December 05, 2022 | Andrew Lawlor

Aptaria helped Precision for Medicine reduce data entry by half and obtain better sales pipeline insights through Salesforce.

Challenge: Duplicate Pipeline Tracking in Excel and Salesforce

Precision for Medicine (Precision) wanted a business development tracking system that could support its growth more efficiently.

Each week, 2 vital sales pipeline reports required hours of data entry in Microsoft Excel, because they were not connected with Precision’s Salesforce database. The changing value of new client proposals during the bidding cycle made it difficult to keep reports in sync.

As Maura Wilson, Director of Business Development (BD) Operations and Proposals, remembers, “It was laborious to maintain all of our information in Excel while also adding that into Salesforce. With the old system, we had no choice but to keep entering our data in 2 places.”

In 2016, Wilson and Precision administrators decided it was time to move their reporting process into Salesforce. They looked for a certified Salesforce consultant that could help them track and seize new business opportunities.

The Precision team met with several Salesforce partners. According to Wilson, “We had the best rapport with Aptaria. And we liked that they were local, so if necessary we could meet in person. Aptaria also has experience in the healthcare space.”

Impressed by our success stories in the medical industry, Precision hired Aptaria to implement a better reporting system.

Solution: Automated Reports Integrated with Salesforce

We worked with Precision to simplify their sales pipeline analysis with Salesforce reports. Our team took the following steps:

1. Review and clean the existing database.
This stage ensured reports could smoothly draw on past data and give correct results.
2. Set up a custom reporting structure.
We recreated Precision’s two essential reports and integrated them with Salesforce, so that the BD operations and finance teams can run them automatically.
3. Address obstacles specific to Precision’s needs.
For instance, we built a special trigger in Salesforce to calculate a project’s value based on nonstandard date ranges.

Precision’s story shows the importance of customizing Salesforce, especially reporting features. Although Precision had used Salesforce for many years, Aptaria’s tailored changes significantly increased the system’s day-to-day usefulness.

As Wilson recalls, “Aptaria not only offered up new functionality in Salesforce that could benefit us, but also recommended process improvements.”

Result: More Time, Less Data Entry, and More Accurate Reporting

The new Salesforce reporting system launched in March 2016. How did Wilson and her team see the difference?

1. No more double data entry
“The initial impact was not having to maintain the 2 sets of reports, in Excel and also in Salesforce,” says Wilson. “That was huge. We removed half of our data entry. It freed up a lot of our time.”
2. Easy, reliable pipeline reporting
Automated reports reduce human error and show the most up-to-date information, since they pull directly from the Salesforce database. If the sales team updates a bid, the BD operations team can rerun their report in seconds.
3. Convenient access to data for collaboration and planning

Teams outside of BD operations and finance can check the sales pipeline as they make strategic decisions. “Everybody can see what’s in Salesforce,” Wilson explains, “instead of reports that only a few people can access.”

As Wilson summarizes, “Now we have better data and we’re spending less time entering data.”

Precision for Medicine was so satisfied that they opted to keep Aptaria on retainer after the end of the project. Each month, a Salesforce certified consultant checks off a few more items on Precision’s wish list of system improvements.

As Wilson explains, “We can stay on top of changes that we want in Salesforce, upgrading and setting features up in the way that works best for us. Aptaria’s consistent support has been really helpful as we grow and change.”