Multi-store address book ??

While we wait for the Multi-Store parts of Exploris one question asked today from Mike is 'how do you share contact info for suppliers with all staff in all stores??"

IF you have a good solution - and would like to see it posted here -- drop a line to info 'at' dtauto dot ca (written this way to avoid spammers.

One way we have used with moderate success is to get a FREE account in Plaxo ( www.plaxo.com ). Pick a user name and a password that you will have to SHARE with all stores.

Click on the attached image to see a sample layout

Hints - we try to use WORK and not Home for the address and phone #'s
- we do NOT use a personal name - just the company it seems to sort better - if you need the rep's name -- add it to the address and in the NOTES tag - where we add other info like prepaid levels and any other special details

One downside is that Plaxo keeps changing and adding features - we don't use these features. If you add personal names it will try to have to LINK to a buddy list ( that is too personal - just need the facts )

The J-Con had NOTHING to help multi-stores prepare list of vendors ... in fact you can't even standardize the vendor number in J-Con as they use a 'first in' for vendor numbers. We would expect Exploris to allow multi-store to set VENDOR NUMBERS to make it easier for those re-order PO's to be run and reviewed.

What do you use for multi-store supplier data ??? care to share ... ??

Avoiding the obvious - letting users help users ....

Senior management at GPI have steadfastly ignored the obvious - the POWER of message boards ( sometime called discussion boards or forum ).

A token attempt had 20 users from Exploris user advisory council try ... 20 is not large enough. That was dismal

Take World Pac ... the single lonely ( and almost totally un-noticed board for the next gen e-cat ) is available at the bottom of speedDIAL main page. Then compare that to the message boards at the 'garage' user for Worldpac - truly a dynamic board with TONS of activity ( you need a non-CARQUEST account to see these message boards )

Click on images to see difference

Message boards allow users to ask questions and help one another ...oh ...yeh ...there is some bitching that goes on ...but once you have a healthy environment the bitching simmers down and the work gets underway. If you don't try any message boards --you owe it to yourself to pick a passion or hobby and seek out a message board on the topic -( hint -- try travel or cars ). Just google it.

Once better --if you have computer problems - lots of great message boards. Note --there is an etiquette for new users to follow - first you 'lurk' --or just look and pick up on the tone of the group. One big 'faux pas' is to TYPE WITH ALL CAPITALS ... users will think you are SHOUTING.

Imagine a forum for power users to really get good - or a separate forum for new users to learn faster?

OK Bloggers --how do you do this ?

See the J-CON blog --links on the side to see how you can get the defective ratio for all customers ...so how do you do this in EXPLORIS ??

More data is at CQ Change article on defect ratio's Our regular staff blog

missing Blue Ceramic pads

see cqchange.blogspot.com for post on missing blue ceramic pads -- mntioned by Bob from Walker RD

FORCASTING BUG

For everybody that uses forcasting, if you add any non-sku parts via forcasting it will put a order point to the part and bring it into your store and system. But once you sell the part it will not come back in because the DNR flag is check!!!!!!. You will have to use inventory mass update utility to clear the DNR flag for the parts, but be careful you have to know what your doing to use this utility. Any question call me!!!!!

Next Gen e-cat ?

Any feedback on the recent improvements on Worldpac's Next Gen e-cat would be appreciated.

click here -- and give your user name and password to gain access to the thread on new e-cat

This is part of the sparsely read Jobber Message Board by Worldpac .... why poorly read -- no one promotes it -and it is on an extremely narrow focus

What do you think of the next gen e-cat .. ?

the wrong thing at the right time

this BLOG is the WRONG THING --- but something is needed ---for this is the RIGHT TIME for feedback.

What's wrong with the BLOG -- we have a hard time getting the verbal complaints into words - jobbers on the list are busy ( and in some cases very busy in part to staff shortages) --so a BLOG with limited what's new -- isn't much of a BLOG ... and for that we apologize to our ever growing list of readers. IF you would like to be an author and write articles on your experience with Exploris - drop me a line at info at dtauto dot ca (you know what to change and I avoid 100 more spam e-mails on money won in Nigeria if I avoid showing my e-mail address. Please drop a note on what and why, how & when ....tell us something about yourself

SO -- if a BLOG is the wrong thing - what could be better.

WIKI -- we urged Joe Z and the band of advisors that a WIKI is a great way to have the users make a users guide and a 'tips and tricks' documents. If you have not used a wiki before -- try www.wikipedia.org for a start and google the term WIKI. It allows users to add (or delete ) data on a variety of subjects. Imagine who a Exploris manual would look written by USERS! for USERS! If you are still a disbeliever you must NOT be impressed with wikipedia --an encyclopedia written by USERS for USERS.

Another item strongly pushed as a MESSAGE BOARD ( somethings called a discussion board or forum ). Worldpac has a disabled forum you can access on a lower left link in speedDial. A truly great message board is the worldpac one for their REGULAR repair garages - unfortunately we don;t have access - but anyone with the garage account can see what users say to other users. Message boards are available for any number of topics from bird watching to .....well ...everything .... you can soon tell what message boards have enough users to make them work -- each message boards needs NEW data daily to make it work and to get you back a timely manner.

Both of these suggestions fell upon deaf ears (repeatedly) .... time will be the judge of their actions. It does seem a shame that GPI ignored technology options that so many others use.

So -- we are stuck with BLOGS .... calling additional people who would like to post timely tips and tricks to make Exploris better ... e-mail me at info at dtauto dot ca.

Greg

cash sales on accounts

I too have mentioned that cash sales taxes should not appear on the charge account statements. I was then given a list of suggestions to correct different problem areas. This list included the suggestion that we should not process cash invoices on a charge account and should only bill them on a cash account with similar billing schedules. I am not going to start replicating account to correct this. I think this is an example of carquest not wanting us to bill on cash on a charge account so that we don't hit the pl4 trigger!
Ian

missing Left or Right in e-cat

Wayne says that e-cat setup in Exploris - can have missed setting so the LEFT or RIGHT in things like tie rod ends will be missing -- be sure your setup is right ---ask Wayne Baldwin at Simcoe for details (519-428-0860)

Charge account bug ?

This is from Jim ( who is short staffed and TOO busy -I can understand - but thought this was too good to ignore )

In J-Con you can have a customer come in and buy something on his charge account and for whatever reason he has --he wants to pay cash .... fine -- done easily in J-Con

Not so in Exploris --the GST ( a cdn federal sales tax ) shows up on the statement ... hmmm ... sure sounds like a bug to me

Quick tip for sorting FRI to save $

Spent some time on this and it is well worth it. Save alot of inventory $, alot easier in exploris then J-CON. First thing change sort code to BODY-PREFIX-SUFFIX. Then just forcast as per your profile you have set, once in the forcasting data select to view ALL PARTS. This will give you everything, but you will find alot of parts you don't need to stock that are movement codes one EG BMD52 is a 1.2 sold only 6, BCD52 sold 24. Very easy to do and all the data is right there on one page. Hope this is useful???

Forcasting

I have done alot of testing on forcasting. I find this works best for me, I set the days of inventory like this :

1.1-1.9 30 days

2.1-2.9 40 days

3.1-3.9 50 days

4.1-4.9 60 days
5.1-5.9 70 days

6.1-6.9 80 days

7.1-7.9 90 days

8.1-8.8 100 days

I set my store template like that, see images above. Also don't forget to set your days of inventory to ZERO of any movement code outside your stock depth, only way for it to pull sales outside your stock depth. EG if stock depth is 5.9, leave 6.1 and up blank or ZERO and set SALES OVERRIDE field to how many sales you need before you trigger order point outside your stock depth EG set it to 3 and anything you sell 3 or more over movement code 6 it will trigger an order point.

Forcasting

Samsung ML3051n Printer cartridges.

We have a place to buy these cartridges for $90. versus $180. from Staples
The Cartridge Centre. 1 905 970 9351. This is the place Carquest HO uses to get theirs.
They are reman units and seem to be lasting longer than the Samsung Units new.

XLine Importing

We now import Xlines with not too much difficulty. I import the data; part number, line code, cost information and core cost if needed into the template and forward to Normand for input. We then input the upcharges in the pricing menu. This sets the pricing for the customers. I use the GROUP setup for the accounts and modify any individual accounts where necessary. The process is painless after you have done a couple. The template is intimitating but if you enter only the fields I discussed it becomes much more manageable.

XLine Importing

Capture images - anything better than this

So - you have a customer who wants to see an image of a part that you have up on your screen ( actually happened just now with Ken at D&T Auto Parts using Speedial ) and he wanted to know how to capture the image and e-mail

On the Mac's it is built in and is an EXTREMELY handy feature -- but as far as I know on Windows there is nothing that allows you to select a specific part of the screen you wnat to GET ...a part from this ...... gadwin print screen - free utility

If any EXPLORIS users get a chance to see if they can add this ( or are you blocked from adding small utility programs ?? ) and let us know as a comment ....thanks

Update ---don't forget to set your preference to rectangle ( and not full screen ) -so you can select the size of the image you will grab and ignore the rest .... you draw this rectangle by clicking and dragging your mouse - see the size of the file you get ... you can also down size with a zoom option when saving --it takes some time to play and understand the option.

when is a problem NOT a problem ??

One of the BIGGEST ISSUES we have is -- in Exploris -- some things are problems to some but not others. If all you need from a computer is the ability to be a type writer and an adding machine - you requirements are a whole lot less than the few who want detailed info on to how to maximize their profits.

A saying that was coined early on -- 'is is a CHEVETTE or a BMW" was aimed at how feature rich is the system. It is a well known fact that the majority of users os ANY computer system are NOT what is classed as POWER USERS. Do you make a system that is a base system ( CHEVETTE) or do you make a full feature system with power windows and am-fm-xm radio ?? ( a BMW).

With my new part time passion - wine --- will we have a 2 BUCK CHUCK or a Chateauneuf de Pape.

Well--with the announcement of additional reports as an optional cost - we seem to have a Chevette with an add-on for power windows -- but maybe still not heated seats or air conditioning.

A recent conversation with a member of this group whp CAN post but is too disappointed to write --shows just a sampling of issues that effect him but may not trouble a less sophisticated user:
-only 3 part invoices - which jam more often -- no 2 part option ?
-the laser print option is almost here - after 4 years -and it took an extra 1000 man hours to do -1000?? really
-the inability to have a 2-20 (universal report generator) without going with 'store services' to make sure someone doesn't JAM the system with a request that is a CPU hog ( what --no limits ?? )

most of these a( and there are 72 more ) do not impact the low level user --too bad the system limits the power user...

The ONE option that could have worked is an absolute forbidden --to have a 2nd system for the power user. This is much like the unwritten 2nd system offered to power users in NAPA only after the reject the base system. Too bad - it would have been a workable option -- if only CARQUEST had more multi-store owners ... oh well ...

Fail Safe Phone jacks

This is NOT part of Exploris - but worthwhile never the less. Talking with another CARQUEST jobber and I mention I called him and no one answered ... it turns out the store was without power and as such the phone system doesn't work ... hmm ... so I told him about what we did our our three stores --

Our lines come in to the building to the phone equipment area --at this point you should have a FAIL SAFE PHONE JACK for EACH LINE ... you can plug a cheap analogue phone into this jack ( $12 at wal-mart ) - this allows you to know if any problem is between your store and the street - in which case the phone company is responsible - any problem after this point is usually your responsibility.

SO -- have someone extend these fail safe jacks DOWN TO THE COUNTER AREA and buy a cheapy phone - plug in on the first power outage.

NOTE -- these jacks bypass all the features of the in-house system. BUT --they let you keep answering your phone when the power is out .... drop by to see it in action for the past 20 years ...a tip that should be shared.

contract prices

I just have finished creating a contract price on fast moving ac plugs for my commercial customers. The outline to follow, is on the exploris help file on counter-link ( same as setting a sale price). It works very well and is pretty easy to use. We could also use this feature to create a short term sales special of our own. Check it out.
Ian