Recommend A Good Digital Order Management System?

[jojo212]

Hi Everyone,

I work at a small marketing company and I was hoping to get some guidance in terms of finding a new order / billing system for us to use.
I would really, really appreciate any advice you would be willing to share with me.

Right now we handle all orders and billing entirely by hand with paperwork, and it's train wreck. I would like to solve this problem.

Essentially, the way we currently do it is ripe for error. When we take an order, the order and the billing information is written on a paper form. The form is then handed to someone who processes it in Paypal. Then it's handed to the boss, who tacks it on his wall. Then when the book keeper comes in (twice per month), she enters it into an invoice system and files it.

Seems simple and workable in theory, but in practice, there is way too much room for human error here, and it shows. Orders and billing information are frequently misplaced, double-charged, never charged, never invoiced, or flat-out forgotten about. We have lost a lot of money over the years as a result, and annoyed more than one client. What I want to get is a digitized system that helps us keep track of orders and billing information.

I think there has to be a hundred products on the market that have the features I'm looking for and many more. But when I look around, I get so overwhelmed by the selection. So many of them have features that have to do with inventory, vendors, shipping, and other things that don't apply to my business at all. I was wondering if someone could recommend a good, simple, and easy-to-use order management system that has most or all of the features listed below.

Features I'm Looking For:

-Each client has a profile
-Profile holds record of all orders, as well as billing information
-Billing information is dated, so that we know what information is most recent
-System is encrypted, so no chance of billing information being stolen
-Some orders have recurring charge (monthly service), some are one-time
-Orders can be categorized by type (IE: web development, advertising, design, etc.)
-System is completely searchable by client name, order type, date, etc.
-Can easily browse all orders, and sort them by name, date, type, etc.
-Orders can be easily printed or exported to PDF. Bonus points if can bulk-print or bulk-export multiple orders simultaneously
-System is password-locked
-Bonus points if different levels of access, so that manager can access billing information while regular user can only access orders
-Bonus points if system is cloud-based, or otherwise can be accessed via multiple users


Do any of you use digital order management systems?
What has been your experience with them?
Can you recommend one that would cover most or all of the features I'm looking for?

Again, I appreciate any advice you would be willing to share.

Thank You Very Much,

J

[vangogh]

Welcome to the forum jojo. I know what it's like to look for software and find everything lacking in some feature or another. Having said that, nothing in your list seems like something I wouldn't expect to find. I have a few questions for you, if you don't mind, to help us figure out where to point you.

Are you looking for something online or software you install in your computers? If you're looking to install software what operating system do you use? I'm guessing Windows, but wanted to check. A third option would be an intranet which only those in your company could access. I think most of your requirements are pretty standard for the online services I've seen, but those services are likely to require an ongoing fee instead of a one time payment. At the same time they're more likely to update the application quicker and more often.

Is it important where the data is stored? Does it have to be on local computers or is it ok to be online as long as it's encrypted and secured? Do you accept payment beyond PayPal or is PayPal the only way you currently accept payment.

I know everything you want could be built as an intranet, which probably gets you closest to what you want. The downside of course is it would likely require hiring someone to do custom work to build what you want and probably some work to maintain it. It will cost more than purchasing software. It's possible there are some open source apps or even commercial apps that could be installed and customized for less cost than a full custom intranet.

If you don't mind answering a few of the questions above, I'm sure we can come up with some recommendations for you.

[Harold Mansfield]

What are you selling? A physical product that you are shipping? Or a digital product? Are you a physical store or online?

[jojo212]

Welcome to the forum jojo. I know what it's like to look for software and find everything lacking in some feature or another. Having said that, nothing in your list seems like something I wouldn't expect to find. I have a few questions for you, if you don't mind, to help us figure out where to point you.

Are you looking for something online or software you install in your computers? If you're looking to install software what operating system do you use? I'm guessing Windows, but wanted to check. A third option would be an intranet which only those in your company could access. I think most of your requirements are pretty standard for the online services I've seen, but those services are likely to require an ongoing fee instead of a one time payment. At the same time they're more likely to update the application quicker and more often.

Is it important where the data is stored? Does it have to be on local computers or is it ok to be online as long as it's encrypted and secured? Do you accept payment beyond PayPal or is PayPal the only way you currently accept payment.

I know everything you want could be built as an intranet, which probably gets you closest to what you want. The downside of course is it would likely require hiring someone to do custom work to build what you want and probably some work to maintain it. It will cost more than purchasing software. It's possible there are some open source apps or even commercial apps that could be installed and customized for less cost than a full custom intranet.

If you don't mind answering a few of the questions above, I'm sure we can come up with some recommendations for you.



Hi Van Gogh,

Thank you very much for helping me out! :)

To answer your questions...

I don't think it would be a problem to have the entire system online only, so long as it's extremely secure. My boss may disagree, but if the system looks very good otherwise, I might try and argue the point. Also, we have no problem with an ongoing fee. We utilize several subscription-based services to help us run our business, and so I have no objection to adding another if it will save us time, money, and sanity.

We mostly use Macs at the office, though if we go with an online platform, that may not matter.

I'd rather not have a custom system built from scratch. I feel like that is a bigger investment than makes sense for us at this time. We only have between 5 and 9 employees at any given time, so an intranet solution may be overkill.

Thanks again!

-J

[billbenson]

Worked for a company for a while that had 4 sales people, 3 clerks, and I don't know how many shipping / warehouse people. They used Peachtree, but Quickbooks would work just the same. I was a sales guy. Worst job I ever had, but it was a well oiled machine.

The internal processes are what made it work. I entered into peachtree an order and it was printed on yellow paper. A clerk came by periodically and entered the order or forwarded it to shipping. The clerk reviewed it for any errors. Shipping also reviewed it. Very few wrong errors went out the door. Certainly no invoices were missed.

It's really putting the internal processes in place to double and triple check everything, not the software.

[MyITGuy]

Freshbooks (FreshBooks - Online Invoicing, Accounting & Billing Software (http://www.freshbooks.com/)) seems to fit most/all of your requirements.

[jojo212]

I agree with you Bill that internal processes are important - that's the other side of what I'm doing to help us improve our billing procedure. Specifically, I'm working on convincing my boss to hire some new personnel whose main job will be billing tasks, because right now it's split up between several people who are supposed to spend their time on services, and so there is not enough accountability.

And MyITGuy - Freshbooks looks like exactly what I was hoping to find! I'm going to give them a call today to ask some questions, but I'm already fairly certain I'll want to give it a try. Thank you very much for the recommendation!