Two Tools Available at Argus (and why I wish I knew and you knew about them too)

Last week was my first at Argus and it has been an incredible (and sometimes overwhelming) experience. My background is in the physical scrap metal world and transitioning to the price reporting side of the industry is a new adventure for me. The team at Argus is extremely intelligent, experienced and very willing to share their knowledge. However, as with any new challenge, some moments have been like trying to drink from a fire hose in an attempt to absorb as much information as possible – as quickly as possible.

Those who know me know I am an old school, older millennial. I keep hand written notebooks from throughout my scrappy career and I hand write during meetings, presentations and phone calls. This past week was no different – only the highlighter came out.

Loosely translated, the highlighter is my ALL CAPS indicator – rarely used but eye catching. It was used to capture several eye-opening moments for me this week. I want to share a couple of those highlighter swipes and how I see these a-ha moments helping and improving your business (and how I wish I knew about these prior to starting at Argus Media).

Here are 2 tools available at Argus (and why I wish I knew and you knew about them too).

1. Excel Add-In and Templates

Excel is my go-to program. Analysis. Tracking. Budgets. Formulas. How many hours have I wasted in my career manually pulling from websites the data needed to run an analysis on scrap metal or another commodity – or to just figure out the trend between months? 

Everyone, listen up!

Argus has a built in Excel tool that pulls directly from its price reporting website! No more wasted hours and tedious moments trying to go between two screens, two programs and two re-checks to ensure no mistakes. Once the Excel Add-In is in place, you hit ONE BUTTON and it refreshes all of your data to the most recent numbers.

Do you need more detailed and regular analyses for your business? Argus can help create templates for users. 

Interested in a particular alloy? Argus can help create a formula of the various elements in a particular metal to create its estimated value based on recent market movements. 

Did a commodity input just drop and you need to get an updated pricing estimate? Hit ONE BUTTON and refresh the data. 

Curious what a commodity surcharge will look like? You can either use Argus’ online surcharge calculator or work with an Argus team member to help.

The Excel Add-In and Templates are universally useful in commodity industries. I look back at my career in steel and scrap metal and realize how a variety of job functions could greatly benefit from these tools today. Imagine giving the power of knowledge to scrap buyers, accounting departments, budgeting committees, etc. with one simple click (refresh).

Click below for additional information on the Excel Add-In.

2. Argus' Online Workspaces

In my previous scrap roles, the majority of my day was spent connecting with the market via telephone. As emails or texts came across with additional information, I collected the data in my brain and in that trusty, old school notebook. This got the job done but left me without a proper electronic compilation for record keeping that is so essential in today’s evolving industry. 

If upper management requested documentation of market movements, it would require time searching through emails, texts, price reporting agencies and news organizations to locate the information needed to justify decisions.

Argus’ platform provides their clients an online workspace where they can pull only the information they are specifically interested in and create a dashboard for their personal commodities. With one saved bookmark, users can quickly access charts, news and data relevant to their business. It is an excellent snapshot of the commodities your business follows – specifically created, customized and curated for you.

Those are the 2 tools I highly recommend for immediate use in the commodity business.

To end, last week was a whirlwind. Learning about all the innovative products Argus makes available to clients is a bit overwhelming (and frustrating). Frustrating as I look back at the countless hours wasted (personally and as a team) from not having these tools. However, I hope these tools I’ve highlighted here will encourage companies to reach out to Argus and explore how these products can help their teams gain better control of their futures.

The tools (and team) at Argus are ready and available to help grow your business.

Jennifer Betts

VP Business Development, Metals

Argus Media

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