This week marks a big change, the culmination of a gradual change in thinking. 18 or so years ago, whenever Microsoft Access 1.0 first was launched, I started using Access to keep track of the things our accounting program couldn't track. The first project was weddings and which wedding vendors provided services to which wedding and how the wedding couple liked / rated their services. We used this to follow up with photos for the vendors and to know who to provide as a referral for couples looking for services.
Well, I was constantly developing the program and every few years I would look at software management programs for the portrait industry .... none of them did what mine did, so I would continue adding to my program until it now does all sales and banking including payroll with all needed reports for taxes and yeah - a bunch of other stuff ... I could ramble on ....
The program that I wrote kicks butt, it could easily be commercial, except for a few things ... I don't want to be a full time programmer and it is built in a bubble - my concepts with no feedback from the industry. To improve the program further it was also becoming evident I would have to learn languages outside of Access (PHP, Visual Basic, etc.). I was also feeling that whenever we had an idea as to how to improve our marketing or systems within the studio it meant changes to my Access program, so those changes were implemented at the speed of my programming - not a very 'nimble' business model ...
Because of these thoughts, back in March after MUCH research we purchased StudioPlus to manage our business (http://www.studioplussoftware.com/). Finally, a program that does what mine did and more. (Yeah there are things I miss, but live with it Roger!) Besides the stuff my program did it emails and syncs calenders and client info with phones and palm systems, etc. etc. etc. ...
Well, a week ago we are finally up and running, StudioPlus exports to Quickbooks (while my program did both sales and checkbook) and our checkbook actually balanced! Everything in process before the conversion date had to be pretend posted (cause you don't want to count it twice and it needs to be in the current system ... this means I didn't miss anything :-) !!!).
It took from March to now (November) because every time I sat down with StudioPlus I would run into questions about how to do what we did in our old program in the new, everything is really different, I could ramble on with examples, but just trust me ... most waking moments since March have been filled with this puzzle, how much info to migrate and what info not too, and what the work flow would be so we didn't lose track of orders and things in the process ...
It was a hard decision, going with a different program - my Access program was my BABY, and worked perfectly. But now I am free to spend more time with my sweetie, solve studio management puzzles within the framework of the StudioPlus program instead of programming, become a little more of a social networking person (there is a lot more to this life and business than just the systems approach), exercise a little more, figure out other stuff I might want to do and yes, even Blog more :-).
Just wanted to share this big transition in our business and life and give a reflection of the kind of obsessed problem solver I can be ... If anyone has any Access or studio management questions fire away ... ;-) Yeah, OK, photography and Photoshop questions are OK too ... ;-)
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