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VANCOUVER, BRITISH COLUMBIA – November 7, 2006 –
Maximizer Software Inc. (TSX: MAX), a leading provider of proven and
affordable customer relationship management (CRM) and contact
management solutions, today announced a number of product enhancements
and special offers aimed at providing small businesses with a superior
alternative to Sage Software’s popular contact management product ACT!
2007*. The company outlined significant areas of superiority including
mobility, support for small business growth including
industry-specific versions, system functionality and speed.
With
more than one million licenses shipped to small businesses, Maximizer 9
is the industry’s most proven and affordable customer management system
for small businesses and home offices and is the major competitor of
Sage Software’s ACT! 2007. It includes complete sales and contact
management with deep integration of Microsoft Office (including
Outlook, Word and Excel) and industry-leading reporting functionality
from built in Business Objects Crystal Reports XI. Maximizer 9 features
a number of significant areas of functional and practical superiority
over its chief competitor ACT! 2007 including: complete mobility for
the Windows Mobile OS platform, support for small business growth,
industry-specific versions and system performance.
Complete Mobility: Introducing MaxMobile for Maximizer 9
New for Maximizer 9 is MaxMobile - a native application for the Windows
Mobile platform. The new application enables small business owners to
access their customer data using Windows Mobile-compatible wireless
devices such as the Palm Treo 700w, Dell Axim X51 series and the HP
iPAQ.
With
the introduction of MaxMobile, Maximizer 9 users can interact with
their Maximizer address book, calendar, hotlist, notes and user fields
using a native Windows Mobile application. ACT! 2007’s Windows Mobile
solution is a synchronisation product, not a native application. This
means small businesses do not benefit from basic Contact Management
functions such as linking contacts to the company they work for or
viewing notes related to a specific contact. MaxMobile is also
integrated with the PDA's email system to send and log email
communications - and in the case of Windows Mobile Phone Edition
devices, allows Contact calling from the Maximizer Contact list. Users
of Palm OS devices can access their Maximizer contact management
information using the MaxLink for Palm OS product for two-way Maximizer
and Palm synchronisation. In addition to these solutions, small
businesses can also access their Maximizer information on the Palm OS,
Window Mobile OS or Research In Motion (RIM) BlackBerry devices through
Maximizer's two-way Outlook synchronisation.
Support for Small Business Growth
Maximizer 9 offers small business owners unequalled flexibility to
scale their customer management system with the rapid growth of their
businesses – while preserving the ability to upgrade to full CRM suite
functionality at any time. Maximizer is available in single user
increments up to 10 users which provide significant cost savings over
ACT!. And, because Maximizer 9 is built on the same code base as its
larger business-ready big brother Maximizer Enterprise 9.5, small
businesses that require full CRM suite functionality can take advantage
of a seamless upgrade at any time. ACT! 2007*, Sage CRM* and Sage CRM
SalesLogix* represent Sage Software acquisitions and have been
developed on three separate code bases – exposing companies upgrading
from ACT! to a loss of business momentum resulting from steep learning
curves, potential time-consuming data conversion efforts and a risk of
lost customer information.
Industry-Specific Support for Small Businesses
To help small businesses start managing relationships with their
customers sooner, Maximizer 9 offers industry-specific templates for
Real Estate, Financial Services, High Technology, Legal Services,
Professional Sales, and Home Offices. Maximizer 9 can also be easily
configured to suit other industry specific requirements as easily as
Microsoft Outlook. These powerful industry-specific customer management
products are included at no extra cost to Maximizer 9 customers. ACT!
2007 only offers a single industry-specific version, for Real Estate,
which is much more expensive than Maximizer 9 for that industry.
System Performance
System speed and performance are critical requirements for small
businesses in which employees often perform several functions. System
speed is especially important when managing large numbers of contacts
or when looking up customer details while interacting over the
telephone. Maximizer 9 is designed to work with minimum system
requirements of a 350 MHz processor and 256 MB of RAM - specifications
often found in Intel Pentium II-powered desktops and laptops. ACT!
features minimum system requirements of a 600 MHz processor and 512 MB
of RAM. A 2006 CNET review of ACT! recommended 1GB to get adequate
performance from ACT! As a result, small businesses using ACT! may have
to upgrade their laptops and desktops or suffer with poor system speed.
According
to Bill Stroll, Sales and Marketing Manager, StepForth Placement Inc,
“Maximizer has no doubt lived up to expectations in our company. Given
my previous experience with ACT! and GoldMine for over 10 years at
other companies, I knew our company would require a faster and more
effective contact management system. After reading about Maximizer on
many different web portals and user groups, I knew it would be the
right purchase for our company. In fact, Maximizer went above and
beyond as it contributed to a 20 percent year over year sales growth.”
Other Maximizer 9 features not offered by Sage Software’s ACT! 2007 include:
- An easy-to-learn Microsoft Outlook-like user interface;
- Industry-leading reporting from Business Objects Crystal Reports XI;
- eCommerce-enables Web site creation including order management;
- Income and expense management; and
- A short learning curve to upgrade to full CRM suite functionality in Maximizer Enterprise
Small
businesses already using ACT! can make a smooth transition to the fast
performance of Maximizer 9 using a one-click ACT! to Maximizer data
conversion tool – which allows companies to move their customer
information quickly so they can stay on top of business.
"Small
businesses have unique customer management needs as they compete with
larger organisations by providing their customers with a better, more
personalised customer experience. They need a system that works with
their existing software and equipment such as Microsoft Outlook and, in
many cases, slightly older computers. Above all, they need a reliable
product that will let them focus on the business, not the software,
“said William Anderson, Executive Vice President, Technology, Maximizer
Software. “From the superior performance and industry-specific support
of Maximizer 9, to sensible pricing options and a knowledgeable and
competent Partner channel in the UK, Europe, South Africa and the
Middle East, every single aspect of Maximizer Software is designed to
promote the success of our customers.”
For more comparative information on ACT! and Maximizer 9 please visit:
http://www.max.co.uk/solution/m9alttoact.htm#
About Maximizer Software
Maximizer
Software Inc. is a leading provider of proven and affordable customer
relationship management (CRM) and contact management solutions that
help small to medium-sized enterprises improve sales, streamline
marketing, and enhance customer service & support. Maximizer
Software has helped over 7,500 Maximizer Enterprise™ customers and over
one million Maximizer™ users grow their businesses by building
profitable customer relationships with award-winning solutions.
Maximizer Software is a worldwide organisation with Business Partners
and offices in its three regions: Americas, Europe/Middle East/Africa
(EMEA), and Asia Pacific. Customers include leading companies such as
Siemens, Ipsos-Reid, Nestlé Clinical, Ericsson, HSBC, Singapore
Airlines, Cathay Pacific, William Mercer, and Bank of New York. Learn
more about Maximizer Software at www.max.co.uk.
*ACT!, Sage CRM and Sage CRM SalesLogix are registered trademarks or trademarks of Sage Software, Inc.
This
release may contain certain forward-looking statements reflecting
Maximizer Software Inc.’s current expectations. Investors are cautioned
that all forward-looking statements involve risks and uncertainties,
including without limitation, changes in market and competition,
technological and competitive developments, and potential downturns in
economic conditions generally. Additional information on these and
other potential factors that could affect the Company’s financial
results are detailed in documents filed from time to time with the
provincial securities commissions in Canada. All trademarks or registered trademarks stated herein are properties of their respective owners.
Media contact:
Hanah Loveday
Marketing Development Manager
Maximizer Software Ltd
Direct: +44 (0)1628 587770
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