. It’s important to know who is Marketing Qualified or Sales Qualified as that will change how Osiel and Nick talk to them.
Then there’s those where the deal is actively being closed and those where it just wasn’t the right time.
All this needs to be recorded in any business. And a lot of change can happen throughout the night. It might be that someone we thought wasn’t ready for our services has a change of heart!
As it happens, everything is updated in a simple, visually appealing dashboard.
This means that Mike and his right-hand man Moises always know what’s going on and can jump in when necessary. Mike is an RV entrepreneur and spends his days traveling across the States, so it’s important for him to always be able to get an overview.
Mike is a busy man so Moises keeps a lot of the behind-the-scenes running smoothly from his base in California.
Project management!
It’s not just the sales and customer support team. Everyone at Pipeline.so has to be on the same page to know what’s going on.
We have our snappy web support Mughira and Jay (based in Pakistan and India, respectively), our sleek graphic designer, Marina (based in Spain), and the copywriter, marketer, and all-round written content creator Joss (myself). I’m also currently based in Spain!
So, when you take the entire team into account, we’re working across three continents and five countries.
How do we manage that?
Well, we all have access to our own Pipeline.so account, so any one of us can see what’s going on when we want to.
But we also have another sneaky trick up our collective sleeve—Projects by Pipeline. This PM platform add-on allows us to assign each other projects and see what’s going on, without leaving the CRM.
We all have individual profiles and can create projects, task boards, and specific tasks. Whenever the inspiration hits and I decide to create a blog post, here’s what I do:
- I create a task on Projects by Pipeline, write the blog post, and attach it there.
- I @tag Mike (or whoever else) and ask him to take a pit-stop on his cross-country adventures to check it out.
- Once approved, I hand it over to Marina who supplies me with beautiful custom graphics.
- I upload it to the website and it’s good to go!
A team you can trust
The platform is great and makes everything we do possible, but it all comes down to the team we have. Everybody involved is committed, responsible, and to put it simply good at their jobs. We communicate well, are united toward a common aim, and know exactly how to handle vacations.
This is at the heart of the matter—we trust each other.
At Pipeline.so, we don’t just provide a best-in-class CRM and leave it at that. We work hand-in-hand with our clients to ensure that they get the proper training and support necessary to fully leverage its incredible features.
If you’d like a demo to find out more about how Pipeline.so can help you grow your business while you sleep, either Nick or Osiel would be happy to talk you through it!
