Salesforce Launches CRM Cloud Solutions for Manufacturing and Consumer Goods

Salesforce.com today launched Manufacturing Cloud, an industry-specific product that brings sales and operations teams together around a unified view of market and customer demands, and Consumer Goods Cloud, another industry-specific product that provides improved retail execution capabilities. 

Both are parts of the Salesforce Customer 360 Platform.

Manufacturing Cloud features include the following:

• Sales Agreements, which allow manufacturers to unify their run-rate business with data housed in enterprise resource planning and order management systems with the contract terms negotiated, including planned volumes and revenue. If changes to the agreement are needed, they are immediately incorporated into existing sales agreements. 
• Account-Based Forecasting, which provides  a complete view of current business alongside future opportunities. Account teams can also add updates on changing customer needs or market demands and adjust forecasts in real time.

"In the manufacturing industry, changing customer and market demands can have a devastating effect on the bottom line, so being able to understand what is happening on the ground is imperative for success," said Cindy Bolt, senior vice president and general manager of Salesforce Manufacturing, in a statement. "Manufacturing Cloud bridges the gap between sales and operations teams while ensuring more predictive and transparent business, so they can build deeper and more trusted relationships with their customers."

In addition to Manufacturing Cloud, Salesforce is also releasing manufacturing-specific innovation across the Salesforce Customer 360 Platform. These include the following:

• Einstein Analytics for Manufacturing, providing account managers out-of-the-box metrics into account health, demand insights, product penetration, and sales agreement progress. They can also proactively engage clients that are at highest risk for churn, spot key trends within accounts, and recommend relevant upsell and cross-sell opportunities.
• Community Cloud for Manufacturing, with pre-built templates that extend sales agreements to channel partners.
• MuleSoft Anypoint Platform, which unlocks data from any application, data source, or device to help sales and operations leaders automate the complete order-to-cash process, create a comprehensive forecast view, and drive business process automation across all sales channels.

Salesforce piloted Manufacturing Cloud with several companies, including Kawasaki Motors, Hitachi Chemical, CF Industries, Mipox, and GELITA. It also partnered with Accenture, Acumen Solutions, Deloitte, and Rootstock to develop Manufacturing Cloud.

"Our customers have a clear desire to align sales forecasts with their core sales and operations planning demand and production planning functions. We can't wait to see Manufacturing Cloud give manufacturers a huge boost in tackling these challenges," said Andy Schoka, managing director of manufacturing at Acumen Solutions, in a statement.

Consumer Goods Cloud, meanwhile, enables reps to use artificial intelligence to optimize tasks, promotion execution, order management, and the in-store experience for end consumers. It enables field reps to do the following:

• Improve visit planning through a list of prioritized and assigned store visits for the day with required and suggested activities, with in-app map functionality to manage routing. In addition, reps can analyze the health of their business across stores while surfacing new opportunities for their products.
• Optimize visit execution, from inventory and planogram checks to return order processing and surveys, all from a mobile device.
• Harness Einstein AI to optimize compliance and product placements. 
• Capture orders and data. 

"Retail execution remains one of the most important pieces of a consumer goods brand's strategy, but so much opportunity is wasted if the field rep doesn't have the data and technology needed to make smart decisions," said John Strain, senior vice president and general manager of retail and consumer goods at Salesforce, in a statement. "Consumer Goods Cloud provides these field reps with the tools they need to be successful on the ground, while helping build both business opportunities and stronger relationships with their retail partners."

Salesforce worked with a number of partners, including Accenture and PwC, to extend the power of Consumer Goods Cloud.