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Summary of Services
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Marketing Systems Analysis provides systems analysis
and related systems services in the fields of cataloging and
direct marketing. We can help you with the following: |
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Managing the Acquisition of
Third-party Systems
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Our primary service is to help you make an optimum selection
of systems for:
- order entry
- customer service
- order processing
- fulfillment (pick/pack/ship)
- inventory management
- customer database management
- response analysis
- data warehousing and database marketing
Our role in the systems acquisition process is to:
- develop functional systems specifications based on intensive
on-site interviews with key managers and systems users
- prepare a Request for Proposal (RFP) that focuses on the
key relevant functions and reporting requirements (for more information,
see the Methodology
section)
- select appropriate vendor candidates from our close working
knowledge of the capabilities and resources of specialized vendors
serving the catalog and direct marketing fields
- review proposals and negotiate contracts to get the optimum
system at the best price and on the most reasonable terms
Benefits and Advantages
We believe that our experience of more than a decade evaluating,
specifying, and selecting systems for catalog order management
and fulfillment, and our very focused approach to this process,
give you the following benefits and advantages:
- rapid turnaround of the project — typically 3 - 4 weeks
from start to finish to prepare and finalize the RFP
- priority response from selected vendors — they know
who we are, and appreciate that our RFPs are always targeted
to relevant features and functions
- quality vendor selection — we never use a "shotgun"
approach that submits RFPs to inappropriate vendor candidates.
Nor do we "cherry-pick" a single vendor for any project,
unless clearly requested by the client. We usually select three
to six vendors who:
- have systems that come close to meeting your requirements
- have a track record of successful modification and customization
- have the staff and the expertise to support such customization
a vendor "insurance policy" — vendors pay more
attention to projects when MSA is involved. If they come
up short for any reason, the whole industry will know about it!
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Engineering a Transition to
User-Supported Systems
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Sooner or later, many companies decide to become independent
of their vendor's agendas and take full responsibility for their
own systems in-house. This usually involves several steps, including:
- additions to IS staff
- expanding or redefining the role of IS in the organization
- training of IS staff
- re-evaluation of systems strategies
We can help make this transition a successful one, with:
- the least disruption to the company
- optimized continuity of systems functionality and support
- the smoothest possible "Change Management" process
- coordinating development of a strategic Enterprise Systems
Plan
- assessing user training requirements
- assuring the development of effective documentation
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Resolving User-Vendor Conflicts
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The relationship you create and nurture with your systems
vendors is critical to long-range viability of your applications.
It is all too easy, however, for those relationships to become
derailed by misunderstandings, miscommunication, lack of focus,
or change of management on the vendor or the user side. As a
knowledgeable third-party, MSA can work with you to get things
back on track if there are warning signals — or a rupture
— between you and your systems vendors.
For contrasting views on how users see vendors, and vice versa,
see
this article from 1to1
Weekly.
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Supporting In-House Development
Projects
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When you "go-it-alone" with catalog order processing
systems, you can usually benefit from outside help. MSA can assist
your re-engineering project by:
- performing systems audits to —
- evaluate current and potential systems strategies
- determine viable systems budgets and Return on Investment
- assure optimized systems implementation
- creating a comprehensive Enterprise Systems Plan
- helping to develop detailed functional specifications
- developing and implementing a "Change Strategy"
to foster systems ownership and a sense of participation from
all systems users and administrators
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