I'll take a try at answering your questions
1. How much effort did it take you to get your inventory of artwork and gifts bar-coded in the beginning?
It was a piece of cake. We just ran a barcode report and told it to print all art/gift items from 0-zzz, which we had already entered in the database. Then we just put the stickers on the items. The labels include the item ID #, description, price, and the barcode itself.
2. Do you have a good method of identifying which items are on consignment, and a method of weekly determining how much to pay the different artists?
Adding consignment items to inventory
From the main menu:
-Click on ART (art/gift item inventory)
-Click ADD
-Enter normal information about this piece (desc, title, item #, artist, selling price, etc)
-At the bottom, Fill in the CONSIGNED FROM and PERCENT TO ARTIST fields
-Click STOP ADD to save
Generate manual report of consignment activity
From the main menu:
-Click on ART (art/gift item inventory)
-Click FILE (pulldown menu)
-Click ART COMMISSION REPORT
-Select either “commissions paid” or “commissions due”
-Select starting and ending dates for the report
-Enter consignee name, or leave blank for all
-Click OK to generate report
Enable the automatic daily art consignment due report
This will create daily closing reports to properly pay your consigned artists. It will also include what sold, to whom, and for how much.
From the main menu:
-Click on CLOSING
-Click on PREFERENCES
-Click a check next to ART CONSIGNMENT DUE REPORT
-Click OK to save
Note: I will add this to the LifeSaver tips and tricks thread, in case anyone else will benefit. The full thread lives at: http://www.thegrumble.com/showthread.php?t=6635
3. Is it very hard to enter items already bar coded into your database? What I am thinking of is the gifts we buy have bar codes already on them. Can I just scan them in and develop an inventory database for them?
This is no problem. In most cases, you can use the existing barcode label from the manufacturer. When entering the items, put the cursor in the UPC field in the art database. Scan the item, and it will associate that item's barcode with the record.
4. Is there someplace I can get information on the details of barcoding to help me understand them better?
It is explained somewhat at the above link. Barcoding is an optional module that requires a barcode reader. It translates a special picture into text, which the POS knows how to interpret. It lets you call up an art item, gift item, mat, moulding, workorder, or customer slip instantly.
When you have this module installed, you will notice small barcodes will print on all receipts and workorders. This is helpful as well. Example: When an order is complete, just scan it and the calendar system will mark it "done". When a customer comes in to make final payment/pickup, scan their slip (or the workorder). This shortcut will automatically call up their name and pending orders in the accept payment screen. There is also a frequent framer card system, which we don't use at our shop.
You can get additional info in the LifeSaver manual by hitting F1 anywhere in the program, or you can give them a ring. Others may have more to add.
I hope this info was helpful
Best regards
Mike L
moderator