Sales Tax Automation: The Time is Now

Posted on October 18, 2011 by Site Administrator

The sales tax environment has become increasingly complex over the last several years.  The current political and economic environment threatens to make it even more difficult for companies to keep up with ongoing changes, as government agencies seek out additional sources of revenue.

Many companies are learning the hard way that their manual sales tax management process puts them at greater risk for negative audits. With the average penalty costing $34K per audit, can your company afford to continue losing money on manual error-prone sales tax compliance?

However, there is a solution!  You can have seamless, transparent integration to Sage ERP Accpac. Eliminate the complexity of tax management by automating and providing accurate tax calculation, painless administration, effortless reporting and timely remittance. Best of all, your business can:

  • Achieve full end-to-end sales tax compliance
  • Automate manual processes involved with managing tax tables and updates
  • Eliminate compliance holes associated with using a flat state rate or zip code-based systems
  • Reduce your audit exposure through ‘bullet-proof’ compliance
  • Outsource all of your sales tax filing requirements
  • Automate the paperless collection and management of certificates

Learn why the time to automate the tedious sales tax process is now, by watching this 4.5 minute video.  Then, take the free Needs Assessment Survey courtesy of our 3rd Party Sales Tax Automation Partner, Avalara, to see if you are in compliance with Sales Tax collection and reporting.

Posted in Enterprise Resource Planning (ERP), Newsletter, October 2011 | Leave a comment

Streamline Processes and Maximize Resources with Integrated E-commerce

Posted on October 17, 2011 by Site Administrator

Businesses today are increasingly looking to the Web to streamline processes and maximize resources. Thus, an e-commerce solution that enables you to leverage existing processes and systems is the key to harnessing the power of the Web.  E-commerce is the most revolutionized way of selling products in a relatively low cost. But do you have a successful e-commerce storefront integrated with your Sage ERP Accpac system?  Often Business owner use an e-commerce platform and ERP system separately, making silos of information and they miss out on the benefits of an integrated system. Imagine getting the e-commerce data directly from your Sage ERP Accpac system without any human interaction.  It would provide you with numerous benefits, including:

  1. Increases Self- Service Functionality: The availability of real-time data from the ERP system on to the store front, allows customers to view available inventory, latest order status, and track shipments with tracking numbers. This helps in reducing your cost of operations and improves customer experience with your store front.
  2. Reduce your inventory cost by having updated sales information: All web sales information will instantly appear into your ERP system. ERP Item Inventory will also be updated based on these web transactions. So with the most up to date web sales information and inventory, ERP user can properly plan the purchase and thus reduces the inventory cost.
  3. Generate financial reports in ERP, based on Web Transactions: e-commerce applications are able to generate financial reports on sales. But integration with Sage Accpac ERP provides the merchant the ability to produce balance sheet, P/L Statement, Trial Balance, Cash Flow, etc. which gives the transparency in financial information across the organization.
  4. Increased internal productivity: Because the integrated system streamlines multiple business processes, it has reduced human resource involvement in these processes. Web sales orders will be integrated to the ERP system in real time, back office ERP user can instantly track the order and start the further processing. Thus the order fulfillment cycle is reduced through this integration.
  5. Reduced Human Involvement, Data Redundancy and Error: With integration, web customer details, web orders, payment & shipping information will be integrated to your Sage ERP Accpac system, similarly Item and Inventory details can be uploaded from ERP to e-commerce portal, so in any way this integration will eliminate the need of reentering the data. Thus the integrated solution will reduce human involvement, data redundancy and error over two platforms.
  6. Increase Customer Satisfaction: Ease of getting most up to date product information, inventory availability detail, order tracking detail, etc. in the web from ERP system, customer satisfaction level raises a lot and it reduces operational hassle for the business.
  7. Better Control of your Business: Integration of e-commerce and ERP business processes provides the business owners with a better control of their business and there by getting competitive advantage.

Ready to learn more?  Watch a short 3 minute overview video of XM Oxygen for Sage ERP Accpac. XM Oxygen is your ready-to-go web store integrating exclusively with Sage ERP Accpac. Your web store will automatically apply your volume discounts as clients add more items to the basket. Any products that are marked ‘on special’ in Sage Accpac will update on the website within the minute and will end the sale on the date set in Accpac, allowing you to manage your pricing and sale items from one location, reducing mistakes and removing double or even triple entry.

Posted in Customer Relations Management (CRM), Newsletter, October 2011 | Tagged | Leave a comment

Technology Budgeting: What is IT Really Trying to Accomplish

Posted on October 16, 2011 by Site Administrator

Fall inevitably provides finance chiefs with piles of requests to add project costs to their corporate budgets. This makes the 3rd Quarter a good time to put together a game plan for assessing which projects to partly or fully fund, table, or reject outright.

For many companies, the most requests for added spending tend to pour in from the information technology department. While that should remain true this year, the emphasis may be a bit different. Demand for product upgrades has been building in many IT departments as wary companies restrain their capital spending.  In their core software for such things as accounting, finance, manufacturing, and sales, most organizations are running two versions behind the current one.

Because they’ve fallen so far behind, however, the pitches from chief technology officers to CFOs will involve more than upgrades.  Corporate technology managers, however, often think of these things as an upgrade solely in the technology process, when it’s really a business-improvement project.  But if CFOs dig a bit more into the details of the budget, what they find out is that you’re not only upgrading the technology. In addition, you’ll have to integrate departments, change business processes, and fulfill new system requirements. There may be changes in people’s jobs or a potential need to lay off people. Retraining may also be required.

With so much potentially at stake, finance chiefs need to be ready for whatever CTOs throw at them when fall budgeting gets rolling. Here are four steps for CFOs to follow to be prepared.

  1. Assemble a detailed list of all proposed projects. Make sure the list has a complete breakdown of all project costs, including future ones. Avoid situations in which tech people realize that some needed system requirements are missing after the project has been launched and then have to ask for more money from finance.
  2. Categorize the projects. List them by size, function, and expected returns. Are they part of existing operations? What level of effort is needed to implement them? What are the resources required and what’s the organizational impact?
  3. Gauge the dependency of projects on each other. Can you, for instance, do project A if you don’t do project B?
  4. Prioritize the projects. These days, cost and cost efficiency tend to be top priorities. First determine which projects are “low-hanging fruit” — small efforts with few or no dependencies that can produce immediate results while consuming few or no resources. Next, group together “intermediate projects” — small to midsize ones that can spawn a measurable impact and have dependencies that can be fixed internally. Finally, list the large projects and new systems with potentially big dependencies that are being called for.

If a big upgrade is being proposed, finance chiefs should ask tech people if the company can be moved toward that goal by making a smaller but longer-term investment. In essence, though, CFOs need to be prepared to ask a more fundamental question: “What is it that IT is really trying to accomplish.  Finally, don’t forget to involve your external IT resources, such as your software and hardware vendors.  They can help you with all four steps of the fall budgeting process, and will likely help you find ways to streamline, take advantage of existing technology, and ultimately save money.

Posted in Business Intelligence (BI), Newsletter, October 2011 | Leave a comment

Axis Global Partners Provides Increased Operational Efficiency to The Brewery Works, Inc.

Posted on October 15, 2011 by kimberly

Axis Global Partners, a consulting firm specializing in the implementation and support of  Sage business management software solutions for small and medium sized enterprises, has taken The Brewery Works, Inc. Sage ERP Accpac solution to a whole new level. Read more.

Posted in News, Newsletter, October 2011 | Tagged , , , | Leave a comment

Is the Thought of Open Enrollment Making You Cringe?

Posted on October 14, 2011 by Site Administrator

Open enrollment usually happens towards the end of each calendar year and in many companies is only held once and often for only one to two weeks.  This presents a logistics nightmare for most HR departments, which of course has a way of trickling across all department heads, and up to the executive level.

If the thought of tracking down missing forms, loads of paperwork, and all the extra manual data entry is making you dread the holiday season, we have good news for you.  Lighten the load by empowering employees to make their own benefits elections online.

Sage Benefits Enrollment moves benefits open enrollment online and saves countless hours, paperwork, and postage fees with the ability to make benefits elections through the Internet or intranet. Easy-to-use wizards guide administrators through the benefit plan setup process and guide employees through open enrollment. The entire organization benefits by significantly reducing time delays and errors due to manual processing.

Sage Benefits Enrollment also increases employee satisfaction by delivering full and detailed access to benefit plans and convenient year-round life events management. Employees can view and update information anytime, anywhere, including marital status, dependents, and even link directly to providers.

Take advantage of the invaluable savings across the organization:

  • Empower employees to manage their own life event changes that impact benefits.
  • Integrate your benefit plan with URL links to benefit provider websites and post company-specific plan documents for employees to review online.
  • Give employees an easy, familiar platform to access information and make selections during the open enrollment process.
  • Offer employees the ability to compare current benefit elections with alternative benefit plans

Learn more by downloading our brochure on Sage Benefits Enrollment

Posted in Human Resources (HR), Newsletter, October 2011 | Leave a comment

Tips, Tricks & Tutorials

Posted on October 13, 2011 by Site Administrator

Video tips, tricks and tutorials help you become more productive with your Sage Accpac ERP and SageCRM systems. Featured this month:

View our Entire

Video Learning Library

Adobe Flash Player is required

steroide anabolisant effet secondaire

Posted in CRM Videos, ERP Videos, Newsletter, October 2011, Tips & Tricks Videos | Leave a comment

FREE WEBINAR: eMarketing Success

Posted on October 12, 2011 by kimberly

Learn about the power of Sage CRM E-marketing.  Join our free webinar to get the full scope of how the combined tools could positively impact your emarketing success. Everyone who attends the webinar will receive our whitepaper on “The Benefits of Email Marketing as a Cost Effective Marketing Tool”.

Date:  Tuesday, November 1, 2011
Time 10:00am CST
Click here to register

 

Posted in Customer Relations Management (CRM), Newsletter, October 2011 | Leave a comment

Could You Answer The Following Questions for Your Business?

Posted on September 18, 2011 by Site Administrator
  • What product line is doing the best in the Northeast region?
  • Where are my customers focused geographically?
  • How many orders are we able to process daily?
  • Which product categories are growing?
  • Which market segment is declining in sales?

Data has been entered into ERP and CRM for years and yet there is always a question about the best way to interpret that information.  Do you simply run a monthly report or do you run several to get to the ultimate answer?  Before Business Intelligence (BI), those were your only options.  With Business Intelligence, you can add multiple variables and dynamically change the results to view exactly what you need.  But how do you get started?

First, ask the question.

Because BI is so flexible, it is important to narrow your focus.  Make a list of questions you have about your business.  Above are just a few sample questions to get you started.  Identifying a clear and concise question will lead to clear and concise results.

Second, identify the data you will need to get to the answer.

Let’s say you are coming into your busy season and would like to know how much inventory you should have on hand to meet your upcoming production requirements.  You would need data from the following areas:

  • Inventory items currently in stock
  • Usage history during busy season
  • Current open orders that require production

If you are unsure of all the data you will need, start with what you know then add to it later.  BI is dynamic and will allow you to easily change your parameters as you review results.

Third, create a BI view to tell you the answer

The BI dashboard will show all of that data but also show you how they relate and affect each other.  You can also drill down into any of the areas to get more information about that specific topic.  For example, if you want to view usage history overall then drill down into specific product lines, you can do that directly from the BI dashboard.  This view can then be saved so that you will have it available the next time this question comes to mind.

Business Intelligence is designed to help you leverage the data you have already entered in a way that is easy to understand and interpret.  Start asking the questions and BI can help you to dig up the answers.

Business Intelligence which helps organizations make better, faster decisions about customers, partners, and operations by turning large volumes of data into valuable business insight. Learn more about the benefits of Business Intelligence by downloading our whitepaper

Posted in Business Intelligence (BI), Newsletter, September 2011 | Leave a comment

Increase Customer Loyalty by Improving the Information in Your CRM System

Posted on September 18, 2011 by Site Administrator

According to the Harvard Business Review, the average business loses 50% of their customers every five years. In the book ‘Leading on the Edge of Chaos’, the authors state that acquiring new customers can cost as much as five times more than satisfying and retaining current customers.  When you consider that customer profitability tends to increase over the life of a retained customer, reducing your customer defection rate by 5% can increase your profitability by 25 to 125% depending on the industry.

Businesses that go the extra mile by rewarding customers — with top-notch customer service, discounts or gifts — are often rewarded with repeat business and new customers.  Below are seven ideas to reward your customers and improve loyalty, retention and sales in the process.

  1. Shine the spotlight on your customers. People love to be recognized for what they do.  Doing simple things such as posting your customers’ achievements on your website, blog or social media outlets can go a long way to making your customers feel valued and increase loyalty.  They will begin to feel a part of your brand and are more likely to recommend you to other people.  The next time you see one of your customers in the newspaper or recognized online, record it in your CRM system and (with your customer’s permission), share it online.
  2. Provide an experience, not just service. Give your customer service team the tools to become a training center rather than just a source for quick answers.  They can provide whitepapers, how-to guides and even offer online training for issues that come up consistently.  Record what has been sent to customers in your CRM system and follow-up to find out if the information was helpful.
  3. Follow up with customers. Staying in contact with your customers reaps huge benefits.  Whether you are touching base after a meeting about an open issue or just following up after a conference, schedule a reminder for the activity in your CRM system.  It makes a world of difference when you call after the problem has been resolved to make sure that it was handled to their satisfaction.  When you meet with customers at trade shows, conferences and events, always send a follow-up note letting them know you enjoyed chatting with them — and answering any questions they may have asked you.
  4. Give Gifts. Who doesn’t like getting presents?  No one!  Send a small branded gift during the holiday season, or make it a policy to mail out chocolates on your customer’s anniversary with your company.  Those gifts don’t go unnoticed. Each time you receive — or send— a gift, record the information in your CRM system and acknowledge the gift.
  5. Reward your fans with points or discounts or cash back. The reward can be earned through simple things like opting into your latest newsletter or becoming a fan of your Facebook page.  This will help you to build a true “fan base” of customers that are consistently engaged and that can provide vital feedback.  These online conversations can provide insight into your customers’ behavior and sentiment.  The customers that are most involved with the brand will often share their positive experiences with their own social network.  Use your CRM system to keep track of your Fans and the reward they receive as a result.
  6. Create a referral program. There is nothing mightier than word of mouth advertising.  A  great way to spread the word about your business is to ask customers to refer you to their friends and family — and reward them for it.  Use your CRM system to capture and track customers as potential referral partners. Once their referrals become customers, follow up with those customers after the sale. This rewards the customer by providing enhanced customer service and also by giving them the opportunity to earn referral fees by becoming a referral partner.
  7. Be a good listener. Customers are very open about sharing their opinions online.  Leverage your CRM system to extend your customer service to social media outlets.  Tools like HootSuite monitor what people are saying about your company on sites like Twitter, Facebook, LinkedIn and even blogs.  You will quickly find out where your customers are most engaged in the social media landscape and learn what products and features they really would like to see.

By tracking this type of information in your CRM system, you’ll be better positioned to increase customer loyalty, and keep the customers you have.

P.S. Did you miss last month’s webinar on How Your CRM System Can Improve Your Company’s Cash Flow?  If so, it’s now available on-demand. Watch it here!

Posted in Customer Relations Management (CRM), Newsletter, September 2011 | Leave a comment

Referrals Pay

Posted on September 18, 2011 by Site Administrator

The greatest compliment we can receive is when you share with someone else the positive experience you’ve had with Axis Global Partners. The fact that you trust us with your business management information system carries a lot of weight, which is why we ask our customers to share their good experiences with others.

When you refer someone to us who becomes an Axis Global Partners’ client, we give you or your company (depending on your company policy) $1,000.00, or donate the same amount to the charity of your choice. Consider this our way of saying thank you and as a demonstration of how much we appreciate you and your business.

Is there someone you could refer whom you feel could benefit from our services? Referring someone is easy. Simply urge them to contact your local Axis expert. We would greatly appreciate the opportunity to provide them with the same service and value that you receive from us. I hope you’ll take a few moments to think of those who would benefit from our services now and in the future.

Thank you for your support and for putting your trust in us.

Posted in News, Newsletter, September 2011 | Leave a comment