Dot Expressway. User s Guide. The Dot Expressway website helps you work faster and smarter.

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1 Dot Expressway User s Guide The Dot Expressway website helps you work faster and smarter.

2 Getting STARTED The Dot Expressway is one of the most popular websites in the food industry. The Expressway averages 1.5 million hits from over 5,800 users each month. Not only do buyers order on the Expressway, it s also one of the first places they go to get product information like pallet/layer quantities, nutritional information and shelf life. Search our online catalog. Get detailed product information. Download product and pricing information. Place your Dot orders online. Track your purchase history. See your Dot Price Order Guide. Sign Up Go to On the orange Dot Expressway bar in the center of the page, click on New User? Complete the New User Registration form. We will your Expressway user name and password within 2 business days. Return to On the orange Dot Expressway bar, enter your user name and password, then click Go. Manage Your Expressway Account Once you have logged in to the Expressway, click on Member Services/Your Dot Account to make changes to your Expressway account, change your password and update your address. Forgot Your Password? Go to On the orange Expressway bar in the center of the page, click on Forgot Password? In the User Name box, enter your user name. Answer one of your security questions. Enter a new password. Help and Instructions Our Help Section is designed to assist you through every part of your Expressway experience including Searching, Ordering and Running Purchase History Reports. Click on any topic link to see a step-by-step guide with screen shots. If you have additional questions not answered in the Help Section, the Expressway Help Desk is ready to assist! Contact the Help Desk by phone at or send an to expresswayhelp@dotfoods.com. 2 DOT EXPRESSWAY

3 Home Page HIGHLIGHTS The home page of the Dot Expressway is your gateway to a wealth of information on the 100,000 products we offer. Product Search Distributors perform more Promotions For a list of supplier Orders Click to immediately start Banners Click on any banner than 220,000 searches on promotions, specials and creating a new Dot order to view the products the Dot Expressway every sale items, click on the with either Dot # or GTIN #. featured along with month! See pages 4-5 for orange Promotions button (See page 7 for detailed your price. tips on how to search. at top of the Expressway instructions on ordering.) home page. Quick Links Click on these links for announcements on new suppliers Dot is adding, product recalls, and other important news. New Item Spotlight Click on a logo to see a current list of that supplier s new products. Supplier Lineups Download lists of all the suppliers Dot carries, by category, temperature and more. DOT EXPRESSWAY 3

4 Search MADE EASY Start Your Search To start your search, click on the orange Product Search button at top of the Expressway home page. Search Tips & Tricks The Expressway gives you many ways to quickly find products they are all listed in the My Preferences box at left on the New Search page. Only the criteria you check in My Preferences will appear as search option boxes on the right side of the page Once you customize the way you like to search in My Preferences, click the green Save button in the My Search box. You can change your saved search options at any time. When entering words or phrases for a search, remember: less is more. If you are having trouble finding common items, try using different keywords, such as: o no sugar instead of sugar-free o beef pat or beef patt instead of hamburger o pre cook instead of ready to serve Pack sizes may also be expressed differently, such as: o 4 1 gal can also be ounce o 6 10 can also be 6 96 ounce o 3-1 for meats can also be 1 3 pound Do not use plurals or ed at the end of a word. (Ex: bean instead of beans, bake instead of baked.) For speed and/or more results, enter partial words. (Ex: chick rather than chicken, fill rather than filling.) Numbers for pack size can also be added in the Words or Phrases box to narrow your search. (Ex: green bean 6 10 or sugar 12 2 pound.) 4 DOT EXPRESSWAY

5 Understanding Search Results Click on the blue underlined item description to get more information about the product, such as case dimensions and master case GTIN. Click on any icon in the Status column to get more information on the product. To download search results to a spreadsheet, click the orange Download button at right of the search results page. To find your broker for an item, click the blue item description to go to the detail page. Specific Product Details To visit the manufacturer s website for the item, click the blue www icon. Product Information page Many items on the Expressway also feature a Product Information page, which gives detailed information on preparation, nutritional data, and ingredient statements. To see that information, click the Product Information icon. Manufacturer s website DOT EXPRESSWAY 5

6 Purchase History REPORTS Regardless of how you order from Dot (EDI, fax or Expressway), you can download reports on the Dot Expressway. These customized Purchase History Reports show your purchases from Dot within the date range you specify. Your reports will include dollar, case and pound totals. You can even get detailed SKU information, which will help you track purchases of specific items. Log on the Dot Expressway, and under Purchase History in top navigation bar, choose Submit Report. Choose the report type, date range and product line(s). Then click Submit Report. You ll receive an from Dot within a few hours to notify you that your report is ready. Then, under Purchase History, click on View/Download Report. Select the report, and click View. Then open up the file, which is an Excel document. 6 DOT EXPRESSWAY

7 Placing YOUR ORDER It s easy to place your order directly on The Dot Expressway Use the Order Form link on the home page to begin a new order immediately. Just enter either Dot item numbers or GTIN numbers. Add items to your Shopping Cart from either the Search Results page or from an individual product page Once your order is ready, you can choose delivery options, including Dot on Demand. Dot on Demand allows you to ship items with your regular Dot delivery OR via FedEx (see Delivery Route on View Cart page). Your sales reps can have access to the Expressway too! Contact your Dot Sales Representative at to learn more about the Dot on Demand program. QUESTIONS OR FEEDBACK? Expressway Help Desk: or expresswayhelp@dotfoods.com DOT EXPRESSWAY 7

8 SM Our Brand Promise: What does it mean for you? We ll treat you the way we d want to be treated. Dot is family owned and operated, and our values reflect that. We act with integrity and respect for our customers not only as business partners, but as people. If there s a better way, we ll find it. Dot was first in food redistribution because our founder saw a need and filled it. We continue that pioneering spirit today, developing creative solutions that help our partners work smarter, faster, better. We re here to support your growth. We know that if we can simplify your business, increase your market share, or boost your profits, we ve not only helped your business, we ve helped ours. So we keep our focus on service to keep you coming back for more! Burley, ID Mt. Sterling, IL Headquarters Cambridge City, IN Liverpool, NY Modesto, CA Williamsport, MD Vidalia, GA Ardmore, OK St. Louis, MO Corporate Sales Office Dot Foods, Inc. One Dot Way, P.O. Box 192 Mt. Sterling, IL expresswayhelp@dotfoods.com Dot Foods, Inc. All rights reserved. Registered trademarks of Dot Foods, Inc. SM Service Mark of Dot Foods, Inc. DE-0111