Hoops is built around a connected workflow that helps your team move from selling, to managing the order, to purchasing, production, and delivery.
At the simplest level, the core Hoops workflow is:
SalesDoc → Job → Purchase Order
A SalesDoc (Quote) captures the sale.
A Job manages the work.
A Purchase Order helps you order what is needed to complete the job.
A Flexible Workflow
While the core workflow is simple, Hoops is designed to adapt to the way your business operates.
The diagram below shows a more complete workflow, including optional steps such as SalesPresentations, SalesStores, invoicing, proof approvals, and purchase orders.
Many of these steps are flexible. For example, you can create an invoice at any point after a SalesDoc exists, and once a Job has been created, proof approvals and purchase orders can happen in whatever order best suits your process - even at the same time.
Read on to explore each stage of the workflow and learn how everything fits together.
1. Start with Sales
The main starting point in Hoops is a SalesDoc.
A SalesDoc can be a quote, proposal, invoice, order, lead, or another document type that matches your sales process.
Most users begin by creating a quote.
2. Optional: Use a SalesPresentation or SalesStore First
Some businesses start with a more visual sales experience before creating a SalesDoc.
You can use a SalesPresentation to present ideas, products, and concepts before quoting.
You can use a SalesStore to create an online storefront where customers browse products and place orders.
These are optional steps. You can use them when they suit your workflow, or you can create a SalesDoc directly.
3. Send an Invoice When It Fits Your Process
Once a SalesDoc exists, you can send an invoice to your connected accounting package. The timing is flexible.
Some businesses invoice before a Job is created. Others invoice after production, dispatch, or delivery. Hoops allows you to choose the workflow that fits your business.
4. Convert the SalesDoc into a Job
When the order is ready to move into production, the SalesDoc can be converted into a Job.
The Job is where the order is managed. This is where your team tracks production, artwork, purchasing, files, comments, tasks, activity, and dispatch.
5. Manage Proofs and Purchase Orders from the Job
Once a Job exists, you can manage key production workflows in the order that works best for your business.
Two common workflows are:
Sending proofs to customers for approval
Creating Purchase Orders for suppliers
These can happen one after the other, or at the same time, it's up to you, and can depend on the Job or the customer.
6. Produce and Dispatch the Order
As the Job progresses, your team can manage production, track activity, store files, collaborate, and prepare the order for dispatch.
Shipping and dispatch sit at the end of the workflow, once the order is ready to be sent or collected.
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7. Customize the Workflow to Match Your Business
Every business runs differently, so Hoops is designed to be flexible.
You can customize your boards, statuses, automations, views, templates, and workflows to reflect the way your team actually works.
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Summary
The Hoops workflow gives your team one connected path from sales through production and delivery.
The goal is not to force every business into the same process. The goal is to give your team a flexible system that reflects the way you already work.