Introduction
According to the Grand View Research report, B2B sales are forecasted to rise by 19.7 percent CAGR between 2022 to 2030. This growth will enable manufacturers, distributors, retailers, and B2B businesses to operate and grow in multiple industries.
The competitive environment we are living in also demands automation and digitization in every aspect of the work that we do. Therefore, a seamless eCommerce integration software like ERP should be on the top of your list.
Furthermore, it has been estimated that by the year 2026, the global market for ERP Software will be worth 78.4 billion dollars, which is a significant number. Also, with the growth in the eCommerce market, ERP integration becomes all the more necessary.
This blog showcases some of the key benefits that you can avail of, after integrating ERP with an eCommerce platform.
Benefits Of ERP Integration With eCommerce Platform
Businesses that integrate their eCommerce platform with ERP tend to enjoy the benefits that are as follows:
Automate Manual Processes
One of the primary benefits of eCommerce integration with ERP is that it helps in the automation of multiple processes that are performed manually.
Manual processing inevitably invites risks like sending the wrong items to your customers. It severely impacts your customer retention metrics. Performing double-entry without automation is not only costly but also creates problems in cross-functional decision-making.
With the help of cloud-based ERP, you can acquire real-time data that can be accessed from anywhere around the world. It is highly valuable as it helps in making rapid performance-based decisions. This way, you don’t have to be dependent on another tool for obtaining the reports.
Eliminates Data Redundancy, Human Involvement, and Mistakes
From your salesperson entering a wrong number to a warehouse delivering a wrong product to the customer, errors can have a significant impact on your business. However, you can avoid these human errors by having an appropriate eCommerce integration.
When you integrate your eCommerce business with ERP, you will easily be able to reduce errors and mistakes that occur in your work environment. It is because it allows you to share and update data in real-time. It also automates manual tasks by boosting collaboration between employees.
Moreover, when you share data among different systems and networks that have no way to communicate, redundancy and errors occur. It makes it difficult for workers to continuously update the file for each network. ERP places all the data into one centralized place that is accessible to the workers no matter wherever they are.
Provide Accurate Pricing
B2B eCommerce businesses face challenges when it comes to complex pricing structures. Sometimes, sellers have to set pricing based on dynamically changing inventory data. Others apply discounts according to customer and order value. Furthermore, there are price changes related to expired, new products and pre-negotiated prices to deal with.
B2B businesses that rely on an ERP system to centralize contract, pricing, and invoicing can overcome all the above-mentioned challenges without any difficulty.
Increases Internal Productivity
ERP allows you to automate tasks and keep track of all the activities in every department of the business. This way, you will be able to focus on other, more valuable tasks that help you in maximizing your performance and economic benefits.
All the departments can easily access the files as ERP centralizes them in one place. They can even change information constantly and provide real-time collaboration that facilitates the decision-making process.
Additionally, this sharing of information proves to be very valuable as it allows you to know the performance of each sector. In short, with the help of ERP, you can obtain sales reports, see companies’ profitability, and fulfill objectives.
Boosts Inventory Visibility
Apart from automating processes, eCommerce integration with ERP is highly effective in providing integrated production functionality. It integrates products, sales, financial management, and warehouse management, and by default, tracks the movement of each inventory item.
With the help of ERP, you don’t have to manually schedule and promote a just-in-time inventory strategy. Materials that are ordered and received to meet production requirements help you in saving inventory overhead expenses and increase efficiency. It helps boost real-time inventory visibility, tracking, and data management.
Increases Customer Satisfaction
ERP is highly beneficial in improving customer satisfaction by streamlining backend business processes. This way, you will be able to deliver goods to customers faster, improve productivity, and implement better control of inventory. It also fosters better customer communication via reliable leads, opportunities, and quote tracking.
Moreover, ERP assists in the order fulfillment process by connecting sales order management to fulfillment management. You can organize set service levels and even assign inventory to customer sales orders.
Companies integrating modern ERP not only improve customer service but also provide better assistance because they have a holistic view of a customer, including customer history. This way, businesses easily prioritize the best customers and automate any discounts for long-term customers.
Provide Omnichannel Experiences
Omnichannel creates an interconnected experience to provide customers with seamless service, regardless of whether they are using email, social media, or eCommerce channels. It provides continuity and connectivity across different communication channels to enable shoppers to easily acquire the products that they desire to purchase.
With the help of eCommerce Integration Software like ERP, you will be able to deliver orders to the customers seamlessly. This way, eCommerce will be able to create regular customer journeys regardless of their purchasing and communication channels.
Provides Financial Reports
Companies create financial reports of sales using eCommerce applications. By eCommerce store integration with ERP, you can easily produce trial balance, cash flow, P/L Statement, and balance sheet, which provides up-to-date and transparency in financial information.
Provide Real-Time Data Availability
Real-time data plays a significant role in reducing the risk of providing long information. Accessing it using a cloud-based ERP system provides accurate scheduling. When you are aware of what is happening in your business, you will be able to improve it more efficiently. It also spots errors immediately and improves your services to optimize the customer experience.
In a nutshell, when you use cloud-based ERP, you tend to acquire real-time data available that will help you in fulfilling the needs of your diverse business environment.
Provides Scalability And Security
A lot of B2B businesses centralize the information about their clients, product, transactions, or user data in the ERP. Hence, it is important to integrate your eCommerce business with ERP that is highly secure and scalable and can effortlessly accommodate growth.
Key Takeaway
An ERP integration for an eCommerce store tends to provide a highly competitive advantage. To meet the expectation of their customers, B2B businesses aim to add convenience, speed, and personalization while shopping and purchasing. Moreover, an ERP system offers a wealth of data with which businesses tend to optimize integrated systems for increased productivity. This way, businesses can easily improve their strategies and aim for success.
