We've Moved!

Well, virtually anyway. Our web site has been split from our SharePoint project management site and received a facelift in the process. What started out as a 1-2 week project turned into a five month ordeal.

When Triage was started we had everything under one roof in our SharePoint site which functioned as our public company site, blog and client project site. We now have many channels that serve to both inform the public as well as serve our clients needs even better. These channels include:

• Our Company Website - Completely redesigned and updated to reflect all we have to offer at Triage
• This Blog - Moved to it's own sub-domain with far better ability to handle newer web technologies and media options. (SharePoint is really limited in it's blogging abilities)
• Our YouTube Channel - Our media was getting a bit scattered. This gives us a single source for any instructional or commentary videos.
• Our SharePoint Project Management Site - Upgraded to SharePoint 2010, this was a bit of a trade-off that we felt was really worth doing. The new version of SharePoint has much tighter integration with MS Office as well as a new modern ribbon tool bar. Unfortunately the old SPS application templates as well as many of the "Fabulous Forty" templates don't work in the new version.
• Our eCommerce Site - Formerly just a private test site, our Big Commerce site is now public and serves double duty as a fully functional eCommerce site as well as a test bed.

"What, no Facebook?" you ask. Nope, but I'll get on that soap box in another post :)

Hope you like what we've done and remember: Stay Organized!

Quickly Put A Brand Or Category On Sale In Big Commerce

With the lack of a built-in sale function in Big Commerce many new users have a difficult time putting a group of products on sale, resorting to changing prices one at a time or downloading a full Bulk Edit CSV and picking through it one by one. Here's how to get that brand or category on sale quickly:

1. Copy the Bulk Edit export template to create a custom export template that contains only the fields you need. This would be Product Name, Category, Sale Price and any other price fields (retail, cost or selling price) that you may want to base your sale price on. You can also uncheck the "Yes, include product options in the products export" box unless you really need the options in the export - you can't put an option sku on sale, you can only change a fixed price. Note that I also include Product ID in all my custom exports even though it is technically not required unless you are changing the product name.
2. Next go to Products > Search Products and select only the criteria you want to put on sale (Brand, Category, everything over $100, whatever).
3. Export the search results using your custom export template.
4. Add sale prices based on any formula or enter the price directly into the Sale Price field.
5. Re-import the csv (check the box "Yes, I exported this file using the 'Bulk Edit' template").

There you have it, your brand, category or other product group on sale.

Display Single Item Price When Selling Package Quantities in Big Commerce

We've been seeing a lot of Big Commerce users wondering how to display the single unit price of a product when the product only comes in package quantities. Here's one technique to accomplish this that can also be used to add a setup or handling fee that is not included in the advertised price.

1. Create a multiple choice Option that contains the package quantities available (or a single choice for the setup fee). Setting a default here will multiply the price automatically as soon as the product page is displayed. It's probably best to have no default so the single unit price displays until the user checks an option - shopping comparison sites may disqualify your products if they audit your site and see a different price on the page.
2. Create an Option Set and add the Option, making it mandatory.
3. Here you need to make a decision. We need to set up rules to change the price for each package quantity. If rules can be created in the Option Set that will apply to all products this will keep maintainance simple and is the best choice. If the package quantities cannot be based on a formula then the rules need to be created within each product.
4. Add the Option Set to each product that is sold in package quantity only.

Here's a video to demonstrate (sorry for the crappy audio):

The Human Condition

I was recently asked to manage some of the outsourcing for an ecommerce site. I'd been meaning to sign up on a couple of freelance sites anyway to try and fill some open time and what I see on these sites is a real eye opener on the human condition.

Now I fully understand the global economy and I'm not about to start ranting about wage differences but people working for 50 cents an hour? I don't know what a computer and a copy of MS Office, Photoshop or whatever costs in some third world ghetto but I'd be willing to bet 50 cents won't cover it.

Far worse than those who are apparently working with pirateware are the unscrupulous employers on these sites. These are just some of the things I've seen in a couple of days time looking at the other jobs posted:

• Looking for someone to post false reviews
• Looking for someone to modify copywrited material to make it their own
• Looking for someone to copy someone elses web site
• Looking for someone to manage someone who’s not getting the work done on time
• Looking for someone to remove bad publicity on the internet (ripoff report, etc.)
• "I don’t know how to do it but it should only take you a few minutes" (this one's always my favorite)
• "You need to make as many revisions as it takes at no charge until I say it's right"
• Ridiculous time frames

Probably the worst of all are employers trying to get out of paying $2.00 hr when a deadline is missed. I'd be willing to bet the instructions were all of two sentences or the deadline was unrealistic.

All this just goes to show there are untold masses ready and willing to fill Hitlers shoes given the opportunity.

Pushing The Air Plane

A man is driving near Seattle when he comes upon another man who is pushing an air plane down the road.

"What's wrong with the plane?"the man in the car asks. "Nothing" replies the man pushing the plane.

"Where are you pushing the plane to?"

"Montana"

"Why don't you fly it?"

"I don't know how to fly a plane."

"Why don't you learn to fly or hire a pilot?"

"Pilots cost money and I don't have time to learn to fly. Now if you'll excuse me I have to get back to pushing this plane."

How many time have you heard (or said) “We don’t have time to do it right”? Yet it seems there’s always time to take the long road or worse yet, do it twice.

Every company has air plane pushers. In the haste to accomplish some goal, people fail to develop the methods and document the procedures for the task. They concentrate on getting it done rather than how to get it done properly and efficiently. This is the single biggest squandering of company resources there is, replacing efficient methods with more humans and the associated labor costs. That’s great if you're a philanthropist, not so great if you're trying to maximize profits.

Failing to plan causes a hemorrhage of money. Instead of letting out a bit of blood and suturing the wound with nice clean stitches, a dirty band aid is put on the gash and it’s allowed to bleed slightly forever, with all the puss and infection that come with such methods. Eventually this leads to a hospital visit and possibly an amputation.

Technophobia, ego, narrow mindedness, failure to adapt, and simple lack of education or experience all play a part in creating air plane pushers. Often it starts innocently enough. A quick solution is needed for some information requirement, then as the company grows these Git'er Done fixes remain, detaching information from the one version of the truth and causing employees to back-track, re-research, guess and duplicate effort.

How many air planes are being pushed around your company?

Gotta run - I’m off to flight school then my shrink to work on that fear of heights

We've Changed Our Name!

Triage CAD Services is now Triage Information Services.
The new name better represents the full range of business services we offer. Managing information has always been the core of our business and we hope the new name will put further emphasis on that.

What The Hell Happened To Aunt Jemima?

Who's the genius that decided Aunt Jemima needed an upgrade?
I haven't had home made pancakes since I was a kid. Now I have a kid of my own and decided to start making pancakes on occasion for my family. We ran out of the Hungry Jack syrup my wife had originally bought and the store didn't have it so she got Aunt Jemima.

The real Aunt Jemima is fat, and wears an apron and bandanna. She looks like she makes the best pan cakes in the world and makes you feel all warm and at home inside. This new imposter looks like a business woman who's never cooked breakfast in her life. She looks like she's about to run off to work after quickly throwing some cold crap on the table.

This is an outrage. Just looking at that picture made my pancakes taste like they just went from the freezer to the microwave.

I want my fat Aunt Jemima back!