http://www.floristware.com/content/users_current/tips/ This section is updated on a regular basis with valuable information that will help our users get the greatest possible benefit from the FloristWare POS system. en Copyright 2010 Thu, 29 Jul 2010 20:20:46 -0500 http://www.sixapart.com/movabletype/ http://blogs.law.harvard.edu/tech/rss One of the most powerful features in FloristWare is the ProgressTracker - a tool that lets you follow each order throughout the entire process - helping you with preparation, shipping and delivery. It finishes up by sending a delivery confirmation to the customer. Most of the time users are advancing orders through the system from "Preparation" to "Ready To Ship" to "Out For Delivery" but, sometimes, a mistake is made and a user wishes they could move an order backwards in the process. Here is an example - they accidentally move an order from the "Preparation" area to the "Ready To Ship" area before it is actually ready. Most users don't realize that they can move the order backwards - in fact it's actually very easy! Just hold the shift key down and click the button you would typically use to advance the order. This tells FloristWare that you actually want to move the order backwards and it will ask you to confirm that. Just click "Yes" and the order moves back. http://www.floristware.com/content/users_current/tips/2010/07/moving_orders_backwards_in_progresstracker.html http://www.floristware.com/content/users_current/tips/2010/07/moving_orders_backwards_in_progresstracker.html Advanced Features Thu, 29 Jul 2010 20:20:46 -0500 employee theft and occupational fraud that any small business owner - especially those that deal with cash should read. It is also a good idea to review with some of the controls in FloristWare. Our theft prevention tools are some of the most powerful - and least used - features in the system. Nobody ever wants to think that they might have a problem but it almost certain that you will be a victim at some point. It is best to use the tools as a deterrent before you have a problem. Part 1 - The Suspicious Activity Report Part 2 - Late Cancellations Part 3 - Cash Refunds for Non-Cash Payments (Same Day) Part 4 - Cash Refunds for Non-Cash Payments Part 5 - Cash Refund On The Same Day As Sale Part 6 - Reducing Internal Theft Part 7 - Advanced]]> http://www.floristware.com/content/users_current/tips/2010/07/employee_theft_and_occupational_fraud.html http://www.floristware.com/content/users_current/tips/2010/07/employee_theft_and_occupational_fraud.html Advanced Features Tue, 13 Jul 2010 07:46:47 -0500 successful points-based incentive/loyalty program can be found in the public articles section of our website.]]> http://www.floristware.com/content/users_current/tips/2008/06/loyaltyincentive_programs.html http://www.floristware.com/content/users_current/tips/2008/06/loyaltyincentive_programs.html Advanced Features Increase Sales Reporting Sun, 08 Jun 2008 21:05:58 -0500 FloristWare now gives you the opportunity to set up different printers for Worksheets, Receipts, Statements, and more. To change your printer settings, go to Settings -> Features -> Printer Settings Select a report, choose your printer, paper size, and paper source. You can also change printers 'on the fly', simply hold down your SHIFT key while clicking the PRINT button in FloristWare. You'll see the Printers windows and can select your printer, and make any other printer output settings. Need help? Call our support line at 1.888.531.3012 http://www.floristware.com/content/users_current/tips/2008/05/multiple_printers.html http://www.floristware.com/content/users_current/tips/2008/05/multiple_printers.html Reporting Thu, 08 May 2008 21:05:39 -0500 The PROGRESS TRACKER is a great tool for reviewing the upcoming days orders and activities. Make sure you and your staff take full advantage of this very useful feature by clicking the DATE - select tomorrow, the day after tomorrow, and even more. Don't forget to check all your options in bottom menu bar, and you have even more choice. Use Progress Tracker as a quick view of what's going on in your Flower Business. Can't find Progress Tracker? Make sure it is enabled under Settigns -> Features (Manager Level) http://www.floristware.com/content/users_current/tips/2008/05/selecting_a_date_in_progress_tracker.html http://www.floristware.com/content/users_current/tips/2008/05/selecting_a_date_in_progress_tracker.html Get Faster! Thu, 08 May 2008 20:48:37 -0500 When faced with a customer that wants to pay later FloristWare gives you two main options - you can charge the sale to a house account or you can "defer" payment. Both options are similar in that they involve making a sale now and arranging for payment later. The real question is which method is better. We believe that you should only ever give an account (and charge privileges) to people or companies (usually companies) that purchase from you on a regular basis. If they purchase often then an account and the things that come with it - like the ability to generate statements, etc. - really make sense. If it is a person who just orders a few times a year "deferring" is probably the better option. There is one exception. If you have someone who is making a very large one-time purchase (a bride would be a good example) and they want to be able to make deposits prior to receiving the goods and/or make payments on an ongoing basis afterwards it is probably better to set up an account. It can then be closed out when the wedding (for example) is over. http://www.floristware.com/content/users_current/tips/2008/02/account_or_deferred.html http://www.floristware.com/content/users_current/tips/2008/02/account_or_deferred.html Question Of The Week Fri, 08 Feb 2008 15:29:56 -0500 European Flower Company is a real florist in Massachusetts offering fresh flower delivery to the following towns on a daily basis: Braintree, Cohasset, Hingham, Hanover, Holbrook, Quincy, Rockland, Norwell, Weymouth, East Weymouth, South Weymouth, North Weymouth. It is a great shop and they now have a great website!]]> http://www.floristware.com/content/users_current/tips/2007/10/great_independent_florist_website.html http://www.floristware.com/content/users_current/tips/2007/10/great_independent_florist_website.html Wed, 31 Oct 2007 20:59:22 -0500 Some very astute users have noticed a change to the order process in FloristWare v2.5 and have asked why that change was made. The change involves the enclosure card information. We used to collect it after completing the product selection. In v2.5 we are trying to get the card type and message before we begin product selection. Why? In preparing this update spent a lot of time and money working with a consultant who does nothing but train retail florists to sell better - better service AND higher average order values. He gets more than $1,000 a day and has columns in Florists Review and another magazine in the UK. He felt really strongly about getting the card message first because it allows you to get a sense of the occasion and tailor your sale to the situation. If for example you find out right away it is sympathy work you might be a little more formal and/or reserved in the way you handle the customer. If it is something really big (like a 25th wedding anniversary) then you know that you should really try and push the order value. We like to think the old way was already very good but this suggestion made a lot sense. We really want the software to help you increase average order value and improve service and this seemed like a good way to do it. http://www.floristware.com/content/users_current/tips/2007/10/why_has_the_order_process_changed_in_version_25.html http://www.floristware.com/content/users_current/tips/2007/10/why_has_the_order_process_changed_in_version_25.html Question Of The Week Sun, 28 Oct 2007 15:49:03 -0500 http://www.floristware.com/content/users_current/tips/2007/10/use_receipts_to_reduce_errors.html http://www.floristware.com/content/users_current/tips/2007/10/use_receipts_to_reduce_errors.html Mon, 22 Oct 2007 08:09:11 -0500 Enter key (Windows) or Return key (Mac) and it's the same as if you clicked the button with your mouse. This allows you to activate the buttons without taking your hands off of the keyboard. This is the best of both worlds - the speed of a keyed interface without having to remember any codes, commands or keystroke combinations. This, combined with a newly streamlined order process, makes FloristWare faster and easier to use than ever. It can take a little while to get used to, but most users quickly report that they can't imagine doing it any other way. More information on how to get the full benefit of FloristWare 2.5 will soon follow.]]> http://www.floristware.com/content/users_current/tips/2007/10/clicking_buttons_without_the_mouse.html http://www.floristware.com/content/users_current/tips/2007/10/clicking_buttons_without_the_mouse.html Get Faster! Sat, 20 Oct 2007 06:47:22 -0500 Too many FloristWare users are not shutting their computers off each night! You may have been told that you do not have to but trust us - it is is very important that you shut down and restart each machine that runs FloristWare each day. Please note that we are not just talking about shutting down FloristWare. That is of course very important (this is when FloristWare creates a back-up copy) but you also need to restart the computer. Why? The longer your computer runs the more likely it is to run into problems. The best way to avoid such problems is by "starting fresh" and restarting each machine at least once each day. You may never have a problem, but if your computer is left running for weeks or months at a time you almost certainly will, and you don't want to run in to a problem while you are in the process of taking an order. Please be sure to restart each machine at least once each day! http://www.floristware.com/content/users_current/tips/2007/06/please_shut_down_every_night.html http://www.floristware.com/content/users_current/tips/2007/06/please_shut_down_every_night.html Mon, 18 Jun 2007 16:24:10 -0500 This week you should try using the Marketing features in the FloristWare POS system to send some e-mails promoting a summer special. Don't get crazy. Sending thousands of e-mails can be dangerous if you don't have enough products to fill the orders that you get. For this experiment we'd suggest maybe 100 e-mails. Just enter FloristWare at the Manager level and choose "Marketing". From there you should build a list "name-by-name" and select only the people that you think will be interested in the special you have in mind. Make sure you put some thought into your e-mail. Remember, you don't want them to think you are sending them junk mail so try and offer them something of value. That's it! If you have any questions please give us a call. http://www.floristware.com/content/users_current/tips/2007/06/increasing_sales_send_some_ema.html http://www.floristware.com/content/users_current/tips/2007/06/increasing_sales_send_some_ema.html Increase Sales Mon, 11 Jun 2007 12:17:00 -0500 Research All New Employees Ask prospective employees for permission to do a background check. If they don’t give their consent you should probably avoid them. If they do give their consent you can take it to the next level - check with previous employers and maybe even consider hiring a service to look into their background more thoroughly. Use The Security Tools In FloristWare FloristWare gives you excellent tools for monitoring suspicious activity. Not only should you use these tools, you should make it known to the staff that you use them. It is always better to deter employees before theft occurs than to try and catch them afterwards. Treat Your Employees Well Theft can be as much an act of anger towards an employer as anything else. If an employee doesn’t feel appreciated or respected it is easier for them to do something they know is wrong. Conversely, it is harder to steal if you do make them feel good about themselves. Ask for their opinions. Treat them well. Make them feel like the are a part of something. Pay Good Wages By paying better than average wages you accomplish three other things. First it allows you to attract better quality employees. Second, the employee will be more inclined to appreciate their job, and they will be aware that is will be hard to get another job that pays as well if they get fired for doing something stupid. Finally, decent pay helps your employees to feel appreciated and respected - which we have already discussed as being important. Maintain A Tight Refund Policy There is less internal theft in business with strict and tightly enforced refund policies. Fortunately FloristWare makes this very easy because it forces the employee to actually find the original sale and customer information before they can issue a refund. If you believe that a certain refund doesn’t look right than you should definitely call the customer. FloristWare makes this kind of theft very easy to stop. Offer Employee Discounts Your employees are surrounded by beautiful flowers and they’ll want to be able to enjoy them at home from time to time. Give them a good deal. Any time you make a sale to an employee you can be almost certain that you would not be making the sale at all if they were not an employee. That means that there is no real opportunity cost involved - you can offer the flowers to your employee at or slightly above your actual cost. This will help the employee fell valued and appreciated, making them less likely to steal. It will also increase their appreciation for their job. Never Take Cash From The Drawer Even if you are the owner and technically all the money is yours you should never, ever take cash from the register. There are several reasons. It gives the impression that controls are loose - that cash can be taken and not be missed. It also leads to hard feelings that can lead to theft. Your employees work hard to put that cash in the drawer - if they see you casually scoop it out it undermines their efforts. And while $50 might not seem like a lot to you, your employees are acutely aware that they might have to work a whole shift on their feet to make that much money. Whenever they sense the disparity in your respective incomes it becomes easier for them to rationalize theft by convincing themselves that they need the money and you don’t. Be Very Careful About Scheduling Keep a close eye on your scheduling and employees match-ups. Changing employee match-ups can be a great tool for diagnosing problems and narrowing down the list of suspects. Only allow your most trusted employees to ever work alone. On a similar note it’s a good idea to avoid having close friends working together on their own unless there is a lot of trust - they may very well like each other more than they like you! Balance The Cash Mid-Day You should periodically “cash out” one or more times during the day by printing a temporary Daily Sale Report during the day, removing the drawer and making sure that it balances. There are a couple of reasons for this. First it 'turns up the heat' on any employees who might be stealing. They will quickly realize that you know something is wrong, so this makes for a strong deterrent. More importantly it helps you figure out when things are going bad. If you are balancing the previous days cash the following morning it can be very hard to figure out what went missing and who is responsible. If you try and balance the cash two hours after opening it's much easier. Spend Time Behind The Cash Employees will feel more confident about stealing if you’re never around. Make sure to spend time around the cash register and safe. Make sure they know that you are keeping an eye on things. We mean that literally! You want them to see you looking at the cash register and the transactions that take place on a regular basis. Install A Security Camera A working security camera installed over the cash area will of course be very helpful if you are ever held up, but more importantly it will help deter employees from stealing from you. Other Quick Rules: Employees cannot leave bags, purses, packs, etc., near the register. Employees cannot enter their own purchases. Employees cannot enter purchases for family or friends. ]]> http://www.floristware.com/content/users_current/tips/2007/06/special_interest_advanced_inte.html http://www.floristware.com/content/users_current/tips/2007/06/special_interest_advanced_inte.html Fri, 01 Jun 2007 15:04:25 -0500 Since customer information is so valuable for marketing purposes FloristWare encourages you to collect as much as possible. This information is like money in the bank. It does however take time to collect. And you may find yourself in a situation where you just don't have time to collect it, or dealing with a customer who does not want to share it. In these situations look to the yellow bar at the bottom of the screen. If it might be possible to skip certain sections you will see that option presented to you there. Just click the "Skip" button. You should not make a habit of this. Some people get lazy and skip as much information as possible all the time. Then, when they go to do some marketing, they don't have a decent group to work with. Always try and get as much information as you have time to collect and the customer is willing to share. If you have to, skip steps as needed. http://www.floristware.com/content/users_current/tips/2007/05/getting_faster_skipping_steps.html http://www.floristware.com/content/users_current/tips/2007/05/getting_faster_skipping_steps.html Get Faster! Thu, 17 May 2007 23:36:09 -0500 The FloristWare Floral POS System has a lot of features that are designed to help you with future marketing efforts by collecting customer information during the sale/order process. While using these features will help increase your sales in the long run we understand that it does take time to collect this information, and that there may be situations when (for the sake of you or the customer) you want to skip over certain sections. Here is one example. After you have made the sale and arranged for payment FloristWare starts going through several features. Depending on your settings this could include things like the Reminder Service, AdTracker, Goodbye Message, etc. Like we said, all of these features are for your benefit. If however you or the customer is in a rush and you want to skip them you have to options. First, you can skip them section by section by using the "Skip" button. This works very well if you want to skip certain sections but take advantage of certain other. If you are in a real hurry you can skip all of the post-sales steps by clicking the "Express Checkout" button. This will immediately end the sale. http://www.floristware.com/content/users_current/tips/2007/05/getting_faster_express_checkou.html http://www.floristware.com/content/users_current/tips/2007/05/getting_faster_express_checkou.html Get Faster! Wed, 02 May 2007 17:07:26 -0500