FAQ’s & Talking Points

On this page you will find:

How were use cases determined for Phase 1 and Phase 2 of implementation?

Executive sponsors met several times and selected DDAR, Corporate Engagement, The Graduate School, and World Campus because they had the following key characteristics:

Strong executive support.
Financial preparedness to undertake implementation and licensing.
Timely need based on an replacing an end-of-life system.
High value and strategic to the University.
Clarity of the project’s scope and overall readiness.

During the “Phase 0” strategic planning, we revised the model for project decision-making and funding for future work to align with University priorities and the direction being set by University leadership / Executive governance.

Have a need for CRM capabilities? We’d be happy to explore how to bring CRM through the Salesforce platform to you. Please contact our team (ecrm@psu.edu) to discuss future options.

What’s the ECRM project decision-making model?

Currently we are revising the model for project decision-making and funding for future work to ensure alignment with University priorities and the direction being set by University leadership.

The following working model was developed during the Phase 0 strategic planning:

Executive Sponsor Decision Framework, Strategic Impact, Technical Impact, Technical Effort, Project Selection & Prioritization

Alignment with University Priorities, Potential Value, Sponsorship, Constituent & User Impact, Equality, Scalability

When will there be capacity for future phases?

As we are now working with a two-year budgeting cycle, the following are our first projects:
• Phase 1: DDAR and Corporate Engagement
• Phase 2: World Campus and The Graduate School

We anticipate having capacity in Q4 2024 for new use cases, contingent on Executive support and funding.

There are great benefits to being part of the Enterprise CRM organizations. If you have an immediate need, we’d be happy to explore how to bring CRM through the Salesforce platform to you. Please contact our team (ecrm@psu.edu) to discuss options.

Undergrad Admissions (UAO) has a CRM system – Slate. Is that staying or moving to Salesforce?

UAO has had a positive experience with Slate, the Law School just implemented it. The ECRM work intends to integrate with current Slate systems rather than replace them.

I already have Salesforce, do I have to switch?

The Phase 0 strategic planning team along with Huron Consulting identified existing use cases and recommended an evaluation process for moving to the ECRM versus staying independent and integrating. Huron and ECRM Program Office utilized that evaluation process to make preliminary recommendations about existing implementations. No unit should consider switching until Q4 2024. After that, the decision should be based on the evaluation process, which includes criteria such as whether an Enterprise solution uses the same constituents or business process, level of investment, and what opportunities and value lie in consolidation. This is also contingent on Executive support and funding.

For existing orgs, Enterprise pricing for the Salesforce and other products are available. Please contact ECRM Program Office (ecrm@psu.edu) to explore whether the University contract can benefit you upon your next Salesforce renewal.

My unit/function does not have Salesforce but are interested. What can we do right now?

Have a need for CRM capabilities? We’d be happy to explore how to bring CRM through the Salesforce platform to you. Please contact our team (ecrm@psu.edu) to discuss future options.

What is Marketing Cloud and how does it fit in?

Understanding Salesforce Marketing Cloud

- Salesforce Marketing Cloud is a comprehensive digital marketing platform designed to deliver personalized customer engagements at scale. It goes beyond simple email or SMS marketing by offering a suite of tools that enable the creation, management, and optimization of targeted marketing campaigns. These tools include advanced email marketing, mobile messaging (SMS and push notifications) for example. With its journey builder feature, organizations can design and automate complex customer journeys, tailoring communications based on individual contact attributes, behaviors, and preferences, ensuring a cohesive and personalized experience across all touchpoints.

Implementation at Penn State

- Penn State’s adoption of Salesforce Marketing Cloud signifies a strategic move towards a unified, enterprise-level marketing and data management solution. With several “Business Units” acting as individual operational centers, akin to folders or channels, the system ensures localized message management while aggregating contact preferences and history. This structure not only streamlines communication strategies across various departments but also ensures that contact preferences are respected, offering a holistic view of each contact’s interactions and engagements University-wide.

Benefits of transitioning from legacy systems

- Transitioning to Salesforce Marketing Cloud represents a significant upgrade from traditional marketing tools such as MailChimp and Constant Contact. It offers a more integrated, secure, and flexible environment for managing marketing communications and customer data.
- Key benefits include:
  - Enhanced Personalization: By leveraging rich customer data, marketers can create highly personalized and engaging content, leading to better customer experiences and increased loyalty.
  - Unified Customer View: Data Cloud’s ability to integrate data from multiple sources into a single profile allows for a more comprehensive understanding of customer behavior and preferences.
  - Efficient Communication Management: The centralized platform facilitates streamlined management of marketing campaigns and communications, ensuring consistency and efficiency across all channels.
  - Improved Privacy and Preference Management: With robust tools for managing contact preferences and compliance with privacy regulations, organizations can build trust and maintain strong relationships with their contacts.
  - Advanced Multichannel Journey Management: One of the standout features of Salesforce Marketing Cloud is its ability to manage and automate customer journeys across multiple channels seamlessly.