Technology delivers cost-effective business solutions to Talbot Marketing, one of Canada's largest providers of promotional products, corporate apparel, and uniforms. Talbot helps its clients leverage their brand and market themselves to customers and employees with programs like safety, recognition, incentives, and product launches.
Automating the sales order process creates happier customers
Prior to implementing DocuWare, Talbot's sales order process was managed using a paper manila envelope to collect all the documents relating to an order. Every document from the initial order, to artwork approval, and shipping and invoicing was added to this envelope, called a docket, and transferred from department to department.
Today, sales orders are either scanned first or imported electronically into DocuWare where they wait in a digital queue until the order entry staff can input them into the company's ERP system. Using DocuWare Smart Connect, the data from the ERP system is imported into DocuWare and used to index the invoice. This method eliminates double data entry and ensures that the invoice index fields in DocuWare, and data in the ERP is consistent, making document retrieval quick and easy.
The invoice is now indexed by the sales order number and the sales representative's name and routed through the company's workflow electronically using digital stamps. Once the artwork has been approved, Talbot places an order with their supplier and the merchandise is shipped directly to the customer. As soon as Talbot receives the invoice from the supplier, it triggers another workflow to invoice their customers.
How Talbot Marketing became one of Canada's 50 Best Managed Companies
'Overall, the number of documents we print has been reduced by 90% as electronic processes have been put in place. More significant than our cost or environmental savings is our ability to ensure orders are being processed in a timely manner and accounts payable invoices are being processed efficiently. Our return on investment was achieved in less than one year, but we saw immediate improvement in our customer service with our new ability to quickly place orders and address issues that may arise. "DocuWare gave us real-time transparent processes and seamless information flow between departments, said Ian Nicol, Finance Manager for Talbot Marketing".
