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SIMPLIFIED TECHNOLOGY SOLUTIONS, INC
The BlackBerry® People.....Extending the Enterprise Beyond Your Office

Simplified Technology Solutions Launches Rapid-Ask by STS

Click here to go to the official Rapid-Ask by STS web site..

01/01/2008

Simplified Technology Solutions has become well known in the Southeastern United States for developing customized BlackBerry applications that help clients leverage their investment in existing technologies. In 2008, STS brings the benefits of a custom BlackBerry solution to a standard application with the new Rapid-Ask by STS.

“We developed Rapid-Ask by STS as a way for clients to extend their BlackBerry infrastructure without the expense of custom application development,” says Darren Duke, STS’s CIO. “It’s a low-risk, low-cost way for companies to optimize functionality for the BlackBerry.”

How it works

Rapid-Ask by STS is a survey-style application that allows users to capture information on site and transmit it real-time to an internal database. The survey itself is managed through an easy-to-use web interface, which allows the users to update the questions or change the question order without having to engage the IT department.

Rapid-Ask by STS offers a significant productivity boost to companies that perform regular site inspections, such as restaurants, franchises, hotels and government agencies. Rather than fill out a paper questionnaire and have to re-type the data upon returning to the office, the worker simply enters the information directly into the BlackBerry and the data is transmitted immediately to the back-end database.

Sales people can also benefit from Rapid-Ask by STS because it allows them to capture information, such as order requests, during a client site visit. With additional customization, Rapid-Ask by STS can even be integrated into an organization’s CRM system, delivering additional productivity gains.

Rapid-Ask by STS is a scalable solution. The database used to store the information is Microsoft SQL Server 2005. Rapid-Ask by STS supports the freely available SQL Server 2005 Express with Advance Services and higher. As your organization grows, Rapid-Ask can grow with it. See the Rapid-Ask by STS system requirements page for complete list of required software and check out the FAQ for further information.

Benefits

Rapid-Ask by STS offers the following benefits:

Security. The BlackBerry is one of the most secure technology platforms on the market, offering an extremely secure data encryption protocol. And because no data is stored on the device, information cannot be retrieved if it’s lost or stolen.
Increased productivity and data integrity. Because the user enters information just once, it eliminates an extra step in the process and reduces the risk of the wrong data being input.
Environmentally-friendly. Less paper means less impact on the environment.
Low maintenance. Companies don't have to allocate IT resources to manage Rapid-Ask by STS.
No limit to the number of questions. Unlike competitor products there is no limit on the number of questions that can be used.
Customizable. Once answers are submitted, customers are free to report from or move data to other systems.

Common Uses

Rapid-Ask by STS can be used in a wide range of situations when your organization needs real-time visibility and awareness and/or having the data transmitted real time to back end systems, some examples are:

Status updates.. When you absolutely have to know that a task or series of tasks have taken place by subordinates, either daily, weekly or some other schedule. You'll also know the time and date that the status was submitted. For example have Rapid-Ask by STS push a list of tasks to an employee that they have to complete by 5:00pm such as "Have all you voice mails been returned", "Ensure all new policy numbers are submitted into the system".
Sales processes. When you have a set process for sales (or any other structured activity) that you require your staff to follow . Examples would be capturing delivery dates, quantities, etc.
Inspections. Any inspection system is an ideal use for Rapid-Ask by STS, fire departments, hotels, restaurants, elevators, cleaning crews, property tax assessments. Simply have the supervisor fill in the questionnaire while the inspection is taking place.
End user data entry. A dentist or doctors office requires customers to update their information via Rapid-Ask in place of paper, pen and subsequent data entry
Surveys. Have employees or customers give you feed back about any segment of your organization, either anonymous or not.
Remote employee clock in and clock out. Have remote employees clock in or out from their BlackBerry smartphone.

All of the above uses can be configured as soon as Rapid-Ask is installed, within minutes! Real value, real time, real quick.

Pricing

The cost of a custom BlackBerry solution – including web application development, installation and training – can run around $35,000. At $7,250, the total cost of the Rapid-Ask by STS is almost a fifth of that. Installation costs are included and will be handled by BlackBerry and Rapid-Ask experts from the STS Professional Services team.