Sage Payment Solutions Chargeback Assistance

What is the charge on the Sage Payment Solutions statements for "Chargeback Assistance"?
The Sage Chargeback Assistance program includes one-on-one consultation with a dedicated Chargeback Specialist who can provide you with recommendations on how to best handle a chargeback, including how to respond to notifications.  There is no limit to the amount of chargebacks that Sage will assist with as long as you are enrolled in the program.  The program includes assistance in creating a chargeback reduction plan as well as prevention tips specific to your business model, however there is no guarantee that a business will no longer have chargebacks.

Sage 100 Version 2013 Feature - Sage Advisor

Coming in Sage 100 version 2013 is the "Sage Advisor" feature which helps customers manage software updates.  Specifically, it allows users to:

• View messages on availability of new releases and product updates.
• Download installation component for manual installations.
• View maintenance and support entitlement and expiration dates.
• Schedule checks for updates.

The Sage Advisor is also expected to include a pre-requisite checker for updates and fixes.  As with today, it will be advisable in the future to ensure that before applying a product update, that this product update is compatible with any third-party software that might be installed in Sage 100 ERP.

Sage Mobile Payments Integration

Do you have users out in the field who need to collect payment?  A new feature coming in the future will assist with that process.
Sage Mobile Payments allows the employee to use their smart phone to collect payments out in the field.  The Sage Mobile Payments app captures the sales data and sends it to Sage Exchange.  Then, Sage Exchange feeds that transaction data into Sage 100 ERP Version 2013 (formerly called MAS 90 and MAS 200).

Watch for more information in a future blog post.

A/P ACH Electronic Payments

Have you ever considered paying your suppliers and other vendors by electronic payment versus a check? ACH electronic payments is a standard feature in Sage ERP 100 Accounts Payable and many of our clients are enjoying the benefits of this time-saving feature.

Setting up ACH electronic payments in your Sage ERP 100 system can increase your efficiencies, improve your cash management, reduce operating costs and lessen the risk of lost or stolen checks by using an ACH file created from the Accounts Payable module.

In Sage ERP 100, you have the flexibility to select and set up one or more financial institution(s) for your electronic payments, and for each one you select, define the format and layout of the ACH file. The feature includes pre-note functionality, and flexibility in your electronic payment distribution, including options to allocate amounts between one or more accounts.

ACH information on processed payments, historical information and vendors paid electronically is available on Accounts Payable Reports. They can include auto checks, manual checks, voided checks, reversals, credit card transfers, electronic payments, wire transfer information in any combination.

For more information on how to implement A/P ACH electronic payments in your business, please contact me at 920-968-0965 or swolf@c-gconsulting.com to start using this feature.

Sage ERP Shipping by SmartLinc

Shipping by SmartLinc

Sage recently announced availability of Sage ERP Shipping by SmartLinc--an endorsed solution designed to work with Sage 100, 300, or 500 ERP systems. Sage ERP Shipping by SmartLinc, is a web-based, multi-carrier shipping solution that integrates to Sage ERP.  Whether you ship several packages per day or thousands, SmartLinc can process shipments with speed and accuracy, enabling your company to:

• Simplify the shipping process.
• Deliver inventory to your customers more quickly.
• Reduce overall shipping costs.
• Make shipping status information available to everyone

Supports all shipping methods and carriersUtilizing "Best Method" shipping, this intelligent solution automatically selects the lowest cost carrier based on factors such as when the shipment needs to arrive and the destination. Shipping works with any carrier that you ship with today, including:

All parcel carriers, UPS™, FedEx®, USPS (through Endicia), Purolator,Canada Post, and DHL
All LTL carriers with rate import features.
Company vehicles, local couriers and regional carriers.

Download the detailed spec sheet on Sage ERP Shipping by SmartLinc.  Call me at 920-968-0963 or skreuger@c-gconsulting.com so learn more.

Version 2013 Feature - Inactivate Customers

In version 4.40 and 4.50 of Sage 100 ERP (formerly called MAS 90 and MAS 200), Sage added the ability to mark an inventory item as "inactive".
With version 2013, Sage is adding the ability to mark a customer inactive.  This feature comes with the following benefits:

• Create your own "reason code" list on why a customer has been inactivated.
• Ability to include, exclude, or only print inactive customers on reports.
• The customer audit report will track who, when, and why a customer was marked inactive.
• Inactive customers can be hidden from lookups to streamline data entry tasks.

Sage 100 Version 2013 Feature - Streamlined Item Maintenance

The redesign of item maintenace in version 2013 will carry forward the redesign started in version 4.40.  Most notably, the main difference with the screen change in this version will be the ability to see item quantities on the main tab of item maintenance. 

This is similar to the item inquiry screen in versions 4.30 and below, however this also gives users the ability to see quantities in shipping and the "on hand less in shipping" figures not available on the main screen in version 4.30 and below.

These changes are expected to help users answer the two most common questions regarding an item -- "Is the item needed in stock?" and "How much is it?"

Sage 100 Version 2013 Feature - Sage CRM Integration/Workflow

Sage CRM is getting additional attention in Sage 100 version 2013 with some additional integration and workflow enhancements.  Here are a few of the enhancements expected in the future:

• The ability to map multiple ERP companies to a single Sage CRM system.  All companies can be managed in a single CRM database with no additional license costs.
• Tasks launched from Sage CRM do not take up a Sage 100 ERP user license, resulting in lower cost of ownership.
• The "quote to order" data entry workflow in Sage CRM has been simplified.
• The ability to enter web orders and quotes from Sage CRM to Sage 100 ERP will be available on the Advanced and Premium products (formerly MAS 200 and MAS 200 SQL).

Please note: this advanced list of feature enhancements is subject to change in the future.

Sage 100 Version 2013 Features - Technology Updates

Sage 100 Version 2013 is slated to come with several "behind the scenes" technology updates.

• 64-bit ODBC driver. 
• The current ODBC driver is 32-bit, so on a 64-bit system, a user must load the 32-bit ODBC control panel applet in order to see the ODBC settings.  The new 64-bit driver should provide improved performance for applications with ODBC integrations.
• Crystal Reports version 2011. 
• This version includes the ability to export to a read-only format as well as built-in barcode support.
• Microsoft SQL 2012 support.
• Currently, the Sage ERP 100 Premium product (formerly MAS 200 for SQL) supported SQL Server 2008 R2.

Sage 100 ERP 2013 Release Guide

Sage has issued a pre-release guide for Sage 100 ERP 2013 (formerly Sage MAS 90 and 200 Version 5.0):

Click here for the complete Release Guide

Sage ERP 100 Version 2013 Roadmap

Sage has announced a tentative release timeframe for Version 2013 of the ERP 100 product line.  This release is targeted for fourth quarter 2012.  Some of the new features anticipated in this release:

• Technology updates.
• Introduction of Sage Exchange (an integrated payments platform).
• Sage CRM integration and workflow enhancements.
• Sage CRM web orders and quotes.
• Ability to set customers as "inactive".
• Ability to set vendors as "inactive".
• Invoice number expansion (from 10 to 20 characters) in Accounts Payable.
• Ability to view cleared checks in vendor maintenance.
• Streamlined item maintenance screen.

We will be covering the above topics in greater detail in future blog posts.