Four Ways .NET Can Improve Your Business
October 9, 2002
By using the Internet to enable software applications to more easily work
together, Microsoft® .NET offers businesses the opportunity to increase
operating profits, decrease costs, and connect with customers and employees.
Here are four ways .NET can help your business today.
Lower Operating Costs
The ability to connect systems can have a dramatic impact on the bottom line for
any business, whether it needs to connect a handful of internal applications or
integrate an extensive supply chain.
Traditional business integration methods based on Electronic Data Interchange
(EDI) often don't work well when dealing with smaller suppliers and partners
who frequently use isolated computer systems and communicate via fax, phone,
and e-mail. Microsoft .NET-connected software can help bridge the communication
gap among smaller partners who never adopted EDI.
.NET-connected software is built on XML Web service standards, which enables
both new and existing applications to connect with software and services across
platforms, applications, and programming languages. In applications such as
Microsoft Excel 2002, .NET-connected software allows analysts to monitor
up-to-the-minute production tallies across numerous suppliers, enabling
everyone in the supply chain to effectively tailor production to match demand.
For example, Newport News Shipbuilding used .NET-connected software to build
applications faster, as well as connect with various partners. The company
improved its time to market by 19 percent in building and launching its new
application.
Drive More Sales
.NET connects sales professionals with the information they need and provides
businesses with the opportunity to increase revenue and create new business
opportunities.
.NET-connected software provides a sales force with the ability to analyze
information that was once isolated in back-end systems through familiar
programs such as Microsoft Office XP. This information can be delivered
anywhere to a wide range of new smart devices, from smart phones to PCs.
.NET-connected software and services also enable companies to create new
business opportunities. By exposing key business processes that were typically
locked in internal systems, the enterprise can create a number of new
opportunities to make money. For example, Dollar Rent A Car opened its
reservation system to partners through XML Web services and drove home a
significant amount of new business.
Integrate Better with Customers
Increasing revenue can be a tough challenge for any company. Most businesses
derive more revenue by finding more customers, providing better customer
service, and selling more to existing customers.
.NET can help companies meet this challenge by enabling them to more easily
integrate services and applications. Connected back-end systems provide
businesses with the opportunity to combine information and more easily assist
customers—whether in a call center setting or in an online Help application. A
company can turn quality of service into a competitive advantage.
Businesses such as Trans World Entertainment Corp. use .NET-connected software
to provide a better customer experience while improving the bottom line.
Lower IT Costs
Microsoft Visual Studio® .NET and the .NET Framework empower developers to
quickly and easily create cutting-edge XML Web services and applications,
building on their existing skill sets. Through support for multiple programming
languages, developers are freed to use the programming language of their choice
in building XML Web services. Seamless deployment, as well as the ability to
use existing XML Web services, presents substantial savings opportunities for
the corporate IT department.
In addition to improving developer productivity, Visual Studio .NET helps
alleviate one of the greatest scarcities in the world: skilled programmers.
Applying rapid application development techniques to Web applications and
services increases developer productivity, saving both time and money. Finally,
by supporting any programming language, these tools tap the broadest developer
talent pool (only about 10 percent of the world's developers know Java), take
advantage of existing skills, and let people use the tool most appropriate for
a specific task.
How to Move Toward a .NET Future
Everything you need to build, host and deploy .NET connected software is
available. Here's how you can move towards a world where all of your company's
computer systems are highly integrated and ready to help improve your business:
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Learn more about how XML Web services, the underpinning of .NET technology. See
how both XML Web services and .NET can help to make businesses more profitable.
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Discuss your company's XML Web services strategy with your IT department and
see how .NET has already helped companies improve their profitability.
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Meet with a consultant who specializes in .NET-connected software and explore
the impact it can have on your business. Microsoft has more than 32,000
certified partners who can offer you best-of-breed solutions that will not tie
your company to one vendor.
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Deploy pilot projects using XML Web services to take the first step toward
connecting more closely with customers, partners, and employees.
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Insist that all future hardware and software purchases be based upon XML Web
service technology to ensure interoperability and long-term value. See the
Microsoft .NET product and services list for products based on .NET-connected
technology.
from Microsoft.com