Thinking of purchasing Sage 50, but unfamiliar with Sage? Sage 50 Accounts includes a number of help functions to ensure that you get up and running in no time.

- F1 Help – Context sensetive help function accessed by pressing F1
- PDF Guides – There are a number of pdf guides withing Sage 50 accessed via the help menu
- Tutorials – Sage 50 tutorials are installed along with the software to help with a range of topics from creating a new customer to reconciling the VAT return.

What’s more Sage 50 Accounts software from Software Online Direct is offered with the option of Sage 50 Technical Support, a specialist hotline that can be called in office hours to help with any Sage 50 questions and queries.

In April 2010 there are two key changes to legislation which affect Payroll Year End and VAT filing- are you prepared?

• - This Payroll Year End it is compulsory for almost all employers to submit their tax year returns online.
• - VAT return submissions must also be made electronically for some businesses (this change applies to business with a £100,000 turnover or more, or any business that becomes VAT registered on or after 1st April 2010).

Both, Sage 50 Payroll 2010 and Sage 50 Accounts 2010 provide the small business with the tools to make online submissions.

Find out more about Sage 50 Payroll 2010 and Sage 50 Accounts 2010.

Finding a Sage solution to suit your business needs and budget is easy with the Software Online Direct “Live Help” feature. Select “Live Help” from any of our product pages to communicate directly with a fully trained advisor.

At Software Online Direct we offer a large variety of Sage business solutions and Sage stationery for you to choose from ranging from Accounts Solutions and CRM through to HR and Payroll.

For more information on any of our products select Live Help from our product pages.

Sage ACT! 2010 brings social networking to you, in your CRM data- enabling you to manage all customer data from one place.

ACT! 2010 was released last year incorporating social media bringing the SME CRM solution right up to date. The Sage ACT! 2010 social media feature means that a contacts social media activity stream is visible from ACT!.

With Sage ACT! 2010 users can view Facebook, LinkedIn, Twitter feeds and even have the opportunity to subscribe to Blogs. The social media data gathered and stored within Sage ACT! 2010 provides a complete picture when dealing with clients and prospects and, when utilised effectively, may even help improve customer relationships.

Find out more about Sage ACT! 2010.

For this month only Software Online Direct are offering a great package deal. Buy ACT! 2010 and get an Official ACT! 2010 Quick Study Guide for just £10.

The ACT! 2010 Quick Study Guide enables you to get to grips with ACT! 2010 functionality at a pace that suits you. The 500 page guide takes you through topics that enable you to get the most from ACT!, learning from real examples and applications that mirror many business processes.

• Study ACT! at your own pace
• Select topics that suit your role
• Explore features that enable better relationship management

This offer is not to be missed- For more information about this offer visit our dedicated Package Deal page.

With many businesses looking to keep costs down e-marketing has taken over from direct mail.

The new ACT! 2010 Software includes an e-marketing module that is powered by Swiftpage. This new module enables users to execute effective marketing campaigns from their CRM solution ensuring that all responses are recorded within ACT! 2010 and can be used when targeting future campaigns.

The ACT! by Sage 2010 e-marketing module enables:

• Create html templates in the inbuilt editor
• Track email opens and clicks
• Gather information using surveys
• Generate call lists from email activity

For more information on Swiftpage/ ACT! E-Marketing module.

Sage Instant Accounts v16, is coming soon! Sage have announced another product release that is due imminently, Sage Instant Accounts.

The new version of Sage Instant Accounts has been designed to help new and small businesses to manage their finances more efficiently and effectively, new features will include:

• More simplistic payment processes
• Improved reporting
• Business information management feature
• Enhanced integration with Sage Pay

Sage Instant Accounts is a low cost, fully functional package ideal for companies with less than 10 employees to process their accounts. Sage Instant Accounts reduces time spent manually processing the accounts so that small business owners can spend more time running their business.

For more information about Sage Instant Accounts.

Sage have just announced that latest version of Sage Instant Payroll, Sage Instant Payroll v12, is coming soon!

The main aim of the Sage Instant payroll v12 release is to simplify the running and processing of payroll for owners or managers who are not payroll specialists. The Sage Instant Payroll latest features will include:

• Template layouts for P45, P60 and payslips
• Year end report archive
• Access previous pay period to reprocess and correct errors
• Enhanced user experience
• Calculate hourly rates of pay

Watch this space for further information!

The economic crisis in 2009 forced companies to cut budgets in order to save money. Buying behaviours have been transformed for the foreseeable future as we witness a slow recovery and this shift for many businesses prompted interest in Software-as-a-Service.

Software-as-a-Service provides a cost effective alternative to the traditional on-premise solutions, freeing budgets to be spent in other areas of a business.

ACT! SaaS offers full ACT! by Sage CRM functionality at a fraction of the cost, with no initial outlay for licenses and hardware. In addition, the monthly fee for ACT! SaaS includes technical support and maintenance!

For more information on how ACT! SaaS can help your business.

To combat the recession many small business owners have been working longer hours, with a third working over 50 hours per week, half of which working 65 hour weeks- Abbey and Alliance and Leicester.

As the greens hoots of recovery begin to appear small business owners should invest in software solutions to streamline business processes, enhancing efficiency throughout the business.

ACT! by Sage CRM can be utilised by multiple departments across a business, improving workforce productivity and customer service- vital as buying behaviours change.

Find out more about ACT! by Sage.