DistributorCentral Updates and Tips

When you are developing your website in DistributorCentral, you can easily link back to a specific search in your catalogs.

Here is an example:

Let’s say that I am developing the home page of my website and I would like to add some links down the side that take my customers back to specific keyword searches.

I want to add these Quick search links to my site listed below. See them in the image below that as well.

• Recycled Products
• Easter Ideas
• School Spirit Products
• Sports Accessories
• Office Products
• Products under $1
• Products under $5
• Products under $10

1. First of all, I added a written content block to my home page on the right side.
2. Then I typed out these different words that I wanted to use in a search in a list in the written content block.
3. I also created an image for the header and uploaded that image to the content library of my site.
4. Once uploaded, I added that image to the top of my list of words in the content library.
5. Now here is the trick, to add the links to the searches, you highlight the first word. Once I have highlighted “Recycled Products,” I click on the hyperlink tool and add this link:

www.mywebsiteaddress.com/item_choose.cfm?keyword=recycled products

The red text is what is variable depending on your keyword and your website address.

I would then do the same thing for all the other links that i want to add:

www.mywebsiteaddress.com/item_choose.cfm?keyword=recycled products

www.mywebsiteaddress.com/item_choose.cfm?keyword=easter

www.mywebsiteaddress.com/item_choose.cfm?keyword=school spirit

www.mywebsiteaddress.com/item_choose.cfm?keyword=sports

www.mywebsiteaddress.com/item_choose.cfm?keyword=office

www.mywebsiteaddress.com/item_choose.cfm?MinPrice=0&MaxPrice=1

www.mywebsiteaddress.com/item_choose.cfm?MinPrice=0&MaxPrice=5

www.mywebsiteaddress.com/item_choose.cfm?MinPrice=0&MaxPrice=10

These links will default to do a keyword search across all of your catalogs on your website

6.Once you have added each of these links to the words that you typed out in the written content block, publish  your changes!

Product Research Part 1- Search for a product by Keyword and see each of the Supplier’s locations:

Are you aware of our feature that allows you to conveniently view Supplier locations on a map when you do a product search in your DistributorCentral account?

To use this feature:

- First conduct a product search.
- Once the search results display, click on the Suppliers tab.

- The Suppliers for the corresponding search results will then display geographcally on a map. Click on a location to view the Suppliers.

With the DistributorCentral order system, each Distributor and Supplier has access to a proofing system.

A Distributor or Supplier can upload proofs to any order in DC and send those through the system to the Distributor from the Supplier or to the Customer from the Distributor.

The proof should be uploaded to the order as a pdf file. Once it is sent to the Customer (in the Distributors case) or the Distributor (in the Suppliers case), that customer has the capability to send an approval, comments or even ask for changes and a new proof.

The typical proof process works like this:

1. The Customer or the Distributor enters the order requesting a proof and artwork and sends it to the Supplier through DC

2. When the Supplier receives the order, their graphics department creates the art and either uploads the art to DC or they send the art to the Distributor.

If they upload the art to the DC order, the Distributor will receive a notification to view the proof.

If they send the art to the Distributor directly, the Distributor can go to the order and upload it to the order in their account.

3. Once the proof is attached to the order, the Distributor can send a notification to the customer to view and approve the proof back to them (the Distributor)

To send the proof to your customer, click on the #1 in the Order Summary in the image above, then click on Send to Customer in the below image.

4. When the customer has approved the proof, the Distributor gets a notification email and they can log in and approve the proof to the Supplier.

5. Once the Distributor has approved the proof, the Supplier gets a proof notification email as well.

If the Distributor has entered the proof themselves, they would need to email the proof notification of approval to the Supplier that is not using the DC system.

Below are key notes to remember:

The Distributor will need to take action to send the proof to the customer and then to also approve the proof to the Supplier.

Once a proof is uploaded to an order, it stays with that order unless it is deleted.

A Distributor can upload a new proof if changes are needed.

A customer can access the proof if the Distributor allows them to log into the My Account area of the Distributors website. See this Guide regarding Customer Order Tracking.

If the Distributor forwards the proof notification email from the Supplier directly to their customer, when the customer approves the proof, the notification would go directly back to the Supplier.

We have added a couple of new guides to your DistributorCentral account under your Video Tutorials tab.

The new guides are listed below:

Virtual Catalogs and Flyers – for Supplier to upload their catalogs and flyers to their account and create Virtual Catalogs to add to their website. This guide should walk Suppliers through every step needed to get this accomplished and it shows them where the catalogs and flyers that they upload show up for Distributors.

Easy Website Setup – for Distributors to quickly set up a basic site based on our templates in DC. This guide should walk you through every step needed to get your site up and running with DistributorCentral.