Welcome to Eco Ask why, a podcast that dives into industrial manufacturing topics and spotlights the heroes that keep America running. I'm your host, chris Granger, and on this podcast, we do not cover the latest features and benefits on products that come to market. Instead, we focus on advice and insight from the top minds of industry, because people and ideas will be how America remains number one in manufacturing in the world. Welcome to ECO Asks why. I'm your host, chris Granger. I'm looking forward to hanging out with you. We're going to keep talking about and exploring the whole idea of online procurement with you here on ECO Asks why. You've probably noticed a theme over the last few episodes that came out because we put a lot of investment and in time in developing some systems that, quite frankly, we think can help you take your business to the next level. So we're going to really be talking about today expanding on that even further and talk about unlocking flexibility with payment and shipping methods, because we know, as you work in industrial manufacturing, having that payment the shipping methods is so crucial so that you can get the material that you want in an efficient manner. Ok, so we're really striving to work through and simplify the online procurement experience that you have to make it more efficient and, primarily, transparent as well. So, in our continued effort to provide you with a seamless procurement process, I'm going to highlight today a few key features that make these online transactions a lot easier for you to manage. Ok, so we're going to dive in a couple areas Payment methods we're going to look at. We're going to talk about tax calculations, because we need to know that Delivery times, shipping costs and then, as well as branch pickups, because we still know that is such a big deal, but coordinating that in such a way that you can pick those items up when you want, that's the trick, okay, so all these items and these features are going to help you stay informed. They're going to allow you to maintain financial flexibility, and it's going to ensure that you know exactly what to expect when it comes to processing, completing and ultimately, picking up your orders. All right, so let's dive right into it.

Loving this new format Hopefully you are, too Love to hear from you if this is something that you're enjoying so far as just learning how to use our systems better. So now, from a flexible payment standpoint, we know this is really important to suit your needs and one of the great advantages of working with online procurement, particularly with ECO, is you have options. We wish you have lots of options and when it's time to check out, you can choose between a couple of different payment methods. Primarily, you can have a credit card, because we know lots of people out there in business still these days have personal or business credit cards that you can use for expenses, or you can have an option for an account-based payment, and that's where things are set up a little bit differently. So I want to talk to you very briefly about how this is flexible. This flexibility, rather, allows you to align your purchasing process with your business needs. That's really what it's all about. If we can align the best way for you to do business with ECO, we want to do that in an efficient way possible, and we recognize also for many of you this utilizing your credit card for payments.

So if you're new to ECO, or if you just if you have again, this is part of your process and you want to use that credit card at checkout. This is fun. You just create a credit card account, or you have other options as well within an account. If you already have it set up, you can still pay with a credit card, but just use that. This ensures that your payment process is secure and efficient from the moment that you begin ordering. Now, if you prefer to pay using your company's credit account, this is how you do it you log right in to the system. This aligns everything from your accounting side of your company to ours, so it's all right there. It's all set up, and this is especially useful for companies. You have an established procurement process, because this allows you to consolidate all these purchases under a single account. Under a single account, it helps you with tracking and reporting, and we know how crucial that is as you're managing your finances in any business. If you had one system you can log into to track and manage all that, this is what we're going to offer you, so this gives you a high level flexibility to again to ensure that you remain in control on how you handle your procurement finances. All right. So this is such a big deal that those payment options are huge.

Now we also want to help you understand your tax calculations, particularly at checkout, and they can complicate the procurement process, quite frankly. But, ego, we're trying to help things be extremely clear for you and straightforward, moving forward. So when you check out online, the total price that you see doesn't include sales, use, customs or value added or any of those similar types of taxes. Those are calculated and added to your account after everything is placed and shipped. So this is important because we know that those tax calculations upon shipment really is when you need to have it the most and it's going to help you budget and everything come in more accurately and you can rest assured that the system's going to handle all those additions and compliance with applicable laws that are in place. Okay, so this allows you. What we're trying to do here with this very simple part of the process is allow you to focus on other elements of your procurement. So, if you deal with frequent ordering, this streamlined approach right here helps you avoid confusion and really helps you have a more accurate reflection of cost when the final charters are made. So again, it's all about transparency and trying to reduce any surprises in invoicing to help you manage your expenses more efficiently.

All right, Now how about delivery times? We all know the excitement that you get when you're waiting on your material right? So delivery times can be a crucial factor in managing your inventory and keeping your projects on track, and at Eco we get this. We know how big a deal this is and we provide flexible delivery options because we know just because you order something today doesn't mean that you need it today. Sometimes you want to hold off on that and we want to help you custom tailor it for your needs, so your delivery time can be based on your selection. So, when you start placing an order, your chosen delivery method and account terms will determine how quickly you need the stuff to get to you.

Okay, Now, if you have specific deadlines or requirements or you want to know an estimated delivery for an open or future order, you need to reach out. You can check some of this stuff online, but if you really this is something you know, where you have crews lined up and you need to know this information is going to be here on time, make sure it's always good just to reach out to your account representative. Okay, they're going to provide you with some extremely accurate information so far as availability, what you can expect, coordination do you need this here versus this in building B or building C, whatever it may be? We can help you with that and staying on track. So, if you're ordering materials online for a major product or just restocking some essential supplies. We know that these delivery times, if you know them in advance, will help you plan with confidence, and what we're trying to do is coordinate that coordination with your account representative. If you do that, you can ensure that your team is never left waiting, because we never want you to be in that moment where you don't have what you need to move your business forward. This is what we're all about so far is helping you calculate those delivery times.

All right, now shipping costs. This is a big deal too. So at checkout, it's important, really important to note the total price display does not include any shipping costs, right here. Ok, because shipping costs are based on the delivery method that you select. Next, it could vary depending on your account terms. So you may opt for standard shipping or expedited options or whatever it may. Those fees will be adjusted based off of those selections. Okay, and for a smooth, transparent experience, you're going to get a detailed breakdown of the shipping charges and your final invoice. So never worry about you know if I chose UPS ground but you charged us UPS. No, no, no, we're going to show you right here what those fees are. No surprises, that's the name of the game when it comes to shipping costs for us, no surprises with our customers, and we will give you that flexibility in your shipping options to let you decide, because you may not want that overnight, you may be okay waiting three or four days or a week or whatever it may be for to get that delivery. We're going to meet you exactly where you need it. That's the most efficient way possible, and knowing those shipping costs and being extremely over-the-top transparent with that is very important to us.

Now we also have the option for you to do branch pickup, because we also know sometimes it's just fun to go to the branch, right, just go to one of our counter areas and pick it up. And what you can do when you're online ordering. If you prefer to pick that order up at the branch, you can just say click on the option pick up at the branch. You can just say, click on the option pick up at my branch, and this makes it seamless and you've placed that online order, you select that and guess what? It's going to be fulfilled exactly that way during your checkout. So your system will automatically well, our system, rather, is going to automatically display the address, the phone number of the branch that you chose to pick up for.

Okay, so you do want to take a little bit of time here just to make sure you selected the correct branch. It should be tied to you, but sometimes there's different options, so select that, and this ensures that you can collect your order on schedule. And what's cool about this? When you, when you pick up at a branch, you reduce the shipping completely. That's it. You just you go pick it up and we take care of it for you. All right?

So now these features are really integrated into our system for a big reason, because we know that having flexible payment methods, clear tax calculations, being just above the over-the-top, transparent when it comes to delivery times, as well as helping you understand what those shipping costs are and then being able to say if you want to come to our branch and pick it up yourself, that's so big In ECO. We're trying to make this whole process easier to manage, from start to finish. It's to help. The end of the day, what this all really boils down to is we're trying to help you streamline the ordering process, to help you avoid any delays or setbacks or hurdles or moments where you wake up in the middle of the night. We're trying to help you avoid all that and ultimately keep your financials under control under control.

So we've talked a lot of things in the past in the last few episodes of Eco Asks why, around product lists and customer part numbers and all these different types of things, and the whole reason we designed it this way and we're constantly improving and adding on upon the system is for convenience for you. We want your user experience to just blow you away, or experience to just blow you away no-transcript and master and really get a good hold of your online procurement process, because, at the end of the day, we want you focusing on what matters the most to you running your business and if we can do that by saving up little efficiencies here and there for you to help you think OK, what can I do to help my business be more effective? That is a win for us, because when you win in business, we win in business. So at ECO, our commitment to this is unwavering. That is a win for us, because when you win in business, we win in business. So at EECO, our commitment to this is unwavering. I mean, we have teams dedicated to this online procurement process and making sure that this online procurement experience is just going to be something that you truly enjoy and find a ton of value from, and it's the heart of everything that we do.

We're working on these payment options, we're trying to help you with these different types of calculations, delivery times and helping you have the tools that you need to streamline your operations and increase that efficiency. So, if you couple this with things that we've already talked about in the past, with product lists and part numbers and all this type of stuff and orders and lots and all that deal with product lists and part numbers and all this type of stuff and orders and lots and all that deal, you're equipping yourself to manage a purchasing process with a whole lot of ease and confidence. And we know just to something that I think about when I go back to my early days in sales, when I would meet with a lot of customers. There's always, around electrical items, a little sense of unease where you're just not sure, and we want to help bring you. Just take that down that stress, that anxiety, just lower it right down and give you confidence in your ordering to know that when the material shows up, it's going to be exactly what you need to do the job, to do it safely and to do it well. So, again, trying to help you drive your business forward and, at the end of the day, eco is going to take care of the rest. We're just going to take care of that for you. We're really going to try to be there for you as your partner, and we're hoping.

If you've listened to any of these episodes and you don't have an online account with us, I'd encourage you to hop over, check out our updated account management page. We'll have a link in the show notes here. If you're watching this video on YouTube as well, we'll have a link there for you as well, and just go get that process started. Again, there's multiple different ways you can get your account set up, but you can't take advantage of any of the awesome things that we're offering and that we've developed and we're building it to our system, unless you have access to an account. Again, if you just go online, you're going to be looking at list pricing and if you want to have a better understanding of what your true costs are, get the account set up.

You're not going to be hounded, I promise you. You're not going to be hounded by salespeople or phone calls or a bunch of emails. It's not how we roll. We're going to give you the information that you need and we're going to get out of the way. We're going to just try to serve you to the best of our abilities. But again, you got to get that account set up. There's multiple different ways to do that, but if you have a credit account already, with ECO period, that makes it so much easier. It's just a couple of clicks of the button and then you're ready to go, all right. So thank you, guys. So much.

I mean, for those who are still hanging out with us on ECO Asks why this just means the world to us. Again, we put these also on YouTube and then we're also putting every month a lot of content out on our LinkedIn channel. So if you want to go, follow ECO on LinkedIn, we have lots of followers over there. Eco on LinkedIn we have lots of followers over there. We try to put some good information out on a consistent basis to ensure that you're staying up to date on what the latest and greatest is out there, at least from our purview, the things that we're working on.

So again, come to one of our branches, come see us, come say hi, have a cup of coffee and a donut or something like that. Come by and just check it out. If you ever want to do a tour of eco and just see what a distributor looks like, love for you to come by. We'd love to show you what that looks like, just to give you an idea of the types of items and materials that we have in our inventory in our different branches and locations. So come by, we'd love to do that with you as well.

If you need a partner to come alongside you with an upcoming project, we have the experts. We have tons of experts on staff, ready, willing and able to jump in to help you figure out the most complex projects. So, whether this is a PLC system or drive system, or maybe you're just trying to figure out a bunch of conduit wire runs on a takeoff for, for for a job, we could help you do that. We have teams, we have experts, we have the expertise that's in place that can jump in and help serve there. So, at the end of the day, if you're out there and you're hearing about all these useful resources and you're not utilizing it, I encourage you to take that first step Go to ecoonlinecom. Get set up with your account, get all the process started, get it rolling so that you can take advantage of everything that we're building here. It'd be our honor to serve you, to help you in any way possible. If you have any questions, you can always reach out to us. We're here to serve, we're here to help, we're here to assist. We're here to help you make the best decisions moving forward. So have a great day Again.

Share this out with others. If you could Give us a rating review, that always help. And remember to keep asking why. Thank you for listening to eco. Ask why this show is supported ad free by electrical equipment company. Eco is redefining the expectations of an electrical distributor by placing people and ideas before products. Please subscribe and share with your colleagues and friends. Also leave comments, feedback, any new topics that you would like to hear, to learn more or to share your insights. Visit EECOASYcom. That's E-E-C-O-A-S-K-S-W-H-Y dot com.