| |
|
Custom Software Development |
|
|
|
Make or Break Factors - When Considering Estimating Software
Make-or-Break Factors in Success and Profitability For quick printers, estimating can prove to be a major factor in the success or failure of their business. When a customer requests a bid on a job, they need a fast turnaround, and the best price. For a printer, there are two important issues; first of course is the price and second the profit. If they price a job too high they might miss out on getting the job, and if they price it too low, this starts cutting into their potential profits. Estimating software is a tool that helps eliminate this margin for error and make every printer's job easier. This ease is why estimating software is becoming an integral part for many companies in the printing and graphics industry. But what type of estimating software should a printer look for? With so many different companies selling estimating software it can become difficult to find a solution that is the right one. For this reason Cyrious Software has taken on the role of business software consultants rather then focusing strictly on selling. When looking for a business management and estimating solution, the ability of a company to consult and guide you to the correct solution, be it theirs or someone else's, should be a major deciding factor. If a software company isn't willing to work to find a solution that specifically fits their business, it might be wise to find a different company to do business with. Estimating software can range from a simple estimating calculator package, to a complete powerful, integrated estimating, job tracking & business management system, like Cyrious Software. The difficulty is figuring out which system is right for your business. How Much & For What Companies should look at the money spent on estimating/business management software, as an investment and not an expense. Most complete software systems range from about $2,000 all the way up to $14,000 depending on the number of licenses, modules and different customizations. This somewhat large investment makes it vital for printers to find a system that they can not only use to increase profits and save time, but also one they have the ability to continue to grow with. Many printers are looking for a system that not only has the ability to estimate, job track, and do invoicing but also has the ability to export to accounting packages, create reports, manage their customer base, and expand their business through target marketing. Because not all estimating software packages have this complete business management functionality, printers and similar businesses need to make sure the estimating software they choose has the functionality they need (i.e. Customer Management Tools, Marketing Tools, Shipping & Credit Card Integration) The last thing a company needs is to buy additional software after the initial investment. Another aspect to consider when searching for a software package is the accuracy it provides. Accuracy is one of the most important features to look for in estimating software. The price of using inaccurate information can add up and become extremely detrimental to a business. Accuracy in estimating software depends on the ability to customize the software to fit the printers pricing. With Cyrious Software, your pricing & cost structure is customized and built into the software making it virtually impossible to have inaccurate estimates. Integration Is Key Another factor to consider is how easily estimating software will let one go from estimate, to order, to invoice, and beyond. Without estimating/business management software, printers spend a lot time re-entering/re-writing customer or product information. Even with estimating software if you don't have the right system you could be left re-keying a lot of important information. This can be a major waste of time. That is why Cyrious Software has created their application to encompass this integration. This means the first time you enter company or order information you never have to enter it in again, unless of course you need to make an update or edit. The "beyond" part is where Cyrious Software distinguishes itself from many of its competitors. Imagine having the power of an entire marketing research firm at your fingertips. Cyrious gives you that power. Once you have company information and order history in the Cyrious Software system, you can create queries that will allow you to separate customers into different segments, and provide you with an easy method to begin to target different markets. Once these segments are grouped, you can automatically e-mail, fax or print marketing materials to them. Whether it is a follow up letter, thank you note, or special offer, businesses can use the software to help strengthen relationships with current/new customers and/or develop a stronger marketing strategy. About The Author Danny Tangredi For more information on Cyrious Software's Estimating & Business Management Solutions go to www.cyrious.net or call 1-800-552-1418.
MORE RESOURCES:
Software - Google News |
|
|
|
RELATED ARTICLES
OEComplete - A Personal Information Manager OEComplete is a utility for managing the personal information of the user. It is designed to be flexible and affordable even for the home user. What is a Document Manager without Version History? Document Manager and Version HistoryIn previous articles I have discussed the usefulness of a document manager, such as groupware, in organizing document sharing. I have also discussed the role that a Version History plays in a good document manager. Dreamweaver vs FrontPage There are two major WYSIWYG(What You See Is What You Get) editors available for beginners. These are: Microsoft FrontPage and Macromedia Dreamweaver. Does Microsoft have any real competition? Does Microsoft Have any Real Competition? Copyright (c) 2003 Gregory S. Diehl In a word, yes. Crystal Reports For Microsoft RMS - Overview For Developer/Report Designer If you are software developer or database administrator - we would like to give you the clues on Crystal Report creation for Microsoft RMS Database: Microsoft SQL Server or MSDE - this means that you can deploy native SQL driver for connection or use ODBC for flexibility. Tables Structure - it is extremely self-explanatory: Customer, Transaction (invoices, returns, layaways and others), TransactionAmount, Cashier, Tender to give you examples Links - Usually master table has ID column and Transaction-related table links by [Entity]ID column: Transaction. Linux for Home Users Hey Guys! Don't raise your eyebrows or fear by hearing the word Linux. It is as user friendly as windows. IT Strategy for Midsize Business: Microsoft vs. Java, Great Plains & CRM Midsize business or non-profit organization should decide if one-vendor solution would be appropriate and the associated risk acceptable. In our opinion, balancing the risk of one-vendor-approach is not economically feasible and should be avoided. Microsoft Business Solutions Customization Options - Overview for Programmer Several years ago Microsoft purchased Great Plains Software, then Navision (Denmark based software development company). At this time Great Plains Software already was active ERP applications consolidation player - it already acquired Solomon Software couple of years prior. Helping Newbies Understand Professional Software The Windows registry is a huge database that ensures normal computer operation. Installing and uninstalling software can make your registry a mess, leading to decreased PC performance and causing computer crashes. Microsoft Great Plains Implementation in Russia - Overview for Consultant Microsoft Business Solutions Great Plains is very popular ERP platform in the USA, Canada (including French speaking Quebec/Montreal), U.K. Ukraine IT Myths Dispersed While Ukraine is becoming a new popular IT outsourcing destination, there are still many myths about it and no clear understanding of the opportunities outsourcing to Ukraine can present. Let us look closely at some of those myths and find out whether there is any truth behind them. Reporting Tools for Microsoft Great Plains - Overview For Developers Looks like Microsoft Great Plains becomes more and more popular, partly because of Microsoft muscles behind it. Now it is targeted to the whole spectrum of horizontal and vertical market clientele. Protect Your Computer...and Your Business! We all take the computer for granted. I mean, all we have to do is switch it on and it's ready to go. Recovering Microsoft Great Plains Customization - Tips for IT Director Remember nice and prosperous Clinton era? When you implemented innovative those old days accounting application - Great Plains Dynamics. And did a lot of customizations to fit your business requirements precisely. Microsoft Great Plains: Manufacturing or Bill of Materials - Overview for IT Specialist Microsoft Great Plains is main Microsoft Business Solutions product, targeted to mid-size companies. Currently Microsoft is in progress of transforming several ERP products it has: Microsoft Great Plains, Solomon and Navision into several business suites - Microsoft Financial, Microsoft HR, Microsoft Manufacturing, Microsoft Logistics. Cisco Certification: Introduction To ISDN, Part IV In part III of this ISDN primer, we learned that PPP has two main methods of authentication that Cisco certification candidates need to know how to configure: PAP and CHAP.PAP has very few advantages over CHAP. Groupware: What Works the Way Businesses Do? GroupwareThe internet is full of 1.5 million to 7 million indexed pages of groupware packages available on the market today. Microsoft CRM in Latin America: Implementation, Customization, Support - Overview for Consultant Microsoft Business Solutions CRM is present several years on the US software market plus it makes advances in Europe. We expect substantial number growth of Microsoft CRM implementations across South and Central America and the need for Microsoft CRM implementation, support, tuning, reporting, training services, especially in such countries as Mexico, Columbia, Venezuela, Argentina, Peru, Uruguay, Chili, Costa Rica. Interactive Mapping Brings Information to Life What is Interactive Mapping?Interactive mapping is a visual display medium which allows graphing, mapping, and even conversion to PDF of any type of information. This technology is used by national government agencies, airlines, chambers of commerce, ski resorts, and countless corporations to make information accessible and interactive to whomever they present the information. Microsoft CRM USA Nationwide Remote Support Remember old good days when your company probably had Great Plains Dynamics? If you are in San Francisco Bay Area - you had local Great Plains Software partner consulting company, who served you basically coming onsite and charging you four hours minimum, even if the problem deserved 5-min fix? This was at the end of 20th century and remote support technologies were not very advanced - Citrix was making good progress and taking market over from Symantec PCAnywhere. Today, when Microsoft Terminal Server and Citrix are remote support standards and IT department uses them to host application server for nation-wide and world-wide users, you should probably be thinking of getting remote support for your ERP and CRM systems.
|
| Article Index | home | site map |
| Powered by Custom Software Development - © 1995 - 2008 Nexus Software Systems |
