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Showing posts from January, 2013

Zila Implements Azox B2C E-Commerce Solution with B2B to Follow

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Azox has launched another new site, a consumer-facing web store that sells brush heads for professional, electric toothbrushes. This B2Cecommerce website was built for Zila to sell their Rotadent brand replacement brush heads that are designed for professional rotary toothbrushes. Soon, Zila will also have a B2B ecommerce web store to sell their other product lines to dental professionals. Zila’s B2C ecommerce website displays the brush heads in two categories, Plus and Classic, making it easy for consumers to find what they are looking for. Once a consumer has made a purchase decision, it is easy for them to add and remove products from their shopping carts. Then, when it comes time to check out, return customers have the option to login or a new customer can create an account. When the checkout screen had been reached, shipping information is calculated for the consumer and from this point, since Zila has also implemented Azox Credit Card Extension , an ACH or credit card payment ca

Hiring for the best fit

Guest Blog by Curtis L. Odom, Ed.D.         Recruiters are on the front lines of the workforce, trying to bring talent into organizations; there are a lot of qualified people out there from a credential standpoint. Fit is where the true challenge lies. Will this person fit our organization? There are many meanings to that. Does the person look and feel to others like they belong here? The answers to those questions play a huge role in the talent acquisition success. Unfortunately, recruiting and staffing is seen by the organization as an easy thing, as a lower level skill. On the contrary, it is probably one of the hardest things under the umbrella of talent management to find the right match of talent to the organization and the hiring manager that needs that talent. Organizations sometimes shy away from being very definitive about the type of person they want, commonly because they don’t want to be viewed as being biased in some way. Personally, I think this is erring too

Business events planned this week

Jan. 29 WATERFORD TWP. — The Oakland County Business Center presents Legal and Financial Basics for Small Business. 9 a.m. to noon, Tuesday, Jan. 29 at the Oakland County Executive Office Building Conference Center, 2100 Pontiac Lake Road, west of Telegraph in Waterford Township. This workshop outlines the key legal considerations for entrepreneurs operating Michigan businesses. This workshop is free, but registration is required. For registration, visit www.AdvantageOakland.com/expand or call 248-858-0783. Jan. 29 TROY — Miller Canfield is hosting “What Does Right-to-Work Mean for Michigan Employers?” 7:30 to 9:30 a.m., Tuesday, Jan. 29 at MSU Management Center, 811 W. Square Lake Road, Troy. This program has been approved for 1.50 (General) recertification credit hours toward PHR, SPHR and GPHR recertification through the HR Certification Institute. The cost is $25. For information, visit Virginia Herrick at 313-496-7548. Jan. 30 ROCHESTER HILLS — SBIR/STTR 101: Intr

Writing a book can help your business

By: Penny Carnathan Creative Director/Lead Writer at EMSI Public Relations ( www.emsincorporated.com ), in Tampa, Fla.     Professionals share t ips Writing a how-to business book or CEO memoir has become a recognized tool for business professionals to market and brand themselves and their companies. It helps them establish their expertise while sharing useful information appreciated by readers. Plus, it can introduce them to a vast new audience of potential customers. It’s a phenomenon public relations professional Marsha Friedman first noticed years ago. Friedman wrote her own book, “Celebritize Yourself,” explaining her three-step process for developing and using a book to get publicity. Today, more than 11,000 business books alone are published each year - and that doesn't include self-published e-books, according to the authors of “The 100 Best Business Books of All Time.” "Whether you're using your book to generate media, speaking opportunities or new cu

25 Great Cases for ERP System

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There are many reasons to implement an enterprise resource planning (ERP) system, such as Microsoft Dynamics ERP. Our latest white paper, 25 Brilliant Ideas to Outsmart Your Competition with Microsoft Dynamics ERP, provides 25 real cases of how different companies in varying industries benefited from implementing one of these solutions. To read these success stories, download the white paper for free from the Azox website . Many existing companies use ERP software to store both internal and external information across their entire organization in one place. This includes accounting, human resources, sales, marketing and more. When this data is located in one place, it becomes easily accessible by all employees, which in turn makes the flow of information within the business more efficient and the task of managing connections easier. This shared database typically operates real time, which ensures all information is as up to date as possible. It is also easy to install and get up and ru

Business events planned for next week

  Jan. 22 BIRMINGHAM — The Community House has assembled a group of subject matter experts for seminars. The first seminar, “Fundamentals of Michigan Entrepreneurship” is 6:30 to 8 p.m. Tuesday, Jan. 22 at The Community House, 380 South Bates St., Birmingham. Michael Witzke and John Carter, Witzke Berry Carter & Wander, PLLC and franchise placement specialist Mark Cory, FranNet of Michigan will offer to help entrepreneurs deliver their products and services to various customers, help them identify and secure their intellectual property and teach them how to minimize the many risks associated with hiring employees and independent contractors. There is no charge to attend, light refreshments will be served. To register, contact The Community House, 380 South Bates Street, Birmingham, 248-644-5832, or www.tchserves.org. Jan. 22,23,24 BIRMINGHAM/TROY — Steven Case of Financial Independence, LLC in Bloomfield Hills will give presentations on Social Security income planning

Use of Multi-Store Feature Allowed Company to Establish a Unique Shopping Environment for Separate Division, Dimond Lighting

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Another new site has gone live. Dimond Lighting  has selected our business-to-consumer (B2C) ecommerce solution  hosted in the cloud for creating an online catalog that displays their product line, which includes a variety of lamps. Dimond Lighting is a division of ELK, a company that designs and imports outdoor lighting fixtures, decorative accessories and furniture for residential, designer and commercial use. ELK has also chosen Azox for their online store and has implemented our business-to-business and customer service sales portal environments along with our e-payment solution for ACH check and credit card processing . These solutions are all built on the company’s existing ERP system, Microsoft Dynamics GP. Dimond Lighting’s online catalog displays the various lamps offered by the company. The lamps are organized by type, for example table or floor lamps, and then by style, such as contemporary, traditional or kids. As a user browses the various selections, related products are

Business events in the mix this week

Jan. 16 WATERFORD TWP. — The Oakland County Business Center presents Fundamentals of Writing a Business Plan, 9 a.m. to noon, Jan. 16 at the Oakland County Executive Office Building Conference Center, 2100 Pontiac Lake Road, west of Telegraph in Waterford Township. This workshop is $40. For registration, visit www.AdvantageOakland.com/expand or call 248-858-0783. Jan. 16 TROY — Automation Alley’s lunch 'n' learn session “Improving Your Trade Show Performance,” is 11 a.m. to 1 p.m., Wednesday, Jan. 16 at Automation Alley in Troy. To register to attend or exhibit at IMPACT 2013, or to sponsor the event, contact Events Manager Jennifer Chinn at chinnj@automationalley.com or 248-457-3228. Jan. 17 STERLING HEIGHTS —  To kick off the Macomb-OU INCubator's Lunch and Launch series in 2013, Lori Bianco, CPA and CGMA with BiancoCPA, will present "Are All Your Ducks in a Row?: How to Set Up a Bookkeeping System to Efficiently Communicate with Your CPA,"  noon

What to do after job loss

First, if possible, take some time to mourn the loss of the job and reflect briefly on events preceding the loss. Think about your strong points and focus on them. Look forward to all the possibilities that are open now that you are relieved of previous duties. Although you will have more free time, managing it is still important. If you don’t have an exercise plan, it’s a good opportunity to carve out time for that. It will help you feel better and more capable. Think about the job situation that you were in and how it was right and what about it was wrong for you. Not everybody is suitable for every job.  If you have money, invest in career counseling, it could be worth it. Keep a positive outlook, you may end with a better job.     Roberta Chinsky Matuson, Monster Contributing Writer wrote this article, Bouncing back after being laid off

January Webinar Topics: Advantages of Online Bill Pay, Secure Credit Card Processing and E-Commerce Solutions for Microsoft Dynamics GP

Throughout the month of January, Azox will be hosting three different webinars. We encourage all that are curious about our ecommerce solution or our e-payment and online bill pay products to attend one of these free informative webinars. Each one lasts around 30 minutes. Advantages of Online Bill Payment for Microsoft Dynamics GP Thursday, January 10, 2013 12:00 – 12:30 P.M. ET Online bill pay makes it easier for your online business to collect payments in a timely, effective manner. Azox Online Bill Pay can be added to a new or existing website and integrates seamlessly with Microsoft Dynamics GP. This solution allows customers to view, print and pay their invoices online, which helps speed up the payment collections process. Without the need for manual calculations, this solution also reduces likelihood of human error. Online Bill Pay and Secure Payment Processing for Microsoft Dynamics GP Thursday, January 17, 2013 12:00 – 12:30 P.M. ET Process credit cards and ACH payments secure

Laid off but not forgotten

Workplace layoffs are stressful for everyone: m o stly the targeted employees but also the bosses and the surviving employees who feel bad for the laid off workers. The survivors wonder if they'll be next and who will be assigned the task of picking up the pieces and filling the void? The effects of layoffs on surviving employees is reduced productivity and low morale. I had a teacher in high school who posted a poem on his bulletin board : "Indispensable Man" by Saxon White Kessenger. It goes on to say that there is no indispensable man, (or woman). Although humbling, it is only partially true, because like when Freddie Mercury of the rock group Queen sang, "The Show Must Go On" as he was dying from AIDS -- the world or workplace will never be the same without that person and the skills and gifts that they contributed. Yes, the show w ill go on, but like with Queen, it won't be the same show.   Here's a link to "Indispensable Man": http:/

Get more out of employees

  To start with, it's tough to boss people around. Some workers are attitudinal, some are just lazy, while others are neurotic, over- or under-conscientious or have other things going on in their lives that appear to be more important than the job they're being paid to do. The first step is to hire employees very carefully. Finding talent that is not overpriced, over confident and overqualified or the reverse is the first challenge. Being sure they reside in the realm of reality and checking their work history are paramount . Hiring young people, means restocking the staff often. Older people are sometimes over-qualified and expect higher wages plus there's the healthcare pool concern. Older people are more likely to need expensive healthcare. But older workers are more likely to know what to do in new situations, where young people fall short. Older people are usually more loyal and have a better work ethic also. (Yes, this writer is an older worker). Teaching workers ho

New Ecommerce Solutions Compatible with Microsoft Dynamics GP Provided by Azox for Two Companies

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Azox has upgraded and launched two sites, Joffrey’s Coffee & Tea Company and The Salvation Army Central Territory . The first site, Joffrey’s, has implemented Azox eSource B2B and Sales Portal ecommerce solutions. These solutions have made it possible for the company to provide streamlined checkout along with the ability to track orders and sales history of customers. Additionally, their new web store was easy to build through use of drag and drop web parts and blends in with their already existing website. Joffrey’s is also able to keep inventory quantity and pricing updated easily and monitor behavior of shoppers while using the Azox ecommerce solution , which integrates seamlessly with Microsoft Dynamics GP. Joffrey’s Coffee & Tea Company is located in Tampa, Fla. and sells gourmet, artisan roasted coffee and specialty teas, including black, green, red and white teas. Their products can be purchased at grocery stores, gourmet markets and coffee shops. Further, Joffrey’s prod