On the morning GoToMeeting with Russell, Eric, and Steve. Eric and Russell were talking about tons of ideas on loyalty points and gift cards. Both guys have clients who have offered monies to push this project forwards. We are going to be trying to bring them both together to get the bigger master plan recorded and planned out. We will then build towards that and release things in phases to get it up and functional as soon as possible. See attached for a Word Doc that had a number of concepts and specs for the loyalty points and special account tracking stuff.

For the record... Steve said that yesterday he was able to help out Calvin - The grasshopper helped the master. Steve wanted to get that recorded. It was dealing with PO's, subs, and recording things in bulk backend processes.

Also for the record... Steve is saying that he is hearing Russell say "us" more than "you guys". We are happy to have him more and more on the team.

On the theme... We may want a bulk update to help flip users over more easily.

On news and updates... Steve was recommending that we build some standards for what is showed and what is displayed. Russell was saying, let the people write and build them and then let Russell virtually approve and get them up live. We are trying to go more to a template type scenario where we can virtually plug and play. What is it? What does it do? How do I use it? Videos, written instructions, screen shots, etc. Help make it as smooth as possible. Russell also wants all of the key players to help populate some of the features, updates, and help files. It will be a great team effort as it keeps going forward.

On barcodes and populating PDF labels with barcodes, we (Bryan and Brandon) did a job the other day that we had to crop (make the barcode height smaller). That way, we could put smaller barcodes on labels.

We talked about seeing adilas at the 10,000 feet level. Basically, what is the short elevator pitch? Steve and I were talking with Russell about how to present our model, what we do, how we do it, and why we do it?

Two good virtues - Being able to stand for something but still being open enough to listen. If you aren't open to change... how can you ever affect or make changes happen.

Labels are really heating up... We can do custom but we may need to build it so that individuals can do their own things and manage things as needed. We need to empower the users to build and create and store their own labels.

This meeting didn't happen. Cory and I were going to record a video for my cart favorites and the flash buttons. Instead, Sean, Steve, and Cory were talking about sales and the needs to be able to sell in bulk, including items that are not yet in inventory, and still keeping the inventory tight and manageable. That is a challenge. Steve was showing Cory and Sean a demo on his orders homepage (orders is another word or alias for quotes).

If you think of quotes, you may get hung up on the name. If you think of it as a tool and are able to name it whatever... it becomes more clear what is going on. Basically, they have clients who are requesting products and inventory. They want to keep track of the orders and/or virtual requests but don't want them (the orders) to affect inventory until they are ready to be shipped and sent out. There are also all kinds of backorder type needs. A quote, or a non inventory invoice of sorts, is the perfect tool. It just needs a little tweaking and it could be the order process. We could then track the fulfillment of those orders as they become real invoices.

Currently, one quote can have one invoice as a built-in relationship. We are seeing the need to expand and/or extend that relationship from a one-to-one to a one-to-many, meaning one order (quote) could be filled with multiple invoices. The difference between what is ordered and what is fulfilled, becomes the backorders or what is still wanted.

As part of our conversation, we also talked briefly about a possible elevator pitch for sales and marketing. Here is the brief pitch - High-end software as a service (SaaS). Anything dealing with operations and accounting. We use a standard product and then allow for custom on top of that. Click here to see more info on the elevator pitch (30 second intro into adilas.biz).

https://data0.adilas.biz/top_secret/time_web_gallery.cfm?corp=748&id=7089 - elevator pitch for adilas - ideas and concepts

So, I was in a line waiting to go see my daughter in a marching band performance. The guy in front of me asked me... what do you do? Here was my answer...

"High-end software as a service (SaaS) company. Anything dealing with operations and accounting. We have a standard package that we use and then we customize on top of that."

Very simple, but has a lot of loaded statements.

1. High-end software as a service (SaaS) company - This is the whole package without saying it. Monthly, service package, and full business platform.

2. Anything dealing with operations and accounting - This is another whole package type statement dealing with the range that we try to cover. Most people understand different operations and accounting pieces and even know where they have needs and/or struggles. Easy foot in the door, yet very diverse.

3. We have a standard package that we use and then we customize on top of that - This says that it is somewhat ready right out of the box and with different settings you can configure almost anything... Plus, we do custom on top of a standard piece or process. The sky is the limit. You dream it up, we'll help you wire it up!

Going over option for inserting meta data in key pages. Danny was heading up a discussion about SEO (search engine optimization) with John M and myself. I was taking notes and the other guys were commenting and providing ideas and info. We started out with intellectual property and went from there. Here are the basic notes.

- IP - intellectual property - natural flood - you can't copyright or trademark or paten things that already exists... if we flood the area with prior art, that effectively prevents others from claiming things as their own intellectual property. Fun discussion about where we are headed. We are sharing to protect ourselves.

- SEO - buzz word - science and art of making things show up for searches and on search engines

- Seen and unseen - matching SEO content with real natural content - light talks about the history (good and bad) of SEO

- Marketing and getting a new website for adilas - we really want to get a good plan in place and then follow that plan - up until now, it has been a very natural progression that just sort of happens. We want to be more specific and deliberate on our efforts, messages, and marketing. It is time.

- We have a bunch of different levels - main website, secured content (SEO not needed - due to login and permissions), shop (ecommerce - a little bit more tricky), web/API sockets, and other pages and documentation.

- Web content - they virtually and really score your site based on responsive design (mobile ready), same domain name (traffic and visits), amount of time on that domain (frequency and length of time on certain sites), reciprocal links (who links to who), matching content (good natural content), etc. Going over the basics.

- Meta data - key words, buzz words, include photos and videos with built-in meta data

- Sometimes it is the little itty bitty things that help - small things but a lot of small things really start adding up - almost like a virtual score sheet

- We don't want to do anything that is sketchy... off canvas text, hidden things, tags and random content, etc. Play well and be honest.

- We want a main landing page and home base that deals with what adilas is and does (as a whole). This is not industry specific, but who and what are we.

- Animated story lines and time lines

- Some other links - see chat - elevator sales pitch, presentation gallery, outline, chuck's new sales tools, etc.

https://data0.adilas.biz/adilas_formula.pdf - adilas formula

https://data0.adilas.biz/top_secret/time_web_gallery.cfm?corp=748&id=7089 - elevator pitch

https://data0.adilas.biz/adilas_presentation_gallery.pdf - presentation gallery outline

https://data0.adilas.biz/top_secret/time_web_gallery.cfm?corp=748&id=6914 - internal questionnaire summaries (sill working on this - progress)

- Put Danny in charge of the team - pick a team, get a plan in place, set a budget, and help to roll things out.

- What do we want to sell and pitch? Up to this point, we have been pretty off the hip... we need a strategic plan as we go forward. It is time.

A bunch of the guys were on the meeting this morning. There was Sean, Danny, John, Dustin, Steve, and myself (Brandon). Steve and I were working on some string manipulation stuff. This is where you take a string (notes or alphanumeric data of any sort), find sequences and then do certain actions based on those findings. After we made some progress we switched gears and got into some sales type talks and discussions. Danny had some great questions and was asking the group for some feedback. Sean presented some sales outlines that he was working on.

I ended up grabbing the screen and pitching some ideas and doing some drawings. We talked about how adilas is a great companion software package for any business, regardless of what else you have. We can fill in the gaps or be the whole solution. We are able to play at all of those levels. I gave my 3 point elevator pitch and explained it a little bit. The 3 points are: 1. Adilas is a high-end software as a service type product (SaaS) - meaning web based software solution. 2. We cover anything dealing with operations and accounting - very broad but still direct enough. and 3. We have a standard package (the software application or site) and then we are able to customize on top of that.

We got into a small discussion on selling what you have, even if it is not fully finished. I showed some of the guys my old LTF (learn to freeride - snowboarding interactive product and multi-media app). I told them that I got the whole thing done and then tried to sell it. A marketing guy had us repackage it, go to some trade shows, and then we ran out of money before we could really push it all the way. I still have some older products and pieces at my house, under my stairs. I related this to selling adilas and even the concept of what we are trying to do. Steve has been great on that and has landed client after client, even if all of the pieces weren't done.

By way of a history, the adilas corporation id is in the 20's and all of the earlier corporation numbers either already existed or wanted in even through things were just barely functional back in 2008. We started in 2001-2002 but didn't officially become adilas until 2008. Prior to that, it was called the Morning Star System and was a custom write up software package for Steve's used car dealerships and trailer dealerships. If you want more info, here is a couple pages of a brief history document (pdf).

It takes all of us. No one person could tackle the adilas monster. It literally takes all of us. Whether it is ideas, coding, tech support, sales, development, maintenance, servers, etc. It takes all of us. Be your own style. You will fit in and be a great part of the adilas team! We love it!

Towards the end, Steve and I were lightly pitching some vision and where we are headed as well. Fun little session for those who were on the meeting. Good stuff.

Danny was on the meeting this morning with some of the other guys. He and I were talking about the little interview session that we had yesterday. I was really happy and on cloud nine yesterday after that little session. Super fun! Anyways, Danny was talking about the question that he gave me about the elevator pitch. I quickly reviewed it and sent them over a link to the basics of the 3 part elevator pitch. Real quick - 1. High-end software as a service model (SaaS). 2. We service and cover needs in operations and accounting. And 3. We have a core system, ready, out of the box that we use and then we customize on top of that as needed. Those are the nuts and bolts of the super quick elevator pitch (at least currently).

John had some questions and was asking about some code samples and style guide (adilas docs) stuff. I gave him a bunch of samples and hopefully pointed him in a good direction. Chuck joined the meeting and John and Chuck were talking about some tweaks and changes to both the style guide and the docs (code snippets). I'm really happy that they are using that. Just by them using it, it brings value to that project.

Chuck and I did a small work session on the view parts page. He is doing a face lift on that page. We went over some things, I helped him with his settings, we added new my cart favorite buttons, we added new flex grid tie-ins, etc. Lots of talking and bouncing ideas off of each other. The current view is very top to bottom linear. We talked about doing two different mock-ups. One that would be linear (top to bottom) like the current page but with new look and feel. We also decided that we could break the page into some horizontal tabs to use the space more efficiently. We could also use those tabs to categorized the different sections. This is not exact yet, but things like main item details, photo gallery, sub/child inventory, recipe/build tie-ins, my cart favorite buttons, flex grid tie-ins, etc. Each tab would hold the respective data below it and thus somewhat hide what is not wanted unless clicked.

After that, I was recording notes, checking emails, and trying to help.

Huge email back and forth with the underwriters at Trinity Payment Solutions. We are in the process of switching merchant processors. They had a number of questions about our business model and how we do certain things. They wanted clarification on billing practices, pricing, and contracts. Spent quite a bit of time giving them answers and explaining what we do. I went into tons of details and provided links, logins, screenshots, statements, etc. Just for fun - we are a high-end SaaS (software as a service) company, dealing with operations and accounting. We have a standard package that we use and then do custom work on top of that. Mini elevator pitch.

Meeting with Sean over the GoToMeeting channel. He gave Steve and I a new expanded elevator pitch. We went over that new pitch and made some suggestions and ideas. We also spent a bunch of time talking about merchant processing and how things are organized. I showed him the datacap website and I was pitching their ideas and how they connect to multiple gateways and use multiple pieces of hardware to make that happen. I'm excited to see if that will work out. Eventually, we want to either use what they are doing and/or create our own process along those same lines. Good discussion.

This is an expanded elevator pitch - submitted by Sean Carlton on 8/17/22

Adilas is a complete business solution for business-minded companies. We handle all of your operations, such as Point of Sale, E-Commerce, and Inventory Control, and tie them directly to your Financials, such as Time Clock and Payroll, Accounts Payable and Receivable, Profit and Loss Statements, and your Balance Sheet. We operate in high-compliance industries, such as Cannabis, Firearm Sales, and Liquor Stores, as well as high-value Unit sales, like Car and Trailer Dealerships. No company is too big or too small, with complete systems, starting at $97 per month. As great as Adilas is, "out of the box", we also offer very affordable customization to fit your flow and processes, instead of making you adapt to ours.

Just pushing it up for the record. Good stuff!

Good meeting this morning. Steve had just come off of a multi hour demo yesterday afternoon. He was reporting in and going over things that he had learned. Both Sean and I were listening as Steve was explaining and teaching us. Good stuff.

We talked a lot about solving pain points and how that helps make our product a viable solution. Steve got into some financial training and where things come and go (ways that monies move or track) and how that creates a cause and effect type relationship. As he was talking, I was plugging in numbers on the financial flow calculator to illustrate the flow of the monies. Steve had me build that page to help with just such trainings. The real goal is capturing and recording the story. The numbers then play into and through the story vs just being a standalone number (plugged or adjusted value). That is super important.

As a part of the financial flow, Steve was talking about being able to mix and bled while in the same system. If you run your operations on one platform and then try to do your accounting on another, you will always have disconnects. If you run things as they happen and then report back (roll call) then you can capture the story and thus get the financials or accounting (what really happened). That is where we are heading.

They were talking about software and different releases. With what we do, we release new things and features all of the time. Constant releases and constant refinement. That lead to a discussion on what are called "mash-ups" or "mashups". This is where a software company takes a number of different tools and applications and basically mashes them together to get a whole. There are pros and cons to that, but that type of business is also prone to major disconnects and paid points. We are striving to make a fully integrated system that lives and breathes on its own.

As the guys were talking, Steve was telling Sean how Kelly (adilas rep) was doing the demo. He brought up how well Kelly will say something like "We will help you and here is what that will cost." Both assurance, help, and tying it to cost, in the same sentence. Sadly, I'm not very good at that. It usually comes out something like, "Yes, we can help you do X and Y. And, oh, by the way, we should probably give you a quote." Or something like, "Great idea, I'll build that in and/or make a note of that (assuming all costs or taking it on internally)." Anyways, I'm not very good at the monetizing thing. Light discussions about styles and goals.

The discussion extended into talks about promises, expectations, and what those things really cost. We also talked about how much prep work and knowledge is needed to do certain things, tasks, or jobs. Sometimes those things are a barrier to entry. One of the things that we have found, mini gold mines, is getting first-hand knowledge by helping customers solve their problems. If you can afford it, those clients help by transferring real-life knowledge of what it takes and what is needed to get the jobs done. Invaluable, hard to put a price tag on those things. We love doing that when we can. It ends up in a net benefit. We tend to do what we call piggybacking. We build something for one client and get to pass that on for free or as part of the system to the next client. Then that client will help push something else forward that the other clients get to benefit from. It becomes a form of piggybacking. Kinda fun!

Custom work! That is one of the things that sets us apart from the rest of the software solutions out there. We love and are willing to do custom work. That may not sound that big, but it's huge. As we were talking, we were reminded of our elevator pitch (condensed sales pitch). It talks about us offering a standard package and then being willing to customize on top of that. That's pretty cool. Here's a link to our mini elevator pitch (also one to Sean's expanded elevator pitch). We really do offer a lot of options.

We will just keep working on sharing what we have and how it can help people solve their business problems and needs. As a small side note, Steve was talking about ecommerce and how that little solution is actually becoming a way to sell and interact with clients without even using the main internal tools. It's so simple and connects everything together, we actually have some companies that help people use the ecommerce options and solutions vs using our internal shopping cart tools. It keeps it simple yet limited in options. I just find it interesting that some companies are using that tool vs the internal tools. I don't think that I could have anticipated that. Interesting.

Prep for a meeting with my dad and his friend Harry. I made a small list on a post-it note for some ideas that I wanted to go over with them. Here are a few of the ideas and notes:

- Go over the elevator pitch for adilas

- Playing the game of add-on as a business model

- Finding pain points and coming up with solutions

- History of where we came from and how things developed over time - it's part of our story

- Demo login and letting them get in and start playing around

- MVP - minimal viable product, plan, person, presentation

- Graphics and world building concepts

- General rules and setup - what's the flow process

- Operations and accounting - horse and the cart - operations has to lead (it's the horse) and accounting follows (the cart)

- Permissions and settings - configuration

- Going over flow and processes

- Systems and relationships

- Simulating reality or simulating the real world - what really happens and why?

- Non-linear system - concept of the data assembly line

- Adilas quick search and standard navigation

- Our current goal - fill in the gaps

- Help files and videos

- Reach out and ask for help - use the whole team