February 2006, San Jose, CA
In an effort to improve business processes and live up to its reputation for bold innovation, the San Jose Mercury News has upgraded its single copy delivery system to a new automated, electronic solution involving Syncronex software, Aceeca hardware, and DSI circulation system.
Before the solution, San Jose Mercury News delivery contractors used paper manifests to record single copy deliveries, adjustments and returns. Back at the distribution center, they would enter data from the paper manifests onto bubble paper that was fed into a scanner and read by the paper’s old circulation system. Field sales data was often not available for several days and management was looking for a more accurate and timely solution.
“Ours was entirely antiquated data collection method that required dual entry of data.” said Bruce Emsley, San Jose Mercury News single copy director. “That meant twice the opportunity for mistakes and twice the time before field sales data was available for management to review.”
By switching its new field automation solution, data collection was streamlined. Delivery personnel now carry low-cost, hand-held and durable Aceeca PDAs for point-of-sale data collection and use Syncronex’s Single Copy Edition software which integrates with the paper’s DSI distribution system.
At the end of each day, after routes are complete and data has been collected onsite into handheld Aceeca computers, drivers return to their distribution center where the information is automatically synchronized with the circulation system for billing. Reports are then available immediately via the web. With more accurate and timelier sales data, San Jose Mercury News is able to analyze sales results earlier in the sales cycle and make more informed distribution decisions in less time.
“It’s a much more flexible system,” stated Mr. Emsley. “Delivery numbers only need to be entered once, so accuracy is improved. And the integration between Syncronex and DSI means we get updated figures on a daily basis—so business decisions are more immediately and accurately informed.”
The paper is saving money with the streamlined flexibility Syncronex provides—increasing efficiency and accuracy, reducing workload, and helping management make informed decisions more quickly than before in order to maximize business gains.
Established in 1997, Syncronex, Inc. is an enterprise software company that provides field service automation software to the publishing industry. Syncronex software improves mobile workforce productivity by simplifying communication procedures and integrating enterprise data. Companies using Syncronex Newspaper solutions increase circulation, improve customer service, and lower operating expenses with a low total cost of ownership solution. Syncronex is headquartered in Bellevue, WA. For more information call 877-796-2766 or visit www.syncronex.com.
San Jose Mercury News is best known as the newspaper of Silicon Valley. It has been named the “boldest American newspaper” by the Society for Newspaper Design and one of the top 10 newspapers in the country by the Columbia Journalism Review.
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