To Thom and all of management,
I agree with all the sentiments expressed here. I've used AW for a couple of months and have spotted some problem areas I'd like to see addressed in order to make AW truly the best auction management program available. I speak from experience with too much disappointment with too many programs.
First let me say, the lack of integration between the Lot Grid and the Invoice Grid boggled my mind, but I finally learned to ignore the Lot Grid Screen entirely (except when necessary for creating auctions) and concentrated solely on the Invoice Grid screen to manage my auctions after they ended. But there is still a problem. The Invoice Grid gives no identity to the auctions listed in the grid. To identify them, we have to click other buttons, which then show only information for the individual auction highlighted. So if I'm looking to find information about my "Dexter shoes" auction, I must highlight each unidentified auction individually and explore the possibilities of what it could be by using the three buttons above that grid. Having both the Auction Title and the buyer’s User ID in that grid would be of enormous help. In fact, having the information in that grid that we already have on the "Lots" grid would be mighty helpful.
There is more. Once the Invoice Grid displays all the info we need at a glance to know what each auction is, it would be nice to have 4 or 5 tiny columns next to the Auction Title, a checkmark or lack of checkmark in each box representing whether or not (1) the auction is ended (2) the buyer has been notified (3) payment has been received (4) the Goods sent, and (4) the transaction is completed/closed. (A feedback column as a final column could be a problem because sometimes it’s a lengthy process...but could be worked out somehow.) Each column title could be abbreviated, such as AE for Auction Ended, BN for Buyer Notified, so we can keep the columns very narrow and close to each other.
Although I’d definitely retain the ability to choose to see in the grid only auctions with one status (like ‘Buyer not Contacted,’ or ‘Payment Received’), it would be most helpful if we could see all of the ended but not yet closed auctions in the grid and their state of progression, in other words, to know at a glance by the checkmarks which stage we're at with each ended auction.
Its confusing to see the terms used for the ‘Status’ of an ended auction being different in the Lot screen from what we see in the Invoices screen. ‘Waiting to Ship’ in Lots should say the same thing, not ‘Sold and Shipped’ in another screen. Having only one grid would solve this problem (which is why I use only the Invoices Grid after auctions have ended). I couldn't agree more with J Hill that its not good to have an auction treated by AW as "Sold and Shipped" when it is not. That is most confusing to me, and important. I’d rather not see those words until I’ve come home after shipping the item and documented the “actual” Ship cost. Then that documentation could trigger a “Goods Sent” checkmark in the grid. Then the only remaining box might be “Feedback not Left.” We could manually deal with that, for example, I don’t use AW to leave feedback yet, so I could just checkmark it as done, which would trigger the program to close out those auctions from the grid altogether. Others who use AW for the feedback job could let it stay on the screen til its done if they choose.
I love the way AW handles “all” the newly ended auctions by generating the email Winning Bidder Notices for all of them at the same time. Once we’ve learned to trust the program to include the shipping charge, etc, in the emails, then one click from the Email category to ‘send’ them actually sends all of them at the same time. AW also acts in this fashion to generate all ‘to be printed’ Invoices and Shipping Labels at the same time. That’s a real plus feature! Another strength of AW is its superior Auction Listing/Scheduling management. I cannot praise it enough.
All my auctions are currently simple and straighforward, all on Ebay, no consignors, rarely a combined win, no stores, etc, but I do realize that other sellers have more complex issues to deal with. What I’m asking for is basic easy-auction-management, which I believe would benefit us all, so I would include on my Wish List the following things:
(1) One main Grid (spreadsheet) to identify and work with ended auctions, with the capacity for ‘At a Glance’ orientation as to the progress of any one of those auctions.
(2) “Reports” that act like Excell, showing actual credits/debits including auction/payment fees and a total that reflects real profit/loss.
(3) This one is more frivilous but would be nice...for us to be able to customize the titles above the grid so we can abbreviate the titles and make the columns narrower to see more information on one screen. Also...to be able to center the information in the boxes to make it look better and easier to see.
I really do believe what the AW creators say, that, “The philosophy behind Auction Wizard 2000 is to empower online auction sellers with the best tools and the best support in the greatest number of markets.” It’s a tall order to ask AW to integrate the best of the best of every other auction management program out there into AW, but I don’t know why it cannot be done. I am weary of buying program after program in my search for the one that “does it all.” Each program is outstanding in one or two ways, but I’ve yet to see one alone that is outstanding in every aspect of auction management, from “Listing” with the program, to “Managing” the after-sale details, and finally, to having all that info transferred onto one final accurate financial report.
The only weakness in AW that I see is its confusing after-auction management system, and that’s a big one. Its just too convoluted, making it frustrating and time-consuming. But I’m not bailing out yet. I’m trusting that AW means what it says (above) and truly desires to be the best. I would vote to pay AW more to work out (simplify/expediate) its post-Auction Management and Reports part of the program. If that happens, then we’ll indeed have the best program available, and I don’t know why sellers wouldn’t flock to it.
Of all the auction management programs I’ve bought, I see the most potential with this one, Auction Wizard. And one of its strongest assets is its “Help/Support.” I’ve never seen such a comprehensively written Help/Tutorial section. And Thom has proven to be quick, accurate, and most helpful with answers. And last but not least, personally, without Jackie’s board, I’d be one lost and disappointed puppy. I cannot overemphasize the value of the help I’ve gotten from the AW users on her board. Let’s face it, using an auction management program is not just useful, even necessary, but fun. I believe AW can make it much more useful, and hence, more fun. So I want to encourage AW to have a corporate meeting, ASAP...to face these problems we users see and to work them out as quickly as possible, because we use this program every day. If you folks at AW can do what you’ve already proven you can do with programming, I don’t see any reason why you can’t do what many of us think is necessary, if not vital, to make Auction Wizard the most competitive management program on the market.
Jeannie
P.S. I'm editing this post to say I didn't mean to start a new thread but to respond to J Hill's and the other posts under ""Needed Improvements." That's where you'll find messages written by others that have to do with what I wrote here. I'm going to add this post to that category now.
Edited by thewomenfolk on 06/25/03 10:53 AM (server time).
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Rich,
My lack of knowledge about selling multiple auctions to the same person is showing. You said, "Right now, I have about 20 outstanding invoices for multiple wins (one with 5 in fact). How would we show that in a grid?"
If I understand you correctly now, you want to know how AW would display the Status of each of those multi-purchases on the Invoice Grid, if you're handling them all as one?
If AW did in fact have 5 little boxes for checkmarks to indicate the Status of the progress of each and every transaction, I don't know why, if your 5 multi-purchase auctions are somehow associated, AW couldn't default the checkmark to the same box for all auctions bought by the same buyer...if in fact he's paying for all of them with one payment. But that's a technical question that I'm really not qualified to answer.
I think we agree that this much is important...if on the Invoice grid we could immediately see both the Identity and Status of all "ended and to-be-dealt-with" auctions, we'd be instantly oriented in our minds as to where each auction stands and which ones need attention. As it stands now, each ended auction is "in one of those categories" and that's as close to orientation as I can get. The key words for me having to do with the Invoice grid are IDENTITY and STATUS and now that I think about it...ZIP CODE. These three things I'd love to see put on the Invoice grid itself. ZIP CODE on the grid ...because its the only thing on my Post Office receipt that identifies an auction, and when I get home I can just look at the zip on the receipt, find it on the grid and be at the auction where I need to be to go document the actual ship cost.
I sure hope I didn't misunderstand you again.
Jeannie
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