Easy Street, Inc. — Total Office Manager

From the April/May 2006 Review of
Construction Accounting Software

Total Office Manager from Easy Street, Inc. is designed for small to
midsize service-related companies, including appliance repair, plumbing, refrigeration,
and HVAC repair. While it also will work for construction firms, its strength
is in its service- related capabilities. When looking for a software solution,
Danny G. Fulkerson of Fulkerson Plumbing, Heating & Air Conditioning (www.fulkersonplumbing.com)
had previous experience with Easy Street and the company’s flat rate pricing
software. “We were very pleased with that program and their support,”
he says.

“Total Office Manager is a totally integrated program that includes AR, AP, payroll,
customer history, dispatching, etc.,” he explains, “and we had been
using another program along with an industry-specific program with no integration.”
He advises new or potential users to be prepared for many updates/enhancements.
“Easy Street states that this is still in the building stage,” Fulkerson
notes. “They even state that it is a ‘software project’ and
that they are still getting input from users and then implementing those suggestions
regularly. Since the time we started with Total Office Manager in September, we have seen numerous
changes that were needed and that also greatly improved the program.”

LEARNING CURVE — 4 Stars
Installation of Total Office Manager was easy, using a single CD. The main screen of Total Office Manager contains
a drop-down menu bar at the top of the screen, along with a task bar directly
below featuring one-click access to frequently used functions such as adding
a new customer or vendor, adding a new work order or viewing the schedule board.
Total Office Manager allows each user to set user-specific preferences according to the functions
used most frequently. To set preferences, you click on Pref. This includes setting
the appearance and program defaults you wish to display, customer defaults and
sales information. You can also set system security at this level. Total Office Manager uses
a Microsoft Access database to store information, making it easy to import and
export information to and from your database. Navigation through Total Office Manager is easy
once you’re familiar with all of the system features. I definitely recommend
taking the time to familiarize yourself with the location of all of the system
functions.

MODULES & FUNCTIONALITY — 5 Stars
The newest version of Total Office Manager includes a direct deposit option in payroll, expanded
user preference capability throughout the program, a reminder system and expanded
invoicing capability. All modules offered by Total Office Manager are included in the base price,
except for the Caller ID Server. Modules include GL, AP, AR, Accept Credit Cards,
Asset Management, Communications, Contact Management, Flat Rate Pricing Import,
Inventory, Job Costing, Maps and Directions, Payroll, QuickBooks Data Conversion,
Reports and Analysis, Sales, Scheduling and Dispatch, Service Agreements, and
Wireless and Mobile Technology.

The Job Cost module contains several useful features including the ability
to set up unlimited jobs per customer. You can also set up job phases, attach
labor to jobs, and maintain a contact log for each job that contains notes and
conversation logs pertaining to that particular job. The true strength of this
program lies in its service-related functions, such as the work order processing
module, where you can prioritize each order and look up repair history by either
model or serial number. The Electronic Dispatch board lets you add new work
orders, assign priorities and assign a technician immediately. You can also
enter any general or specific instructions particular to that order. The dispatch
board lets you view work orders by day, week or month, and shows all uncompleted
work orders. User-defined date format options let you enter information in a
format that will work for your company. And the mapping system (requires Microsoft
MapPoint) lets you print detailed maps for your technicians.

An excellent contact management module helps you keep track of your customers,
and the Asset Management module handles depreciation, warranty information,
repair history, and model and serial numbers.

IMPORT/EXPORT/INTEGRATION — 4.5 Stars
Total Office Manager is a completely integrated system with all modules included in your base
price with the exception of the Caller ID module. Use of the Microsoft Access
database also means that you can easily move data back and forth between Total Office Manager
and third-party software such as Microsoft Excel. Total Office Manager offers various import
and export options including Flat Rate Plus integration, which allows for easier
invoicing based on flat rates rather than time and materials billing. The Wireless
and Mobile Technology module lets you e-mail work orders to technicians in the
field. Total Office Manager can also easily convert your QuickBooks transactions. For an additional
cost, you can also obtain the source code for the program.

SUPPORT & TRAINING — 5 Stars
Total Office Manager offers various training sessions at its corporate headquarters. The company
also offers onsite training and a good Help function within the software. Three different support plans are currently offered: the Standard Plan at $999
per year; the Premium Plan at $1,499 per year; and the VIP Plan at $2,999 per
year. Each plan offers varying levels of support and product updates. You can
also choose to use fee-based support, where you pay $19 plus $2 per minute for
each toll-free phone call.

REPORTING — 4 Stars
Total Office Manager contains a good selection of reporting options, with the ability to save
all reports in Word, Excel or *.PDF format. You can choose a report from the
list, click on options, and assign date ranges and filters as needed. Also available
is an option to export your reports directly to your desktop or to a text file.

RELATIVE VALUE — 4.5 Stars
A five-user license for Total Office Manager will cost $5,999. This price includes all of the
modules mentioned in this review except the QuickBooks Data Conversion feature
and the Caller ID Server. Total Office Manager is an excellent choice for service companies who
wish to combine a strong accounting program with an excellent service, dispatching
and customer contact database.

2006 Overall Rating — 4.5 Stars