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1 The #1 Sourcing Pubication in the Document Imaging Industry The #1 Sourcing Voume 11 Pubication No.7 in the Document Imaging Industry The #1 Sourcing Pubication in the Document Imaging Industry Sourcing Pubished by Affinity Business Communications, Inc. FEBRUARY 2004 FEBRUARY 2004 Voume 11 No.7 Voume 11 No.7 ENX FEBRUARY MAGAZINE 2004 Voume 11 No.2 A Conversation with (818) (818) [email protected] (818) [email protected] [email protected] HELP US CONSERVE NATURAL s RESOURCES [email protected] The #1 Sourcing Pubication in the Document Imaging Industry Ed McLaughin [email protected] Visit ENX: Booth #3305 Voume 11 No.2 Voume 11 No.2 Business Profie Sharp s president offers insights into the new Sharp, the state of the office equipment industry and the viabiity of the independent deaer channe Page 18 Whoesae Office Machines Page 26 [email protected] HELP US CONSERVE NATURAL RES Company on the Move Las Vegas, NV Booth W14 & W China Voume 11 No.7 In This Issue Page 16 Advertiser s Index Page 78 The #1 Sourcing Pubication in the Document Imaging Page Verdugo Bvd. PMB 159, Montrose, CA 91020, U.S.A. Te: Fax: Emai: [email protected] Website: Pease fax any address corrections or deetions to: or emai [email protected] ENX MAGAZIN (818) 550 (818) 550 enx@pa www HELP US CONSER Voume 11 No.7

2 #1... Year After Year! #1 in business management software for over 20 years #1 in increasing the productivity of your empoyees #1 software vendor of choice for a major acquisition companies #1 in commitment to customer service #1 in providing cutting edge products #1 in scaabiity and affordabiity Profit Guarantee We are so confident in our #1 status that we guarantee increased profitabiity. For more information about products and our excusive Profit Guarantee ca (573) or e-mai: [email protected] Time Tested... Cutting Edge Missouri Bouevard P.O. Box 6760 Jefferson City, MO Features: Service / Dispatch Management Purchase / Inventory Management Contact Invoicing / Order Entry Customer Equipment Profitabiity Accounts Payabe and Receivabe Financia Management Payro and Commissions Saes Force Automation Bar Code Scanning E-commerce Soutions for Your Customers Wireess Products for Service and Saes Software Soutions Since 1984

3 We Saw It In ENX Magazine Integrating Your Word So You don t have to With 40% of a Office Equipment deaers in the U.S. now using software and over 60% of Eite Deaers (named in Office Deaer magazine) as customers, maybe it s time you gave them a try. Ceebrating 20 years in business this year, is proud to announce to new customers its Profitabiity Guarantee Program. wi guarantee that you wi obtain a certain profit margin within a given period of time as ong as you are using a of the necessary toos that are part of our software soutions package. originated the idea of an automated and fuy integrated software package for office deaers in the eary 80 s. Others, such as Microsoft, have tried to emuate their success, but year after year has been number one in the industry. has been isted in Software 500 magazine for the past six years straight. An offshoot of Modern Business Donna McAnany Systems Inc. (which ater became President /CEO IKON), knows the industry inside and out. s record proves that once deaers acquire the software, they are more than just integrated in-house. They are abe to connect with manufactures, customers, and technicians ike they never coud before. Deaers benefit, But is it for Me If you need to track inventory through your faciity to your customers door, can hep. The Vision package automates everything from taking the order to confirming that product has been shipped. To make things even more automated, we have aunched a new barcode system that can be used for a types of inventory contro incuding receiving, transfers and technician car stock inventory. Deaers on the other hand, can set up service cas through s Service Dispatch and Management too, in addition to using the inventory features. Aso, deaers wi benefit from s imanager software, which transfers customer s machine information such as meter reads and in the future critica error codes to you via the Internet directy from the machine, to the software. Used in over 15 markets, is for everyone. The software s abiity stands the test of time in the industry, and has grown year after year to meet deaers changing needs. Used to setting trends that improve efficiency ten-fod, has done it again this year! Dave Nage V.P of Saes & Marketing Look forward to a new function that wi aow saes reps and technicians to access information away from the office with two to-be-reeased software packages, Saes-on-the-Go and Serviceon-the-Go, avaiabe this fa. What Offers software is a windows-based, point-and-cick system that integrates over 1500 essentia business appications. Their fagship product is Vision. Vision consists of 15 modues that give you everything needed to run your business successfuy. Its appications range from Inventory Management, Service Dispatch, Purchasing, Saes Automation, Accounts Payabe, Accounts Receivabe/ Coections, Invoicing, Contract Biing, Payro/ Commissions, Fixed Assets, Financia Management, and Reporting features. Use The Saes Force Automation program to faciitate a customer knowedge bank for ca center operations. And, stay ahead with Accounts Payabe and Receivabe functions that keep rea-time record of finances. With the Financia Management features, you can pot your company s goas to future gain. With a these systems working together as one unit, product can be tracked through warehousing procedures as we as to technicians and saes representatives within seconds. Accounting for products, payment, and personne productivity is as easy as printing the corresponding reports. What if your customer s machine tod you what the probem was before your technician eft for the service ca it can. s imanager in the future makes servicing your customers machines probem free and fast. Because, if you know the

4 We Saw It In ENX Magazine probem before the ca, repeat visits are reduced and the right technician can be dispatched. The customer s machine is set up on a network that transfers the information to you via the internet, before the customer even has to make the ca. Servicing was never so easy. Pricing for software depends on the number of users you wi need on the system at one time, this makes up the number of concurrent users. Customers buy the icense to the software based on the number of concurrent users they wi need, which wi aso determine future prices for additiona software that markets. Some of their other products incude the foowing accessories to the Vision package (pease see the Future is Wireess section for new wireess products): Comet Tracker, a GPS integration for identifying service technician ocations; Bar Code Scanning software and devices; and, BTA Benchmark software which wi measure your business success against the association s Business Mode for Success. The Future is Wireess Two new software packages that are geared to hep peope on the go wi enabe saes reps and service technicians to access critica information on their accounts wherever they are, from a device in their hand. aso be added to the device for direction ocator features or estimating the proximity to other cas. Service on the Go wi be reeased during the 4th qtr. of Support- Go to an Show Whie offers deaers comprehensive software that can run their business from the inside out, they aso understand that deaers don t want to spend time, energy and money on a software they can t operate. software has a buit-in appication support modue that can assist you with day-to-day operations, much ike a Micro-Soft hep menu. And if you need further support, support staff are standing by to assist you with earning about new features and how they interact. Any questions can be answered over the phone, e-mai, or by simpy faxing over materias that you can keep on hand. Be certain that someone wi be avaiabe to speak with you, since dedicates over one haf of its workforce to customer service. Saes-on-the-Go, which wi be reeased this month, is a wireess Java-based system for the PDA that accesses s Saes Automation too for the saes representative. A of their contacts, appointments, customers, and prospects wi now fit in the pam of their hand. Service-on-the-Go provides wireess access for service technicians. Using Java-enabed ce phones, aow your technicians to dispatch and cose cas, as we as scan barcodes on parts used. They can view service history, parts usage, and repeat visit information. An optiona GPS tracking feature can L-R: Dennis Doering (VP/Software Deveopment), Dave Nage (VP/Saes & Marketing), Donna McAnany (CEO), Scott Patterson (Director/Education), Dave Hirschman (VP/Technica Support) What distinguishes us in the industry is integration and sophistication of our software. We ve been in the business the ongest and we have the most knowedgeabe staff to support our deaerships out there. We understand the deaer s business, so that makes it easier for the deaer to get hep when he needs it on certain software and programs. We are committed to customer service, because that is our business, said VP of Saes and Marketing, David Nage. The best way to earn, however, is probaby at one of their seminars. Once a year, they invite their customers to an information symposium that incudes about 50 topics on how to operate every facet of s software. In addition, they provide a seminar for owners and VP eve in conjunction with the ITEX show. From a beginner s eve to a proficient Vision user, the seminars have something for everyone. How Does Know what Works? has a unique system for finding out what deaers future needs wi be. They have a Pane of nine deaers who congregate twice a year to make suggestions on improving the software and discose to what woud benefit them in the future. In addition, the Pane reviews suggestions from Customers, which have been submitted via the Customer web site.

5 We Saw It In ENX Magazine These ong-time users are a pethora of information for the software company and are essentia to the deveopment of future products. Since the group is a cross section of their business, incuding deaerships ranging in size from sma, medium, to arge, they can gather what customers are using and how. But most importanty to, how they can make suggestions that wi hep customers improve profitabiity. In addition, has cose ties with the equipment manufacturers in order to stay abreast of future products and pans. Our business goa is to increase the deaer s productivity and profitabiity. That is basicay the feeing throughout the whoe company, everything we do is to deveop a product that makes the deaer more productive and more efficient, and in turn, saves them money. We are committed to customer service and working with deaers day in and day out, Nage said. Over 20 Years in Business This is the attitude that has kept the company at number one for 20 years. Incorporated as an empoyee owned company in Juy, 1984, s history precedes even that. originated in Oct., 1977 as the software deveopment group within Modern Business Systems, Inc., which ater became IKON. MBS began deveoping software to meet the needs of growing companies. IKON did not buy the software division of MBS and was born. President and founder of the group, Pau Pierce, headed up the operation and designed the software to meet a variety of businesses needs and phiosophies. He wanted to make sure it provided the foowing essentia appications for any company to increase profitabiity automating transactiona processing to eiminate the need to remember specia conditions such as customer pricing agreements and priority service commitments management eve exception reports which focus on areas where action shoud be taken rather than providing an overoad of information detai system integration to insure that a business units are operating as a cohesive unit And that s just what they ve done. Keeping up with today industry requirements, especiay in software, is a difficut task, s but has prevaied the test of time with quaity. They were the first to create such a software, and by continuing their principes, they have been number one every year for 20 years. Making the Software 500 ist for the past 6 years, is truy the business software stape for deaers. Happy 20 th! You can reach at 573/ or via the internet at by Jamie Hamiton