purchase order software

Update for free Purchase Order System (accumulated fixes)

A patch has been posted to correct various minor issues in the free version of SpendMap.  Please select the menu HELP > CHECK FOR UPDATES from within SpendMap to update your system.

This is a “patch” only (i.e. not a full version upgrade), so it will not change your version number or change any features.

If you have any questions, please use our free support ticket system.

Regards,
– The Free-Procurement Project Team

PS.  Have you told anyone about us lately?  Please help spread the word.  Thanks!

Upgrade your Free Purchase Order Software to 2014 Release

If you are using last year’s release (v11.98), you can now upgrade your free version of SpendMap to the 2014 release (v12.65).  You can check your current version number using the menu Help > About.

The new release includes more than 30 new features and capabilities, in addition to various performance improvements.

The upgrade utility will bring forward all your data, history, settings, etc., so you will not lose any of your work in SpendMap.

Easier Upgrade Utility

Unlike last year when you had to run an external EXE to perform the v11.64-11.98 upgrade, you can now perform full-version upgrades from within SpendMap, using the menu HELP > CHECK FOR UPDATES.  However, it is a two-step process – first you need to select HELP > CHECK FOR UPDATES to download a patch to your v11.98 system that has the full-version upgrade capabilities built-in, then you need to select HELP > CHECK FOR UPDATES a second time to upgrade to v12.65.

To review complete details and instructions before actually upgrading your free Purchase Order Software, just select the menu HELP > CHECK FOR UPDATES from within SpendMap to download the patch, log back into the system, then follow the red hyperlink that you will see at the bottom of the Main Menu…

Upgrade your free PO Software

Best regards,

The Free-Procurement Project team
Totally FREE software that automates Purchase Orders and a whole lot more
Powered by SpendMap

New Tutorial: Simple Requisition-to-PO Processing

We added a new feature in the 2014 Release to convert approved Purchase Requisitions into Purchase Orders, as soon as the last approval occurs, so you no longer have to run the Build PO Utility as a separate step.

We had a few requests for this feature from smaller companies that don’t have Purchasing Departments or dedicated Buyers (i.e. the Requisitioners are responsible for placing the orders once their Requisitions are approved).

The Tutorial also reviews a few other related features that are popular with smaller companies (and larger companies that have “end-user Purchasing”), so we rolled it all into this video, which we’re calling “Simple Requisition-to-PO Processing”.

Click the image below to watch the tutorial on YouTube, and don’t forget to visit our Channel to see 20 other video tutorials that will help you get started with the most popular features in your free Purchase Order system…

Tutorial: Simple Requisition-to-PO Processing

New 2014 Release (v12.6) is Now Available (new installations only)

We’ve updated the new system installation package for the free version of SpendMap (now called SpendMap-2014-SETUP.EXE).

The 2014 Release (version 12.6) includes 30 new features as well as performance and usability improvements.

If you need any help installing the software, please use our free support ticket system.

New Systems Only

This is for new installations only and cannot be used to update your system if you’re already using the Free version of SpendMap (the 2013 release, v11.9).

For those already using the system, we are working on an update utility to bring your system forward to the 2014 release.  The update utility will retain all your data/history, so you won’t lose any of your work when you upgrade.  Just follow this blog to be notified when the update utility is ready, which we expect will be in the next few weeks.

Free Purchase Order Software – new stuff coming soon!

New Version of SpendMapWe’re starting to roll out the 2014 release of SpendMap (v12.6), which includes more than 30 new features and capabilities.

We even added some new stuff just for the Free-Procurement Community, such as the ability to build Purchase Orders from approved Purchase Requisitions immediately as the last Approver completes their review (i.e. you no longer have to run the Build PO Utility as a separate step).  This will be more convenient for smaller companies that don’t have dedicated Buyers/Purchasing Managers who review orders before they go out the door.

Anyway, this is just a pre-announcement that more good stuff is coming your way.  We’re working on the updated installation package for new systems now, and then we’ll put together a v11.9 to v12.6 update for existing users, likely in the next couple/few weeks.

Canadian Anti-SPAM Laws and your Free Purchase Order Software

spamAn update has been posted to align the free version of SpendMap with the new Canadian Anti-SPAM Laws (CASL), which come into effect next week.

In addition to restricting how companies can use e-mail to communicate with their customers and prospects, CASL includes additional rules for software, specifically how we must notify users when installing software or changing settings on their computers, collection of personal information, and so on.

While the new laws are only applicable to a small portion of our users (less than 10% are in Canada), the new laws are just good business practice in our opinion, so these new improvements will be in everyone’s system, not just our friends in Canada.

At your convenience, please select the menu HELP > CHECK FOR UPDATES from within SpendMap to update your system.

Once you do, you may see addition prompts/questions, whenever SpendMap goes to make changes to your computer (e.g. update the PDF printer driver, etc.).

As always, this “patch” will NOT update your version number or change any features.

If you have any questions, please use the free support ticket system.

Regards,
– The Free-Procurement Project Team

PS.  Have you told anyone about us lately?  Please help spread the word.  Thanks!

 

Using vs. Implementing your Free Purchase Order Software

needs-help

Brenda was struggling a bit with her implementation of the free version of SpendMap, so we helped her by providing free support when she had questions about setting up her Master Files, using the built-in integration tools, and otherwise configuring the system to her needs.

But she still had a concern…

“I’m worried that if I’m having trouble, it will be impossible for our staff as they are not very computer savvy at all“.

Fair enough, but keep in mind that implementing a business application like this is more involved than just using it for your day-to-day work.  For example, entering a Purchase Order or Requisition in SpendMap is much easier than setting up the master files, going through system configuration, etc.

Our customers tell us all the time that their users can handle the “day-to-day” stuff, with no training at all!

And remember, with User Definable Menus, you can remove everything from your staff’s field of view that they don’t need, leaving only the few functions that they’ll use to do their daily tasks (e.g. Enter a PO or Requisition, check the status of their order, etc.).

But Brenda certainly has a valid point.  This type of system is definitely more involved to set up than, say, a simple word processor or something, that you can just install and start using.  There are configuration settings, workflow options, master files to populate, not to mention mapping the functionality to your business processes, which in and of itself can take some time.

All that said, keep in mind that there is definitely a big carrot to keep you motivated while you work get the system going.

On a separate but related note, we will soon be offering Getting Started training and implementation consulting packages for users of the free version (until now, these services were reserved for people using our paid version only).  Make sure to follow our Blog, where we’ll make the announcement when the Getting Started package is available.

Don’t give up folks.  Rome wasn’t build in a day.

QuickBooks Integration for your Free Purchase Order Software

QuickBooks is the most popular Accounting system in use by the Free-Procurement community, so we thought we’d give you a little bonus gift with the 2014 release of SpendMap.

We’ve built direct integration with QuickBooks to push approved invoices (bills) and expense reimbursement transactions directly into your QuickBooks database, without the need for batch file exports and imports.

So, for example, once you have approved a supplier’s invoice for payment, SpendMap will create a pending Bill in QuickBooks, so you can cut a check to the supplier and post the transaction to your G/L, with no duplicate data entry.

Direct QuickBooks integration is coming soon, along with 20 or so other new features and capabilities, in the 2014 release of the free version of SpendMap.

SM_qb_logo

People are still skeptical of free Purchase Order Software

skepticalMore than two years into the Free-Procurement Project, we’ve given away more than 20,000 free Purchase Order systems to SMBs in over 100 countries, yet people are still skeptical.

Susan works in a Hospice in Florida, a non-profit organization helping families when they need it most.  Hers is exactly the type of organization that we’re trying to help with this Project.

Susan kindly responded to the survey that we send out a few weeks after people download the free software, and wrote…

“The purchase orders are great. The problem I had was the inability to email the purchase orders out. I received error messages and determined that this software program really isn’t free.  The act of misleading the end user is what I was most disappointed in.”

The message she is referring to says that the e-mail module needs to be set up, not that it needs to be purchased.  I think perhaps Susan must have had an underlying assumption that a totally free Purchase Order System, worth literally thousands of dollars, is too good to be true, which led her to jump to a wrong conclusion.

And Susan is not alone.  Despite our best efforts, people still think there’s a catch.

So for all you skeptics out there, I’m here to tell you that the free version of SpendMap it just that, totally free.

Trust is a pretty hard thing to earn on the Internet these days but we’re trying.

100th Blog Post for the Free-Procurement Project

100th Blog PostThis is our 100th Blog post.

We’ve been working hard to give you helpful information for you to get the most out of the free version of SpendMap.  We want to help small businesses improve their Purchasing processes, with more than just free Purchase Order Software.

If you have any feedback for us or if you’d like to suggest a topic for an upcoming post, we’re all ears.

And if you like what we’re doing to help small businesses, please show your support for the Free-Procurement Project and help spread the word.

It has been fun working with you so far and we look forward to making more friends as we work on the next 100 posts…

– The Free-Procurement Project team.