Catalyst venture into pastures new, we've started an on line video channel in the use of our software.

The library consists of short video tutorials, each on a different topic showing how to achieve a specific task. The purpose of this library is two fold. Firstly it's a free training aid of existing users and ideal for new staff, secondly a way to illustrate to our potential customers the style, features and  power of  the software.

It is intended that this video library will be regularly updated into the future and will become an increasingly valuable information resource. Whilst I would not recommend this corner of “Youtube” for pure entertainment but browsing it regularly may well broaden your knowledge and use of the software.

To access this video resource simply choose the “YouTube” link in the “Keeping In Touch” section at the foot of our web site or go directly to www.youtube.com and search for “CatalystDMS”. It’s free and ever so simple, so please take a look.

Yet another reason why using our Dealer Management System is your best choice.

In a unique agreement Catalyst and MCN have agreed free advertising of Motorcycles 125cc or under on the MCN web site until December 2013. Yes just to re-iterate that’s COMPLETELY FREE on the MCN Website until the end of 2013!

There are no catches and no small print!

This offer is open to all current users who have either a current rental or maintenance agreement with Catalyst. Neither Catalyst nor MCN will raise any charge associated with this. All the user of Catalyst’s software is required to do is enter the details of the vehicle, ensure that it’s adequately described and has a photo or two and the rest is completely automatic and completely free.

We are honestly helping your business in the most practical way, by helping to sell your products. Obviously there is programming work to be done by both MCN and Catalyst in order to enable the data feed, we currently expect to be up and running in less than two weeks.

Expect an extra “tick box” on the vehicle “Web publishing” tab to appear very shortly, which will indicate that the data feed is available. We assume that all users will be pleased to advertise their products for free so we will be helpfully automatically ticking the box where possible.

Please beware that this offer is free and will be withdrawn to anyone abusing it by attempting to smuggle larger bikes through this free advertising route, fireblades and the like are not small bikes! Please play by the rules and benefits are free.

This may not actually be “a free lunch” but you’ll probably be able to one from the proceeds!

Jeff

We have been working for many months specifically and strategically to help our clients by helping them to market their goods and services both efficiently and effectively. One of the key elements in this strategy has now been completed. It’s a completely free addition to the software and it’s called “The Customer Retention Centre”. As the name implies the purpose is to help you retain and cultivate your clients.

We are in fact shamelessly trying to give companies running our software the edge over competitors.

Great news for everyone with customers!

Yes that does mean for business’s almost everybody! The feature helps you to stay in touch. One of the key aspects to surviving the current economic climate is the customer relationship, staying in touch with clients, reminding them about things they need to do and simply reminding them that you are there to help. This new feature does nothing that the software could not do previously, but it has made doing it a whole lot easier. This is a revolution in ease and automation aimed to make staying in contact so simple and effortless that everybody uses it.

We do recognise that all of our clients are not entirely at ease with technology and automation, hopefully this innovation is so easy and powerful that all will gain the big benefits from cultivating existing customers. Still better news is that this brand new option is completely free to all users renting the software or with a current maintenance contract. This is in fact as close as a software company can come to offering a free lunch, you may not be able to eat it but it will earn a crust or two if used! The new concept is to centralise and simplify all regular customer mailing bringing everything together into an easy to use option which can easily be completely automated so as to run week after week without human input of any kind. By centralising the process it is now very simple to automate everything from service reminders to birthday wishes and send it in the method most appropriate by individual client. You can in fact mark a clients preference for post, e-mail or telephone text message and the software will automatically choose the appropriate contact method, client by client!

Jeff.

With computers becoming ever more reliable it’s tempting to think that a data disaster cannot happen. Regardless of the sophistication of you equipment it is essential to make backup copies of data and to remove those copies to a secure and remote location.

Too many people make backups and leave them close to or even in the machine containing the original data. This will not protect against fire, flood or theft! Friday last week a potential disaster faced one of our clients. Naming no names in order to spare blushes they have come close to losing all data by overlooking the importance of keeping reserve (backup) copies of their company data. The potential costs and disruption which would have resulted can only be guessed at.

Perfect Storm

The client concerned had invested correctly in the technology which under most circumstances would protect them. Nothing however can protect from a number of factors coming together!

A single backup tape was used to destruction by never being rotated as part of a backup set, after a years work the tape failed and the errors reported were not acted on. The server, of good specification contained mirrored hard drives, each could fail without risk of data loss. Unfortunately both damaged in the same instant by human error when tidying near to the server! Happily this particular story has a happy ending. Our hardware department reacted to the crisis by attending site within a couple of working hours, despite this being a Saturday and were able to resolve the situation by a combination of resourcefulness, taking spare drives to cannibalise for parts and good fortune in realising that a “knock” might get the thing spinning. Heaves of relief on all sides!

Backup Regimes

Catalyst design and install backup regimes, train in how to use them but ultimately cannot be there to ensure that they are being adhered to. Further if all data is lost Catalyst cannot magic a reserve copy and are thus potentially unable to help. Personally I don’t think any of us ever want to get that close to losing their entire company information, customers, transactions accounts and all. How many days work does this represent?

I once again appeal to everyone even people not using our software. For your own sake, please, please ensure that backup regimes are effective followed and please make sure you take them off the premesis, if you are in any doubt please contact us and arrange for a Softare or Hardware health visit to verify that all is well. That stomach churning instant in time when you realise you may have lost everything is not an experience I want anyone to go through.

Drying out disk drives

Stories of drying out disk drives on radiators after they have been soundly doused by the fire brigade or spending hours winding tape back into the cassette with a pencil by hand after they were used for sport by burglars. These things make for interesting after dinner anecdotes, they have both really happened. I have personally gone into burnt out buildings in the futile search for anything still reminiscent of a computer. We really will make every effort to recover information in obscure ways but we really would rather we never had to!

Jeff

New year, it’s here, 2012! New year, time to reflect, time to plan and time to move forward.

Hangovers fading and armed with the fading memories of pre Christmas it’s time to pick up the reigns of work again.

For Catalyst 2011 was a year of quiet consolidation and development. Considering the “interesting times” in which we lived the year, when viewed in hind sight, was a pretty good year for Catalyst. We have focussed in many ways on improving not only our products but also our service. Our own statistics over the year have shown a consistent improvement in hot line performance and our on line “knowledge base” of hints tips and help with our products has flourished. Not only is the number of articles considerably enlarged over the year but also it’s use has grown considerably. Catalyst’s software grew considerably in both quantity and quality. During 2011 we released 273 software enhancements. The product covers more ground, links to more third parties and does it in an ever prettier way. We have injected ever more use of colour and graphics for intuitive use. In short the software has improved in hundreds of subtle ways, saving time, becoming ever easier to use and providing even more information and doing it all incredibly reliably.

The plan for 2012 is more of the same. The computer business, like all others is a race. It’s a race to provide ever better products and service and to do so as efficiently as is possible. We have a strong plan for development and software releases during 2012, very significant software already in the “pipe line” will be released even as early as January. This years focus is to provide ever better tools to help our customers market, and sell as well as retaining and developing their existing clients. In short our aim is to help our clients thrive in difficult times by developing software to improve sales, marketing and customer retention. This is of course our basic philosophy of achieving success through the success of our customers.

A consistent problem for Catalyst has always been keeping our users abreast with the latest features and releases of our software. You may have noticed that our news is now available via “facebook” and “twitter” and watch out for a totally revised web site very soon. We really are very busy not only developing software but also attempting to make sure that our customers benefit by using it! Sincerely wishing all our customers and friends a great new year and doing all we can to ensure it’s profitable one for everyone too.

Jeff

Advertise Bikes Free At Bennetts Insurance

Premium advertising with no effort and for free!

It sounds to good to be true but occasionally some things really are free! Users of Platinum Software may now advertise motorcycles for sale absolutely free of charge at the “Bennetts insurance” web site www.bennetts.co.uk.

“Bennetts Insurance” are obviously an influential name in UK motorcycling, this web site has a large foot fall of users daily and is an ideal platform to market motorcycles. In order to assist users of our software in these trying times for business Catalyst have negotiated and implemented this hassle and cost free feed direct from “Catalyst FindIt”.

• It requires absolutely no additional user input is genuinely entirely free.
• The only restrictions applied by Bennetts are that vehicle records are complete and that all vehicles for sale include photographs.

This web site is already up and running and many of your bikes are probably already listed.

If they are not then all you have to do is to make sure all bike records Platinum Software are complete and have photographs attached. If in doubt, full details of the information required for bikes to be listed on this site may be found on the “Catalyst Knowledge Base”.

Information is automatically fed from “Catalyst findit” to this site on a daily basis so any changes made in Platinum will only appear on this web site the following day.

A great show for Catalyst, in fact our best year yet at the Lawns.

Our efforts and investment in more demonstration equipment and even new tables and chairs were amply rewarded. Year on year we have more interest as well as plenty of new faces to complement our valued band of current customers.

This is the only open air show of the year for Catalyst and thus a bit of a novelty. Our only annual exposure to the English climate did not disappoint. Yes it was sunny some of the time but this was punctuated by the fitful first signs of an imminent autumn. The show featured both high winds and rain. Happily our marquee remained an oasis of dry and calm. When the rain abated we were treated to a small plague of wasps which made pack up day that bit more interesting, particularly for myself given my long standing allergy to their stings!

Our busiest day was the Wednesday, I really hope that we spoke with everyone as it was so busy! No surprises that this day was brisk, the weather forecast for that day was the best of the show.

Despite the endeavours of the climate all in all this was an excellent year, more interest, more leads and no doubt more people to call, discuss and demonstrate our systems to over the coming months. Thanks to the show organisers and all involved. No comes the catch up stage to talk, quote and demonstrate our software in greater depth. I feel a tour of some far flung corners of Britain coming on…

Jeff.