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AI, AI, everywhere you look! Leverage AI for your business

11/28/2023

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​This is a repost from our Newsletter that goes out via email.  If you wish to subscribe, fill out any of our forms found here on MRSware.com or send an email to [email protected].
Everywhere you look there are discussions around AI, it's potential impact on work, life, and the world in general. There is so much discussion around its potential; but what does it actually do now, what can it do for me?  We'll take a minute here to explore some of the real-world uses that we are currently doing at EYOND, and outline how those same tools can be leveraged for your business.

 

AI Chat on MRSware.com

AI Chat on MRSware.com

We enabled the AI chat feature on the little chat widget that lives on our website -- you click it, you are prompted to ask a questions, then a live person connects and answers it.  However, sometimes that live person is busy, so you get a "we'll get back to you" kind of message.  Now, with AI (artificial intelligence) enabled, the chat bot answers immediately with content from the website --

Visitor: "Does MRSware have a free trial?"
AI: Yes, MRSware does offer a free trial. You can log in to their demo application to explore the features and when you're ready you can ask their support team to provide you with a blank database to continue a free trial with your own data. 

Sometime the AI doesn't know though; and will tell you so,

Apologies, but I lack data on the matter you brought up 😔. However, I'd be happy to provide information on other topics! 😁

Having an AI respond is an interesting option, and seems to do a nice job of summarizing small bits of information from various pages on the website (and there are a lot of pages between all the training classes and support documentation).

But What about Search?  The Search box is still there at the top of the page, and is still useful!  While the AI will give you those short chat-snippets, the Search actually shows you the pages matching your query -- think of it like "here is the long-form instructions for that thing you asked about."

Add AI to your own site / how is this applicable to me?  If you are interested in chat on your own site -- whether with a live person, or using the AI with pre-defined answers / trained on your site, or a combination of the all of those -- you can quickly and fairly easily add it using a tool like Tidio.  Our 7 year anniversary of using Tidio on MRSware.com is coming up the end of this December, and it has been an effective way to interact with prospects quickly, answering questions efficiently.  AI was more recently added to the features, and is free to get started -- the free tier is going to be plenty to handle most manufacturers reps' sites; if you are a distributor or manufacturer, you may run out of the included free interactions, depending on how busy your site is.
 
AI Sales Import

AI Sales Import

The MRSware Sales Importer has built-in intelligence, with the overall goal to minimize or eliminate any work necessary in the spreadsheets before you import the data.  The AI in Sales Import automatically determines if you are importing an Order summary, Invoice shipping report, or a Commission Statement, placing all the relevant data in the correct places.

There is no need to manually create new Customers, or even match up Customer Names, before import.  The importer will match to existing entries, create new ones, and allows for grouping entries so that the common practise of each Manufacturer having their own name variation for each Distributor is handled and tracked directly by MRSware.

One of the common things we run into is people spending a lot of time in the spreadsheets before entering them -- removing columns, changing names, adding columns, etc. -- all of which is unnecessary because the importer takes care of that for you.

Here is the challenge I issue to you: Give it a try.  The system takes massive files, like those from a well-known master distributor with over 30,000 rows of data in it, crunches it, enter missing customers and item numbers, and captures everything from line item details to End Users.  And it does all that for 30k rows in 20 minutes.  Have a smaller spreadsheet, or less details?  It makes even quicker work of those.

If you are not a current MRSware User and would like to see how the system handles your files, sign-up for a Free Trial and take it for a spin.  The time-savings can be quite impressive.
 

MRSware for Sales and Commission tracking from Order to Commission Payment, Opportunity tracking, Activity reporting, and many integrations with other systems.

Ideas, Enhancements, and Requests
Current MRSware User and have an idea to make the system better?  Not a MRSware User and not finding any solution for your company's current data challenges?  Open to all, the Ideas site is the place to enter what you need, review what other people are looking for, and rate/rank what you would like to see next.
 
Reps Around the Web
Supply House Times
Rep Council 2023: The bar has been raised
The 51st annual Association of Independent Manufacturers' Representatives (AIM/R) conference drew a record-setting crowd of more than 500...
 
ACHR News
2 Rep Firms Expand RectorSeal Duties
HOUSTON — RectorSeal, a manufacturer of HVACR and plumbing tools and accessories, has announced a sales territory expansion for...
 
Gift & Decorative Accessories
Top 12 Sales Representatives in the Gift Industry Named the Best of 2023
New this year, the REAs will recognize four Sales Reps of the Year, one in each of four regions. See why these reps were named the best.
 
Foodservice Equipment & Supplies
Reps Update Equipment and Supplies Sales Projections
Sales of foodservice equipment and supplies increased by 2.0% during the third quarter of 2023, per data from the Manufacturers' Agents Association for the...
 


Saving Maps, Grouping Contacts

This article highlights the use of Categories to organize and filter lists for creating sales territories on maps. Users can filter by various criteria such as city, state, sales rep, and company type, and then save these filters as Categories for easy retrieval. The article emphasizes the flexibility of this system, allowing users to efficiently manage and customize their sales efforts based on specific geographic and customer-density considerations.
 

ChangeLog: In-App Links updates and fixes; Aggregates and Metrics

This update introduces clickable links in table rows, allowing users to open entries either in the current page's details dialog or in a new tab, enhancing navigation efficiency. Notably, company links in the Customer and Account listings now directly lead to the respective company cards on the Companies Page. Additionally, improvements include the ability to edit and update Company Names, the inclusion of Business Address columns in the New Company dialog for easier import, and the incorporation of various aggregates across pages. Metrics enhancements in the Payments details dialog offer insights such as the average commission rate, commission and anticipated commission totals, average split paid to reps, and timelines from shipping to commission payment. Users are encouraged to provide feedback for further feature customization.
 

ROI with Activity Tracking

The article emphasizes the importance of assessing return on investment (ROI) in sales efforts by tracking the ratio of earnings to time spent with both manufacturers and customers. It encourages users to utilize MRSweb to record and analyze sales activities, including tracking last activity and twelve-month touches, as a reliable indicator of business success and profitability.
 

 

5 Minute Pre-Call Sales Planning

The article stresses the importance of preparation, professionalism, and having a plan during face-to-face customer interactions. It highlights the efficiency of MRSware's Contact Printout and Customer Snapshot reports, allowing users to quickly review customer activities and sales results in just five minutes, aiding in setting objectives for productive meetings.

 
 

Free Trial

We always offer a Free Trial of MRSware for those that are interested in kicking the tires to see what this is all about.  Sign-up on the web, with MRSweb, to take a look at our Demo installation with sample data ready to review.  When you are ready to test with your own data, just let us know and we will enable your own blank installation to get started.


 
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MRSware Pre-Fall Promotion, Customer Mapping, Google Sync, and Sales Importing

8/24/2023

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This is a repost from our Newsletter that goes out via email.  If you wish to subscribe, fill out any of our forms found here on MRSware.com or send an email to [email protected].

Pre-Fall Newsletter Promotion

Temperatures in Austin are still over 100 on a regular basis, and Fall can't come fast enough!  Let's usher it in with a pre-fall promotion exclusively for our newsletter recipients...  Feel like you are stuck in your current software because it is too expensive to get your data into a new system?  Prepay a year in MRSware and receive FREE data import from your current system.  If what you are using can spit out a spreadsheet file, we will import that for free.  We'll take up to 4 years of data and put it in the right spots to get you up and running right out of the gate with no downtime.  As always, MRSware includes training and support, so we'll also get you productive in your new system from the start.

MRSware for Manufacturers Reps, Sales and Commission tracking from Order to Commission Payment, Opportunity tracking, Activity reporting, and many integrations with other systems available.

Ideas, Enhancements, and Requests
Current MRSware User and have an idea to make the system better?  Not a MRSware User and not finding any solution for your company's current data challenges?  Open to all, the Ideas site is the place to enter what you need, review what other people are looking for, and rate/rank what you would like to see next.
 
Reps Around the Web
Security Sales & Integration
Alarm Protect adds LRG as Manufacturer’s Rep
Alarm Protect has announced that it has added Lanier Rep Group (LRG) as its newest manufacturer's rep to cover the southern region.
 
Gifts & Decorative Accessories
Top 12 Sales Representatives in the Gift Industry Named the Best of 2023
New this year, the REAs will recognize four Sales Reps of the Year, one in each of four regions. See why these reps were named the best.
 
Supply House Times
2023 Rep of the Year: Signature Sales
Tempted by a robust Riverside, California home construction market in 1989, my wife Beverly and I set out to pursue the American Dream.
 
Foodservice Equipment & Supplies
Forward Solutions Curating a New Rep Group
The consolidation bug bit the manufacturers' rep community the week of April 17. That's when Forward Solutions merged with both BSE Reps and...
 

Active Customer Map

When planning your visit to a particular area, make sure you don't miss anyone.  Filter Customers by City, State or Zip, sort top-down by year-to-date dollars, see where they are at on the integrated map and set up appointments.  Find yourself with a little extra time between calls?   See what prospects are in the area and get turn-by-turn navigation directly on your mobile device.  When the call is complete, don't forget to leave a note about the visit, to make future calls more productive.
 

ChangeLog: Invalid Emails view in Individuals

Easily find those addresses that are incorrectly formatted and make corrections.  Sometimes those lists we get from shows and other sources are hit-and-miss, use this feature to trim out the misses ahead of time.
 

Google Multi-Calendar Sync with MRSware

Each team member can synchronize their Google Calendar directly with MRSware, allowing the rest of the team to easily block-out times for meetings and report back to Manufacturers on important touches.  Google sync allows for the separation of business and personal calendars as well, so you don't have to mix work and home when you don't want to.
 

MRSweb Sales Import Process

Sales Import, the video!  Watch as we walk through a sales import, which can be any and all of the reports from PO to Order confirmation, Invoice shipping report, and Commission statement.  Get importing Manufacturers' spreadsheets done in minutes; large Wholesaler reports in under 20 minutes!
 

Free Trial

We always offer a Free Trial of MRSware for those that are interested in kicking the tires to see what this is all about.  Sign-up on the web, with MRSweb, to take a look at our Demo installation with sample data ready to review.  When you are ready to test with your own data, just let us know and we will enable your own blank installation to get started.

No credit cards required to take a look, no hassles to get a feel for what MRSware has to offer.
 
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What's this database all about, and why is it better than a spreadsheet?

5/11/2023

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This is a repost from our Newsletter that goes out via email.  If you wish to subscribe, fill out any of our forms found here on MRSware.com or send an email to [email protected].
​    We touched upon the subject of databases versus spreadsheets in a fairly recent blog post, "Databases take your spreadsheet headaches away", and I wanted to expand upon that with some practical examples: Let's take a look at some product sales. In this situation, we have a great new line with some cross-selling opportunity with a particular product we've carried for years. I would like to:
  1. Know who has been buying this product, when was their last purchase, and in what quantities have they bought it?
  2. Let's zero-in on our top 3 customers by quantity, and take a look at what other products they are buying already.
  3. Now that we have some top prospects for our cross-sell, let's approach them with the offer to see how receptive they are, and refine our technique before we go wide with a marketing campaign for the other buyers.

A Product's Customers
We have all these beautiful spreadsheets from our manufacturers, listing all sorts of details from last month.  Maybe someone bought our product of interest last month?  Maybe they bought it in the spreadsheet for the month before that?  There is a lot of work in answering a question that is potentially spread across many spreadsheets, even if you only want to go back one year for your answer.  You could potentially go back to the manufacturer and ask them to do the legwork to find your answer, but what is the risk here?  I wouldn't even want them getting into the thought-cycle of "you don't know who is buying this?".

However, we've been loading all that great detail into our sales system on a regular basis, and now it's time to shine.  We click over to the Product Catalog, scroll / filter / or search for our item, and click on it.  Metrics light up our screen: quantities Ordered and Shipped, total dollars spent, high/avg/low prices and the average discount given.  Click over to the Customers tab, and there it is, the list of Customers who have purchased this item.

I can take a look at the full list, or sort by recent orders; in this case, I am interested in a top-down look at the Quantity column to see who are my top buyers.

A Customer's Products
Let's look into the purchasing habits of our top three customers.  Right from this same screen, we can click the underlined Customer Name to pop up that Customer's entry in our Customers list.  Boom, once again we are presented with some great metrics for our customer -- year-to-date numbers, last year numbers, growth percentage, and 12-month variations of those.  Click over to the Products tab and visit a similar view to what we had in the Product Catalog, this time covering all the items being purchased.  Do we have some synergy?  This answer doesn't come from the metrics, but from some salesperson knowledge (with a side of our sales call notes in the Activities section).

The Approach
Now we make some decisions on next steps.  Do we set up a Project for our marketing campaign, linking Opportunities that we pursue or responses we get from our broader emails or touches during visits?  Projects helps us group our various entries from around the system to track what is going on, especially between multiple sales people executing on our marketing.  Opportunities allows us to track Close Reasons and Win/Loss -- if we get a lot of losses like "price" or "missing feature", then we have some avenues to report back to the manufacturer and perhaps follow back up on those.


Trending over time, aggregating data at different levels, isolating opportunities, and surfacing details in a digestible format.  These are some of the things that databases, and products like MRSware, do for us.  Take a look at MRSware for your Sales and Commissions, and Customer Relationship Management needs.

For a visual look at what is described in this article, login to our Demo installation, complete with sample data that highlights these use cases.  Would you like to see the same with your own data?  Sign-up for the MRSware Free Trial (no credit card required, no time limit to your evaluation).
 
    In addition to the Free Trial, which is always available, we have been offering a promotion for existing MRSware Users that would like to pay yearly.  Pre-pay a year and get 1 month free. 

This offer is also open to new members; however, we thought we might offer an alternative to help agencies make a quicker decision to move on to new software, by lowering the barrier to entry significantly:

New MRSware Subscribers: Pay 1 Year Upfront, get 1 Year Data Imported for Free

This offer is for those of you coming from an existing system, and worried about not having access to data from your old system, or just concerned about the cost of getting that data into a new system.  We want you to feel comfortable in MRSware, and part of that is seeing your customers, sales rep assignments, lines you represent, and some sales history leading up to today.  We will import a spreadsheet that your existing system exports for you, to make sure you are up and running quickly -- and now, at no additional cost!
 
    Creating one company-wide, "master" database of contact and companies  One of the typical challenges/projects we see when a new customer comes on board with MRSware is the creation of one company-wide company and ...
 
The Power of the "R" in CRM  ...maximizing your CRM application? Most companies using CRM have created a master list (database ...

Activities or Results - Which Are You Tracking?  ..., campaigns, and e-mails.  Building and sharing a Relationship Database is part of what makes a CRM ...
 
MRSware is software for Manufacturer Reps, Independent Reps, and Brokers.  We serve many industries, each performing the Rep function for their manufacturers in very similar ways.  Our system works equally well on Desktop, Tablet, and Phone, making it ideal for office staff and field rep alike.  Take a look at our website for a Free Trial, to schedule a Web Conference Demo, or just to find out more about our offering.
 
www.MRSware.com   [email protected]    (866)795-8386
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What can ChatGPT do for Manufacturers Reps?

2/23/2023

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This is a repost of our newsletter that goes out via email.  If you wish to subscribe, fill out one of our forms on this site, or send an email to [email protected].
ChatGPT    Recent    Archives    MRSware
ChatGPT has been dominating the news cycle of late.  It is a natural language model, an artificial intelligence trained to give human-like responses to regular questions.  The interesting part is that questions can build on previous answers, so you end up progressing and refining the conversation to distill information until you get what you are after.

I recently explored on the MRSware.com Blog what ChatGPT itself thought it could do for independent reps.  We had a little chat and ended up focused on sales rep training, both in generic sales training offerings available, and diving specifically into the Jan/San industry to see if I could get a couple of references that I recognized (MRSware has a lot of users in that industry, so I was bound to recognize some of the names, and indeed was not let down.  Take a look at the article on the Blog to see where we left off; then circle back here for a follow-up for Newsletter subscribers:

How can ChatGPT help me prospect leads?

This time, let's just start with the industry-specific query, to see if we can generate some actionable names to pursue right from go...  Our example rep agency has been calling on Distributors in our industry for quite some time, but is now being asked to facilitate more pull-through sales from the End Users.  Let's call on the local school districts first:

Me: What are the local school districts around the Hanover, NH area?
ChatGPT: The Hanover, NH area is served by several school districts. Here are some of the local school districts in the area:

  1. Dresden School District: The Dresden School District serves the towns of Hanover, Norwich, and Dresden, and includes Hanover High School, Frances C. Richmond Middle School, and several elementary schools.

  2. SAU 70 School District: The SAU 70 School District serves the towns of Hanover and Norwich, and includes Marion Cross School, Bernice A. Ray School, and several other schools.

  3. Mascoma Valley Regional School District: The Mascoma Valley Regional School District serves the towns of Enfield, Canaan, Dorchester, Grafton, and Orange, and includes Mascoma Valley Regional High School, Indian River School, and several elementary schools.

  4. Lebanon School District: The Lebanon School District serves the city of Lebanon, and includes Lebanon High School, Lebanon Middle School, and several elementary schools.

  5. Hartford School District: The Hartford School District serves the town of Hartford, VT, which is located just across the Connecticut River from Hanover, NH. The district includes Hartford High School, Hartford Memorial Middle School, and several elementary schools.

These are just a few of the school districts in the Hanover, NH area.

That's a good start.  I probably could have found the names through other means as well, but this was certainly quick, and I like the added detail about which towns they are serving.  That's one of the interesting parts about what you are getting with ChatGPT -- you never know what additional info it might spit out, perhaps some things you didn't even think to explore yet.

All you need to know about ChatGPT, the A.I. chatbot that’s got the world talking and tech giants clashing  -CNBC
Catch up on where ChatGPT came from with a little history of AI, and why this implementation is particularly popular.

ChatGPT launches boom in AI-written e-books on Amazon  -Reuters
Create a book and sell it online in a matter of hours.

Wall Street Banks Are Cracking Down on AI-Powered ChatGPT  -Bloomberg
The big-name banks are blocking access to ChatGPT specifically, as the unknown of what the technology can do and what it might get wrong is being explored in the financial world.
 
ChangeLog: MRSweb general updates for working with Sales Imports
A list of some recent changes to the MRSweb Sales Importer, focused on refining the import of manufacturers spreadsheets from any stage they are received, from Order Confirmation reports to Commission Statements.  8/29/2022

The Importance of Timely Commission Tracking
A general conversationally piece around some of the key benefits of keeping up to date records of your commissioned earned, with an emphasis of using available software and generating your own multi-line reports.  1/13/2023

 
Creating one company-wide, "master" database of contact and companies
Some of the keys features that make organizing and keeping track of your Customer and Prospect list among the team, including  tools like Conflict Detection and Duplicate Removal.  6/16/2008

Track Customer Preferences
A How To article with steps to record miscellaneous or personal information in MRSware -- it's all about the Relationship part of Customer Relationship Management (CRM).  6/2/2020

 
MRSware is software for Manufacturer Reps, Independent Reps, and Brokers.  We serve many industries, each performing the Rep function for their manufacturers in very similar ways.  Our system works equally well on Desktop, Tablet, and Phone, making it ideal for office staff and field rep alike.  Take a look at our website for a Free Trial, to schedule a Web Conference Demo, or just to find out more about our offering.
 
www.MRSware.com   [email protected]    (866)795-8386

 

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