Developing successful Customer Relationship Management (CRM) software is a vital requirement for large and growing enterprises operating in today’s competitive marketplace. According to Gartner, the global CRM market is predicted to grow at 13.7 percent Compound Annual Growth Rate (CAGR) by 2021. And in the next few years artificial intelligence is certainly set to play an increasingly vital role in the context of CRMs. Here we outline the top five ways you can leverage the power of AI to enhance your CRM.

CRM software (customer relationship management software), empowers businesses track, record manage customer interactions in a single system. A CRM is designed to store interactions between a business, its prospects, and its existing customers. It also manages and eases communications, through the concise live data it provides its users with. Lateral’s industry-leading CRM is undoubtedly the most innovative, flexible and robust product on the market. And here we will outline what the Lateral difference consists of. The strengths of Lateral’s software is proof positive that our award-winning CRM can help accelerate the growth of businesses of all sizes, through Lateral’s smart decision making processes, and powerful automation tools.

CRM stands for Customer Relationship Management Software. In recent years CRMs have evolved and developed at a rapid pace. And today CRMs allow businesses of all sizes to reap better rewards in terms of profits and long term growth. CRMs can improve customer service, increase sales, provide businesses with improved analytics and also increase business efficiency. But what are the best practices to adopt in order to get the most out of your CRM? Here Lateral offers up some tips.

Chasing customers to collect payments you’re owed used to be a laborious task. The labour costs of communicating with debtors via dialling, sending letters and emails, was both time-consuming and expensive. But with the rise of live chats, chatbots and related messaging tools, the debt collection process has been considerably advanced. And chatbots are beginning to entirely revolutionise the collections process.

During a pandemic cash flow management is critical and is the key to your success and longevity as a business. As they say, “cash is king”, but during this recent COVID-19 pandemic, many businesses have experienced testing times. Late payments have become commonplace and cash is often in short supply. So here are some vital tips to help strengthen the cash flow of your business during these testing times.

Matter management is practices which manage legal work. It encompasses document management and contract management as well as several other sub-practices. Matter Management software works by gathering, tracking, assigning and reporting on legal matters. As well as producing budgets and invoices. Matters can be incredibly complex, or they can be simple tasks. Either way, matter management software can bring great efficiencies to any law firm. But making the wrong choice can be costly. Here are some top tips to help you make the perfect choice for your firm.

As COVID-19 gripped the world, significant restrictions were put in place which limited landlord’s ability to collect rent on their properties. But these restrictions can’t last forever. So what options are available in terms of long-term rent recovery, and how can the power of software be leveraged to make this process more successful and cost effective?

During a time of crisis debt collections software can provide a lifeline to collectors, mitigating the devastating impact of COVID-19 and making their long-term operations more efficient too. Here are five reasons why cloud-based collections software is vital in a time of crisis.

The COVID-19 outbreak has impacted businesses all around the world. And the pandemic has certainly placed a heavy burden when it comes to the delicate relationship between debtor and borrower. We are facing an economic “hibernation”; borrowers preserving cashflows, companies propped up by temporary stimulus packages and support, and a slowdown in debt repayments, as we collectively pursue an ethical approach to debt recovery during these unprecedented time. But what exactly does the Covid-19 pandemic mean for the collections process long term?

While the precise details of the long-term economic impact of the Coronavirus pandemic remain unknown, there are many important measures small business can take in preparation for the likely upcoming world-wide recession.

Lateral is delighted to announce a new partnership with the Security Industry Authority (SIA) - an executive non-departmental public body, sponsored by the Home Office.

Lateral’s CTO Ian McManus stated: “Lateral are thrilled to be providing web-based legal case management software to the SIA. We understand that the SIA have the highest security standards, which are central to their work, and ours. And we look forward to establishing a long and secure partnership with them”.

Lateral is delighted to be forging a new partnership with Brighton and Hove City Council, through the provision of parking enforcement software solutions.

Ian McManus, Lateral Co-founder and CTO, spoke positively of the deal recently: “we’re delighted to be supplying parking enforcement software solutions to Brighton and Hove City Council. Our software has been built from the ground up over the course of a decade. And I know the sophistication of the product will serve the city council’s needs perfectly”.

Lateral continue to expand their diverse client portfolio by partnering with Creditstar, a leading international digital consumer finance company. Lateral’s cloud-based debt collection software and debt management solutions will support Creditstar’s provision of its financial products across the whole of Europe. Ian McManus, Lateral’s Co-Founder and CTO comments on the partnership:

“We’re delighted to have partnered with Creditstar and look forward to providing support and guidance as they implement our collections software. We know that Creditstar have experienced impressive growth since they began their operations in 2006, and we expect that our partnership will accelerate their growth even further. It’s definitely an exciting time for both businesses”.

Lateral continue to expand their local authority portfolio through the establishment of a new partnership with Reigate & Banstead Borough Council. Lateral’s industry-leading automation software will serve the council in its pursuit of sundry debt and corporate debt. With debt recovery technology playing an increasingly critical role in every aspect of business, organisations are beginning to recognize the need to accelerate the development of digital collections solutions to ensure they remain on the competitive vanguard.

With more people than ever working remotely, there is a greater demand for debt collection software that allows you to work from home, connecting various parties to one centralised database. Lateral have developed a raft of advanced features and collections tools which aid remote working for all manner of debt collection processes.

Some people may think that empathy in debt collection is extraneous. That it’s irrelevant in our cutthroat world, where only the most cold-hearted grasp on credit control is an option. In reality we should recognise that empathy is a vital business skill that is critical to any debt collection process, particularly during these turbulent times. Empathy is at the core of debt collection efforts which understand, anticipate, and help lead to meaningful, concrete returns. And empathetic business practices should be at the forefront of any operation that strives to be ethical and fair.

Lateral is delighted to announce a new partnership with Buckinghamshire County Council (formerly Aylesbury Vale District Council). Lateral’s machine-learning powered debt management services will be utilized to power the county council’s revenues and benefits department, supporting the collection of council tax payments, benefit payments, parking collections and business rates.

Did you know that 70% of all cyberattacks target small businesses? To mititage this risk, many small law firms, businesses and organizations are turning their heads towards cloud-based software. However, cloud-based software is not without its security concerns too. Security your data is incredibly important, so here we present five important cloud security controls that you should be using today.

There is no doubt that Open banking has the potential to reshape both the competitive landscape and consumer experience of the banking industry. But what role will this innovation have to play in the debt collections process?

What is Open Banking?

The promise of Open banking is faster and easier ways to control and share our financial data, which in theory helps consumers make more informed choices and gain access to more benefits. It is also known as "open bank data." And as a banking practice it provides third-party financial service providers open access to consumer banking, transaction, and other financial data from banks and other financial institutions via the use of APIs (application programming interfaces).