New Credit Card Enhancement

Most distributors have customers who say something like “Keep my card on file and pay these invoices when I tell you” or “Keep my card on file and pay cylinder rent each month.” If you do this for your customers, then you know how time consuming it can be to process each card individually and then post the payments to their account. An upcoming credit card enhancement will make this part of your payment processing much easier.

The new program will feature an option to identify whether or not a customer wants regular and/or cylinder rent automatically paid with a credit card. When you run the payment program, it will check the customer file and will pay all the open invoices automatically. This includes getting the approval code from the card processor and then creating the cash receipts entry for the paid invoices. The operator doesn't have to request approval on each card nor do they have to create the cash receipt payment.

If your customer wants to pay by credit card, but they want to tell you which invoices to pay, a list of unpaid invoices will display on the screen. You simply check off the invoices they want to pay and then the program does the rest.

Have questions? Let us know by sending us an email

Spyware

Spyware can take many forms. One of the most obvious are those executable files that come in emails. Of course you never want to open one of those, but what about the ones that aren’t so obvious? What I’m talking about is the banner ads that I refer to as “click bait” or the amazing piece if software that’s going to double your computer’s speed. Is all “click bait” bad or all accessory programs loaded with spyware? No, of course not, but the idea here is to be careful and use common sense. Read the fine print and make sure that there aren’t any boxes checked that you didn’t check yourself (I’ve seen this last one more times that I can remember…). So what do we recommend that you do with this information? Well, there’s a few things that we have recommended in the past and would continue to recommend.

Those are:

• Don’t open emails or their files unless you know and trust the person or company.
• Don’t download any software unless you are positive that the source can be trusted (If you need a recommendation, just ask us).
• If you’re not sure about a particular link, then hover over it with mouse (assuming that you’re on a desktop). The actual location will be shown, in most browsers, in the bottom left-hand corner. This little trick should help you discern whether or not the link is taking you to the location stated.

With all that in mind, don’t be worried about browsing the internet. Use common sense, install spyware/malware protection, and you should be fine.

Emailing Invoices

Recently we wrote about being more efficient. Now we’re back at it with another tip.

Tip: Emailing invoices is a great way to save money and become more efficient.

First off, it saves paper and in this day and age we should all be working toward that mentality.

Secondly, it saves money. No more paper for invoices, people spending time printing those invoices, wear and tear on the printer, which then incurs cost. It also means no more purchasing and stuffing those envelopes, which saves time and materials.

Also, keep in mind while one stamp is relatively inexpensive, the cost of a thousand can add up very quickly.

On the other hand, our accounting software Cyltech can process the invoices for you. With a little bit of setup, daily and rental invoices as well as statements can be automatically sent with out anyone having to lift a finger or even remember to do it for that matter.

Have questions or suggestions? Let us know by sending an email!

Efficiency

Recently I was at a youth camp that has a philosophy of no-debt, a bare-bones crew, and to be as efficient as possible. The no-debt aspect was impressive given that the last building cost over 10 million. The bare-bones crew was in order to be able to offer more amenities, which they did. What this means is that the youth at the camp have to "pull their weight". Instead of having a large kitchen staff, the youth serve each other and they all clean up. At the end of the week, the youth tidy up the cabin and basically take on a philosophy of leave it like you found it. They also did things like automatic lights. They come on when you walk in and after a period of inactivity, they turn off. In talking to one of the leaders, they said that they always try to learn from other camps, listen to the problems that they have experienced, and then try to improve how they operate. This mentality of being more efficient, planned, streamlined, focused, and open-minded could save a company in the long run. As the year progresses on, try to think of ways that you can improve operations and create a better foundation for the company.

DataWeld’s 35th Anniversary

How many times have you heard or used the expression “How Time Flies”? This year marks DataWeld’s 35th Anniversary. Time has truly flown for us since those first few days when the concept of providing specialized software for the welding supply industry was conceived. There were very few options for the compressed gas distributor in those early days.

For those of you who have never heard the story of our humble beginnings in the welding supply industry I will tell you the short version. We were out making sales calls in Texarkana, Arkansas and happened into Langdon Oxygen Company. Reese Langdon was the owner and one of the nicest people you would ever meet. He needed a software solution to handle cylinder rent. We were a young software company with lots of energy and needed customers. We were a perfect match. Several times a week we would gather in his break room and discuss cylinder rent, special pricing, billing and any other areas unique to the industry. Many of the topics discussed in those meetings 35 years ago formed the foundation for the software you use today.

Reese and his son-in-law, Pete Snow, were two of the best mentors we could have had. Reese and Pete not only taught us the welding supply industry, they also taught us a lot about business. The success we have had as a company is due in large part to these two outstanding men.

Technology has changed dramatically in 35 years. The cell phone you use today is many times more powerful than the first computers we sold that were often the size of a refrigerator and cost more than a new Corvette! Software has also changed a lot. In those early days sitting around the table at Langdon Oxygen, we never dreamed of using cell phones, Wi-Fi, RFID or Blue Tooth technologies to solve problems for the gas distributor.

So on behalf of everyone here at DataWeld we want to say thank you to Reese Langdon, Pete Snow, each of you reading this article and every other gas or chemical distributor that has given us the opportunity to help them through the years. We sincerely appreciate the opportunity that you have given us.

Jim Broughton
CEO
DataWeld Incorporated

Spring Growth

Given that it's spring time I figured that it was a good time to talk about growth. We all know that we're supposed to work hard and that hard work is supposed to produce results (at least in most cases). Recently I heard someone put that idea into one simple sentence. The person said "growth only occurs in a state of discomfort". Everyone knows that we should and need to work hard, but what does that look like? That's why this stuck out to me. Working hard should challenge and push you out of your comfort zone. It should cause a little discomfort. It's like exercise, if you don't push yourself out of your comfort zone then you'll never improve. So as spring takes off, think about your comfort level, what it would take to get out of it, and then get moving.

Lot number headaches?

If you're having issues tracking lot numbers, then DataWeld has the solution. For more information on how we can help solve your lot number problems, just stop by our table top booth (#51) while making the rounds of all the exhibits at the IBDEA meeting in Orlando. We'd be happy to explain how AcuTrax can help track cylinder assets, keep track of lot numbers in individual cylinders and even keep track of lot numbers for bulk gases. 

If you're not attending the IBDEA meeting in Orlando, then please give me a call at 318-317-7977 or send me an email to andi@dataweld.com. We would love the opportunity to explain how AcuTrax can help get rid of your lot number headaches.

Don't have time for a phone call or email? We understand, so if you want some more information and have time for a quick 5 minute read, then click the link below to learn more!

Andrea Striegel
AcuTrax Specialist

Need help with down payments?

When a customer makes a down payment on a piece of equipment, that money needs to be tracked and eventually applied to the final invoice once the equipment is delivered. But what's the best way to handle these down payments? A few things to keep in mind would be:

• To have a Liability Account: because until the product is delivered there is a liability
• To setup a Control Account: this will be used for the inventory item
• To have an inventory item called Down Payment: this will be what the down payment is applied to
• To apply the down payment to the final invoice: this is done by entering a line item for the down payment as a negative line on the invoice

Obviously, this is a brief summary, but rest assured that we have a full write up on handling this specific scenario. If you would like to see how we can help, then don't hesitate to reach out to us.