Article Number : 1859 |
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| Date | 3/27/2007 9:06:30 AM |
| Written By | LGM & Associates Technical Flooring Services |
| View this article at: | //floorbiz.com/BizResources/NPViewArticle.asp?ArticleID=1859 |
| Abstract | By K.J. Quinn It’s 2007. Do you know where your costs are? If you are a flooring retailer who answered “no” to this question, industry experts say you’re lagging behind the competition... |
| Article | By K.J. Quinn It’s 2007. Do you know where your costs are? If you are a flooring retailer who answered “no” to this question, industry experts say you’re lagging behind the competition. That’s because sophisticated and successful store operators incorporate one of a wide range of store management systems that promise to allow them to manage their businesses efficiently and cost effectively. “Software helps you track everything easily,” said Cathy Welsh, operations manager, CDMS. For example, “you can tell which products and colors you are selling the most. You can tell which products are producing the better profit margins and which products are producing the least and highest amount of claims.” Unfortunately, computers have a way of frightening even the most aggressive merchant. Based on industry surveys, there are still many flooring retailers who manually track movement of key business functions, such as orders, purchasing, measuring/ estimating, accounts payable and receivable. This process can be both time consuming and inefficient. “There is still a very large part of the floor covering population who feel intimidated by computers,” said Chad Ogden, president and CEO, QFloors. “A few have had negative experiences in the past and have thrown up their hands and walked away.” QFloors offers software which allows store operators to access accurate up-to-date information about their business, key financial figures that help them make wiser business decisions. The situation, however, is beginning to change, as more and more suppliers and retail groups require transactions to be conducted electronically. The benefit is the virtual elimination of costly back-office errors and delays caused by doing business with suppliers by phone, fax or mail. “Rather than spend the human hours managing a product catalogue, phoning in purchase orders and keying in vendor invoices, these tasks are becoming more and more of a computerized event,” said Don Kilbourne, vice president of sales, Pacific Solutions. “This frees up qualified staff to focus on revenue generation and the human aspects of the business: better customer service, better staff training, more creative and proactive marketing, developing relationships in the marketplace, etc.” Dealers who computerize their businesses have been known to reduce operating costs while boosting profits and customer service, experts say. Not only that, but dealers gain monetary benefit from reduced clerical errors and time saved by the elimination of redundant data entry. “Simply put, we feel our role is to help flooring professionals become more profitable and efficient,” said Tim Magnuson, president and CEO, Kashmoo. “We teach them to use technology to streamline and automate their business operations.” Kashmoo offers a software system which allows users to quickly schedule jobs and share that information with anyone who needs it. Web-based software solutions Software, like retail, has evolved over the years based on the latest industry trends, issues and developments. One of the biggest factors impacting store management, in general, is the evolution of the Internet. “Access to the Internet has enabled consumers to comparative price shop and even find availability of particular products, all before they walk through your doors,” CDMS’ Welsh said. “The Internet provides helpful information to the consumers regarding material makeup of products, as well as care and warranty information.” The Web also serves as a vehicle for business partners to conduct business online without making a major investment in software, hardware and other resources, as certain applications can be leased for a nominal monthly fee. The Gartner Group, a software industry analyst, predicts more than 25% of all software will be sold on anew online model called “software as a service” (SaaS) in the next five years. “This is a massive shift in the software industry,” Magnuson said. “With leased software, you will always have the latest version because it will run in a Web browser on a remote server hosted by the vendor. Your data will be stored in a secure off-site server farm—probably from a different vendor—and you will be able to access everything wirelessly from any computer by logging in with your password.” Indeed, there is no shortage of Web-based versions of retail store management software. For example, “floorlink.net tracks sales leads, customer contact activities, schedules and estimating diagrams in a Web-based environment that boosts collaboration and productivity,” said Steven Wang, president and founder, Floor Covering Soft. The firm offers measuring and estimating solutions to the flooring industry. The Kashmoo Scheduler from Kashmoo is a Web-based subscription service, so no up-front purchase—or upgrade—of an in-house server is required. “As a result, there is no server maintenance—both hardware and software— Magnuson explained. “These things, alone, represent savings of thousands of dollars every year.” Kashmoo provides one-on-one training through the Web for each user and an 800 technical support line for no extra charge. One development that stands to impact the way suppliers and retailers convey business information electronically is the B2B and Flooring Software Data Exchange (FSDE) standards, which make communications between software modules from various vendors transparent to users. B2B is designed to enable a flooring dealer’s computer to quickly and accurately exchange business transactions with the vendor’s computer across the Internet. The standard consists of a set of open (non-proprietary) specifications that define an accepted method of data interaction between various trading partners, according to industry members. “B2B e-commerce is finally reaching critical mass,” reports Terry Wheat, president, RFMS. “The number of vendors and retailers transferring information electronically is starting to make a noticeable impact.” RFMS, which offers an integrated B2B module, reports it is now exchanging data with over 30 flooring vendors, including various regional distributors. A similar cooperative effort between computer programmers in the flooring industry led to the recent creation of FSDE, whose goal is to provide seamless connectivity between flooring professionals’ various software systems in a reliable and easy-to-use manner. FSDE is different than the B2B standard, as it refers to the exchange of internal customer and job information between different software programs normally used within the same company, so there are no worries about data compatibility. “It cuts development time because programmers only have to write the software one time and then the program is automatically compatible with other company’s software,” QFloors’ Ogden noted. FSDE will incorporate not only business management and accounting software, but also, among others, schedulers, estimators and cutting machines. “The future of software is compatible software modules,” said Mike Myhre, president of WinSched Software and one of the programmers who helped with FSDE. “Imagine a world where different e-mail clients or Web browsers each had their own proprietary format and could only communicate with users using the same programs. The power of the Internet and the way we interact with other businesses would not be the powerful tool we have today.” In summary, the latest software systems are designed to keep retailers ahead of the game by making them aware of how their business is doing and enabling them to access sources that provide proprietary information. Key business functions such as accessing product catalogs and pricing, order status updates and electronic invoicing are available to dealers at the click of a mouse. “Implementing software does take time and effort, but it is so rewarding because the future results are outstanding,” CDMS’ Welsh said. “You no longer have to go digging through boxes or file cabinets for your answers.” |