CPGvision:
Every other industry is going through a technological transformation, and digitization has opened doors of opportunity for companies to enhance their operations, maximize their revenues, and reduce the unnecessary loss of resources. One industry that can strongly utilize the data insights gained from digitization is the consumer-packaged goods (CPG) industry.
The CPG companies need to stay active round the clock and 365 days to provide for the consumers’ needs. Due to the vibrant nature of the industry, they stand to gain the maximum benefits from the digitization of its operations in the coming days.
Investing in trade remains a top priority for consumer goods manufacturers. Well-organized TPx digital transformation programs can equip CPG companies with the right foundational pillars, capabilities, and plasticity to adapt, grow revenues, and protect trade margins even in times of uncertainty. COVID-19 has brought permanent changes to the marketplace, owing to which it has become imperative for CPG companies to push for long-delayed digital trade initiatives.
With the vision of providing CPG companies with an all-rounder solution for their trade spend management, optimization, and revenue growth management solutions, CPGvision came into existence.
The company offers decades of industry knowledge and hands-on TPM experience combined with its quick-to-learn, user-friendly solutions. CPGvision is built on the world’s #1 CRM platform, Salesforce.
The company proudly provides a dedicated customer resource to every client to ensure post-implementation success. Its solutions include CPGvision Foresight, and OptimizerCG, all of which can be fully integrated to create a seamless and transparent solution for its clients’ business.
At the driving seat of CPGvision’s success in delivering top-notch TPx solutions to its clients is its CEO, Mike Mellin. With his 16+ years of Salesforce experience, he ensures that every client of the company gets a satisfactory solution to their business needs.
Let’s explore the success story of CPGvision in delivering the game-changing TPx solution to CPG companies.
A Premiere TPx Solution
CPGvision was founded in 2012 as CPGToolBox. It provides a premiere Trade Promotion Management solution on the Salesforce Platform. CPGvision is the next-generation platform, incorporating Trade Promotion Management, Trade Promotion Optimization, Forecasting, and Revenue Growth Management solutions.
Speaking about the user-friendliness as well as the high serviceability of the company’s platform, CEO Mike Mellin says, “The CPGvision platform is awesome. The UI is at the same time amazingly user-friendly and powerful.”
Built on the World’s #1 CRM – Salesforce
CPGvision is built on the world’s #1 CRM platform, Salesforce. The company makes sure to bring the best features of Salesforce into its solutions so that its clients are provided with the maximum benefits of its solutions.
“We leverage everything Salesforce has to offer. Our application is highly configurable, extremely user-friendly, reliable, and secure, all thanks to Salesforce,” says Mike.
Laser-focused on CPG Industry
CPGvision delivers a simple, easy-to-use TPx solution that helps consumer goods companies drive their revenue growth by increasing the efficiency of their trade spend budgets.
The mission of the company is in line with enabling CPG companies to realize maximum growth through its solutions. “Our mission is simple. We are laser-focused on the Consumer-Packaged Goods industry – on helping our clients achieve profitable revenue growth,” Mike emphasizes.
A Timely Solution for the CPG Industry
The COVID-19 pandemic has set so many shifts across the marketplace. As the most important segment of the consumer market, CPG companies must adapt to changing conditions.
The CEO, discussing the importance of CPGvision solutions, expresses, “While we are addressing issues that have plagued the CPG industry for decades, the COVID era – with all the cost and supply chain pressures-has magnified these issues, and manufacturers have a need to be more agile in their response. Now, add in inflation and a potentially serious economic downturn, and our solutions are more in demand than ever.”
CPGvision solutions are designed to optimize clients’ trade spending in an efficient way. “Trade is the second largest spend line on a CPG company’s P&L (after COGs), optimizing that spend and managing price are the two key solutions clients ask for, and of course, they need a TPM (trade promotion management) solution that is lightning fast and user-friendly for the sales team,” says Mike.
Speaking about the efficiency of CPGvision’s solutions, Mike says, “The data science behind our solutions is what makes everything more accurate, powerful, and actionable.”
Prioritizing the Clients’ Success
Client satisfaction is regarded as one of the crucial aspects of a business. Many companies are incorporating the core values into their workings, which are directly related to prioritizing the fulfillment of their clients’ needs.
When Mike was asked about the practices followed by CPGvision in its daily operations, he replied, “We really believe that we succeed when our clients succeed. We don’t consider ourselves just a vendor, we are a trusted business advisor.”
“We have invested in the talent to implement and support our clients on an ongoing basis. Our people have combined decades of CPG and TPM experience that we leverage with all of our clients,” he added.
Overcoming the Challenges
Challenges are part of the growth process. That is why, when looking for growth in a certain industry, looking at challenges is the same as looking at opportunities within that space.
Talking about the existing challenges in the TPx solutions space, Mike says, “One of the biggest challenges is the sheer amount of data. TPx solutions are data-hungry, and the data needs to be clean, harmonized, integrated, and modeled in a way that enables the user to interact with it in a pragmatic and ongoing manner as they run their business.”
Further, expanding on the solutions that CPGvision is working on to solve the above challenges, Mike says, “We are working on establishing a center of data excellence to give our clients the tools they need to capitalize on all of the data at their disposal.”
Advice to Budding Entrepreneurs
To know what the industry is all about then, now, and in the future, seeking advice from that industry’s leader is the best go-to option. When we asked Mike what advice he would like to provide to the budding aspirants in his industry, he offered them to come and work with him.
“I would invite them to work for or partner with us. We are always hiring the best and enabling them to run their own business. Our echo system is also booming,” he said.
Envisioning Bright Future
Making plans to enhance the company’s solutions and expand its reach is always on top of the mind for any leader. Talking about the plans that CPGvision is currently implementing within its operations, Mike says, “We have invested in a completely re-imagined UI, a partnership with Salesforce on TPO, and we have scaled up our data science, development, delivery, and customer success teams to keep ahead of our growth. Our product roadmap is robust.”
Proof of Excellence
The best way to know that the client is satisfied with the solutions provided by the company is when they seek its services again and again and also recommend them to others. This is the kind of feedback CPGvision gets on a regular basis.
The company recently presented at POI (Promotion Optimization Institute) and provided a living testimonial from PANOS brands, which are using its full suite of RGM solutions.
When asked about the kind of testimonials that clients have provided to the CPGvision, Mike says, “I think the biggest testimonial though is the number of clients we have gained from people taking a position at a new company and pulling us in there – if they want you twice, you know you are good.”
The Expert in Charge
As the Chief Executive Officer of CPGvision, Mike Mellin’s #1 priority is to deliver customer success and consistent value to each client. With 16 years of working at Salesforce under his belt, Mike’s leadership style reflects trust and confidence in his team to make their own decisions and drive strategy that reflects CPGvision’s common core of values. Today, Mike lives in Western Chicago and is the proud father of four sons.
When asked about how he ensures the expansion and enhancement of the CPGvision, Mike says, “I spent the last sixteen years at Salesforce, the platform on which our solutions are built on. I understand the value that is inherent in this platform, and we are leveraging that to its fullest extent.”
