EmergeCore: Ripe For CRM

mergeCore Networks is taking its concept of “IT In A Box” a step further with the launch of a CRM module for the package.

The CRM module for both the IT-100 and the IT-500 EmergeCore network appliances includes contact management, sales and opportunity tracking, calendaring and task management features, said Dave Brown, president and CEO of the Boise, Idaho, vendor.

The CRM package is simple, but it offers what small businesses need, Brown said. “We don’t need to be Siebel,” he said. “For small businesses, it needs to be easy to use, low-cost and feature-rich, and we deliver on all of that.”

Despite a rocky beginning, EmergeCore’s IT In A Box has gained steam since the company relaunched about a year ago with a sharp focus on the small-business market. The company last year introduced the IT-100, an all-in-one IT solution for networks with 25 users or fewer that includes a switch, router and firewall in one box with built-in applications for an e-mail server, Web server and VPN server as well as antivirus, spam filtering and a Web-site building tool. In May, EmergeCore launched the IT-500, which serves companies with up to 75 employees.

The company first launched two years ago with a product aimed at the enterprise branch market and fizzled away, leaving many solution providers that signed on with the startup hanging. But a new management team, including Brown, refocused the company and brought it back to the channel last year.

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Solution providers said EmergeCore’s IT In A Box solution is a perfect fit for startup companies. “It’s a great fit for a brand-new business,” said Peter Phelan, president of Turnkey Network Solutions in Manassas, Va. “Where else can a business get everything they need for under $2,000?”

As a new business grows, it can add a Windows server and still use the EmergeCore box as its router and firewall, Phelan added.