Shipping errors? Poor inventory management? Multiple disparate systems? Data entry errors? If any of these challenges sound familiar, you’re not alone. These are just some of the hurdles faced by many start-up and small-to-mid-size eCommerce businesses that lack proper software integration. While these issues may be magnified in larger businesses, they are common to organizations of all sizes and have led many companies to seek solutions through proper software.
When it comes to eCommerce, a functioning, visually appealing website that offers a good user experience is vital to success. However, without the proper back-end software to manage the processing and shipping of orders, in addition to back-office accounting functions, your business can quickly fall apart. This is where eCommerce integration with ERP (Enterprise Resource Planning) comes into play. A website that is directly tied to back-end inventory and accounting ERP software will allow you to process sales orders and invoices, manage the picking, packing, and shipping of orders, receive inventory, issue purchase orders, manage AR, AP, and GL accounts, track customer communication, prepare reports, and much more.
Benefits of eCommerce and ERP Integration
Scalability
The right ERP and eCommerce solution will scale with your business. Implementing both systems simultaneously will prepare your business for growth while freeing up resources for customer acquisition and product development. Getting the proper software in place for both back-end and eCommerce processes will allow your business to increase order volume without struggling to fulfill orders.
Better Inventory Management
Integrated eCommerce and ERP mean data from all sales channels is centralized in one database. This includes orders coming in online, through retail and showroom locations, from sales reps in the field and at trade shows, and via customers who phone or email their orders. Orders are processes in a timely manner and inventory availability is updated in real-time. It also eliminates the need to re-key orders and information into multiple solutions, reducing keying errors. An integrated solution saves your team time from manual data entry processes.
Reporting and Analytics
Having a centralized database of information not only improves inventory management but also enables real-time reporting and insight into business health. Reports can be generated and automatically emailed to stakeholders and management regularly, allowing businesses to proactively take advantage of opportunities and address issues. This eliminates the time spent manually collecting and processing information from multiple systems.
Download the Reporting & Analytics eBook to discover how reports like “Inventory Hits,” “Fulfillment Time Exceptions,” and more can revolutionize the way you manage your distribution business.
Improved Customer Management
Integration improves customer management across various areas:
- Storing customer information in one database reduces data entry errors.
- Barcode scanning integration for receiving inventory and picking orders reduces shipping errors and RMAs.
- eCommerce integration ensures customers only see inventory that is available in stock, improving their online shopping experience.
Providing customers with the ability to place orders online 24/7 ensures you remain competitive in an industry that makes it easy for customers to find alternative solutions. Whether you’re selling B2B or B2C, your customers want to know that they can find the product they want when they want it.
The Limitations of Non-Integrated Systems
For example, say you invest heavily in a beautiful new website and you’re really successful, receiving 500 new orders per day. Of those 500 new orders, say 50 of them call your customer service desk to make changes to that order.
With a web integration that only pushes the order into the ERP software, you now have to do the following:
- Edit the order in the ERP system – because that system is what controls your inventory and it’s what you use to actually ship orders
- Edit the order in the web system – because that’s where the customer sees the order
- Edit the order in the payment system – because that’s where the customer’s payment information resides
With each change taking approximately 15 minutes, that’s 12 ½ hours of order editing time, requiring at least two full-time staff members just to keep multiple systems in sync.
A Better Approach: Two-Way Integration
Working with a software vendor who can help facilitate a sophisticated, two-way integration between your ERP system and web store can resolve these issues. When a customer submits an order online, that order shows up in your ERP system automatically, and information about the online pre-authorization (or actual payment) is also passed to the ERP. The customer service rep makes changes in the ERP system only, and proper integration detects the change and automatically updates the web order, including line additions, deletions, changes to quantities, and even price.
On the shipping side, depending on your ERP solution, the shipping information will be passed to your shipping carrier, which retrieves the shipping label and prints it, updating the tracking code automatically. When the order is shipped, the shipment information is passed back up to your web store through the two-way sync engine, completing the charge against the customer’s card for the shipping value of the order. This integrated workflow allows you to keep customers happy, keep orders moving through your warehouse, and grow your order volume with the same—or even less—staff than what you currently have in place.
In today’s competitive eCommerce marketplace, customers can easily find alternative solutions if they are not satisfied with your eCommerce experience. Proper integration of your eCommerce site with your back-end ERP system is crucial for maintaining efficiency, improving inventory management, enhancing customer satisfaction, and scaling your business.
Investing in a two-way integration solution can save your business significant time and resources, ensuring that you provide a seamless and efficient shopping experience for your customers. Start exploring your options for eCommerce and ERP integration today and position your business for long-term success.
