Archive for July, 2017

Are you saving time with application shortcuts?

Friday, July 28th, 2017

 

Today’s post is by Troy Lowe; Vice President of Development at SafeSourcing.

If you spend a lot of time creating or editing Microsoft Word documents, you could save some time and be more efficient by learning some of the built in shortcuts.  The shortcuts can be accessed by key strokes or utilizing the mouse.  The keyboard shortcuts are used by clicking a key or a combination of keys and mouse shortcuts can be accessed by certain types of clicks using the left mouse button.  The most common used shortcuts by users today are the “Ctrl+C” and “Ctrl+V”.  These two shortcuts allow you to copy and paste selected text within a document or other open documents.  Although these are the most common there are many more powerful shortcuts available.  For example, if you have multiple Word documents to open you can press “Ctrl+F6” to cycle through all of your open Word documents.  To cycle through the open documents, press and hold the “Ctrl” key and press and release the “F6” key.When the desired document is reached, release the “Ctrl” key to select the document.  Memorizing the available keyboard shortcuts will make you more efficient because you don’t have to remove your hand from the keyboard to use the mouse.  Below are some other shortcuts that I often use.

KeyBoard

➢ Ctrl+A – Selects all contents of the document

➢ Ctrl+B – Bolds highlighted selection

➢ Ctrl+F – Opens the find box

➢ Ctrl+I – Italicize highlighted selection

➢ Ctrl+P – Opens Print window

➢ Ctrl+S – Saves current document

➢ Ctrl+U – Underlines highlighted selection

➢ Ctrl+X – Cuts the highlighted selection

➢ Ctrl+Z – Undo last action

➢ Ctrl+End – Moves cursor to the end of the document

➢ Ctrl+Home – Moves cursor to the beginning of the document

➢ Shift+F7 – Runs a Thesaurus check on the selected word

➢ Shift+Alt+D – Insert Current Date

➢ Shift+Alt+T – Insert Current Time

Mouse

➢ Click, hold and drag – Selects all of the text from the start to the point you let go

➢ Double Click – Double clicking on a word will highlight the entire word

➢ Triple Click – Triple clicking on a word will highlight the entire paragraph

➢ Ctrl+Mouse Wheel – Zooms in and out of the document

Interested in learning how SafeSourcing can help your company run more efficiently? Like to try a risk free trial? Please don’t hesitate to contact a SafeSourcing Customer Service Representative. Our team is ready and available to assist you!

 

3 Myths About Firewood (Part 1)

Thursday, July 27th, 2017

 

Today’s post is by Steven Belvin, Sr. Account Manager at SafeSourcing

With the winter weather creeping upon us, I feel it is best to crack a few myths about firewood. There have been plenty of myths when it comes to the world of firewood. We have heard everything from how to prevent bugs, to how to stack the wood. The three myths I will be covering are as followed:

  1.  Keep firewood stacked close to your home.
  2. Bring a lot of wood in now so you don’t have to go back outside.
  3. Spray pesticides on the wood to kill pests.

Let us start by covering the first topic, “Keep firewood stacked close to your home.” This would make sense right? Why not put the wood as close to your house so you don’t have to walk as far to get it, especially on those cold winter nights. Wrong! Actually by keeping wood so close to your home you are raising the chance of attracting pests and other insects, such as wood destroying termites and carpenter ants. Attracting these bugs will not only be harmful to your firewood, but could also send them on a direct path to your home. Once these bugs get into your home, it will be a nightmare to get them out. It could cost you up to $2,500.00 to have an exterminator come out and get rid of those destructive little pests. Once the pests are gone, it can cost you up to $5,000.00 just to repair your home, assuming they did not cause permanent damage. Obviously this is something everyone is trying to avoid. So to crack this myth, it is best to store your firewood at least 20 to 30 feet away from you home and/or garage. You may have to walk to gather what you need, but at least you will not get termites in your home! Stay tuned to the next blog where I will be cracking one of the other two myths.

For more information on how SafeSourcing can assist your team with this process or on our “Risk Free” trial program, please contact a SafeSourcing Customer Service Representative. We have an entire customer services team waiting to assist you today.

Resources——————————————-

“Firewood and Pests: 3 Myths | Plunkett’s Pest Control.” Plunkett’s. N.p., 02 Mar. 2016. Web. 17 July 2017.

 

Overcoming Declines

Wednesday, July 26th, 2017

 

Today’s post is by Robert Rice, Account Manager at SafeSourcing.

Defeating the decline is something most of us have had to deal with. It typically starts early in life. The girl you have been waiting all year to ask to the dance, says no. The time you asked your dad to co-sign on your first car, nope! Or the college you had your heart set on, “sorry to inform you but you were not selected”, blah blah blah. It’s a part of life and you will have to deal with declines constantly. But the key is HOW you will deal with the declines.

At SafeSourcing we offer an e-procurement tool that allows our clients to get better value without the hassle of hiring additional staff or devoting countless hours doing what we do in a fraction of the time. See, we deal with declines every day. In fact, we are sort of experts at it.

Declines are basically the starting point. Declines start a dialogue or a fact finding venture, where as an Account Manager, I can become better informed on the product or service I am selling. Through the engagement of the vendor, I am able to find out the real reason for “the decline” through direct questions or just being a good listener. In many cases, after speaking with the vendor regarding the decline, we both find out that they could still participate and bring value.

Some keys things to remember are:

  1.  When you receive a decline, IMMEDIATELY follow up with a phone call and find out why? There are definitely legitimate reasons a supplier cannot participate – logistics, they no longer provide that item; but before you hang up, ask, “Whom do you recommend?” More times than not, they will give you a company and a contact person.
  2. Ask good questions why the decline, “I can only bid on some of the items.” Great, we still want their participation. This can generate better savings for the items they are able to bid on.
  3. “We don’t do this this.” Great. What do you do? We might have another event they would be perfect for.

Basically, it is our job to make a decline into an opportunity, be it new leads, becoming better educated, or engaging the supplier and then finding a better event for them to join. Robert or any member of the experienced team at SafeSourcing would be happy to discuss how SafeSourcing can help you with your eProcurement planning. For more information, please contact SafeSourcing.

We look forward to your comments.

Make Time for eProcurement

Thursday, July 20th, 2017

 

Today’s post is by Dave Wenig, Director of Sales, North America at SafeSourcing

Reducing spend is important. It’s actually among the most important and impactful methods to improve your company’s bottom line. In most industries, you’ll be hard pressed to generate the same effect through any other means. New stores, new accounts, improved processes, and more all have merit. The fact is, reducing spend while maintaining quality can create a one-to-one savings to bottom line improvement opportunity. Where else are you getting results like that?

So, reducing spend is a top priority. But, is it the most urgent priority? Right now? Chances are you have something going on that cannot wait. Maybe you have a fire that needs to be put out before you can tackle the job of reducing the cost of the floor tile for your upcoming new stores. Maybe that’s a literal fire that needs to be put out. It happens.

At the end of the day though, we have to make time to focus on reducing our spend. One way to handle this is to improve efficiency by working with a partner, such as SafeSourcing, to increase the number of eProcurement projects that you complete in a given time period. Let somebody work on your behalf by delegating responsibly. Then, instead of one project per month, you can easily achieve three. Your input will still be required, but your time commitment will be greatly reduced.

So put out that fire and let us focus on the details so you can realize the savings. For more information, please contact SafeSourcing.

We look forward to your comments.

 

The Power of Teamwork

Thursday, July 13th, 2017

 

Today’s blog is by Margaret Stewart, Manager of HR and Administration at SafeSourcing.

Summer is no doubt the time for vacations, relaxation, and enjoying some sun and surf on a beautiful day. Recently, I read an article about some vacationers in Panama City Beach, FL who were trying to do just that. The problem, though, was there was a strong and large riptide at the beach that particular day.

If you aren’t aware, a riptide or rip currant is “a strong, offshore current that is caused by the tide pulling water through an inlet along a barrier beach.” In other words, stepping into a riptide can be very bad and it can pull you far out into the ocean. The currants are so strong that even the strongest swimmers struggle and often are lost because of exhaustion.

Unfortunately on this particular day in Florida, there were no lifeguards on duty at the beach, but very fortunately, there were a lot of people there and they were all willing to help. It began with a few people being pulled out far away from the shore and others trying to swim out and rescue them, unsuccessfully, and being stranded themselves. At one point, there were 12 people stranded in the rip currant, desperately needing help. This is where teamwork, camaraderie, and strength in working together are truly realized. Beachgoers on the shore, lacking any kind of rescue equipment, began forming a human chain. Dozens of them, with arms and legs locked together, created a chain long and strong enough to reach and rescue all of the stranded swimmers. These brave people who worked together to save the swimmers did not know each other and had very limited time to act. Those actions worked and lives were saved. If total strangers can come together in such an amazing way, with very little time and without all the tools they would want, imagine what the teamwork your organization is capable of. While great feats like this do not happen as often as we all could hope, we should realize that it is possible for a group to come together and accomplish great things.

For more information on SafeSourcing and how we can come together and help each other, or on our Risk Free trial program, please contact a SafeSourcing Customer Service representative. We have an entire team ready to assist you today.

References ————————————————————

Story

Definition

 

Copy That!

Tuesday, July 11th, 2017

 

Today’s blog is by Margaret Stewart, Manager of HR and Administration at Safesourcing

Have you ever been looking for a document and weren’t sure where you put it? Finding a necessary file or any kind of document can be daunting, especially if you haven’t needed it in quite some time. Whether it is your pet’s proof of vaccination or the warranty on your refrigerator, organizing and copying your important files is essential to ensure they are always available.

If you have ever lost a file or simply could not find it again, you probably know how important it is to organize and copy your files. If you ever ask a professional writer about where they keep their written work, you’ll likely hear that they will keep multiple versions of any work in at least three separate places. The reason for this is simple. The more places a document is stored, the better the odds that if a device is damaged, a server is down, or a file is corrupted, altered, or deleted that the file is not lost entirely.

Ultimately, the best place to store your documents is everywhere you can. Zip drives and portable hard drives are useful storage because they can hold a large amount of data and can easily be plugged into other computers and accessed. The downside is that if a file is accidently deleted, that file is gone forever. Saving files directly on your computer is beneficial because it allows easy access and often auto saves your progress when editing. However, files can become corrupted and computers can crash, leaving you without your files. One of the best places to save your files is within a cloud. This allows for access from anywhere with an internet connection (and your login credentials).

Cloud based file storage systems, like SafeSourcing’s SafeDocument™, allows for multiple versions to be saved as well as easy key word searching. Files are saved in the cloud, so they can be accessed from any computer with internet, yet are secure and safe. Copying your files into a safe and secure location can prevent future loss and problems accessing and finding a file you need.

For more information on SafeSourcing and how we can help you with file storage, or on our Risk Free trial program, please contact a SafeSourcing Customer Service representative. We have an entire team ready to assist you today.

 

How to Survive The Psychology of The Grocery Store

Thursday, July 6th, 2017

 

Today’s post is by Gayl Southard, Administrative Consultant, SafeSourcing.

Running into the local Kroger or Safeway for a quart of milk and coming out with a cartload of unintended food purchases is universal—and it’s not our fault. Supermarkets make us do it, or at least they try. Grocery shopping is an orchestrated process. Every feature of the store—from floor plan and shelf layout to lighting, music, and ladies in aprons offering free sausages on sticks—is designed to lure us in, and seduce us into spending money. Once you enter a grocery store, it’s often not easy to get out again. A common feature of supermarkets is the one-way entry door; to get back out, you’re compelled to walk through a good portion of the store. After the one-way front door, the feature first displayed is the produce department. The impact of all those scents, textures, and colors (think fat tomatoes, glossy eggplants, luscious strawberries) makes us feel both upbeat and hungry. Also the store bakery is usually near the entrance, with its smell of fresh-baked bread; as is the flower shop, with its buckets of tulips, and bouquets gorgeous flowers. The message we get right off the bat is that the store is a welcoming place.

The cruel truth is that the produce department is less garden and kitchen than stage set. Lighting is chosen to make fruits and veggies appear at their brightest and best; and – according to Martin Lindstrom, author of Brandwashed: Tricks Companies Use to Manipulate Our Minds and Persuade Us to Buy—the sprays of fresh water over the produce bins are all for show. Though used to give fresh foods a deceptive dewy and fresh-picked look, the water actually has no real purpose. It actually makes vegetables spoil faster.A classic of this kind of customer manipulation, Lindstrom points out, is the banana—still America’s favorite fruit—whose signature ripe yellow is actually the result of painstaking marketing analyses. Sales records indicated the customers bought more bananas if their peels were Pantone color 12-0752 (Buttercup) rather than the slightly brighter Pantone color 13-0858 (Vibrant Yellow). Banana growers responded by planting their crops under conditions tailored to produce Buttercup.”1

The supermarket is designed to make customers spend as much time as possible in the store. Dairy departments are almost always located as far from the entrance as possible.   Customers will most likely have at least one dairy item on their list which will make them walk the length of the store. Mid-aisle positioning is intended to sideline the so-called Boomerang Effect, in which some shoppers (notably men) simply head for the item they need, then return the way they came.

“Music encourages us to dawdle: A famous study of background music and supermarket shoppers, conducted in 1982, found that people spent 34 percent more time shopping, with a corresponding uptick in sales, in stores that played music. And supermarkets tend to be devoid of external time cues: most have no windows or skylights, and shoppers are often hard-pressed to find a clock.

The theory is the longer you stay in the store, the more stuff you’ll see, and the more stuff you see, the more you’ll buy. The average supermarket carries approximately 44,000 different items. “According to brain-scan experiments conducted by Paul Mullins and colleagues of Bangor University, Wales, the demands of so much decision-making quickly become too much for us. After about 40 minutes of shopping, most people stop struggling to be rationally selective, and instead began shopping emotionally—which is the point at which we accumulate the 50 percent of stuff in our cart that we never intended buying.”2

Shelf order is a psychological trap. The expensive items are generally placed at eye level; generic brands are on the lower shelves so that you have to crouch. Foods meant to appeal to kids are set at kids’ eye level so that the cartoon characters on the boxes make eye contact with (short) passers-by.

The displays at the ends of the aisles (end caps) are shopper traps. Companies pay high prices to display their products there.  A product at an end cap sells eight times faster than the same product shelved elsewhere on the aisle. Also the size of our shopping carts increases the chance of our buying more. Carts have tripled in size, and they’re still growing. Shoppers tend to buy 40 percent more with a bigger cart. So what to do about all this? Make a list and stick to it. Try not to shop so often—fewer and more efficient trips to the store are easier on the pocketbook.

For more information on SafeSourcing and how we can help you with your sourcing needs, or on our Risk Free trial program, please contact a SafeSourcing Customer Service representative. We have an entire team ready to assist you today.

References——————————————-

1, 2.   Rebecca Rupp, The Plate, 6/15/2015