Upgraded CRMBest Software has released Version 5.7 of its customer relationship management software, Accpac CRM. Among the improvements are a new document library that lets users share up-to-date corporate documents, such as presentations, templates and the like, with all system users, keeping them all on the same page, as it were.
The new edition also has improved integration with Microsoft Outlook, including enhanced e-mail filing and automatic scheduled synching of contacts, tasks and appointments. There are also new built-in stand-alone product, quote and order entry capabilities for users that haven't implemented an integrated order management and inventory control system. The Web Services interface has been significantly upgraded to allow businesses to create sophisticated integrations with Web-deployed and LAN-based business management applications, so that specific elements of Accpac CRM can be called on by other applications.
Price: Starts at $1,590. Subscription to AccpacCRM.com - starts at $995 a year ($17 per named user per month).
Best Software
(800) 945-8007
Better billing
Everybody hates bills, but sending them out to other people is a different matter entirely. To help in this delightful task, Software Technology has released Version 12 of its suite of billing, practice management and financial software products, with a host of improvements and new features.
The whole suite has been visually redesigned, featuring built-in PDF support so users can output any report or statement to a PDF file - which they can also store, along with other files, in the suite's new DropBox feature, for easy distribution. All of the suite's components now include a SnapShot feature that displays data from individual records in an easy-to-view format.
Among the individual products, STI's Tabs3 billing product has several new collections reports (so you know who's trying to ruin your joy in billing), as well as improved write-up, write-down and courtesy discount reporting, while the PracticeMaster practice management product has some new fields, including spots for client and related-party photos, and redesigned e-mail capabilities.
Price: Tabs3 single user - starts at $295 for two timekeepers. PracticeMaster Basic - $150 for first user; $50 for each additional user.
Software Technology Inc.
(402) 423-1440
Save paper
While many accounting firms are interested in implementing document management software, only a few are actually developing it themselves. First there was Atlanta's Habif, Arogeti & Wynne, which sold its SIAN system to CCH last fall. Now there's Miami's Morrison, Brown, Argiz & Farra, which, through its technology consulting affiliate, Solutions
Built to be easy to use and more intuitive than other such offerings, PaperSave is a complete and secure electronic storage system that can replace the sort of cumbersome, paper-based filing system that most firms use. Beyond the obvious space-saving benefits, document imaging systems like PaperSave save time, and address a whole host of disaster recovery issues, too. PaperSave works with leading accounting and fundraising software programs, is available as a download or on disk, and can be configured for any organization, with deployment and training being only a matter of hours.
Price: Single user - starts at $2,000.
Solutions
(800) 239-1474 ext. 261
Mars needs women ...
... and state and local authorities need tax revenue, which they're scrabbling after with a bewildering patchwork of sales tax regimes. Businesses handling transactions in different locations have to find ways to accurately calculate the appropriate local tax to charge, a daunting task that used to involve software packages costing tens of thousands of dollars.
Now businesses can use Avalara's AvaTax ST, an on-demand Web service that determines the right tax based on a customer's zip-plus-four address, making it easy for retailers to keep current with the onslaught of tax changes. The solution works seamlessly within the user's accounting system, and currently integrates with Best's Accpac Advantage Series, Accpac CRM, MAS 90 and 200; Microsoft's Great Plains and Microsoft Commerce Server; and Epicor's Scala, with others added frequently.
Price: Starts at $99 a month, after activation fee. Discount available for prepaying.
Avalara
www.avalara.com
