Zurmo Adds Functionality to Its Open-Source CRM
Developers of the Zurmo Open-Source Customer Relationship Management application today announced the release of Zurmo 1.5, an expanded version of its software with advanced reporting, a workflow engine, new marketing automation capabilities, and enhanced mobile access. All these new features are available in the Open-Source Edition of the application.
With the advanced reporting functionality, users can create reports based on virtually any CRM data stemming from accounts, contacts, leads, meetings, notes, opportunities, or tasks. Filters are simply dragged and dropped to create a report structure. Custom reports can be saved, shared with other users, and generated on demand.
With Zurmo's Workflow Engine, users can create simple and complex rules to trigger a variety of alerts or actions in the system.
The marketing automation functionalities included in this release involve marketing lists and email templates. Marketing Lists allow users to segment leads, contacts, and account records according to parameters set by advanced searches or reports. Both plain text and HTML email templates can now be created in Zurmo. Users can include reader-specific dynamic information into email messages.
These new features lay the foundation for the full suite of marketing automation functionality that will include campaigns, a mass email marketing engine, auto-responders, and trackable URLs in Zurmo version 2.0.
Other notable features added to Zurmo 1.5 include full mobile accessibility through responsive Web application design, enhanced language support, a unified inbox where users access aggregated communication items, the ability for organizations to personalize implementations by uploading company logos, and menu customizations.
"This release really separates Zurmo from the rest of the pack. In most other open-source CRM software, features like reporting and workflow are held back from the freely downloadable version. With Zurmo, you do not get short-handed. It is complete," said Zurmo co-founder Ray Stoeckicht, in a statement. "When we started development on Zurmo 28 months ago, our objective was to disrupt the open-source CRM space. A whole new level of this disruption is marked by Zurmo 1.5."