[marilynmac]

Hello,
I am part of a small family florist business and was wondering what would be the best way to track client's info and order history. Is there a good way to do so within the Microsoft office suite..i.e. Outlook or something else. We are just setting up a computer in the store and I am looking for a quick but effective solution that we could all use fairly easily.
Thanks for your help.
Marilyn

[Lauren Elder]

Hi Marilyn,

You may want to look into Microsoft Access. You can get a free 60-day trial on their website, and it's a great tool for creating a database and organizing client information. I've used it before and there's a bit of a learning curve, but it's still a great choice for what you need.

Does anyone else have any suggestions?

Hope it helps!!

[grimble65]

Originally Posted by Lauren Elder

Hi Marilyn,

You may want to look into Microsoft Access. You can get a free 60-day trial on their website, and it's a great tool for creating a database and organizing client information. I've used it before and there's a bit of a learning curve, but it's still a great choice for what you need.

Does anyone else have any suggestions?

Hope it helps!!

I agree with Lauren that Access is a great tool especially if you have a lot of customers or a lot of orders to track. However, if you are a small family business and don't have a lot of customers, you might try using Excel. You could use the first column of the first sheet for your customers, then use the following columns for additional information such as amount, destination, and date. Use additional sheets by month, quarter, or year, whichever works best for your situation, copying the first column to the new sheet. This method has less of a learning curve than Access as well.

You could do Excel to start out with while you're learning Access, and then you can import the information from Excel to your Access database when you're ready.

[Dawn Bjork Buzbee]

The advantage of Access is it is a relational database which means you can link one customer to multiple transactions so you do not have have re-enter customer information. Plus, any changes only need to be made in one place. The downside is the steep learning curve for Access.

Excel is certainly easier for creating lists but you will typically have a lot of redundancy and it may become more of a hassle trying to find the information that you want as you switch between multiple worksheets or workbooks.

I may be struck by lightening or have my certifications revoked , but you might also check with your florist associations and colleagues to look for recommendations on inexpensive customer programs. My hairdresser, for example, is definitely not computer savvy but she created a list of features she wanted and found a great industry program for less than $200 that does more than everything she needs. The biggest plus is that she didn't have to teach herself how to use Access or another database program.

Dawn Bjork Buzbee, The Software Pro
Microsoft Certified Trainer (MCT)
OfficeArrow Premium Author
The Software Pro - OfficeArrow

[SMART23]

Hi Marilyn.
Totally agree with the others. You may also like to consider using either tool to track and monitor such things as advertising success and other important KPI's in your business. Treat your business as if it were already a bug business.Dont sell yourself short. Remember this, What gets measured, gets done! You'll be great Derek

[lilysunshine]

Marilyn, As an alternative to Access, if you have, or can purchase the Microsoft Office Suite that contains Outlook with Business Contact Manager and Microsoft Accounting, It is a bit more user friendly than Access. It's mostly their existing contacts on speed. :P

I'm using it right now as a stepping stone into a better CRM. My company is only just beginning to move from paper-only to an electronic system (can you believe that?).

Here's a link with more info on how Accounting and BCM work together.