Do you currently use a Sage Application?  Well you’re in luck because Sage has a bunch of promotions for customers for the month of September.  I’ll be sure to get them out quicker next time, but it’s never too late to save a buck is it?

Intelligence Reporting  - Connector and Report Designer Bundle for Sage 100, 300, and 500 ERP customers	Customers can purchase the Intelligence Reporting Module Bundle for $2,000 (buy Connector Module and get Report Designer at no cost)
Off-Plan Sage SalesLogix and Sage CRM -  Sage SalesLogix and Sage CRM (U.S. and CAN) off-plan customers who have been off-plan for six or   more months To be eligible, Sage SalesLogix and Sage CRM customers must be off-plan for six months or more To qualify, Sage SalesLogix customer must be on Sage SalesLogix version 6.2 or above Sage CRM will be issued a key for the version on record This is valid for U.S. and Canada customers only By purchasing a minimum of ten named-user licenses, the customer  is not required to pay any associated maintenance and support fees, and the customer will remain off-plan and ineligible for maintenance  upgrades or support access (until such time as customer reinstates) If purchasing Sage SalesLogix Cloud, customer will be considered new, and receive all the benefits related to a new subscription Customers who wish to have the benefits of a Sage Business Care plan, can reinstate at        any time and pay the reinstatement fees, and purchase a Sage Business Care plan moving forward that will include the additional users	Off-plan customers can purchase a minimum of ten or more named-user licenses, and their reinstatement fee will be waived. A minimum of ten users must be purchased to qualify Or, Off-plan customers can trade in their off-plan user licenses for a two-year $30 credit per user, per month, toward Sage SalesLogix cloud user licenses
Reinstatement Offer   (N-2)*     N-2 customers (whose last shipped product is generally no more than two versions behind thecurrent version), who reinstate with the election of Easy Pay     *Sage 100 ERP (versions 4.3, 4.4); Sage 300 ERP (versions 5.5, 5.6); Sage 500   ERP (versions 7.2, 7.3)	Customer can receive up to five user licenses at no charge (in any combination of Sage ERP and/or Sage CRM user licenses) Customer  receives Sage Gold Business Care upgrade at no additional charge (priced at Silver)
Upgrade Bundle (Product   Upgrades)     Sage 100 ERP customers   upgrading from: Sage 100 ERP Standard to Sage 100 ERP Advanced or Premium Sage 100 ERP Advanced to Sage 100 ERP Premium Sage 300 ERP customers upgrading from: Sage 300 ERP Standard to Sage 300 ERP Advanced or Premium Sage 300 ERP Advanced to Sage 300 ERP Premium	Customers may receive up to five user licenses at no charge (in any combination of ERP and/or Sage CRM user licenses)
Users  (Add-on user sales  only)    Applicable products include, Sage 100 ERP, Sage 300 ERP, and Sage 500 ERP   (Sage CRM users do not apply to Sage 500 ERP customers), Sage Pro ERP, and   Sage PFW ERP	Buy four users (ERP or Sage CRM) and receive one free

The post September Promotions for Sage Customers appeared first on Think, The Blytheco Blog.

Check out my interview with  Joe Torano of ACOM Solutions at this year’s Sage Summit.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=bTs5XzUMpUM

For over 25 years ACOM has been serving the needs of more  than 4,000 organizations across industries. In that time we have developed strategic  partnerships with IBM, Microsoft, Sage, Xerox, and many other technology leaders.

ACOM’s solutions automate your  manual  document and payment processes. Their solutions integrate with enterprise applications, such  as ERP and CRM, with no programming required. Typical deployments are completed  in just weeks, and require little ongoing administration, allowing smaller IT  departments to focus on their primary duties.

Attend free webinar on the Top 7 Reasons why you need ACOM’s document management system, especially for Sage 100.

The post Sage Summit 2012 Interview with ACOM Solutions appeared first on Think, The Blytheco Blog.

by Joe Panettieri @JoePanettieri

NetSuite (NYSE: N), the cloud-based ERP company, says Q2 2012 revenues rose 29 percent to $74.4 million. The company had a $9.9 million net loss, but shares still rose slightly nearly 7 percent in after-hours trading. The reason: NetSuite is raising its full-year outlook for revenue and non-GAAP EPS (earnings per share).

The company frequently credits channel partners for its success, empowering VARs to help customer migrations from on-premises ERP (enterprise resource planning) to cloud-based financial software. In its most recent quarter, CEO Zach Nelson said the company exceeded its previously stated outlook on revenue.

Still, competition could intensify in the coming months. Microsoft continues to upgrade and enhances its cloud-based Dynamics business. And SAP’s cloud-based ERP system, called BusinessByDesign, gained a software development kit (SDK) this week. The kit could allow channel partners to write application extensions for SAP’s cloud program.

NetSuite has frequently targeted SAP and Microsoft in its marketing and sales campaigns, but the company rarely targets Oracle — likely because Oracle CEO Larry Ellison is a long-time NetSuite investor.

Download your free demo of Netsuite today!

The post NetSuite: Cloud-based ERP Revenues Rise 29 Percent appeared first on Think, The Blytheco Blog.

Estimates of the rate of what is described as “CRM failure” range from 40 percent to 80 percent—and it’s generally not because CRM vendors create bad software. It’s because buyers make some crucial mistakes at the very outset. Those mistakes fall into several categories.

The first type of mistake is a failure to candidly examine the issues within a business that drive the need for a new CRM solution. Problems are by definition unpleasant, and exposing them to the light of day can be embarrassing and uncomfortable, especially for the executives under whose watch those problems have developed. Highlighting these issues is seen by many as a career-limiting move. For that reason, there can be a tendency to downplay, deflect or deny problems during the requirements gathering phase, and while that may temporarily assuage anxieties, it sows the seed for far greater problems in the future. Automating processes that don’t work is only going to get you to failure faster—and with a much higher price tag.

Recommended For You: Free SugarCRM Admin Training Series

The second common mistake is to put the priority on technology from the outset. Even if you clearly define the problems you need to address, you’ll have problems if the technology you choose cannot align to solutions those problems. If the team choosing a solution becomes enamored with a particular CRM feature, but that feature doesn’t map to a problem their company is suffering from, it shouldn’t be a major consideration in their choice. Worse yet is the solution that is impressive in its functionality, but which forces your employees to change the way they work—especially if they’re already successful. This almost guarantees a problem with user adoption, the major killer of CRM in the post-implementation phase, and can force management to employ heavy-handed tactics to force employees to use CRM.

The third common mistake is a failure to clearly define the goals of a CRM implementation, or to change goals as the decision and implementation processes are in progress. This is very common; often, the ideas built into CRM applications are new to buyers, especially small to medium-sized businesses. Exposure to sales and lead management ideas that form the basis of some CRM functionality can trigger new thinking about these aspects of the business, which is good, but that can also cause the goalposts to be moved when it comes to viewing how successful the CRM solution is, which is bad. The question, “why can’t my CRM do this?” is a painful thing to hear after the application has just gone live. The goals need to focus on today’s problems,
with consideration of problems that need to be tackled in the near future—but frequent re-prioritization of these goals will hurt your decision-making process and damage your perception of how successful your CRM solution is. A CRM application has no chance of real success if the objectives that led to its selection changed before it could be implemented.

Now that you’ve read the 3 most common mistakes to avoid, download the 10-step guide to buying the right CRM solution.

The post 3 Common Mistakes to Avoid When Making a CRM Selection appeared first on Think, The Blytheco Blog.

Got a business with international ambitions?

Sage ERP X3 is a proven solution for mid-market customers with international ambitions and multi-national requirements. Sage ERP X3 technology is available on all leader platforms in the market with End-to-end process integrity and data consistency in your Webtop across the enterprise.

Generally, X3 is ideal for businesses with 50 to 5000 employees, subsidiaries of group, international companies, and companies with a strong growth in manufacturing, distribution and services industries.

[Video: Is Sage ERP X3 Right For Me?]

1. Functionality, not complexity

When engaging in your ERP selection process looking for less complexity does not mean that you need less functionality. Sage ERP X3 provides your company with deep and broad first-class functionality, while remaining simple to implement and to use. Put together a list of your key requirements and look what systems are able to support them all within a simple, integrated design. Of course, you can simply consider looking at Sage ERP X3!

2. Integration, not interfaced

As you start you ERP selection process, you’ll realize software integration does not mean just applications that work together. It also means that they exchange real-time information,share a common database and user interface and, more importantly, they evolve together. Many ERP systems are hiding functional gaps by offering a ‘modular design’, which often requires custom interfaces and complex maintenance. Only Sage ERP X3 gives you both rich and fully-integrated functionality in all areas of your business for accounting and financial management, purchasing, inventory, sales, customer relationship management AND manufacturing.

3. Scalability

Evolution means the ability for your ERP system to grow with your business. Sage ERP X3′s integrated design provides your company with all thefunctions it needs now and in the future. You can simply activate the functions as you need them. It’s all there from the beginning. It is also a flexible system that can be easily parameterized to fit your organization’s changes, scaling up to more than 2,000 users. After your ERP selection process you’ll find you can rely on Sage ERP X3 to help you grow!

4. Web-native, not web-enabled

Web-native means that your system can be accessed the same way in both client/server and Web mode. Some ERP software systems may offer a customized web connection to dedicated functions, but few can provide your company with the ability to operate the system locally or through the web in the exact same fashion. Think of the advantage you could have with this advanced communicative architecture when expanding your business over multiple sites, or considering developing relationships with premier suppliers, partners or customers!

5. Multi-country by design

Global trade requires global tools. Not only is Sage ERP X3 available in ten languages and legislations – including China – allowing users to access the system in their own language wherever they are, but country-specific parameters, such as legal and market requirements, are centralized to offer a single global solution. Sage ERP X3 makes it easy to share common data and processes between different foreign sites or subsidiaries, while respecting their own specific usages and business rules. During your ERP selection process keep in mind that more than 3,000 companies worldwide are using Sage ERP X3 in more than 53 countries and 165,000 users.

6. Low cost of ownership

With functionality and ease of use, cost of ownership might be among your first selection criteria. And of course, all ERP vendors claim to provide their customers with the best possible return on investment. But when it comes to the total cost of YOUR project, the cost might not be as low as you thought, as your company certainly will require more services to customize its solution! We built Sage ERP X3 to dramatically reduce the time of implementation and customization, while providing most of theadvanced features you need as a standard, because reducing the cost from the implementation on is the best way to guarantee a faster return on investment!

7. Commitment to success, not loyalty programs

How much time have you spent arguing to get some support from well-known software vendors? With a business unit entirely dedicated to Sage ERP X3 operations, Sage offers you the best of two worlds: a reactive mid-sized organization committed to our customers’ success, backed by a world leading business software provider and its first-class R&D centers.

 For more info on how to reduce cost and risk with Sage ERP X3 download this whitepaper.

The post 7 Reasons to Implement Sage ERP X3 appeared first on Think, The Blytheco Blog.

7/25/2012 at 12:50 pm by The Sage ERP Team

If implemented successfully, ERP business solutions offer organizations immense possibilities to change the way they operate. CIO’s Martha Heller recently interviewed several chief information officers to get their insight regarding how companies can deploy ERP software more effectively.

One CIO told Heller that businesses must plan for potential performance dips during ERP implementation. If they do so, companies can minimize this impact and begin taking full advantage of ERP solutions earlier in the process.

Another expert encouraged organizations to think of ERP technology as a way to replace certain IT systems, much like a person would with the wiring throughout a house.

[Learn all you can about ERP at Sage Summit August 12-17th!]

“You already have the house [your business and its operations] but you are threading in a new core element. Make sure you don’t overload the job with a bunch of wonderful, amazing, bright shiny new things,” the CIO told Heller. “Be sure that your business today can run against current performance metrics before you add in process reengineering, new features and deep analytics.”

Considering a new ERP solution may be a new experience for some employees, chief financial officers must ensure they are there from start to end and support the project, another expert told Heller.

Cloud-based ERP also requires patience

Cloud computing is currently one of the most popular IT solutions available and many businesses are looking to integrate their ERP systems with the cloud. InfoWorld’s David Linthicum believes many companies simply want to perform this task immediately and without the proper planning, which can lead to issues down the road.

“First, any addition or replacement of an enterprise IT resource – storage, compute and so on – requires enough preparation so that IT resources can become at least 90 percent productive after a shift to a cloud service, whether IaaS, PaaS or SaaS,” Linthicum wrote. “This means you’ve done enough configuration and development so that existing core business systems can exploit the value of this cloud computing service right away.”

Linthicum also asserted that companies have to establish how cloud computing fits their IT requirements beforehand by launching an architecture program. Although some businesses may not have the resources to implement this type of solution, organizations must do all they can to ensure their clouds support their goals.

To learn how to maximize your ERP efforts with ACOMDocMgMt, click here!

The post Planning for ERP Solutions Makes all the Difference appeared first on Think, The Blytheco Blog.

If you are just getting started expanding your company’s reach on social media, wouldn’t it be helpful to know what other companies like yours are doing?

Find out what companies in our community are up to and what they are planning – with the Social Business Benchmarking Survey.

Take our survey before July 20. All respondents will get a free copy of the Survey Report with a complete breakdown of social media attitudes and activity by industry and job function.

Best of all respondents will also be entered for a drawing for a Kindle Fire!

The survey takes approximately 4 minutes.

Want a look at last year’s survey report? Click here.

Going to Sage Summit this year?  You can also get your free copy of the report there. 

The post #blyDEA No. 36 – Know Where You Stand, Win a Kindle Fire appeared first on Think, The Blytheco Blog.

As many of you already know, Sage Summit is in Nashville, TN this year and it’s just around the corner! There’ just one more day to sign up for the early-bird special too, so don’t miss out.  If you aren’t yet familiar with Summit, in a nutshell, it is a great learning retreat with many opportunities to network with your peers.

What you can expect to gain if you attend is premiere first-hand knowledge of Sage’s software suite, in-depth product knowledge and assistance, a great expansion of your professional network, and you can have fun the of attending conferences, awards ceremonies, and a ‘Night at the Grand Ole Opry’!

At summit, one of the topics will be the top features of one of Sage’s best selling products – Sage SalesLogix.  Here are just some of the reasons why you may want to attend Summit to hear more about Sage’s comprehensive CRM solution:

Can’t wait until Summit to learn more about Sage Saleslogix?  Try it and test drive it for free!

The post The Top 5 Things you’ll learn about Sage SalesLogix at Sage Summit appeared first on Think, The Blytheco Blog.

2012  hasn’t exactly been the year for Facebook — its stock price has been on a downfall since it went public last Friday with many calling the IPO a failure, and the new Timeline profile look has been panned everywhere, particularly amongst baby boomers. It may be tough turning around the crashing stock price, but Facebook isn’t exactly helpless when it comes to Timeline. So, with all of the controversy surrounding Facebook’s latest feature, it seems like someone at FB headquarters got the status update and decided to make a change.

The changes to Timeline aren’t grandiose and all that different firstly. In the new version, your name, job, education history, and location will be superimposed over the cover picture in white, rather than below the image in a separate area (see above image).  The look is a lot more streamlined, and while there’s no guarantee that it will appease those who are unhappy with the functionality of Timeline, it does so far, look a lot better!

Presently, this redesign is only being tested and no one outside of Facebook really knows when it will go live for everyone — if it ever goes live. Will a new version of Timeline help rescue Facebook’s plummeting stock value? Probably not. But turning around public opinion on Timeline might be a great first step.

To stay ahead of the constant changes with social media, check out our upcoming webinar on May 24th about how you can make social networking easily work for you or your business.  You can also sign up for more webinars in our Summer Marketing Series.  Enjoy!

The post Facebook Redesigning Unpopular Timeline Feature appeared first on Think, The Blytheco Blog.

A dynamic beer market along with a conservation mindset is driving a strong demand for paperless processing systems.

Join our panel for a discussion of how enabling paperless processing throughout an organization from accounts payable and accounts receivable to sales order processing and other non-accounting applications reduces your “carbon footprint” and contributes to sustainability.

Our panel includes:

•         Kurt Gail, VP Finance, West Side Beer Distributing
•         Richard Simmons, Sales Director, Altec, Inc.

Companies like West Side Beer and Sierra Nevada Brewing Company are experiencing up to a 40 percent increase in productivity and realizing a return on investment in nine months or less by automating their labor-intensive paper processes through the capture, workflow and delivery of documents.

Hey, whoever thought Blytheco would have gotten into beer.  Surprisingly, we have, and now have a myriad of resources for beer breweries and distributors alike. To see just how well doc*link is working, check out this testimonial by Bill Bales, CFO of the Sierra Nevada Brewing Company.  I’m glad he’s happy with doc*link by Altec. Hurray!

httpv://www.youtube.com/watch?v=XJ6AQVCSrfw

The post doc-link by Altec Makes Brewing More Efficient appeared first on Think, The Blytheco Blog.