Benefits of customers receiving statements by e-mail

Send Statements by e-mail -- The cost savings are HUGE when you factor in the costs of postage and labour to assemble a statement to mail .... then multiply that by 12 months a year then multiply that by ... 20 ? as a number for the number of years you can save $$ ....

We have requested from Data Warehousing ( part of Business Intelligence unit ) a special report to help us audit the existing customers we have set up to receive statements ( and do NOT forget the option to e-mail invoices - dropping the need in most cases for copies of invoices to be mailed with statements ) ---this report will let us look for customers we MISSED on our 9 month push to get customers to accept e-mail statements.

Oh --did I mention that Canada Post is due to go on strike June 2 2011 ?

Quick - name one thing sadly lacking in Exploris - yep - good sales stats

When Exploris was just a gleam in the eyes of many and the writer was asked to be on the advisory council --the better thinks were wildly imagining all the great things that a new system could or should do ... one of them is to have GREAT reporting on what our customers are buying.

Sadly this has not happened and may never happen .... and with recent rumoured changes in TECH-NET rebates -- it is all the more required.

LOOK-- a jobber should be able to DRILL DOWN and look at sales numbers .... what are my stores sales in total ... then he should have the option of looking at a couple of options"

-what do I do by customer type ( all farmers - all body shop .. etc )

-what do I do by product groups or buckets - ( all tool lines - all brake related lines .. etc )

and importantly --what do I do by banner programs - what are my tech net sales .... as a group ... or what do my e-sales do by the group .... and get data LIVE --NOW -- now 45 to 60 days afterwards ....in the case of e-sales

And if we are reviewing sales and comparing to 'INDUSTRY AVERAGES' - we need to have timely LIVE data ... and have the ability to review with our customers over a period of months to see if there are mis-understandings or issues that need to be resolved thru gentle and consistent suasion ...

Exploris needs to be a management tool - not just a typewriter and an adding machine. We need better functionality in Exploris ... and we need it now ... 90% of all updated are BUG fixes --lets go to IMPROVEMENTS that we can use to be smarter and better ....

This link ( click here ) was done in May 2010 - asking for similar ....

EXPLORIS Wish # 1640421 ( our call number )

A while back ( a long time ago ) we started to number requests ... the oldest one we have on record is Dec 09 2004 !! ... and from there we stayed with the 5000 series of request. Then in 2009 as we were getting ready to go to Exploris ...yep --we took our sweet time ...we went to the 6000 series ... well --got this idea ...use the call # when we register a problems/BUG/enhancement...

so here is the start of a new trend ....

#1630421 .... Alternates ....... how do we copy an alternate from master store to all stores ( vs - doing it the LONG DUMB way now )

#1630421 ...same call # -- how can we get a list of ALTERNATES in our system .... time marches on and what was a good alternate will someday be a junk link --how do we get a list of alternates so we can FLUSH the bad out of date ones ?? Remember that in e-cat these alternates show - and you will want to clean up the junk in e-cat for sure....

Ok -- we star the clock -- and wait for things that should have been in Exploris from day 1 ... click here to see previous posting for Alternates ......

Politics and Stupidity get in the way of Customer Service

We are pushing at the highest levels in CARQUEST to have WorldPac (WPC ) show on the front page on the gen-2 e-cat .... but CARQUEST is stubbornly refusing to discuss this issue ... why ?

Well- in Canada anyway = price a fuel filter or a Delphi fuel pump .... Come on CARQUEST -- earn our business the old fashion way - with service and honour.

These higher prices in CARQUEST -- are killing our reputation with our customers -- a recent Delphi example .... $289 from CQ ..... $215 from WPC ... which is in line with another DC at similar prices ....

wrong links in INTERCHANGE - for Canada

There is a lot happening in Gen 2 e-cat during the past few days -- and you will see more INTERCHANGE data be added ... now we have to find the the lines that need to be corrected for CANADA ... see image --remember you can click to make the image bigger

bad lines awaiting updating

BAT - use the Cdn part # ( not the easier to understand USA part # - bit I digress )

CLP - not our line of Calipers - we use CAL and set CLP for something else

Some interesting problems in lines like GSK and SLS ... not sure what is going on --

Problems are easy to spot --look for parts that say NIF ( not in file ) and therefore do not price- these mistakes have been sent in for correction - should be fixed in a few days ... one of the nice things for Gen-2 -fast fixes...

Common Sense fix to EXPLORIS - from Sourcing BACK To E-Cat

Here is a common sense request aired at last nights staff meeting ( from Ken N ) ...how can you add the missing functionality in Exploris to go from E-Cat to Sourcing and ....drum roll please ......... BACK to E-cat to continue selling more parts for that customer.

Ken tells us that is is especially annoying when dealing with a CASH Customer.

Please - try it yourself - and see what 'limiting' software does to a busy counterman ...

Can you tell me if this is on ant radar to get fixed ... and if so - an ETA --or are we the first to mention it ?? ( note to readers - Ken has mentioned this over the past year - but I have not posted it until today )

Can you think of another COMMON SENSE feature that Exploris is missing ????

Save me from my bad memory ... X lines in E-Cat

It is harder to remember facts .... here is one worth repeating -- I need you to remember this so I can ask you - in case I forget again.

ADDING X lines to Web-Link and Web-Link2

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v2 is immediate, upon editing your store filters. We should get that done this morning. ( tip - this is done by asking Raleigh )

v1 is updated monthly to match your stores' legacy MCL.
You also may request a "Weblink v1 MCL update" for your stores through the HelpLine, which will route it to e-Services. ( tip - you can have access to your MCL file or call and ask ... but from a training standpoint you learn a lot by having direct access to your MCL file )