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The opportunity benefits of EDI

Techicated

Going ahead with an EDI implementation has many benefits. There are the strategic benefits such being able to adopt new business processes. Then there are the operational benefits such as cost reduction, elimination of human error and improved cash flow. One aspect that is often not given prominence are the opportunity benefits that EDI services can provide.

There are two primary opportunity benefits: Enhanced image and competitive edge.

Most organizations have to deal with customers one way or another. These customers can be end users and consumers or other businesses. Often customer service affects how the business is seen. The product can be robust, but if the customer service is sub-par then the company image suffers. This is where using an EDI provider comes in. It provides customer service agents or staff the ability, in real-time, to see the current state of an order. This allows them to provide the customer with an accurate estimation of completion.

Competitive edge follows a similar concept. Both the strategic and operational benefits of EDI directly affect the ability of the company to respond to market changes. Potential customers can be won over with the lower costs, accurate delivery estimates, and faster order completion. This competitive edge extends to all parts of the company: customer service, sales, marketing, and management.

The benefits of using VANS for EDI

Techicated

EDI is electronically communicating with business or trading partners. The most important component of that is the actual communication between the two parties. There were times when this was done by exchanging physical discs. Unsurprisingly this was found to be inefficient and communicating via data links was adopted.

There are two ways to use communication links to transfer the EDI data. The first is to use in-house links. The other is to use an EDI provider of a VAN, also known as a Value Added Network. There are some major benefits of using VANS over in-house links:

Connectivity

When using VANS, the only concern is the link between the organization and the VAN. Any compatibility issues with other partners is not a concern. It is also much easier to manage than individual links to multiple partners. The links between the VAN and the partner is their concern. The organization need only be concerned about the EDI services.

Security

Most of the information that occurs between business partners is confidential. VANS provide a high level of security. Not only is the communication password protected, but the actual arrangements to send and receive packets has to be set up in advance on both ends.

Audit

There are complete audit trails available for all transactions. Due to the electronic nature of the system, everything is just a click away. However, not all service providers have audit trails enabled. It should be one of the requirements when selecting VANS.

Avoid Scams When You Shop Online

Techicated

Shopping online is becoming more and more popular, especially with the convenience of smartphones and tablets. When looking for online shopping deals, consumers often turn to less traditional websites that they might not be familiar with because they advertise prices at largely reduced rates when compared to large retailers. This method can be disastrous if you’re not careful.

Avoid scams when shopping online by implementing the following tips:

Only Shop Securely

One of the most important factors to consider when discount shopping is whether or not you’re using a secure website.

Secure websites will always start with “https” instead of just “http”. The additional “s” at the end signifies that the website uses an SSL certificate to ensure that your information is being protected when you shop and when you check out.

Read Reviews of eCommerce Stores First

If you plan on shopping at an eCommerce store that you’ve never heard of before, try to locate customer reviews first. They’ll tell you whether or not the website is a scam, how good the customer service is, and what type of quality you can expect from the products.

Online stores that have mostly negative reviews should be avoided at all costs.

Stay Clear of Rock Bottom Deal Websites

It might be tempting to buy a purse for $50 from a discount website that normally costs $1,000, but in most cases, you’ll either be buying a fake or you won’t receive anything at all.

Deals that sound too good to be true probably are!

 

 

Using pop-ups to improve sales and conversions

Techicated

Written by Secure Net Shop

Have you thought about using pop ups on your shopping cart e-commerce website to boost sales, and then been scared that it might remind users of spammy sites?

There is no need for concern, here are several major brands that use pop-ups in their shopping carts and other parts of the website to good effect:

Amazon – amazon.com uses a popup as soon as you load the site to encourage you to sign in. Thanks to the wealth of information they have about you, that is the starting point for recommendations, suggestions, and reminders.

McDonald’s – Since the primary motivation is to get you to enter of their restaurants, the popup on the website asks for your location. From then onwards the menu etc can be tailored to what is available locally along with suggestions of which branch to visit.

Kellog’s – This is a lightbox popup, which darkens the page and gets the user focused on the popup. In this case, it is to encourage visitors to sign up for Family rewards for coupons and special offers.

Colgate – Much like Kellog’s, there is an immediate lightbox which asks for an email address in exchanges for special offers and expert advice.

Pinterest – If you don’t have an account or not logged in to Pinterest, you will see a popup that takes over the page. You cannot see the content or proceed until you have either signed in or signed up.

 

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