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Case Study: Paragon Sales and Marketing

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 “dynaMACS is a one-stop-shop for sales and commission data. It’s a level of knowledge that helps our business run more efficiently.”

Matt Shearman, Co-Vice President
Paragon Sales and Marketing

Client Challenge

Paragon Sales & Marketing previously had the tedious process of manually entering mounds of data from manufacturer commission statements: industry type, customer, manufacturer, amount, date…the list goes on.

When Paragon bought out another agency, the number of lines and people doubled. “The inefficiency of manual data entry was unacceptable,” says Co-Vice President Matt Shearman.






ParagonSalesandMarketing_StatisticsdynaMACS Solution

When he saw a dynaMACS demonstration at a trade show, he was amazed at the ease with which manufacturers’ data could be imported automatically, practically eliminating data entry.

Next he saw how he could breeze through the screens to get any numbers the agency might need. He saw the ease with which data on sales and commissions, sorted any way he wanted – by manufacturer, customer, sales rep – was available.

There are dozens of layers to the information, and every data point enables Paragon to click and go deeper into the data.

“It’s a level of knowledge that helps our business run more efficiently,” Shearman says. “The near elimination of data entry alone saves money.”

What do the sales reps think? “They love it. They ask for an email report and they have what they need right away.”

Reporting capabilities are also of tremendous value to reps, who during quarterly sit-downs with wholesalers can print sales reports. “We have easy-to-read reports showing where they are selling well and identifying opportunities for improvement.”  

“It’s a tremendous help to us in so many ways,” Shearman says.

Tip #1409 – Using Customer Locations in dynaMACS

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Some agencies have the need to separate sales numbers within a customer for reasons such as:

  • Multiple buyers that are responsible for making buying decisions for different manufacturers
  • Giving credit to different reps for something shipping to a different location
  • For these purposes, dynaMACS gives you the ability to add multiple locations to a customer.  If locations are used, you can use the Filters feature to display these numbers in Sales IQ summarized, displaying them as combined under one customer, or you can display the sales numbers for the individual locations.

Filtering on Locations in Sales IQ

When displaying sales activity for a customer in Sales IQ you can view all sales activity by customer location (default) or you can summarize sales by using the Filter button.

In the following example we will look at the customer Adel’s Dist which has three locations.

  1. From the Sales IQ Home screen the Customer tab has been selected showing all customers and the sort is on the Customer column.
  2. You can see that there are three Adel’s customers displayed by individual locations.
  3. Select the Filter button.Sales IQ Home Screen 1
  4. Check the Summarize box to the right of the Customer field.
  5. Select the Apply button.Filters Screen 1
  6. The Sales IQ screen now displays all Adel’s locations summarized and totaled.Sales IQ Home Screen 2

To Create a Customer Location

The following example explains how to add a location to an existing customer.

  1. Select the Viewer icon.
  2. Select the Customer icon.dynaMACS Home Screen
  3. Highlight the Customer that you will be adding a location to.
  4. Select the Add Location button.Customer Viewer Screen 1
  5. In the Customer Maintenance screen you will notice that the customer information from the selected customer will be defaulted i.e. the address, phone #’s, etc.  Make any changes required for your new location and select the Save/Exit button.NoteCustomer Maintenance Screen
  6. The newly added location is displayed in the Customer Viewer list.
    Customer Viewer Screen 2

Case Study: Garnett Component Sales

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 “Working with dynaMACS, we are all on the same team. They truly want their software to help my business be more successful. And it does.”

Tommy Garnett, Owner
Garnett Component Sales

Client Challenge

Since founding Garnett Component Sales, Tommy Garnett committed to always strive for excellence in customer service, quality and integrity. He expects the same from his providers and vendors. When he investigated sales agency software, he had a list of requirements. In fact, he used three different software programs before finding one that met his standards.




Garnett_Component_StatisticsdynaMACS Solution

Garnett says dynaMACS is the top performer at providing critical information on sales and commissions. Garnett uses features that weren’t even available on either of the other two software programs.

But the most important component that dynaMACS brings to the table, Garnett says, is that, “dynaMACS didn’t just bring me on as a revenue source. Working with dynaMACS, we are on the same team. They truly want to help my business succeed. And it does.”

As part of that partnership, dynaMACS is there when Garnett has questions, and needs answers now. “There’s no filling out a help ticket, or waiting two days for someone to call back. dynaMACS calls within 15 minutes and helps me until my problem is solved.”

Some dynaMACS features that help Garnett stay on top of sales and commission information:

  • Reconciling commission checks with commission reports
  • Easily tracking sales history with one click of a button
  • Using graphs and charts – much more effective than spreadsheets – to visually show trends to factories
  • Tracking goals for next year based on prior-year sales data by each rep

As for usability, Garnett finds dynaMACS easy to use, straightforward and intuitive. “It’s easy to get information in a few clicks and the reporting is by far, the best.”

Tip #1408 – The Sales IQ Top Row Button Operation has Changed in Version 2013

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We have redesigned and rearranged the buttons on the dynaMACS Sales IQ screen to make navigation easier and more intuitive.  There are two new buttons on the Sales IQ Home screen, the Back button and the Home button.  You will also notice that some of the buttons have a different cosmetic look.

Old Screen . . .

Old Screen Buttons

New Screen . . .

New Screen Buttons

New Back Button

The new Back button is active on any “Drill-Down” screen.  Drill-Down screens are accessed by right clicking on a record and selecting Show Manufacturers, Show Customers, Show Sales Reps or Show Details from the Manufacturers, Customers or Sales Reps tabs in Sales IQ (Sales IQ Drill-Down).  The Back button will take you back to the previous Sales IQ screen.

  1. Notice that the Back button is disabled in the Sales IQ Home screen in the example below.  We selected the manufacturer Lee Jacob Mfg, right clicked and selected Show Customers.
  2. In the Sales IQ Drill Down screen you will see that the Back button is now activated.  By selecting this button you will be returned to the previous screen (Sales IQ Home).SIQ Screen 1

New Home Button

The new Home button will close all of the Drill-Down screens and bring you back to the Sales IQ Home screen Overview tab.

  1. In the following example we have selected the Home button from the 3rd Sales IQ Drill Down screen.SIQ Screen 2
  2. After selecting the Home button you will be returned to the Sales IQ Home screen.SIQ Screen 3

Saving Sales IQ Filters

The Sales IQ Filters are now saved after exiting Sales IQ.  You can access the saved filters by toggling between Filtered data and Normal data.

SIQ Screen 4

Case Study: Conveying & Power Transmission Solutions (CPTS)

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 “Having real-time data available wherever and whenever we need it has greatly improved the way we operate.”

Vicki Cockerham, General Manager
Conveying & Power Transmission Solutions

Client Challenge

Conveying & Power Transmission Solutions (CPTS) had some major issues with their prior sales and commission software. It was difficult to use, manual data entry took over a week and reports couldn’t be exported. “We needed software that helped us operate more efficiently, while also providing sales reps a way to access data while on the road,” says General Manager Vicki Cockerham. “It was time to find a solution that better fit our needs.”

CPTS_StatisticsdynaMACS Solution

When CPTS was introduced to dynaMACS, they saw that the software had extensive reporting capabilities, yet was surprisingly easy to use. As an added bonus, dynaMACS saved the agency days of manual data entry time and ensured everyone could access information from anywhere, anytime.

Three powerful features work together to deliver the complete solution that CPTS was looking for:

dynaMACS Mobile: Sales reps have mobile access to data anywhere they go: On the road, at a client office or home – anytime they need it. Information is always there.

Cloud: Not only can reps access the information, but because CPTS processes on the cloud, reps can see real-time information data from most smart devices. As the agency enters data, the data is uploaded to the cloud and reps can see the very latest sales information.

Reporting: The reporting process has done a complete 180°. From reports that couldn’t be exported and were difficult to generate, to present day, in which reports are generated in seconds. dynaMACS converts raw data into useful information.  The agency can choose from pre-defined reports or custom reporting options. Saving even more time, the reps can run reports themselves, rather than having to call the office.

Access to real-time data, anytime and anywhere has forever changed the way the agency runs its business.

Tip #1407 – Evaluating True Agency Performance

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Often times an agency picks up new lines and also loses lines.  When looking at sales numbers in Sales IQ, these numbers can often be distorted when you display both new manufacturers and lost manufacturers along with your active manufacturers.  The following examples will help you to identify your true sales numbers by excluding these manufacturers.  Also, modifying the manufacturers name with a symbol provides a quick visual when displaying all manufacturers in a list.

Classifying a Manufacturer Status

When adding a manufacturer the status is set to “New” by default.  Once a “New” manufacturer has met the agency’s requirements for categorizing the manufacturer as “Active”, the status should be updated.   Many agencies make this change after 1 year.  The following example shows how to change a manufacturer’s status.

  1. From the Manufacturer Maintenance screen, select Active from the drop down list in the Status field.
  2. Select the Save button and then the Exit button.Manufacturer Maint Screen

Adding a Symbol to the Manufacturer Name for an Easy Visual of New or Lost Lines

For a quick visual of “New” or “Lost” lines in your Sales IQ display list, you can modify the manufacturer name with a symbol that is easily identifiable such as “<-“ for a lost manufacturer or “<+” for a new manufacturer.   Once you change the status from “New” to “Active”, then you can remove the symbol from the manufacturer.

Note_Tip1407

In the following example you can see the new manufacturer Simplex Manufacturing which has the “<+” in front of the name and you’ll see that there are sales in the column Jan-Oct14 but no sales in previous years.  You will also see the inactive manufacturer S P & P Inc. which has the “<-“ in front of the name and no sales in Oct 14 or this YTD Jan-Oct 14  but sales in previous years indicating a lost manufacturer.

Sales IQ Screen 1

Excluding New and Inactive (lost) Manufacturers from the Sales IQ Display

You can remove “New” and “Inactive” manufacturers from the Sales IQ display by using the Filters button in Sales IQ.  This method will remove these sales numbers from the display showing you only the agency sales for “Active” manufacturers eliminating the new and lost lines.

  1. Select the Filter button from the Sales IQ screen.Filters Screen 1
  2. From the Filters screen select Active from the Status drop down list under Manufacturer.
  3. Select the Apply button.Filters Screen 2
  4. After filtering you can see that only ”Active” manufacturers are displayed in the Sales IQ screen.Sales IQ Screen 2