MIKRON

We’re playing in a digital world, constantly finding new solutions to make us more efficient and Salesforce is 100% part of that.”

- Jean-François Bauer, Head of Marketing and Business Development
 

Mikron gets closer to customers with richer insights, smarter processes, and better customer service

From airbag ignitors and pen injectors to soap dispensers and electrical switches, much of the equipment we take for granted in our daily lives is assembled on machines featuring Mikron technology.

Mikron Automation manufactures assembly solutions for international companies producing on a large-scale around the world. And with Salesforce, Mikron Automation is getting closer to these customers to build stronger, long-term relationships. “We don’t want to sell customers a one-shot deal, we want a 15-year relationship,” said Jean-François Bauer, Head of Marketing and Business Development at Mikron. “With Salesforce, we support our sales team to get closer to our customers and enrich our engagements.”

 

With data at our fingertips, we can be more responsive to customers and collaborate between departments more easily. It’s enabled us to streamline service delivery and order fulfillment.”

Patrick Tomasino, Customer Service Manager

Getting closer to customers to better understand their needs

Mikron has been blazing a trail in machining systems since its launch in 1908, when it helped industrialise the Swiss watchmaking industry before expanding into new areas, such as plastic components, and automation systems. Today, the group concentrates on machining systems, tools and automation solutions and it aims to adapt its product set based on customers’ constantly changing needs, while keeping costs competitive.

Getting closer to customers starts with better visibility of their data. To help achieve this visibility, Mikron Automation implemented Sales Cloud. More than a decade later, the solution remains at the heart of the company’s sales operation. “Sales Cloud delivers both on quality and reliability,” said Bauer. “It has enabled us to retire legacy systems and centralise our sales data.”

Mikron Automation upgraded to the Lightning edition in January 2018, which provides the sales team with a richer visual experience. Leads captured via website enquiries or from conferences are all tracked in Sales Cloud, giving the sales team complete visibility. All opportunities are managed in the tool. “Our sales cycle can last between six and 10 months or even more, so it’s important we have the right conversations at the right time,” said Bauer.

With a complex sales cycle that can involve up to 15 contacts from one customer organisation, Mikron Automation’s sales reps need to be able to nurture multiple relationships. “With Salesforce, our salesman can see a customer’s full history, which they can access on the road between meetings via the mobile app,” said Bauer.

Tracking customer requests from start to resolution

To enrich its customer service capabilities and boost satisfaction, Mikron Automation implemented Service Cloud in 2015. “We had different data in different formats, which resulted in some customer requests falling through the gaps,” said Patrick Tomasino, Customer Service Manager at Mikron.

With Service Cloud, Tomasino’s team can keep track of every one of the 4,500 customer emails received every year on a central dashboard – whether it’s a request for a spare part or change to a delivery date. And customers have noticed the difference. “With data at our fingertips, we can be more responsive to customers and collaborate between departments more easily,” said Tomasino. “It’s enabled us to streamline service delivery and order fulfilment.” As a result, 90% of customer requests are now processed within 24 hours.

“The customer experience is hugely important to us – we complete satisfaction surveys at every step of a project, and we do them face-to-face to make it more personal,” explained Tomasino. “If the customer flags an issue, we look at how we can make improvements: happy customers are more likely to be repeat customers.”

Service and sales dashboards aren’t just useful for employees to manage their workloads, the management team can also tap into data to get an overview of activities and opportunities, helping them make smarter, more data-driven decisions.

“With Service Cloud, we can capture the voice of the customer and continuously improve our products and processes,” said Tomasino. “We run a report for the development team to flag up any recurring issues with products so they can take action.”

Dedicated community puts customers in the driving seat

Mikron wants to go one step further with data sharing by empowering its customers. In early 2019, it launched a new community that will transform service delivery. Founded on Community Cloud, it will provide customers with a single point of entry for contacting Mikron.

“Customers can open service cases, request quotes, and look at knowledge articles via the community,” said Tomasino. “And we’ll be adding a lot more features in the future. The community is a great way for customers to engage with us and share information.”

Salesforce has helped Mikron transform its operations with smarter processes, better visibility, and richer insights: all crucial ingredients for a better customer experience. “Improving customer retention isn’t easy; we need to be highly responsive and understand our customers’ needs,” said Bauer. “We’re playing in a digital world, constantly finding new solutions to make us more efficient and Salesforce is 100% part of that.”

 

Keep exploring stories like this one.

Loading Loading...|Please wait...|Still loading, just a moment...|Less than one minute remaining...

Questions? We’ll put you on the right path.

Ask about Salesforce products, pricing, implementation, or anything else. Our highly trained reps are standing by, ready to help.