When you start your new project or company, you may face some issues how to organize data such as contacts, leads/opportunities, orders, product information, stocks, invoices, logistics, etc. Then you may struggle with hundreds of spreadsheets, word documents, PDFs.
ERP system centralizes all data in a single system and share it in a company to focus on effectiveness and simplified success. And it guides you what to do next based on workflows and it avid to make mistakes, opportunity losses and to waste time.
4 great points to use ERP system
- You can store all data in a single system, then easy to share and find it.
- You can save lots of time for paper works.
- You can avoid to make mistakes and losses.
- You can analyze data easily, then you are able to focus on making strategies.
With ERP system, you will NOT have the following problems.
*ERP = Enterprise Resource Management
*data = information and files
11 typical data management issues at work
You may spend hours to find a single information. It can be in the email, your laptop or server.
All data is in a same system, that’s why it’s easy to search and get it.
People are making copies without notice sometimes. One is at a download folder, one is at desktop, one is on the server.
When you update data, you may work on only one file, then you get confused by having different data with the same file name.
Each data has a specific place to be stored, so the data will not be duplicated.
People try to organize file versions by puting file name longer and longer, but you may get confused at the end.
Q1, Q2, Q1_2, Q(3), Q270720, Q270720(2), Q_final2, Q_final_of_final(3)
Update histories will be added in the system automatically, such as price changed, quantity changed, etc. You can know what were changed and when. So you don’t need to keep all files.
When you have many inquires, you may get lost which are more important or even forget.
You can see all pipelines in a page with stages and priorities. And you can sort it out by powerful filters. It makes you easy to know what you want to focus on.
Even though you are close to get an order, but you may forgot to follow after sending quotations.
System shows you the status of each quotation, so it’s obvious which quotation you should to follow.
Analyzing data is very important, but you may struggle to make a report. It can be because data is stored at different places or even different formats.
You can create charts or pivot tables with filters by a few clicks inside the system.
People feel your job has done after sending the invoice, but receiving the payment should be the end.
System shows you the payment status of each invoice with due date.
[With team]
You can store each template for quotations, order confirmations, invoices in the system, so all people use the same template. And when you update it, it affect to all of them.
People share data sometimes, but forget sometimes.
People need to insert data to go to the next stage, so it can’t be forgotten.
People use emails as chat, to assign a new task, give an advice, point a mistake, etc.
System has chat functions and insert a link to the related page. So no need to find where are the information nor to send attached files
A manager may wants to permissions or access rights to a specific person or team, but it’s complex sometimes and need to know IT knowledge.
You can easily create and assign it to a user, a position or a team, etc.
- Don’t remember where you stored the data
- Same data at several places
- Don’t know which file is the latest version
- Difficult to put priorities for Leads / opportunities
- Forget to follow quotations
- Take lots of time to make a report
- Missing to receive payments
- Each person uses their own templates
- People forget to share data
- Too many email conversations between colleagues
- Difficult to set up access rights
Odoo is a powerful and rich ERP software, you can use hundreds of native and third party apps.
There are 4 million users in the world.
Odoo community is getting bigger and bigger, so you can find many solutions there.
7 reasons why we like Odoo
- No license fee – Odoo Community edition is open-sourced software
- Users need just a web browser to access Odoo, even with mobile
- User friendly design
- Odoo server works at Windows, Mac and Linux
- Multi language / multi currency
- Drop shipping option
- Easy to customize
You can test Odoo at their demo site. *only enterprise edition
To install into Windows, it’s easy. You can follow the instructions here.
If you use Mac, please refer to our post : “How to install Odoo into Mac”
Take a look at Odoo core apps
- CRM
- Sales
- Mass Mailing
- Purchase
- Inventory
- Invoicing
1. CRM – Customer Relationship Management
Track leads and close opportunities
When you want to reach to the certain goals, it’s very important to put priorities. You can see pipelines in one page and make strategies easily. Stages obviously show how the opportunities in progress and calculate sales amounts. You can easily add activities/Todo, it tells you what to do today.
*some functions are available only with enterprise edition
- Convert from leads to opportunities
- Move stages by drag and drop
- System guides you what to do today
- Record histories how inquiries changed
- Calculate automatically how match you won
- Easy to analyze data with charts or pivot tables
2. Sales
From quotation to invoices
You can create a quotation from an opportunity in a minute. System can generate a PDF file to send to your customer. You can share online quotation with your customers too. Multi language system can generate quotations in customer’s languages.
Sales app Demo – how to make a quotation and confirm an order (5 mins)
*some functions are available only with enterprise edition
- Create a quotation and confirm a sales order easily
- Generate a PDF file with template
- Able to send an email with a quotation inside Odoo
- Online quotation is available to share with your customer
- Make reports with charts or pivot table by a few clicks
- Multi language / multi currency
- After confirming a sales order, a delivery order will be generated automatically
- Works with the invoicing app seamlessly
3. Mass Mailing
Design, send and track emails
This is a very powerful tool for email marketing. Sending newsletters is still the most successful way to reach to the targets. You can create campaigns and design newsletters by drag and drop. System can send newsletters with scheduled time.Track reports show you which campaigns succeeded more.
*some functions are available only with enterprise edition
- Easy to create newsletters by drag & drops – no IT knowledge required
- Able to add Unsubscribe button
- Easy to pick up contacts with filters such as country, language, tag, city, past orders, products, etc.
- Send newsletters with scheduled time
- Check reports : Received, Opened, Replied, Clicks, Bounced
4. Purchase
Purchase orders, tenders and agreement
Purchase app Demo – how to make a RFQ and confirm an order (4 mins)
*some functions are available only with enterprise edition
- Create a RFQ in a minute
- System generates a PDF file with template
- Able to send an email with a RFQ inside Odoo
- Make reports with charts or pivot table by a few clicks
- Multi language / multi currency
- Drop shipping option automatically create a relationship between a sales order and a purchase order
- Multi language / multi currency
5. Inventory
Manage your stock and logistics activities
Inventory app Demo – inventory and warehouse operations (4 mins)
*some functions are available only with enterprise edition
- Fully integrated with sales orders and purchase orders
- When you create a quotation, system tells you available quantities in stock
- Easy to know numbers and values of stocks
- Easy to trace how goods moved
- Forcasted stock shows you how quantities will change day by day
- Able to handle with lot or seriial numbers
- Multi warehouses
6. Invoicing
Invoices & payments
Invoicing app Demo – sales invoicing (4 mins)
*some functions are available only with enterprise edition
- Create an invoice by clicking in a minute
- System generates a PDF file with template or online invoice
- Able to send an email with an invoice inside Odoo
- Online payments are available – PayPal / Stripe / etc
- Multi language / multi currency
What we can support with Odoo
- Demo – based on your business model
- Optimize workflows – help to consider what are the best ways to work
- Installation – Windows, Mac or Linux and you can choose with or without remote access
- Customize
- Training
- Import data
- Website or eCommerce site top on Odoo
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