Rising costs are affecting everyone and every business at the moment, so it makes sense to find ways to reduce overheads. But how can merchants do that without cutting jobs? Demand is high in the merchanting sector and everyone is rushed off their feet; customers still expect great service, and no-one wants to reduce their workforce or cut pay. Do also bear in mind that lots of regions offer grants and loans to help businesses out, so make sure to look into what’s available in your area. Check out apprenticeship schemes too, as there is a lot of government assistance available to help with those costs. We’ve got 10 great ways merchants can cut costs without cutting headcount. 1. Transport Planning The cost of fuel is astronomical right now so even small improvements in logistics efficiency can save significant amounts of money. Plan loads to get the greatest efficiency from each vehicle; plan routes so drop-offs are grouped as much as possible; and discuss timings with customers so you can meet their actual expectations, not your interpretations of them. Many customers are happy to either wait a couple of days if it means paying less, or might be prepared to pay more for faster turnarounds, so have the conversation if it’s costing you a lot. 2. Automation Your ERP system can be a huge help in driving efficiencies. Automating repetitive, time-consuming tasks like emailing invoices, delivery notifications or reminders can free up a lot of time which could be spent more valuably on other areas like sales, merchandising or stock management. Automation can go way beyond simple emailing though, with automatic tracking and alerting across most business areas – such as: 3. Track & respond to market pricing If you’re not monitoring and reacting to the rapidly fluctuating cost price of materials, chances are you’re losing money. Use the technology tools you have to actively monitor changes in cost prices, and be prepared to change your pricing quickly. Again, your ERP system is a really valuable tool in helping with jobs like this as you can set the monitoring up automatically. 4. Stop closing for stocktakes If you are still having to close your business down to conduct a manual stock take, you are losing revenue, pure and simple. Upgrading your stock management software to a system that facilitates simpler perpetual inventory and highlights potential gaps and issues ahead of time will let you continue trading with greater accuracy and efficiency, and save your workforce time in the process. 5. Use advanced stock management tools When you can see at a glance how different stock lines are moving through the business, it becomes quick and easy to identify what products are performing, and which are a drain on the bottom line. KPIs like Stock Turn show exactly (and clearly) how well each product is performing so you can make better decisions about merchandising, replenishment, promotional activity or even re-processing into different length or pack configurations. 6. Protect your margins Setting limits for margin protection in your ERP system is a great way to ensure you are always trading profitably, no matter what offers are on the table. 7. Stop duplicating effort This is such a drain on time and efficiency and costs businesses a huge amount every year. Inputting information multiple times (for example, having to copy across manual delivery notes or stock information into the system) wastes time and also creates more margin for error as the information in the system isn’t always up to date. Using a real-time, digital ERP system which can have information uploaded from anywhere will save vast amounts of time and effort, and reduce error along the way 8. Understand your customers' value Knowing which customers are good for your business and which actually cost you more to serve than they make is a really powerful thing in any business. Credit controls within the system can help you to manage risk up front, and analytics tools let you see at a glance which customers are worth your time and resources, and which should perhaps be bumped down the priority list. 9. Reduce waste This is an obvious one but you might be surprised at how many ways there are to do this across the average merchant business. From including instructions on sales and production orders for dealing with leftover stock, improving stock storage options to reduce damage and loss and actively managing stock to ensure optimised churn and reduced loss, there is huge capacity to reduce waste. Also consider what efficiencies you can introduce for heating, lighting and water on-site and in-branch, as small differences can really add up. 10. Know your financials This goes beyond using a great financials package for your business management and commercial transactions. It’s also about understanding the terms your bank offers, the credit terms and credit insurance rates you can negotiate, currency exchange rates, your vehicle fleet management arrangements, insurance, employee perk schemes and yes, your energy and fuel providers. There are lots of costs involved in running a business so don’t fall into the expensive trap of ignoring the fundamental overheads. Beware false economies of course, and always look at the long-term cost implications of any agreement you enter into. It's also worth making sure you’re only paying for what you actually need. Take your ERP system, for example – if every user from driver to MD is paying the same for their system access, chances are someone will be paying over the odds for functionality they simply don’t need. Be prepared to negotiate, and look for flexibility so you only pay for the features and functions you really need. Be ready for future change One final point is around the rate of change itself. The last few years have taught us that agility is vital, that often in business we must react and respond to external circumstances and be able to pivot fast. Choose the systems for your business that allow you to do that, like cloud-based software that can adapt and evolve alongside your own shifting path. That way you are ready to move with the times, rather than having to start from scratch every time. What are you top tips for cost cutting? We'd love to hear from you!

With an increasing range of choices for where to sell their products emerging, how can merchants take full advantage of the diversifying routes to market on offer? Merchanting is changing. It’s been changing for a while, though the rate has been accelerated by the Covid-19 pandemic, the environmentally conscious drive for climate change and of course, political upheaval worldwide. Some changes are positive, others present challenges, and few are clear-cut. One of the opportunities is the growing number of sales channels and choices available for merchants. With a host of marketplaces springing up and a variety of new, digital platforms joining the tool kit available to merchant sales teams across the UK and beyond, the wealth of choice on offer could be confusing. Firstly, let’s take a quick look at some of the routes to market currently available to merchants Traditional, in-branch sales “But that’s not new!” we hear you cry. Well, no, of course not, but there are plenty of new tools available to help merchants optimise in-branch sales. Better merchandising tools based on shopper behaviour analytics to boost sales in-branch Enhanced stock optimisation in ERP to better define stock profile and promotional activity based on data-driven insights In-branch digital kiosks and faster trade counter service to order missing materials or supplies on-site faster Digital marketing, like social media, search engine optimisation, online advertising, email, website communication, can have a huge impact on your branch footfall New digital tools like NearSt can help local tradespeople and shoppers identify which branches have particular products in stock, thereby using the reach, power and convenience of online to drive physical footfall Direct online selling In a nutshell – your website. Whether you offer click and collect or full eCommerce including delivery, direct online selling has been on a pretty steep upward trajectory for merchants for some time, and it’s not falling away any time soon. Digital transformation is well and truly here, and it’s here for the long term. As with in-branch selling, there are plenty of ways for merchants to enhance their online selling opportunity, from brilliant digital marketing to stellar CRM. At its absolute heart though is the need for excellent usability. If the information is good, easy to find and factually correct, the customer experience will be good – and that’s incredibly important. There’s a lot your chosen eCommerce platform can do to make sure your selling opportunities are optimised, but don’t forget that your back-office system (your ERP or trading / stock management system) needs to be able to integrate with it for optimum performance. There are also plenty of options to increase the range you offer without necessarily having to stock all the product yourself. Take a look at Virtualstock, for example, which can extend the “digital aisle” almost infinitely. Marketplace selling With generalist online marketplace retailers like Amazon and eBay representing an increasing share of construction supply sales over recent years, it’s clear that the marketplace model represents a big opportunity for merchants. But can smaller independents compete on these giant platforms? Earlier in 2022, B&Q announced it too was expanding its website to incorporate a marketplace model, open to third party merchants and suppliers to list their products. More specialist than its Amazon / eBay counterparts, this could be one to watch for merchants, though it will be interesting to see whether other more consumer-facing brands will join the party. Interestingly, there are also even more specialist options emerging. One to watch is It’s Plane & Simple [add link], which offers the DIY market access to merchant sellers, giving smaller, independent merchants a great opportunity to compete with their national rivals with their increased reach. Again, as with online selling, your back office system should be able to integrate with these platforms to offer a straightforward, no fuss way to get your products listed and merchandised. We've recently created integrations with eBay and WooCommerce for example, and are working on lots more to help our customers sell in the right ways for them. “Point of use” selling tools In the age of instant gratification we now live in, with almost every conceivable product available for delivery to where you are in record time, it was only a matter of time before the merchant sector climbed on board. While your website may be able to offer this service this to an extent, via mobile connectivity and click & collect services, customers now are looking for an even greater degree of convenience. If you’ve ever been frustrated at the three day wait while your electrician or plumber waits for a particular part to come in, then you might like the sound of this next entry: Snap-It. A relatively new arrival on the scene and one proving very popular with plumbing merchants and electrical suppliers, the Snap-It app offers an on-demand order and delivery system for tradespeople on the job. Think “Deliveroo” but for plumbing supplies and potentially any other materials or products stocked by merchants. Snap-It has a growing range of delivery options to accommodate stock from handheld to large-scale construction supplies, and a search function to locate exactly what the customer needs from nearby participating merchants. Currently flourishing in London, there are plans to expand to Birmingham and beyond – definitely one to watch! Whatever options you choose, keep the foundations rock-steady As merchants now have more options than ever when it comes to their routes to market, the back office software system is incredibly important. Think of your ERP system as an anchor or hub in the core of the business, holding everything together and keeping the right information in the right places. More and more information within every merchant business is digital, from your PIM to your accounting platform to your CRM to your sales channels, so it makes sense to ensure you’re using a back office system that can not only cope, but can actively facilitate these complex pathways. Any merchant trading system worth its salt should have a high degree of interoperability, giving you more options to link in with the best-in-class platforms you want to work with. In an increasingly competitive marketplace, it makes sense to be present and competing in more places, so choose a system that can ease your journey and flex to meet the changing needs of an increasingly digital market.

Have you ever trained for a marathon? If so, you’ll know that you don’t just wake up one day and run 26 miles. You do it step by step, run by run, building up in tiny increments until you’re able to go the distance. From learning a language to climbing a mountain to developing healthy eating habits, big things are usually only achieved in little, consistent steps. Making business decisions can be similar. Big changes and major overhauls of systems and longstanding processes can feel too time-consuming or overwhelming to be possible right now, but there is huge power in small changes. If it feels like the pressure is really piling up on all sides, sometimes it can really help to think small. Here are just a few examples where thinking small might be exactly the way to win big. Local vs national While it may be tempting to take on the world when it comes to new customers, focusing on your local market is often the best place to focus. Firstly, a local market is likely to be more loyal, more frequent in its purchasing and more likely to make other local recommendations. Secondly, your cost to serve will be lower, with more efficiencies for logistics and even marketing being available to you, and your environmental impact for longer-distance delivery will be reduced. Local business searches (e.g. builders merchant near me etc) have exploded in recent years, serving as a very measurable reminder that local really is big business. Small supplier vs market leader There will always be pros and cons, but depending on the size and scale of your business, choosing a smaller supplier may well be a better fit for your business. If yours is a small or medium sized business, you may find you can get more focus and prioritisation from smaller suppliers, and even if your business is bigger, you may find the personal touch more rewarding to work with. That’s not to say that bigger suppliers don’t have their advantages of course, but don’t discount the little guys just because they’re small – sometimes the extra effort and responsive, personal service can be a big benefit. Process efficiency over total business overhaul While saving a few seconds here or there may not feel like a big win, if the time saved relates to something that happens often in your business, it will add up to significant efficiency. If you could halve the time it takes to raise a PO or sales order, check stock levels, check a customer’s purchase history, spot a replenishment issue, plan a more efficient delivery route or track down stock in the yard – how much time would you save every week? Small process chances can save huge amounts of time, just like small improvements to stock control, credit and quote management and customer service can drive significantly better profit and productivity. Having the information you need, integrated across the business and up to the minute accurate, will make every process quicker and easier, leaving your staff more productive and your customers happier. If you’re not sure where you could save time or make efficiency improvements in your business, why not book a Business Process Review and get that external viewpoint to help focus your efforts? Your software can help you It should come as no surprise to know that your ERP software (or order and stock management software) can help you when it comes to driving efficiency improvements across your business. Whether you want to make improvements to your quote management, stock control system, stocktaking processes, transport planning, logistics, invoicing or document automation, or any other area of your merchant operations, we are here to help. We’ve spent 40 years helping merchants by building effective software tools to drive operational efficiency – and we’d love to help you too. Try Merchanter Free

Timber in the blood After the best part of 40 years in the industry, Andy Ferguson knows a thing or two about timber. Straight from school he worked for a major timber importer in Liverpool before setting up Beaumont Forest Products 1986, a business he ran successfully for nearly 30 years before selling to Buildbase in 2014, part of the Grafton Group. As part of this £2.2bn turnover group, Andy became the Timber Director with responsibility for developing a timber sales strategy for over 160 merchant branches, before moving to create his own digital timber marketplace in 2018. Andy has always had a bias for doing things differently and so WoodScanner was born! We caught up with him, along with Woodscanner Product Manager Maria-Christina Antoniou, to chat about Woodscanner, the state of the market, and how merchants can prepare for what’s to come. Woodscanner – the who, the what and the why Woodscanner is the UK’s only wood comparison marketplace, a simple-to-use platform that allows users to find timber, locate new suppliers, compare stock and prices, check availability and place orders. From a seller’s perspective it opens the door to a wider but very targeted audience with complete flexibility and control over what you list. “I’ve always liked to do things differently,” says Andy. “Since I first started out, I’ve worked hard to innovate and find new and better ways of doing things, I’m never satisfied with just “how things are.” It’s always been frustrating to lose out on business because you aren’t carrying the right stock, and right from the beginning I always felt there was a place for a service like Woodscanner. It’s just taken a lot of years for the technology to catch up!” Andy’s inspiration was driven by merchanting experience, and wishing he had a tool like this back then. “I’ll never forget a particular visit to a Buildbase branch in Grimsby, many years ago. There I was, looking over the fence at the docks, where I could clearly see shipments of timber and so on. Not long afterwards, a lorry arrived from Tilbury in Essex, delivering exactly the same timber I could see behind that fence, just metres from the merchants. It made no sense – I knew there had to be a better, more efficient way to manage logistics and supply, to connect the dots of what stock is where, and help people to access it from more local markets.” Woodscanner does exactly that – it connects the dots of supply and demand. It enables buyers to find available stock at the right price faster and more conveniently, and allows sellers to reach a wider but more targeted market simply and directly. “Woodscanner was never intended as a replacement for merchants,” says Andy. “It’s an additional channel, a digital tool to connect the buy/supply community, creating new partnerships and enabling our selling Partners to deliver an enhanced service for their customers. It helps merchant buyers to find the stock they need conveniently. It’s that simple.” Woodscanner at a glance Simple selling for Partners, driven by demand “Simple” has been a central theme in the platform’s development, making sure it’s easy to use, offering the functionality that merchants wanted. “The user experience was a really important aspect of development, so that’s where we started,” says Maria. “A lot of time and effort has gone in to creating Woodscanner so that it’s easy and intuitive to use. We have really listened to what merchants want and built the solution that meets that need.” Every Woodscanner Partner that lists products gets their own secure dashboard to manage their account and fully control the inventories they list – 24/7, 365. “Our Partners can manage their page however it suits them,” says Andy. “They don’t have to put every product line on there, and they have complete control over pricing and product descriptions so it’s really flexible. Some might choose to list just a few highlighted products, others might have the entire stockholding – it’s up to them. We support quality, reliability and responsibility, and we can widen the reach for Partners that want to find new customers. Our aim is to only allow sustainably sourced products to be listed on the site because this is such an important subject for the timber industry and one that we fully support "As well as inclusion in our indispensable directory with a bespoke profile page and product listing flexibility, WoodScanner provides Partners with a range of digital marketing services, with personalised company emails going out to our database of over 1000 merchants, product launches, postings on social sedia and market alerts to advise buyers of deals or offers." What’s in it for the buyers? Woodscanner is a B2B marketplace, so it’s reaching a very specific, targeted audience, keeping it 100% relevant. Naturally, having products listed on a platform being searched by merchant buyers is going to have a higher conversion rate to purchase than a generic marketplace or Google search, but Andy says there are a lot more advantages as well. “It’s a bit like a private members’ club,” he says. “We give members access to an online central marketplace that connects them with new opportunities across multiple product categories – all in one place. It will also help them turn more enquiries into orders when looking for stock to quote on or when there is a gap in their own stock and an order needs fulfilling. No more phoning around and waiting for call backs. When existing supply channels are unable to meet demand, having access to a wider view of availability across the UK could be an invaluable tool. It’s not all about the lowest price “Contrary to popular belief,” says Andy, “Online pricing is not just a race to the bottom. People will pay more for the convenience. I have never been interested in selling the cheapest products. For me, it’s about quality, range and responsibility. I have always found that people are quite happy to pay more for good quality products, reliable service and convenience.” Meeting the demands of a changing market There are many factors currently causing challenges for the industry. The impact of Covid and lockdown is huge, of course, but it’s far from the only issue. Brexit is causing import and export delays, and there is a fundamental shortage of materials, particularly timber. On top of that there is a growing threat from retailers like Amazon increasing their share of the merchant market, supply chain models are becoming more streamlined, and of course, there is an increasing shift in customer demographic as the digital native generation represents a growing proportion of the market. “Going digital is inevitable,” says Andy. “Technology holds a lot of the answers and enables more efficiency in operations – it helps you get more from less, so you get a better return from less investment. But it takes time, and it has to be done well. You can’t afford to do digital badly, and you need to be willing to invest in it properly.” “At Beaumont, we had ecommerce years ago, before everyone else was doing it, and people thought we were mad!” he recounts. “But I had so much confidence that this was how people would want to shop in the future, that they would want the ease of being able to browse inventory online, without being hassled by a well-meaning salesperson or unable to check an item’s appearance because the shelf was empty. It’s not a replacement for traditional in-branch merchanting, but it’s a necessary extension of it these days. It’s another way to get your products in front of the right people, and that can only be a good thing. But more than that, it’s what customers expect, and if you’re not providing that service, eventually you’ll lose out.” Online is becoming a baseline expectation The demand for digital is not just driven by customers and end users – it’s rapidly becoming the norm for B2B as well, which has been massively accelerated by the pandemic. “Merchants are, on the whole, becoming more and more familiar with the online experience,” says Andy. “But we’re also now seeing importers start to embrace it more too, partly because that’s what merchants are coming to expect, and partly because they are seeing the very real benefits and efficiencies that digital systems can provide.” Digital systems and online service create efficiencies, and while there may be a fear around that costing jobs, it doesn’t necessarily have to. “What it does,” says Andy, “Is give businesses more flexibility in how they deploy the resources they have, so people aren’t wasting time on time-consuming, repetitive tasks, but focusing on the areas they can add real value.” So what does the future hold? We’ve already highlighted a lot of the challenges facing the industry, and many of them will continue to play a part. Technology will continue to streamline existing processes for supply chain, logistics, merchanting, payment systems and more. “Customers expect faster, better service and without digital, importers and distributors won’t be able to meet that demand,” he says. “So it’s really important that they embrace the modern business tools available – eCommerce, digital ERP systems, better payment systems for customers and suppliers – the whole infrastructure can be made more efficient so you can get better returns and provide better service.” Sustainability will continue to play a huge role and responsible sourcing, processing and delivery of materials needs to be high on everyone’s agenda. “I’ve always championed environmental issues and I see Woodscanner as having a real role to play there. Thinking back to Grimsby, it amazes me how much wasted haulage must be happening every day. Those logistics systems could be so much more efficient if buyers could see that the stock they wanted was actually available on their doorstep! The potential saving, and environmental impact, is huge.” “Success comes from the amount of effort you are willing to invest” So what is Andy Feguson’s advice for merchants? “Be fearless! We should be fearless and bold, we need to take chances and evolve and move forward. But we need to be willing to make mistakes, because that’s where we really learn. There is no quick fix, no silver bullet, and it takes time to get strong, sustainable results. We believe Woodscanner is a huge opportunity for the buy/supply community but it’s a long game. For those who invest the time and effort and take advantage of the tools available, it’s a valuable investment. Get your information out there, be in the right places at the right times with the right products – always in the skin. The more channels you operate in the more opportunities you have to be found, to sell your products, the more likely you are to succeed. Cast greater visibility on your product portfolio, give it time, take an active role in managing your profile and the business will come. Have confidence, but remember it’s a long game. "Any business that’s still doing things the same way as it was 40 years ago when I started out needs to take a long hard look at itself, because everything around it IS changing, and we all need to meet those changing demands, or risk losing out. Talk to the younger people in your organisation, your younger customers and suppliers, and see things from their perspective – there are different expectations nowadays and we all need to actively embrace the new technology and tools available to solve the challenges of the modern marketplace and be responsive to todays “always connected customers” "It’s always worth remembering that 'success comes from the amount of effort that you are willing to invest'.” Thank you to Andy and Maria for your time.

In Merchanter you can negotiate a deal for the whole order as well as setting prices and discounts for individual lines. To modify the whole order value you can choose to click on the Total fields in the top right corner of the Edit Order screen. Select the VAT inclusive or exclusive total figure depending on which one you wish to work on. In the whole order discount window you can see the current value of the order and enter the target value you would like to achieve. This will show the revised margin based on your entry. Once you have a value you are happy with you can choose how to apply it to the order: Spread Discount - applies a percentage discount to all the order lines in order to achieve the total you are after. Discount Max Value Line - applies a percentage discount to the order line with the highest value, leaving the other order values undiscounted Whole order discount - adds a whole order discount into the totals of the order Click 'Apply' to make the changes to the order.

When communicating with a contact on Merchanter you need to have all the relevant information at your fingertips. The contact view shows the contact details and preferences for the contact, and summary information about their company, including trading KPIs, activity timeline, company information, user notes and sales/purchasing analysis. Any call, email or relevant information can be simply recorded as a Note, appearing in the contact and customer timeline.

When entering order lines, if the active depot free stock is below the required quantity the line will display a stock warning: No Stock - there is not enough physical stock to satisfy this order Over Allocated - there is sufficient physical stock, but current allocations means there is not enough free stock With a stock warning there is also a display of the next future order (purchase, forward contract, mill order) that will replenish stock levels.

Whatever you’re looking for in a new inventory and order management system for your business – above all, make sure it’s actually usable. How many times have you bought something – a new gadget, piece of technology, an app or an appliance – because you were bowled over by what it said it could do, only to get it home and realise that actually, it just doesn’t do that. Or it does, but you’d need a degree in astrophysics to get it to work yourself. All too often, the promises we’re sold fail to deliver, either because the product just isn’t up to the job, or it’s so complicated it’s impossible to use effectively. If something isn’t usable, then all the fancy frills and techno-speak in the world will not make it worth your hard-earned money. That’s why usability lies at the heart of Merchanter – the most usable inventory and order management system for merchants. Why is usability king? A usable system enables fast, accurate and efficient business operations A usable system means productive, engaged and happy staff with the tools they need to do their jobs well A usable system reduces waste; wasted time, wasted resources, wasted energy, wasted materials and wasted trading opportunities Accurate operations ensure managers have the right information to monitor and control A well-managed business provides the understanding, information and opportunity for growth If a system isn’t usable at the ground level, all the fancy dashboards, KPIs, reports and maps mean nothing Usability gets everyone up and running faster with a new system, and keeps them more productive, day in, day out. Usability puts your business needs at the heart of the system and gives you the tools you need to do the job well. Usability means all the right functions and features to help you get more out of every working day with less effort, and it means that all the dots are joined up, avoiding duplicated effort and limiting human error. We’re not aiming for fancy – Merchanter is simple, easy to use and a hardworking tool. But it’s nice to look at, it’s designed to engage, and it makes understanding and carrying out your business operations simpler than ever before. Simple? Yes. Powerful? Absolutely. Complicated? Absolutely not. Your purpose is our purpose – so we make the systems specifically designed for your purpose. Simple, powerful, usable systems for everyday greatness.

Can your business software really help you overcome the biggest challenges facing small and medium businesses? (Spoiler alert – it’s a big YES from us) There are many challenges facing businesses of all sizes these days, from commercial to operational to human resource. We’ve taken a look at the most common problems reported by small and medium businesses in the UK today, and examined how the right software at the heart of your operations can help you address them from the very foundations of your organisation. 1. Cash flow The number one issue facing most small and medium businesses is cash flow. There are loads of different reasons for this, from delayed client payments to urgent or unexpected outgoings, but using a system which gives you a clear, accurate view of your company’s finances and commercial operations is an easy win for you. Not only can you automate invoicing and late payment reminders so there are no hold-ups with admin, your system can highlight consistent defaulters, helping you to spot issues before they arise, and can identify and target trading issues and opportunities to help you act fast to plug the gaps. 2. Indentifying (and retaining) profitable customers The first step to growing your business is to properly understand where your profits are coming from. Just because one customer orders from you every week, it doesn’t necessarily make them the right customer for you. Using software that can identify profitable, prompt-paying, expanding businesses to work with will help you to focus your efforts in the right directions, and can also help when it comes to identifying what sorts of new customers you want to attract. Equally, being able to have margin protection and automatic credit alerts built in de-risks trading for all your staff, and will let your FD sleep better at night. Keeping them is all about offering the best service – so being able to control stock, pricing and availability more easily with seamless service across all branches of your business makes that a whole lot easier. 3. Motivating employees A motivated workforce is a productive workforce. Using software that is easy to use and understand, that makes targets and goals clear and straightforward, and that actively helps users to do their jobs, is a win-win. Seeing their own performance and how their contribution helps the whole company is extremely motivating, and helps employers to see where there are opportunities for talent development, or to identify training gaps or recruitment possibilities. It also reduces frustration and avoids time wasting, as duplication of effort is reduced and many repetitive, time-consuming tasks can be automated. 4. Being too busy to do business Time management is a huge issue in any business. Choosing software which is easy to learn and use, which offers loads of automated functions to reduce daily admin time and which actively helps users to identify and follow up trading opportunities is a great way to save significant amounts of time. When analysis and reporting can be automated and simple, when invoicing and profit reports are automatically generated, and when stock taking is just part of the every-day process, imagine how much time you will have to work on the big picture stuff that you never usually have enough time for. 5. Not planning for growth It sounds strange, but many businesses fail to grow because they haven’t put enough thought into how to manage success. Using flexible software that grows with your business, that allows extra users or multiple sites to be added, all with the same integrated, 24/7 access from any smart device, gives you the agility and fluidity to grow at whatever pace your business needs. With simple, user-by-user monthly pricing there is no huge up-front bill to pay, and you get the same trustworthy service to back you up every step of the way. 6. Focusing on quantity over quality This point goes back to the idea of knowing where profits really come from in your business. There’s no point chasing the contracts that look great for turnover but which eat into profit, or the ones that take up so much time it’s not worth the investment. Software can help you to identify the right focus areas for your business so you can be confident in the decisions you make, and know when it’s the right time to walk away. 7. Too many overheads Not only can software help you to manage your stock more efficiently, thereby reducing risk and providing better service thanks to greater availability, it doesn’t have to cost a fortune in itself. Software can represent an enormous investment for a business, but with our monthly payments determined by user-numbers, you always know what you’re spending when – and the system can even let you know how many time over it’s paid for itself each month! 8. Staying current Technology moves fast. Sticking with a rigid, server-based system will eventually present you with the issue of updating, and it will be a bigger and more expensive job when the time comes. Using a cloud-based, online system allows constant updating so you’re always using the most up to date version of software, without risk to your data or any costly downtime. You can also add new modules as they are developed, so your software evolves alongside your business, always meeting the needs that your expanding organisation requires. 9. Sustainability and responsible sourcing of materials This is becoming more and more prevalent as a major concern for business, and nowhere more so than in the timber and building materials sectors. Using software that is specifically designed for these sorts of sectors automatically puts you at an advantage, because it can help you to identify, classify and optimise relationships with the right suppliers, who are sourcing, storing and distributing materials in the most responsible and sustainable ways. You can include a range of criteria when selecting suppliers to ensure they’re ones you want to work with, and what’s more the stock management facility of the software is so advanced it will enable much more efficient stocking of materials yourself. You can order more reliably based on past data to take advantage of frequency or volume based discounts with less risk, and keep fewer materials hanging around the yard or warehouse if they’re not selling through. 10. Leadership Regularly cited in the top 10 reasons that businesses fail, leadership is a big issue for some organisations. It may not seem immediately obvious that inventory and order management software can help leaders to flourish, but hear us out. If your business leaders are so bogged down in the day-to-day operations of the business that they can’t spend enough time working on bigger picture strategy, succession planning and people-management, it stands to reason that they’re not going to be fulfilling their optimum potential. Using software that frees up time and resource to allow people to spend their time in the most useful, profitable ways is surely a win for any organisation, and allows leaders to focus on leading, not wasting time on administration and operational detail. We understand that taking on a new trading system is a big decision. That’s why we have launched an all new, try-before-you-buy demo system so you can see for yourself just how usable and easy Merchanter really is. We would love to share it with you. If you’re interested in finding out more or having a play with the system yourself, please just drop us a line ( sales@ten-25.co.uk ) or call us on 01202 861606. We’d love to hear from you.

At Ten-25 we’re very proud of our heritage. For well over 35 years we have been owned and run by the same people, with the same family values and focus on customer service, and that’s not going to change. But one of the reasons we’ve been able to stay at the forefront of the industry is thanks to our ability to embrace change, and to keep moving forward. In 2018 we are very excited about the upcoming launch of our new system, UT400 Merchant Business System and Apps, a new generation of software designed to enhance sales, purchasing and stock management at businesses of all sizes. And with that drive for a new, modern approach, we are also proud to unveil our new company and system logos. We wanted a logo which alluded to our roots in the Timber and Builders’ Merchant trades, but one that was updated and embodies the sleek, straightforward, flexible power of our software. We hope you’ll agree that our new logo does all those things. Over the coming months we will be updating all our branding and collateral with our new logo. So when you see it, don’t worry – the team behind Ten-25 is the same driven, customer-focused team you’ve worked with all along. Technology stands still for no-one however, and therefore, neither will we. Here’s to a very bright 2018 and beyond.

Our customers are the most important part of what we do – they are our “why.” We love getting out to talk to them about how business is going, and we’re immensely proud of their hard work and commercial acumen. We recently caught up with long-term client Tim Payne, Managing Director at South Coast Building Supplies. We even recorded a little video of some of that conversation – just click play! Rapid expansion requires agile system capability Founded in 2008, SCBS has expanded significantly in its lifetime and now operates from four main sites: Andover, Bournemouth and two in Southampton. It offers over 3000 product lines to both trade and public customers, from timber and insulation to landscaping, drainage and plastics materials. There are many factors playing important roles in the success of SCBS, and as with any business, it is the co-ordinated interaction of all these factors which lies at the heard of its continued growth. From staff commitment to supplier reliability, customer service to accurate accounting, no cog in the wheel can afford to let the side down. We all know the world of business is relentlessly fast paced. “We can’t afford to waste time,” Tim comments. “Anything that saves time is an advantage; for example, the business software we use is robust, without much downtime. Consistent functionality across the different modules means that once you know how to perform one task, you can do anything else as well – raise a PO, prepare a despatch note, keep track of stock. That means it’s easy for any staff member to pick it up if someone is off sick, and also means new staff can get to grips with it quickly.” Having access to up to date accurate information at all times makes quick decision-making much easier, and better informed. Information is everything One area Tim says has made a huge difference to the running of the business in recent years has been the increased sophistication of analysis and reporting. “We’ve recently added an advanced reporting module to our system; Afinitis. It’s far easier and quicker to find the information you need using the system than it could ever be doing it yourself. It saves a lot of time and is really accessible.” It helps Tim run the business on a daily basis and makes many processes far simpler. “You can standardise reports easily and quickly and you know it’s always accurate and reliable,” he said. “You can cut the information any way you need it too, so it has made producing the monthly management report so much easier, with more meaningful analysis that helps to guide us in making better business decisions.” Tim states that reporting and analysis have definitely made SCBS more profitable; tiny differences here and there, being able to quickly identify profitable business relationships, and nip less profitable scenarios in the bud, all add up to significantly better results. “After discussing possibilities with Ten-25, we’ve recently added a new function which helps us to add restrictions to certain products, which has had a really positive impact on our profit margins. Being able to easily see where the money is coming from – and going – is helping us to do better business on a day to day basis.” Using the advanced business intelligence software has had a dramatic impact on SCBS, both in terms of efficiency and actual commercial performance. Tim says, “You can standardise reports easily and quickly and you know it’s always accurate and reliable, and it can cut the information any way you need it. It has made producing the monthly management report so much easier, with more meaningful analysis that helps to guide us in making better business decisions. Congratulations to Tim and the whole team at SCBS – keep up the good work! And remember, we’re with you every step of the way.

What is the value of the data you get from your software system? Well, that all depends on how you choose to use it. At Ten-25 we’re fascinated by how much you can learn from just one piece of information. Imagine, for example, having clear visibility of your key trading periods. We don’t mean seasons, months, weeks or even days, though of course you can see those too –  but we mean hours. Say for example, you see that 70% of your daily transactions are happening between 8-11am, with a heavy weighting towards Wednesday – Friday each week. All well and good. Nice to know. But actually, it’s a lot more than that – how you apply that information can really make a difference. Save more money. Make more money. There are two major areas to work on here: firstly, you can look at maximising the sales within those key trading periods, making sure you have sufficient stock and staff on hand to cope with demand, and potentially saving a lot of money at other times by streamlining systems to avoid unnecessary waste. You can look to gain incremental sales by digging deeper to find out why trading drops at other times of day. It’s really important to consider why the situation exists, whatever data you’re studying. In this instance, we’d wonder why so many sales were being concentrated into this period of the day; was it an arbitrary trend, a natural tendency within the industry or area? Or could it potentially suggest other factors: Were sales linked to email offers or new stock announcements? What was stopping people from ordering in the afternoons? Was there an issue with the website? Was stock availability an issue in the afternoons, following busy mornings? Were enough staff members on hand to help customers? Was it because the café next door is only open until 11? Could you run an offer at specific times of day or on certain days of the week to encourage people to visit at other times? Is it worth conducting additional research with your customers to understand their needs better? There are always a lot of different factors to take into account, from whether your website is performing adequately at all times of day to whether you need more or fewer staff to cope with customer demand at different times of day, to managing stock more efficiently to avoid waste. All these questions – and many more – can be looked at to reveal potential cost savings as well as opportunities for incremental sales. Limitless possibilities – with a helping hand Of course, trading times are just one piece of information. The sophistication of the trading analysis available with Merchanter allows you to understand virtually any area of trading, stock management, customer habits and finance. You can cross reference information, pull out what you need, and be confident that the information you have is always accurate and up to date. And you can then automate reports to keep track of any changes you make so you can easily see what difference your actions have made. It’s just one small example of how valuable trading analysis is when you stop and think about the implications each piece of information throws up. Need to get more valuable information about your business? We’re happy to help – get in touch to talk through your requirements.