frequently asked questions
If you're on this page, you're curious, so below, you'll hopefully find all the answers you're looking for. If you don't, submit your question at our CONTACT US page and we'll get back to you.
Two must reads. First make sure you're using a Chrome, Edge or Firefox browser on your laptop or desktop. Unfortunately, phones, tablets and Safari ARE NOT compatible. Second, ALWAYS wait for the "SAVED SUCCESSFULLY" window to appear atop the page after clicking "SAVE" atop your sheet. Didn't see it after waiting a 15 seconds? Just click it again as sometimes wifi and network outages necessitate a second click.
Two must reads. First make sure you're using a Chrome, Edge or Firefox browser on your laptop or desktop. Unfortunately, phones, tablets and Safari ARE NOT compatible. Second, ALWAYS wait for the "SAVED SUCCESSFULLY" window to appear atop the page after clicking "SAVE" atop your sheet. Didn't see it after waiting a 15 seconds? Just click it again as sometimes wifi and network outages necessitate a second click.
Looking for app-specific FAQ's and set up videos OR want to get customized help from our Co-Founder, Inventor, Larry Hebert? Just tap the buttons directly below:
WHAT IS OPEN TO BUY?
Open To Buy (OTB) is an inventory purchasing plan designed to manage and streamline
purchases to ensure there is an optimal amount of inventory to meet demand, manage cash
flow and increase profitability.
HOW CAN USING OpenToBuy.co SAVE ME MONEY?
Our system will save retailers money by ensuring the business has ample inventory to sell to its customers and in the proper categories. Having excessive inventory lowers annual inventory turns and ties up cash in goods (we see countless owners facing 10's of thousands of dollars in aging, unsold inventory) and forces “sales” at lower prices to eliminate inventory.
Having too little inventory causes too rapid a turnover of goods and missed sales from a lack of adequate inventory levels on-hand. And not having product categories aligned with historical sales in each will cause categories to have too much, or too little inventory causing missed sales or stagnant product that does not sell. This will cause cash flow issues and loss of profits.
CAN I USE MY MOBILE PHONE or TABLET TO USE OpenToBuy.co?
The OpenToBuy.co system is meant to be used on laptops and desktops due to the spreadsheet orientation of the system. Unfortunately, the phone/tablet route of using the app is a no go.
CAN I USE ANY BROWSER TO USE OpenToBuy.co?
We HIGHLY recommend using Chrome, Firefox or MS Edge. Using Safari or any other browser will provide a poor experience, so we recommend sticking to the first three mentioned.
DO I NEED MICROSOFT EXCEL OR GOOGLE SHEET EXPERIENCE?
Not at all. Our program is a spreadsheet-style web app, but all the formulas are locked and it's just a matter of entering in the required financial data and it will help you navigate, project and keep you on track with one of the top expenses that should most certainly be managed strategically.
HOW MUCH DOES IT COST TO USE?
Every user receives a 14-day FREE trial when they choose either the $49.99/month or $479.99 annual subscription for their first "sheet" that houses your inventory financial data. If you'd like to add "sheets" for additional locations or businesses you own, each "sheet" has these two subscription options.
IS THIS A CLOUD-BASED SYSTEM?
Yes, our system is cloud-based and auto-saves all your inputted financials as you go.
WHO IS OpenToBuy.co MADE FOR?
Both e-commerce-based and brick & mortar retail operations that transact $250K - $2 Million in annual sales. Both consumer and B2B can use it, and it can help anyone with physical products that are being bought and re-sold, from jewelry and artisan businesses to clothing and home furnishings & accessories.
DOES OpenToBuy.co INTEGRATE WITH SHOPIFY, QUICKBOOKS AND OTHER PLATFORMS?
We work with many small businesses ranging from jewelry stores to home decor and we've found that the natural process of plugging in actual numbers from your POS/accounting systems into OTB.co is critical to truly being on top of inventory OTB. Our users update inventory finances regularly so they can sit in hotel rooms during tradeshows & their offices when buying season arrives and know precisely what their purchasing power & budget actuals are in real time so overspending and gut-feel purchasing is eliminated.
HOW TO SET UP YOUR OpenToBuy.co SYSTEM
When you log in for the first time, simply tap/click instructions and you'll have step-by-step instructions to follow, while you can also follow along on the video below as creator, Larry Hebert walks you through each step and gives a bit of background.
Here's our official set up/walkthrough video tutorial.
OTB 101: GLOSSARY OF INVENTORY TERMS
Coming soon, you'll have access to our definitions page filled with details on all the terminology to get you up to speed in optimizing your inventory program.
REAL LIFE SCENARIOS
Tap/click HERE to get the 101 on how the various moving parts of Open to Buy inventory management work together, enabling our system to optimize what literally is what puts so many businesses out of business.
Open To Buy (OTB) is an inventory purchasing plan designed to manage and streamline
purchases to ensure there is an optimal amount of inventory to meet demand, manage cash
flow and increase profitability.
HOW CAN USING OpenToBuy.co SAVE ME MONEY?
Our system will save retailers money by ensuring the business has ample inventory to sell to its customers and in the proper categories. Having excessive inventory lowers annual inventory turns and ties up cash in goods (we see countless owners facing 10's of thousands of dollars in aging, unsold inventory) and forces “sales” at lower prices to eliminate inventory.
Having too little inventory causes too rapid a turnover of goods and missed sales from a lack of adequate inventory levels on-hand. And not having product categories aligned with historical sales in each will cause categories to have too much, or too little inventory causing missed sales or stagnant product that does not sell. This will cause cash flow issues and loss of profits.
CAN I USE MY MOBILE PHONE or TABLET TO USE OpenToBuy.co?
The OpenToBuy.co system is meant to be used on laptops and desktops due to the spreadsheet orientation of the system. Unfortunately, the phone/tablet route of using the app is a no go.
CAN I USE ANY BROWSER TO USE OpenToBuy.co?
We HIGHLY recommend using Chrome, Firefox or MS Edge. Using Safari or any other browser will provide a poor experience, so we recommend sticking to the first three mentioned.
DO I NEED MICROSOFT EXCEL OR GOOGLE SHEET EXPERIENCE?
Not at all. Our program is a spreadsheet-style web app, but all the formulas are locked and it's just a matter of entering in the required financial data and it will help you navigate, project and keep you on track with one of the top expenses that should most certainly be managed strategically.
HOW MUCH DOES IT COST TO USE?
Every user receives a 14-day FREE trial when they choose either the $49.99/month or $479.99 annual subscription for their first "sheet" that houses your inventory financial data. If you'd like to add "sheets" for additional locations or businesses you own, each "sheet" has these two subscription options.
IS THIS A CLOUD-BASED SYSTEM?
Yes, our system is cloud-based and auto-saves all your inputted financials as you go.
WHO IS OpenToBuy.co MADE FOR?
Both e-commerce-based and brick & mortar retail operations that transact $250K - $2 Million in annual sales. Both consumer and B2B can use it, and it can help anyone with physical products that are being bought and re-sold, from jewelry and artisan businesses to clothing and home furnishings & accessories.
DOES OpenToBuy.co INTEGRATE WITH SHOPIFY, QUICKBOOKS AND OTHER PLATFORMS?
We work with many small businesses ranging from jewelry stores to home decor and we've found that the natural process of plugging in actual numbers from your POS/accounting systems into OTB.co is critical to truly being on top of inventory OTB. Our users update inventory finances regularly so they can sit in hotel rooms during tradeshows & their offices when buying season arrives and know precisely what their purchasing power & budget actuals are in real time so overspending and gut-feel purchasing is eliminated.
HOW TO SET UP YOUR OpenToBuy.co SYSTEM
When you log in for the first time, simply tap/click instructions and you'll have step-by-step instructions to follow, while you can also follow along on the video below as creator, Larry Hebert walks you through each step and gives a bit of background.
Here's our official set up/walkthrough video tutorial.
OTB 101: GLOSSARY OF INVENTORY TERMS
Coming soon, you'll have access to our definitions page filled with details on all the terminology to get you up to speed in optimizing your inventory program.
REAL LIFE SCENARIOS
Tap/click HERE to get the 101 on how the various moving parts of Open to Buy inventory management work together, enabling our system to optimize what literally is what puts so many businesses out of business.
