Last week at its annual users’ conference, SAGE, the Addison, Texas-based provider of information, marketing and business management solutions and PPAI’s technology partner, debuted several new features and updates to its products and services. At SAGE Conference Virtual, Eric Natinsky, SAGE CEO, unveiled SAGE Online 17, the latest version of the company’s flagship research and business management solution. Other releases include advancements and capabilities for SAGE Web, SAGE’s web-based service for Macs and any other device with a web browser, and new, modular SAGE Websites.

"Our goal at SAGE has always been to build powerful solutions for the industry that are also easy to use," says Natinsky. "We are continuously streamlining our products and processes to make them even more efficient, and with the updates in this release, we know our customers will be able to save time and be more productive."

SAGE Online 17, which has a refreshed overall look and feel, features a number of new, user-driven additions within each module, each designed to maximize ease of use. The product search area upgrades include new search criteria, such as the ability to search for Canadian-friendly suppliers, filter product results by decoration availability and more. Users will also see increased functionality within the presentations area, allowing them to choose a template when creating a presentation, and drag presentation items to orders, email campaigns or print publications.

The new SAGE Online 17 also incorporates popular customer-requested features such as an increased page count for custom-printed catalogs created in the Print Studio. Users can add clients’ text messaging preferences in the CRM module and send invoices that include payment links through SAGE Order Management. Other additions include new scheduling options in the Email Campaigns area, the ability to add products from presentations to email campaigns and more.

Substantial upgrades have also been made to the Project Management area, where distributors can view and manage all projects, track their status and improve their team’s organization. With added workflow steps, additional client customization options and new organization options, distributors can further tailor the tool to meet their specific needs.

Updates to SAGE Web, SAGE’s web-based research tool, will also be released over the next few months. SAGE Web will soon include added features like Project Management, SAGE Chat, Print Studio and Email Campaigns, as well as enhancements to the presentations area, giving Mac users and others using web browsers the same core functionality that exists in the Windows-based SAGE Online.

The new SAGE Websites will offer a fresh, contemporary design and more customization options.In addition to modern features like video backgrounds and mega-menu support, the latest SAGE Websites are built with modules, allowing distributors to reconfigure, reposition, and turn on and off each module to create their website. Other enhancements include filter options to drill down search results, the addition of the SAGE Virtual Design Studio in the admin area to easily add logos to product images, and the ability to push carts to SAGE Order Management, streamlining the ordering process.

“We’re excited for this release because a lot of the new features and updates were specifically designed in response to our customers’ feedback,” adds Natinsky. “We always do our best to listen and when we have an opportunity like this, to implement their ideas to help them be more successful.”

SAGE Online 17 is available now. Subscribers will receive an “update available” prompt upon logging into SAGE Online as soon as the new version is available to them. The new SAGE Websites will be available within the next week. The SAGE Web updates will be rolling out over the next few months, beginning in April. Distributors can expect to receive automatic, unintrusive software updates throughout the duration of the release. There is no additional charge for any of these updates. SAGE customers who could not attend the SAGE Conference can view recordings of the sessions on SAGEmember.com.