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Questions and Answers
- So, what exactly is PRIICE ?
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PRIICE is an innovative software program . . .
that streams continuously changing information from suppliers to their customers, keeping them up-to-date with product information and pricing to maximize their opportunity of selling the supplier's products.
This is facilitated . . .
through a secure, web based platform onto which suppliers upload whatever information they want to distribute (such as new products, price changes, stock availability, marketing promotions, etc), and which PRIICE then downloads to those users who are entitled to receive it, based on each supplier's customer list. Speed, efficiency and security at customer level is maintained by storing the data and the operating system on each individual's computer (whether it be a desktop or mobile) thereby removing the need for the customer to constantly be online, process yet another set of logon codes and passwords or be unable to access the information at critical times should their connection become unavailable or capped.
Closed User Groups . . .
PRIICE is not a program for the general public but is limited to closed user groups within specific industries. It was created from the need to automate the flow of vital business information between suppliers and their customers, enabling each to maximize sales and increase profitability. - Why on earth would anyone need this program ?
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To maximize sales, suppliers provide various services to their customers, usually in the form of samples, information about their products, price lists, etc, so they can on-sell the suppliers products with the lowest business overhead - usually measured in terms of time and convenience.
Traditionally, suppliers have provided their customers with printed price lists, partially as a quick on-hand reference and partially to reduce the plethora of phone calls querying prices. However, as the number of suppliers grew, the more price lists the customer had to store - which made accessing the information cumbersome and tedious.
With the advent of email, most suppliers have replaced their printed price lists with spreadsheets or pdf's (portable document formats), but this has not solved the inherent problems associated with price lists, namely: they don't cater for changes in products or prices between printings, (ie, they date very quickly), customers often misfile, lose or don't use them, and even when they do there is no assurance they are using the latest one.
And now, providing even more convenience, many suppliers have introduced online ordering systems to make it easier for their customers to place their orders electronically without them having to manually write them out and fax or email them to the supplier.
But in today's fast-moving business environment that's not enough. Customers don't want to be kept holding on the phone while call centres look up basic information, they don't want to wait for someone to respond to their email requesting details and they don't want to spend their lives logging in and out of different suppliers' websites, in each case having to remember a different password and use a different format.
PRIICE has the perfect solution to solve all these issues seamlessly and cost effectively. And best of all, it requires almost no extra work on the part of the supplier - and no work at all for their customers.
Because now there's a simple system available and which lists up-to-date prices from multiple suppliers on a single screen, together with each item’s specs and information, which sorts multiple products into their various suppliers and seamlessly places orders with each supplier using only a single mouse-click!
And best of all, no logging in and out of multiple websites because this is a single program that’s always open and always ready for use!
- What does it cost users ?
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Free users - prices and product information are free to members of the trade so they can be assured of up-to-date prices and product specs from participating suppliers.
Trial version – to allow users to enjoy and experience the full power of our software, PRIICE ships free as a full working version for the first 60 days after its initial download.
Conversion to subscription - at the end of this period, each user can decide whether the additional benefits are worth the low monthly fee or whether they want to remain 'free users' - in which case all features other than prices and product information will become disabled. Users who convert, however, will retain all the information they created during their trial period to ensure continuity of their workflow.
Initial Fees - are payable on registration or when a free trial is converted to a subscription, but users who convert before their free trial expires do not pay the intial fee.
Value added tax (vat) – all prices exclude vat which is reclaimable as an input tax for registered vat vendors.
Income tax - as a valid business expense, all payments to PRIICE are fully deductible for income tax, and depending on tax brackets and the type of business there could be additional savings of up to 40% of all amounts paid.
Payment - monthly fees or subscriptions are payable by credit card or debit order drawn monthly in advance.
Different industries - fees may vary for different industries according to their type of product and mix as well as the number of participating suppliers and users in that industry. Users who subscribe to multiple industries pay full fees for the highest priced industry and 50% for each other industry. Multiple users at the same location continue to pay one-third for each industry including the first.
Multiple users at the same location - the first computer or user at every location pays the standard price, but every additional computer or user pays only one-third for the full benefit, theirs also being the full package and not a limited or scaled down version.
Networks – each computer or device needs to be loaded separately so PRIICE can identify the device to facilitate the secure and accurate updating of each supplier’s information on to that device.User's Rate Card - Fabrics
Initial Fee
A once-off initial fee to register and create the user's profile on the PRIICE system. R 599 Monthly Fees
Users can either select separate modules or the full PRIICE package: • Price lists and Product Details. FREE • Full Package, including Worksheets, Own Items and One-click Ordering from multiple suppliers. R 199
Subject to change without notice.What’s the cost to suppliers ?
Payment – Initial fees are payable on registration and other fees are payable by debit order drawn monthly in advance. Where percentage billing has been selected, monthly billing will be in arrears and payable (also by debit order) by the fifteenth of the following month.
Value added tax (vat) – all prices exclude vat which is reclaimable as an input tax for registered vat vendors.
Programming – standard fees exclude any programming required to extract or import information from or to the supplier’s accounting records, which the supplier can arrange in-house or with an independent software house, or which PRIICE can provide at their normal hourly rate.
Suppliers staff – suppliers can have as many free copies of the program as they like by merely registering each staff member as a free user. They will, of course, only have access to their own prices and product information.
Suppliers as users – suppliers requiring the full program will pay the standard monthly fees applicable to users, i.e.; every full user, other than the first, pays only one-third but for multiple users the different location rule does not apply and they will pay the discounted rate for ALL computers after the first, irrespective of where they are located.
Different industries - fees may vary for different industries according to their type of product and mix as well as the number of participating suppliers and users in that industry.
Suppliers Rate Card - Fabrics
Initial Fee
A once-off initial fee to set up their protocols and to test and verify their initial data formats and uploads R 2 499 Monthly Fees
Suppliers can pay a fixed monthly fee based on their size (which invariably determines their number of customers and stock items) or a tiny percentage of each order generated through PRIICE They can change from one option to the other on any anniversary of their start date by giving not less than 30 days notice in writing, with no limit to the number of times they can change. Fixed Fees
Micro < 500 customers or < 100 price list items R 599 Small < 1000 customers or < 250 price list lines R 999 Medium > 1000 customers or > 250 price list lines R 1 499 Large > 5000 customers or > 1000 price list lines R 2 499 Percentage Fees
Percentage of each order 0.5% Monthly Minimum R 250 Monthly Maximum R 4 999 Promo Banners
These are banners that appear along the bottom of the screen every time a user selects one of that supplier’s products. They are ideal for alerting customers to new releases and events, special offers and promotions as well as advising discontinued items and clearing prices. They are time based and run between whichever dates a supplier chooses with billing charged per 14 day period. Single banner (excluding artwork) - each R 195 Additional concurrent banners - each R 150
Subject to change without notice.Are there any special deals ?
The following special benefits apply to multiple users within the same company:
The first computer or user at every location pays the standard price, but every additional computer or user pays only one-third for the full benefit – and theirs is also the full package, not a limited or scaled down version.
So, if a company has four staff and one of the staff has a desk top and a lap top, that totals five users. The first pays the full price and the other four each pay ⅓, which totals 1⅓. So, effectively that company only pays 2⅓ for five users.
The only criteria is that they must all be at the same physical location as the full price user – it is not enough to merely be part of the same company or group.
Where PRIICE offers separate pricing for parts of the program then the one-third offer only applies to those users who subscribe to the full package.
This deal may be altered or withdrawn at any time but every user who registered while the deal was active will retain the benefit for as long as they remain a PRIICE subscriber.
How long am I locked in for ?
There are no contracts in the PRIICE business model because we never want you to feel locked into an untenable situation.
Simply register online, pay any initial fees and set up your monthly debit order.
You may cancel at any time by giving one calendar month’s notice through the feedback form in the program. There is no penalty for canceling and you can never lose your free user right to receive free prices and product information.
However, should you wish to rejoin at a later date you will have to pay an administrative charge equal to twice the then current monthly fee.
The no-contract principle applies to both suppliers and users, but in the case of suppliers there may be certain requirements regarding the use and exclusivity of their information to safeguard users who’ve subscribed on the basis of that supplier being a continuously participating supplier.
How accurate is the data ?
PRIICE is merely an electronic intermediary between suppliers and users, and all information is therefore only as up-to-date and accurate as provided by each supplier.
There are, however, wonderful safety checks in that each price can be displayed with the date it became effective - but it is advisable to check directly with suppliers whenever you feel it is necessary.
Where suppliers have established future prices and supplied them to PRIICE, both the new price and its effective date will be displayed alongside the current price with that effective date.
Generally speaking and depending on the myriad service providers, internet transfer speeds and so on, information received from suppliers should be updated onto users’ computers within a few hours, and almost certainly the same day.
Under no circumstances may PRIICE be held liable for inaccuracies or for failing to provide information from suppliers timeout or at all.
What’s the guarantee ?
PRIICE is free to users for both prices and product information so they can never suffer financially (note disclaimer under ‘how accurate is the data?’).
And there is no charge to suppliers for distributing their prices and product information to participating users, so they too can never suffer financially.
New users automatically get the full program with all its bells, whistles and trumpets to try entirely free for 60 days, and if they convert within the 60 day period their billing only starts from day 61. In addition, they escape paying the Initial Fee.
And even after they've become paying users they can cancel at any time without losing their free user rights, so they're always guarranteed access to prices and product information.
What if I find a bug or a wobbly ?
Whilst we do our best to test and debug all improvements and updates, there may occasionally be small wobblies that are only exposed in specific or extreme uses of the software that our testing has not previously encountered.
If this occurs, please notify us using the Feedback Form (the envelope in the top blue bar of the program) and describe as fully as you can the keystrokes that led up to the error or problem.
If possible, include the exact wording of any error messages that appear on the screen.
We’ll attend to it straight away and also keep you fully informed of our progress.
What if I find it complicated ?
Quite seriously, you won’t!
PRIICE has been designed with a smooth flowing, intuitive interface.
It’s easy to learn and packed with innovative features to make it easy for even novice computer users.
User input is simple and logical and each step seamlessly prompts the next.
It’s fun to use and will quickly become a convenient and indispensable part of your business life.
How do I get help if I need it ?
PRIICE comes bundled with fully detailed help screens to explain every function and to guide you through every operation.
These are conveniently positioned to always remain visible while you work, allowing you to follow each step of the help dialogue while you carry out the instructions.
It’s quick and easy to understand, but if any aspect is unclear there is a quick email link as well as a telephone support function.
Why is it so good for users ?PRIICE has a positive impact on several key areas that are vital to the day-to-day running of every sales oriented business, offering previously undreamed of convenience, such as . . .
When needing prices ...
• not having to store paper price lists or browse through emailed spreadsheets.
• being able to view any price instantly, merely by starting to enter it's name or code (eg, Ham for Hampton Cove).
• knowing that prices are always up-to-date and accurate.
• being able to view any item’s key specs and details on the same screen.
• being able to locate an unknown supplier by keying in an item's name or code.
When processing quotes ...
• adding items into worksheets and saving them by customer or project.
• retrieving your worksheets, editing them, and then printing them as retail quotes for your customers.
• converting accepted quotes into retail orders, complete with preprinted lines for your customer to sign as confirmation.
When placing orders ...
• not having to:
•• fax or email separate orders to each supplier, or
•• log on to multiple websites to access each supplier's online ordering system (with the added frustration of needing separate passwords for most suppliers!),
• but instead, being able to:
•• place all your orders for all the suppliers in a particular worksheet, simply by clicking a single button, with each order automatically printed for faxing or sent by email.
What's really in it for suppliers ?
PRIICE offers suppliers the following innovative and cost effective benefits:
It modernizes the entire concept of price lists and ensures their customers have all the
administrative tools they need to easily sell the supplier’s products . . .
> Conventional price lists - often date soon after they’re issued but PRIICE instantly updates prices (as well as product info) immediately new items are introduced.
> PRIICE removes discontinued items instantly - avoiding problems arising from customers selling or quoting on items they think are still available.
> Optional inclusion of discontinued items – with zero prices (for optional periods) together with alerts for them to be removed from sample books and displays.
> Product specs and notes – automatically displayed with each item providing convenience for customers and minimizing the possibility of errors.
> Optional display of product images – a visual aid to help customers identify and order the correct items.
> Saving in printing costs – as well as removing the resentment many customers have at being forced to print long price lists that have been emailed to them.
> Overcomes customers’ frustration - of continually having to open and close different spreadsheets every time they need to check a price.
It reduces areas of friction between suppliers and their customers . . .
> Permanently ends disputes - arising from misinterpreting customers’ requirements; eg, from handwritten faxes, misunderstood telephone orders, etc.
> Guarantees customers are using the correct prices - and eliminates price queries forever because the customer sees the price every time they generate an order.
It streamlines the processing of incoming orders . . .
> Templated order form – prompts the customer to include all the information the supplier requires, thereby reducing the possibility of errors or confusion.
> Orders can be automated - directly into a supplier's accounting system, replacing manual capturing and eliminating keystroke errors.
It provides promotional opportunities and operational stats normally unavailable to the supplier . . .
> Promo Banners - which appear along the bottom of the screen every time a customer selects that supplier’s product, which are ideal for alerting customers to special events and promotions, new product releases, advising discontinued items, promoting clearing prices, etc.
> Optional stats from customer usage - that would not be possible to obtain otherwise; eg, lists of items browsed or quoted on but not ordered.
Copyright 2014 - Priice
