It’s easy to be swayed by nice descriptions and best-case scenarios, but when it comes down to it, you want the best for your business. Think about it: if you were in a car accident, would you want your seatbelt to be the second safest on the market?
We know there are other options when it comes time to decide which data source to integrate into your workflows. But we also know that making the wrong call can have a big impact on your business. Using outdated or inaccurate data could be the difference between business as usual and... well, not. Bad debt, compliance violations and fraud are just a few of the potential issues you could face with the wrong data source. Creditsafe data is the best of the best – let’s talk about why.
Table of Contents
- How can integrating Creditsafe data help you?
- Creditsafe data can integrate seamlessly into your workflow
- Integrating Creditsafe data can help close more deals faster
- Teams are more aligned when they work from integrated Creditsafe data
- Integrating Creditsafe data helps teams navigate changing business goals
How can integrating Creditsafe data help you?
When you integrate credit risk data, you open up visibility across teams. High-quality credit risk data paints a full picture of your leads, customers and suppliers – giving everyone access to that data helps them all make smarter decisions that better contribute to business growth. Giving teams access to good data is an excellent start, but just because the data is available doesn’t mean that people will quickly adopt it.
“A big benefit of integrating Creditsafe data is our integrations move as fast as you want them to,” explains Mark Laube, Product Director at Creditsafe. “Our API is as easy to set up as it can get. We can give teams access within a day and they can start working with our data and making smarter business decisions immediately.”
Integrating data into the tools teams are already familiar with reduces the risk of human error. Rather than needing to learn a whole new system, teams can use the same processes they already know to make decisions. The difference is, now those decisions are backed by accurate, up-to-date, powerful data.
They can then access data quickly and without navigating away from the tools you already use. They’re a great way to reduce the risk of human error across tools, verify key stakeholders and monitor new deals and existing customers. By including business credit risk data into platforms like Salesforce, for example, sales teams can instantly vet new leads against the company’s credit policy.
Creditsafe data can integrate seamlessly into your workflow
They say you can’t teach an old dog new tricks, but I’ll give you one even harder: teaching an established team a whole new workflow. Even the most adaptable, elastic teams can struggle when the processes they’re used to suddenly change dramatically. And with those changes can come more mistakes, slower work and even reduced morale.
Change is inevitable (and often necessary for growth), but confusion doesn’t have to be. Creditsafe data integrates directly into the CRM and ERP tools your teams already use. Instead of having to learn the ins and outs of a whole new platform, Creditsafe’s data is seamlessly part of your existing workflow.
Accessing quality data is great. But if the process of finding that data is confusing or overly complicated, would you really go through it every single time you needed to double-check something about a potential customer? Probably not. Instead, integrating that quality data means getting answers about company structure, ownership, credit limit and payment habits without even needing to navigate away from your CRM.
“It’s hugely beneficial for customers to not need to leave their CRM or ERP to access data,” explains Laube. “Not only do they have quality data to work with, but they also save time and effort. They don’t need to copy and paste information or store anything anywhere but their existing platform: everything’s already right where they are.”
Integrating Creditsafe data can help close more deals faster
Like it or not, speed can be make or break when it comes to winning deals and keeping customers happy. One study found that 48% of customers will abandon an onboarding process if they don’t see value quickly. In an age where you can get most things pretty much instantly, you need to be able to move things along quickly.
Integrating quality credit risk data can speed up the process and all but eliminate bottlenecks. When teams are able to qualify leads before they even pick up the phone for the first time, financial checks are less likely to bring up any inconvenient surprises. That means deals can close with fewer delays and customers can start working with your business – and paying you – faster.
Since Creditsafe data is best-in-class, integrating it into your existing workflow helps you quickly determine whether a potential new customer aligns with your company credit policy. Tools like Check and Decide can give sales teams an instant yes or no answer, including a suggested credit limit. Taking away some of the guesswork means fewer deals will be nixed in the eleventh hour – and the good ones can become closed deals that much quicker.
Teams are more aligned when they work from integrated Creditsafe data
You may need several different tools to make smart business decisions and protect your company from risk. But what you definitely don’t need is several different answers to the same question. Our data can be consistently integrated into the tools and platforms you already use, like Salesforce, Sage, SAP and more, to give teams across your organization access to the same data.
Think about it like this: let’s say a member of your sales team is getting ready to wrap up a new deal. They’ve approached the lead based on information in their CRM and conversations they've had with the company, so they know the company will be a good customer. But when it comes time for finance to approve the deal, they turn it away. What gives?
It’s not that the finance team has it out for that salesperson: it’s that sales and finance were working with disjointed data. The data the finance team was working from was more in-depth, up-to-date and accurate than the sales data was. When the finance team check up on the potential new customer, they discovered signs of cash flow issues like a fluctuating Days Beyond Terms (DBT) that suggested the customer was likely to become a late payer.
Integrating Creditsafe data isn’t just about giving teams accurate and up-to-date data. It’s about giving businesses consistent data, across tools and teams, that keeps everyone aligned with the company’s best interests and goals.
Integrating Creditsafe data helps teams navigate changing business goals
If you’ve looked for a job anytime in the last, oh, 20 years or so, you’ll probably be familiar with phrases like “must be adaptable” and “able to change direction as priorities change.” No business is smooth sailing 100% of the time; circumstances and business goals will change.
Your company’s risk tolerance will vary depending on your business goals. If you’re in a period of high growth, with plenty of revenue coming through, you may be willing to shoulder more risk. Adding more customers to keep up that growth could be the main goal. And if that’s the case, your risk tolerance may allow for deals with customers that sway a bit more on the risky side. On the other hand, a business in survival mode, trying to weather an economic storm, can’t afford those same risks. They’ll want to make sure each and every deal that comes in is very likely to pay on time and doesn’t pose a threat to the stability of the business.
When goals change, credit policies will probably change with them. And when people are working with disjointed data, it’s even easier for deals that don’t align with those changes to slip through the cracks. Integrated data means that teams are more easily able to qualify leads that fit within those new policies. Check and Decide, for example, uses Creditsafe data to immediately tell teams whether a lead is a fit or not – and when policies change, the new parameters come into effect instantly.
Help teams get on the same page when it comes to new customers.
Let's talk about how you can integrate Creditsafe data.
About the Author
Bill James, Director, Customer Strategy, Creditsafe
With over 15 years of experience in finance, risk management and data analytics, Bill James brings a high level of expertise and industry trust to his role. Before joining Creditsafe in 2021, he served as Area Vice President at Dun & Bradstreet. Bill is widely recognized for his authoritative insights into enterprise risk strategies and is a frequent, trusted speaker at major industry events. His development of tools like the DSO calculator further demonstrates his applied experience and leadership in driving financial performance improvements.
Chapter 1