DemandTools should be in high demand.
February 23, 2016
DemandTools should be in high demand.
Score 9 out of 10
Vetted Review
Verified User
Modules Used
- MassEffect
- MassImpact
- Single Table Deduplicator
Overall Satisfaction with DemandTools
DemandTools is used in the office of admission for a variety of business activities. It is most commonly used to locate and merge duplicate records within our CRM, Salesforce.com. Several scenarios have been created, from very strict to more relaxed criteria, that help identify duplicates in the system. Almost any field within a record can be used for comparison, and DemandTools helps you to choose which record should be kept and which can be deleted. We also use DemandTools as a way to update a batch of records at one time. It's as simple as identifying the group that needs to be updated, telling the software what to update, and letting it run. Lastly, DemandTools is great at updating our CRM with an outside Excel list of records. This is a tool we use at least one per week, but usually more often.
- One strength of DemandTools is how simple it is to use. It's set up in a very user-friendly format, with icons that you can hover over that will explain how to use that particular section.
- Additionally, DemandTools is very customizable so that each user can tailor it to their specific needs.
- Also, as an add-on tool, DemandTools is great at running in the background without slowing down your computer or any other concurrently running programs.
- The biggest area for improvement is related to its de-duplication tool. It would be nice to be able to default certain fields (such as Lead Source) from the record being deleted and have them overwrite the values in the same fields on the surviving record. The system allows you to keep certain values, but it has to be done one-by-one.
- With so many inquiries coming from dozens of sources, being able to remove duplicate records has been a huge return on investment. This can be seen, first and foremost, in the money saved by not mailing any print materials to the same student more than once.
- Similarly, having the ability to mass update records in batch format has allowed us to ensure that our coding is up-to-date and as accurate as possible.
Evaluating DemandTools and Competitors
- Product Usability
- Existing Relationship with the Vendor
- Third-party Reviews
DemandTools is an add-on to Salesforce, through the App Exchange. We chose it because we use Salesforce.com as our CRM.
Because DemandTools seems to be the go-to software for updating and de-duping records, we most likely would not change our evaluation and selection process.
DemandTools Training
- Self-taught
Yes, the product is fairly easy to learn without official training. Depending on the users, this approach may be sufficient. However, I think it's best to always be trained by the actual designers of the product.
Using DemandTools
| Pros | Cons |
|---|---|
Like to use Relatively simple Easy to use Technical support not required Well integrated Consistent Quick to learn Convenient Feel confident using Familiar | None |
- Mass Impact (batch updating records already in the system)
- Single Tape De-duplicator (identifying and removing duplicate records)
- Mass Effect (importing an external list of records into the system)
- Setting up the de-duplicator can be a little tricky at first, but if set up correctly, it works great.