Whatever I Feel LikeGosh!

We’re going through a lot of changes at work lately, with one of them being really cutting back on costs. At the same time, we’ve got a lot of exciting projects on our hands that are hard to keep track of because so much is going on at once. We would all like a reliable, simple, and affordable CRM solution, but haven’t had a lot of success finding or implementing one. One of the reasons is a simple lack of time to do the research. Today, though, one solution landed in my lap and I’d like to document some of its features here for my own future benefit.

In case you’re not aware, CRM stands for (in this instance) customer relationship management and put simply, is a software solution for being able to see at a glance all pertinent data about the business and the customers that make that business. The software I happened upon is called AIMpromote and the first thing that caught my interest was the price. At $33 per user, that’s quite affordable, especially compared to industry standards. Here are some of the features relevant to our business that are included with that $33.

• Lead Attention Meterâ„¢
• Custom Lead List Display
• Lead Export
• Lead Import
• Lead Opportunity Value
• Campaign Performance
• Return on Investment (ROI)
• Return on Advertising Spent
• Task Calendar
• Newsletter / Mass Mail
• Visitor Tracking
• Web Analytics

Those are just a sampling of the features, too. I’m impressed! Definitely one to bookmark for when we’re ready to implement something like this.

Last year when one of our company’s most favorite employees gave his notice, we knew we’d have to do something pretty special for him on his last day. I believe one of Rob’s employees came up with the idea to completely fill his cubicle with balloons the night before. We knew he’d have a great reaction and would take the idea and run with it. And we weren’t disappointed!

What I didn’t know then was that a .Com Marketing Interactive Ad Agency would be interested in seeing a video of the prank. I’m glad we filmed it now, though, because it turns out that .Com Marketing is interested in it! I hope they (and you all, too) enjoy. This guy is absolutely hilarious. Man, I miss him.

[tags]YouTube, office pranks[/tags]

I’m so tired today. Last night we had to do an upgrade to the site at work, so I was in the office with my two developers from 10 PM until 3 AM. I did take a nap when I got home from work yesterday, but it didn’t totally compensate for being up in the middle of the night. I woke up around 9 AM this morning and headed to work… I took my time because I was out of it, but then started to hurry up when I found out the owner of the company was looking for me. No rest for the wicked!

Maybe it’s a good thing there is no Grace at the house tonight, so I can really just chill out and relax… and get to bed early!

I feel like I’m always saying the same thing on here lately. “I’m busy. I’m behind. I will never get caught up on blogs, message boards and emails again.” I’m oddly at peace with it when I’m not in front of the computer. When I’m here, though, I get a sort of panicky feeling inside. I’m used to being on top of everything and now I’m not. I guess in time, this might feel normal and it will be no big deal, but for right now? It’s a major adjustment.

My weekend away was incredible. I had a great time with the people I was there with, and I got so much out of all the meetings I went to. It’s comforting to be surrounded by so much recovery. There was also much shopping done this weekend - I got a chance to hit the outlets and hit them I did. The Tanger Outlets in Rehoboth are probably some of the best outlets in our area. I could easily spend a whole weekend down there just shopping.

I was thinking, while I was there shopping, how when we lived in Dover I wasn’t so impressed with those outlets. I didn’t go there very often and I didn’t buy much. The reason for that is when we lived in Dover, Rob was in the military and I was working at Sam’s Club. We weren’t exactly rolling in the dough. We had no money to go shopping at the outlets! No wonder I wasn’t enthralled with them while I lived there. It’s a shame - or probably more a blessing - that now that I have money to spend, I live 2 1/2 hours away.

One of my friends asked me to be a guest speaker at a retreat in North Carolina in May. All of my expenses will be paid, I just need to show up and speak about my recovery from compulsive eating for an hour. I wrestled with the decision for a day, but ultimately decided that the only answer I could rightfully give was, “YES!” So in two weeks, I will be traveling to North Carolina - fun! (And scary!)

Yesterday was Rob’s first day as the boss. It feels so strange seeing him in the boss’s office. I keep waiting for my old boss to come in and ask me a stupid question (a regular occurrence while he was here!), but he’s not going to be doing that. I am feeling a deep sense of peace and freedom while at the same time realizing how tense and on guard I was at work the past few years. I didn’t even realize it until yesterday. This, too, will take some time to get used to.

Spring time is always about change in my life. Some years more so than others, but this year is proving to be one of the stronger years of change I’ve had in recent memory. I’m anxious to see what else God has in store for me.

So remember last week when I told you my boss tendered his resignation? And that it could mean big things for Rob? Well, it sure did. Rob was promoted to the Director of IT! He got a sweet raise and is looking forward to taking over the department. I am excited to see what he does with it, because I know he has a lot of great ideas. For legal reasons, I won’t be reporting directly to him, which is fine with me.

Here’s part of the official announcement that went out to the company on Friday:

As part of Rob’s new responsibilities, he will now oversee the entire Information Technology Infrastructure for LAWL. This includes Web and Business Applications, Network Administration, Telecom Support, Cell Phone Support, Building Security, and Network Security. He is also responsible for the management of all program supplies and food product levels in the centers.

That’s a big job! I know he will do really well in it and I’m so proud of him! Go wish him some congrats on his blog. :-)