The release of v4.0 of Slatwall
Slatwall v4.0 is no ordinary release, here are some highlights:
Slatwall Collections
Collections is a game changing way to organize, view and act on eCommerce data. With Collections, you can create a dynamic query based on any object within the database; Accounts, Orders, Products, SKUs, Promotions, Price Groups, Inventory…anything!
Collection Filters:
Once you have your Collections in place Slatwall allows you to create any number of filters for the data within the Object you have chosen.
For example, view a list of products, purchased within a specific date range, using a specific promotion code.
Or
Create a list of Accounts that purchased one specific SKU and also purchased a specific second SKU
Once you have the Collection and Filters in place you can determine how you want to display the data:
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Drag and drop sorting
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Determine which fields are sortable
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Determine which fields are exportable
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Determine which fields are visible
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Determine which fields are searchable
Collections can be used for display in the Admin or on the front-end of the website, they can be used for reporting, or to create triggered email campaigns. The possibilities from a marketing and reporting perspective are endless and will depend on your specific business requirements, but Slatwall Collections are a unique competitive advantage.
Workflow
Workflow will allow Slatwall admin to create triggered actions (email, print, status change, etc) based on specific data changes in Slatwall. For example, if you create a Slatwall Collection (remember those) that is a list of users in Massachusetts that have purchased a specific SKU in the last 24 hours, you can set-up a Workflow that triggers an email each time a new user is added to this Collection.
Product Bundles
Have you ever purchased a computer at dell.com, then you will understand the concept behind Product Bundles in Slatwall. This allows administrators to create a collection of products (SKUs) into one product with a price. And the option to all the SKUs in the Bundle determine the price or set the price at the Bundle level.
Product Bundles would be available for users on the front-end of the site and also for admin through the order entry interface.
Events Product Type
In addition to the existing Merchandise, Content Access and Subscription Product Types, Slatwall v4.0 will support a new product type for Events. Events could be a concert, a webinar, weekly classes, multi-day conference, any event in which you need to sell seats.
The Event Product Type provides some key functionality in creating, selling and managing events.
Event Locations:
Similar to warehousing inventory in buildings, aisles, and bins, events can take place in Buildings and Rooms, or multiple rooms and rooms that can be combined with other rooms to form bigger rooms ;)
Locations can have multiple configurations (how they are set-up)
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Set-up and break-down times for each configuration
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Max capacity per location configuration
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Location manager reports
Events can take place on one day, multiple days, recurring daily, weekly, monthly.
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Max registrants
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Wait lists
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Register multiple attendees
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Attendance per event date
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Bundle dates to create a conference
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Reminder emails can be customized by event
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Feedback forms
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Auto generate attendee certificates
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Event reporting
New admin UI based on bootstrap 3
In the new Slatwall UI we have Removed left hand navigation from within objects which allows admin users to view all data full screen.
It is also more mobile friendly and moves us a step closer to providing a POS option using the Slatwall admin.
New additions to our team:
Experienced Developers
We have added two new developers to our team, bringing the total number of developers to 11 and our overall staff to 15. Ryan Marchand and Chris Kundrat join Greg Moser, Sumit Verma, Paul John, Brad Gustavesen and Reyjay Solares on the Slatwall development team.
Dedicated QA
As we continue to grow and improve both the Slatwall software and our own development processes a big emphasis in 2014 has been put on testing. David Shaughnessy has been heading our QA effort focused on writing functional and unit tests that allow us to automate the testing process. Tiara Laviolette is working closely with David and working on client specific and general Slatwall documentation.
Important Launches:
There have been some key project launches in 2014 that have driven much of the new functionality in Slatwall.
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www.region10.org (4th quarter launch)
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www.finestationery.com (4th quarter launch)
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www.davol.com (4th quarter launch)
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www.heartandstonejewelry.com (4th quarter launch)