Datatech SmartSoft Announces PressWise Integration Partnership with Pressero Web-to-Print Storefronts

Posted on November 14, 2011 by

Datatech SmartSoft Announces PressWise Integration Partnership with Pressero Web-to-Print Storefronts

New bi-directional integration to provide true end-to-end print workflow automation solution

AGOURA, Calif., November 14, 2011 – Datatech SmartSoft Inc, developer of the end-to-end print workflow solution PressWise (www.presswise.com), today announced an integration partnership with Aleyant Systems, provider of advanced web-based platforms for the Graphic Arts industry, including the web-to-print solution Pressero (www.pressero.com).

A new API will enable Pressero web-to-print customers to connect their storefronts directly to the PressWise automated workflow system, creating a true end-to-end solution that uses a bi-directional flow of data between the two systems to minimize the number of touches required to process each order, lowering production costs and maximizing efficiency.

Order data will flow from Pressero storefronts directly into PressWise without the need for rekeying data. PressWise in return will send key order data, such as job production and shipping status, back to Pressero as the job moves through the production and fulfillment cycle.

“Streamlined workflows are the key to profitability in this very competitive print environment” said Eric Wold, Vice President of Datatech SmartSoft. “PressWise delivers a low-touch automated print MIS and workflow solution to our customers, but we believe that our customers should be able to choose the web storefront that works best for them and their clients, which is why we created this simple API for them .

“This joint integration project with Pressero shows how two companies with a shared goal – the success of their customers – can come together and make great things happen. We look forward to promoting the Pressero integration to new and existing PressWise customers looking for an affordable, cloud-based, web-to-print application.”

“Many of our customers are interested in capturing efficiency gains from all their operations to reduce costs. A key requirement is the ability of customer facing web-to-print storefronts, as well as back-end automated workflow systems, to talk to each other” said Greg Salzman, President of Aleyant Systems. “Like SmartSoft, we believe our customers should be able to mix and match to combine best of breed products from vendors. A Pressero and PressWise integration provides our joint customers with a true end-to-end solution.”

About Datatech SmartSoft

Datatech SmartSoft provides workflow software solutions for print automation, data hygiene and postal discounts. Their products include the AccuMail® postal address correction software, the all-in-one address quality and postal presorting solution, SmartAddresser 5™, real-time address validation and keystroke savings software for data entry, AccuMail Verify, and the end-to-end print workflow automation solution, PressWise.

PressWise was designed as an alternative to purchasing independent modules (or custom development) of Print Production Workflow Management, Print-Specific MIS, and Mail Preparation Software. Now a single, end-to-end system is available with the comprehensive tools needed to streamline print workflow. PressWise also provides simple integration tools for third-party applications, including back-end accounting, print MIS and third-party web storefronts.

Implementation is fast and easy. The system is accessed through a browser and can be used in just a few hours of setup and online training. PressWise is available cloud-hosted or self-hosted, on a SaaS business model with no long-term contracts. For more information, visit www.presswise.com or www.smartsoftusa.com.

About Pressero and Aleyant Systems

Pressero is delivered through a hosted model and used by businesses of all sizes to generate and manage private-branded corporate (B2B) and retail (B2C) storefronts. Whether catalog- or item-based, storefronts include custom or stock ordering, interactive pricing, estimating, file transfer, proofing, inventory tracking, shipping, payment, and order approval, among other advanced workflow capabilities. To schedule an online demonstration or for more information, call 800-571-2138 or visit www.Pressero.com.

Founded in 2005, Aleyant Systems is an innovative leader, providing robust web-to-print software services at value-driven prices. Aleyant develops highly functional and flexible applications, delivering the most advanced web-based solutions on the market. Its flagship product, Pressero, is one of the most complete web-to-print systems within its price class. Pressero includes eDocBuilder, a web-based variable data publishing (VDP) system that is also sold separately for integration into other systems. For more information, visit www.aleyant.com.

Posted in online print solutions, print management software, print on demand solutions, print shop solution, print storefronts, printer websites, Printing, printshop e-commerce, variable data printing software, W2P, Web to Print, Web to print sales tips, web to print software, Web to Print Solutions, web to print storefront, web to print system, web to print technology, web to print templates, web-to-print benefits, web-to-print features, Web2Print, web2print software, web2print solutions, web2print studio | Leave a comment

printdog.com

Posted on November 8, 2011 by

Check out www.printdog.com, which runs on Pressero.  This site is owned by Master Print Communications.  The site uses a custom skin.  Nice work!

Posted in online print solutions, print shop solution, print storefronts, printer website templates, printer websites, Printing, printshop e-commerce, W2P, Web to Print, web to print software, Web to Print Solutions, web to print storefront, web to print system, web to print technology, web-to-print features | Leave a comment

New HTML5 Interactive Designer

Posted on November 7, 2011 by

With all the buzz words surrounding internet technologies today its really hard for anyone but the super tech enthusiast to understand why “Cloud”, “HTML5″ or “JQuery” is such a big deal. So why should you be excited about the NEW HTML5 based Interactive Designer? Let me break it down to the basics, its faster then flash, it can be on more platforms and is easier to manipulate. Those are the three most paramount needs for all internet technologies and with the HTML5 designer we can now get there. Gone are the days where we would have to rely on a third party technology to manipulate imagery and text dynamically. Now with the much needed improvements to the basic foundations of  internet languages we can press forward, stay at the bleeding edge of innovation and take advantage of the latest and greatest browser or language improvements.

What about the specifics? What is different about this NEW HTML5 Interactive Designer? Well, let me walk you through some of the best part of our new designer…

Three Interactive Designer Templates

Continue reading →

Posted in flash based designer studio, online designer studio, Web to Print Solutions, web2print software | Leave a comment

Tech Tip – eDocBuilder Numeric Sequencing

Posted on October 10, 2011 by

Raffle Tickets, Parking Permits, Stickers… these are just a few of the many products that need numeric sequencing, and those products are now supported in eDocBuilder.

Using a simple script, you can add sequencing to templates. Specify a start number, end number, increment, and number formatting information to the script. You can “hard code” sequencing information, allow your customer to specify the information and even have the sequencing be determined off the number of items the customer ordered. Sequencing can extend to barcoding as well. You can also apply sequences to VDP documents, and you can have multiple independent sequences on the same template.

Continue reading →

Posted in Web to Print Solutions | Leave a comment

Using Web-to-Print to Sell More (Part 3) — Overcoming Inertia

Posted on October 10, 2011 by

Last issue we talked about the three Do’s and Don’ts of using W2P as a selling tool. This issue we focus on how to implement the system to overcome internal inertia.

A successful web to print implementation involves teamwork, coordination, and perseverance. There are four key steps to facilitate teamwork and coordination:

  1. Appoint a point person
  2. Create an internal storefront
  3. Hold a meeting. Introduce the system, how it will work, and its benefits
  4. Have employees use the storefront to place “orders”

 Appoint a Point Person

When implementing a web to print system, the first step is to select a point person. You need to have someone in charge of getting the system running, someone other employees can go to for help. This person does not need to be a graphic designer nor a html programmer. They need to be very comfortable using a computer, and detail oriented. This person will not be doing all the setup alone, they will likely get assistance from others for text, images, files, etc. But they will be the one managing the system and doing most—if not all—the setup.

Create an Internal Storefront

A great way to start is to create a B2B storefront for your own organization. Stock it with your own business card template, a standard “reorder” item such as letterhead, a custom product that requires native files to be attached and sent, and perhaps a product that you sell but do not produce. Include a “file transfer” page that can be used to send a file without placing an order. The goal is to have a small, but fully functioning storefront that your employees can use to practice with, and your sales team can use to “show and sell” on sales calls.

Hold a Company Meeting

A critical component of using web to print to sell more printing is your own staff. Call a meeting to introduce the web to print system, demonstrate how it will work, and discuss the benefits it can provide to both your customers and your staff (Aleyant can provide a benefits list). The steps above can help bring your staff on-board. However there are three common roadblocks to gaining their support and active engagement:

  • Lack of Understanding
  • Fear of Job Loss
  • Skepticism

Some of your employees may know little or nothing about web to print, while others may know quite a lot. The company meeting above is a good way to bring everyone to same level of understanding. Having everyone use the system is a great way to have the new knowledge “stick”.

Some of your employees may incorrectly assume that order automation provided by web to print will result in the loss of their job. It’s important to reassure them their job is safe. Web to print will allow them to focus on higher value tasks by eliminating some of the more aggravating issues caused by customers, and bring in more business.

Some employees may believe that web to print is a fad, or is little different than a web page. It is very difficult to change someone’s belief, but time is on your side. Web to print is not going away, it’s only getting bigger, A storefront is more than a webpage, it’s a way of doing business. Remember that most new innovation were met with skepticism, it’s human nature. So is adapting and thriving in new conditions!

Have Employees Use the Storefront

It’s important that your employees know how the system works, it’s even more important they have used the system to place orders just like your customers will. This will also help overcome some lack of understanding or lingering skepticism. Have them start placing “orders” until they are fully comfortable with the system and can explain how it works to another person. The goal is to be able to answer general questions a customer may have, and even encourage customers with their own experience. Your employees may also provide feedback to your point person on opportunities for improvement.

Persevere

A successful web to print implementation involves teamwork, coordination, and perseverance. By building teamwork and coordination, you will be better able to persevere and create a web to print storefront that increases sales, reduces production expense, or both.

Posted in print storefronts, Printing, printshop e-commerce, W2P, Web to Print, Web to print sales tips, web to print software, Web to Print Solutions, web to print storefront, web-to-print benefits, web-to-print features, Web2Print, web2print software | Leave a comment

Pressero v4.11.8.5 Released

Posted on October 5, 2011 by

Pressero v4.11.8.5 went live over the weekend.  In addition to our usual tweaks and fixes, there are a few new features we want to make sure you are aware of:

  • Account creation date, last login date, and last order date are now captured and displayed in the user management area for each of your sites.  You can perform filtering on the user list as needed.  For example, you could query users that logged into the site in the last 30 days, but did not place any orders.  You could then use this list to perform a targeted marketing campaign.
  • If your customer or MIS vendor requires a cXML transmission of each order, you can now configure this on a site-by-site basis.  In the site settings area, enter the URL to the cXML receiver and Pressero will begin sending the xml content to that address after each order.
  • In the site area, you have the option to customize the general instructions that appear throughout the site.  We’ve added the ability to customize the instructions for the shopping cart page, for when the user is not logged in.  For example, if you want to inform your customer that they must log in for their shopping cart to be saved, you could specify this information in this new set of instructions.
Posted in Web to Print Solutions | Leave a comment

Pressero v4.11.7 Released

Posted on September 26, 2011 by

Pressero v4.11.7 went live over the weekend.  In addition to some bug fixes and minor tweaks, there are a few new features worth pointing out:

  • If you are using PayPal to accept payment, you can create a custom alert message that displays on the site when the buyer decides to pay by PayPal.  You can set this on the Payments tab in Site Settings.
  • For FedEx and UPS integrated rate look-ups, we added the ability to indicate if the shipping method should use residential rates instead of business rates.  This can be configured in the shipping method tab in the shipping admin page.
  • In the pricing options for a product, you can now set options for each quantity set within a pricing calculator.  You can set min/max values as well as number of decimal places allowed.  This is done in the Pricing tab of the product edit area.
  • You can view full message history for each of your sites.  Each message history also contains the notification type (such as “low inventory” or “new order placed”) and the sending status of each recipient for the notice.  Email history is available as an admin item under each site.
  • As you know, you can create forms and assign them to products.  You can now auto-populate a form directly from the url.  This can be helpful if redirecting a user to a Pressero product page from another site.  Contact tech support for information on how to do this.
Posted in Web to Print Solutions | Leave a comment