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PLUSS Corporation Newsletter October 04 - Archived newsletters are here
1.)
PLUSS Corporation News Pg.
1
2.)
PTM - Quick Tips Pg.
1
4.) The
Right tool for the job Pg. 2
5.)
Are you plagued by nasty bugs Pg.
3
6.)
Super Success Story... Pg.
3
7.)
Control & Effective Management of your Business
(Part II of 8) Pg.
4
8.)
Lori is now a consultant Pg.
5
9.)
Product Showcase for October Pg.
5
10.)
The benefits of pre-purchasing funds for your service account Pg. 5
Pluss Corp Offers New EDI Solutions for Supply Chain
Management. This includes integrations
into vendors such as CAT, Cummins, Freightliner, International, ...
Read more: http://www.pluss.net/press-releases/PressRelease_EDI.pdf
PLUSS Employee Jeremy Martin has been accepted into the Business
Espionage Controls & Countermeasures Association (BECCA). Visit BECCA to find out more about the
organization - http://www.becca-online.org. As of October 15th, Jeremy has also achieved the
certification of Information Systems Security Management Professional
(ISSMP). This credential is a
concentration of the CISSP (top information security certification) and is administered through (ISC)2. To find out more information about the
industry's leading certification authority, please visit http://www.isc2.org
Get on Board....
New software
release... PTM has a new software suite in Beta. We have made a
list of customers for the beta version, code named "PTM Echelon Suite" or
PTM ES. Keep an eye out for more information of this revolutionaly software. Call and talk to Pam for
more details... 1-800-835-9609 Ext: 239
PTM
* (N.E.E.) From the PTM main menu. Financial report for Income/Balance sheet
* (Q.C.J) From the PTM main menu.
Income/Receivables report for Aged Receivables (Always say "N" to
balance)
* (E.J.B) From the PTM main menu.
This allows you to set Sales Tax on labor
HARDWARE
4.) The Right tool for the
job
Getting the right tool for the job at hand doesn't seem like rocket science does it? However far too many people today will pick up a rock to hammer a nail instead of taking the time and small expense literally, to go buy a hammer or a nail gun.
How does this apply to computer systems? Simply put, computers are the best example of people picking up rock in place of buying a hammer. Most people (even some computer specialists) will continue to use old worn out, antiquated computer equipment, when the less expensive option is to buy upgraded gear.
An example of what not to do is the case of a company that purchased a new Point of Sale program. The owner spent a lot of money on the program itself and then insisted on running it on a system so old that it required constant maintenance. His final cost after numerous phone calls to his tech department was in the neighborhood of about 50 to 60 thousand dollars.. A new up-to-date network would have cost him about 1/5th of that and he would have had little to no need to spend money on Tech Support because the network would have been a lot more stable and able to handle the massive amounts of data being sent across the network. As it was he blamed the computer company that sold him the gear he insisted on, because he did not want to spend the money necessary to get a good tool in place in the first place. In other words he picked up a rock to hammer a nail and then got mad at the rock when it shattered and hurt his hand.
On the other side of the coin is the customer who did his homework and ended up with a system that gave him many years of service and never had the challenges with his network that the first customer did. After talking to the software company and picking the brain of the different techs, he went out and talked to his computer networking people. He then got the two together and they brain stormed to find the best solution to his future needs. He got the system put in for a little under fifteen thousand dollars and had no trouble, network wise, that required long difficult hours on the phone. Instead of using a rock to hammer his nail, he drove to town and bought a hammer and then came home and did the job with the proper tool. The tool didn't break, he didn't hurt his hand, and he was satisfied with the job at the end of the day.
These two examples are taken from actual business owners. One tried to cheap his way through the process and ended up costing himself far more money in the end than he would have paid had he done his homework and done it right the first time. The second did do his homework and wound up saving money and increasing his company's profitability and efficiency in the process.
If you are having a problem with your network and or computer systems, you might want to stop and ask yourself.
Am I using a rock to hammer a nail?
Andy Alford
5.) Are you plagued by nasty bugs?
Virus damage estimated at $55 billion in 2003. "SINGAPORE - Trend Micro Inc, the world's
third-largest anti-virus software maker, said Friday that computer virus
attacks cost global businesses an estimated $55 billion in damages in 2003, a
sum that would rise this year. Companies lost roughly $20 billion to $30 billion
in 2002 from the virus attacks, up from about $13 billion in 2001, according to
various industry estimates." This was the story across thousands of news
agencies desk January 2004. Out of $55 billion, how much did it cost your
company? How much did it cost someone you know?
The purpose of this paper is to inform the reader
about how malicious code works, how they spread, and how to protect yourself
from infection. Read
more: http://www.visualdbaseprogrammer.com/pdf/IS-VI.pdf
Jeremy Martin CISSP, ISSMP, ISSAP, CCNA, Network+, A+
MISCELLANEOUS
6.)
Super Success
Story...
Recently a customer reported the following; "When I took the educational and financial materials provided by PLUSS Corporation, to my financial lender, they told me to stick with PLUSS Corporation! They said that PLUSS Corporation was teaching us the proper way to manage our companies and our numbers have never looked better." This banker truly knows the value of reports and ratios.
The customer was Robert Henderson, owner of Henderson Lineup and Super Steer & Super Stop in Oregon. Robert has been on-site to our office twice. The first time Robert met us he was making his purchasing decision, and three years later he returned to our office to further his education. Now Robert is sending his Service & Parts Department heads here for more education.
Robert implemented PTM in his businesses June 2002. We had several obstacles that we have worked through together; Henderson is a huge success story.
Think about that, why would a financial institution be so pleased to see Henderson using the tools taught by PLUSS Corporation? Easy, if you are making money-they are making money. Banks know about the bottom line all too well and can recognize a successful business portfolio.
There is light at the end of the tunnel. No software program can magically pluck you out of the tunnel, but we can help you dig yourself out. It takes investment and dedication from both sides. Robert Henderson can attest that we truly want to be your partners for success. Robert's story is not completed, Henderson's Lineup and Super Steer will continue to grow and we plan to be there with them.
There are hundreds of stories like this one; we want you to have a successful story! If you are ready give us a call.
Henderson's Line Up website: www.hendersonslineup.com
Super Steer
& Super Stop website: www.supersteersuperstop.com
Pamela R.
Cowley, Director of Business Services and Education
7.) Control & Effective Management of your
Business (Part II of 8)
In last months article I presented questions that every business owner should be able to answer in order to effectively manage a company. The core question last month was "Are you running your company or is your company running you?" This month I am listing some sample characteristics of a company that appears to be "running itself".
I urge you to carefully read and ponder these indicators to see if there are any parallels to your company:
· You do not understand how to read your company financials
· You do not use your company financials to make changes or corrections in day-to-day business
· You as owner are not making the salary you should be
· You have to refinance to be able to better make on-time payments to your vendors
· You cannot take advantage of discounts from your vendors
· You make payments late to your vendors
· You do not "plan for profit" in advance
· When an unexpected expense occurs your first thought is that you will need to contact your banker for a loan instead of having the reserves to take care of it yourself
· You have had a vendor "cut you off" or you have been put on C.O.D.
· You have sold your receivables to increase cash flow
These indicators and many more should be considered to determine if your company is running itself. No individual factor will tell the whole story. Through this thought-provoking process you may come to understand that what you know may not be as important as what you do not know about your company and business in general.
After some honest reflection, you may be coming to the realization that you must change some of your current business practices and procedures. Make a list of positive and negative thoughts you regularly have about your company and then evaluate them in level of importance. Begin to condition yourself to anticipate, plan, and execute change.
Next month I will present ideas on anticipating change for your company!
Kenny Nau, Director of Sales
PRODUCTS AND SALES
Lori Lee is now on contract with PLUSS Corporation to work from home.
Lori can be contacted directly at home by phone or email #(406) 892-2823 or email her at ptmspec@hotmail.com. PLUSS Corporation's main office #(877) 428-7472 can schedule or send your call directly to Lori's office. Lori's office is only a few miles from our main office in Montana, she will be available Monday through Friday 8:00am to 5:00pm Mountain Standard Time unless otherwise specified.
Lori specializes in PTM's Payroll and Bookkeeping Modules; She is also available to help with Bank Reconciliation and preparation for Financials. Lori has been working with the PTM program since 1998 and is available to help you in most all areas of the program.
You will be billed for Lori's time through PLUSS Corporation on your Service Account, at the normal rate of $1.50 per minute.
If you have any questions please call.
Pamela R. Cowley.
Director of Business Services
#800-835-9609 (ext #239)
9.) Product
Showcase for October
Data
Warehousing Service
What is the worst that could happen to your business... Theft, Fire, Flood... several catastrophes come to mind. At the root of these catastrophes is the loss of your business management system and valuable information it holds for your company. Pluss Corporation would like to put your mind at ease; we have Data Warehousing. For a small fee each month you can have priceless peace of mind. No matter what happens; we will have your data in a secure off-site location and will be able to recover that data for you at no extra expense. The average amount spent with our staff to recover data is a minimum of $1000.00 and that is not counting the loss in productivity while your staff spends hours recreating lost data. We want everyone to take advantage of this level of security; setup is currently only $199. Included with the reduced setup fee, your setup is the first 3 months of Warehousing.
Call now while the offer lasts.
10.) The
benefits of pre-purchasing funds for your service account
As we approach the final Chapter in 2004 I would like to remind everyone who is on a calendar year to prepare for the year-end. On the website www.pluss.net we have preparation instructions for year end the first two pages can be done anytime to verify A/R and A/P balances.
In preparation for the year end I am also offering two separate bonus offers.
* Pre-Purchase $1500.00 (1000 minutes) with a
company check and receive a bonus of $150.00 (100 minutes) added to your
account
(that is a $1650.00 value for the price of $1500.00)
* Pre-Purchase $600.00 (400 minutes) with a
company check and receive a bonus of $60.00 (40 minutes) added to your service
account Pre-Purchased funds can be used for classes, services, on-site wages
and PTM's yearly subscription.
As a valued PLUSS Corporation customer, you can now apply for a complimentary subscription to Information Security magazine, widely acclaimed as the industry "bible" for thousands of today's top IT security strategists. Simply log in to the magazine's secure website to sign up quickly and easily!
Information Security magazine subscription page:
http://informationsecurity.techtarget.com/?Offer=intskl1020
Information Security magazine home page:
http://infosecuritymag.techtarget.com/?Offer=intskl1020hp
Why you should subscribe:
Information Security magazine features an unmatched level of editorial integrity and is packed with the most relevant and timely security-specific expertise available today. No other security resource delivers the kind of unbiased content and definitive advice that has earned the magazine its reputation as the "security pundit's choice" since 1997.
****
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PLUSS
Corporation
5565 Hwy 2
West
Columbia
Falls, MT 59912