While every part of your business is important, it can be argued that ordering is one of the most crucial steps along the customer journey. If ordering is not made simple, you run the risk of cart abandonment and a frustrated customer. Furthermore, if order details are not correct, a customer who is relying on a fast shipment may experience delays. It’s best to streamline this process and avoid these mishaps to build a loyal, satisfied customer base.
Customers expect an easy and precise ordering process to receive their products at the right place and time. Integration helps eCommerce sites meet these goals as well as aid inventory and budget management.
Read on to learn how integrating customer information and orders between ERP and eCommerce systems can help businesses optimize their processes to place products in customer’s hands.
B2B organizations require streamlined ordering
When a customer places an order, they expect it to be completed in a timely and accurate manner. This is doubly true for B2B customers who often rely on bulk orders to fulfill their own operational needs. Barilliance found that the average eCommerce store loses over 75% of its sales to cart abandonment – and while this is a general fact applied to both B2B and B2C organizations it is still an enormously large number.
For consumers, abandonment can be chalked up to sticker shock or unexpected shipping costs. However, B2B customers desire convenience overall. Business 2 Community explained that these consumers desire a seamless ordering process that can be achieved by eliminating the need for inputting duplicate data and be presented with the option to autofill details or repeat an order when necessary.
While B2C customers may be making a one-time purchase, B2B organizations require that their ordering process is streamlined, secure and accurate. Without this, businesses may experience a higher rate of cart abandonment or less frequent orders. Making the ordering process as easy as possible enhances the customer experience and builds loyalty and trust between businesses and consumers.
The importance of ERP and eCommerce order integration
When your business’s ERP and eCommerce systems work separately, there is room for error that can impede the progress of your business. It’s of the utmost importance that during the ordering phase a customer’s data is automatically populating both back- and front-end systems.
As a customer enters their payment details, their customer or company profile containing their shipping address must be accurate for the order to be sent to the correct location. Additionally, this information determines which warehouse is to fulfill the order for optimal fulfillment and shipping time.
Without integration, these processes are left to be completed manually where the room for human error increases. If order information is not integrated and updated regularly, organizations run the risk of sending shipments to the wrong address or warehouse, slowing down on the promised shipping time and leaving hopeful customers disappointed. Only by integrating these two integral systems can you business ensure your ordering process is streamlined and accurate to the benefit of your organization and customers.
How orders works with erpCommerce™
Pixafy’s erpCommerce™ solution was created with input from subject matter experts at our sister company Net at Work. With our combined expertise, we have designed our solution with ERP as the core value add. For B2B enterprises hoping to deploy eCommerce quickly, our default format for ordering is an ideal start for optimizing their online presence and can be customized to meet their specific needs at a later date.
In erpCommerce™, order details move from Magento to Boomi and then from Boomi to Sage. During the second transfer of information, the Sage ID is passed to the order level so orders can be assigned to Sage X3 customers when they come in, effectively streamlining the process. When a customer is already set up in Sage, the Sage ID is automatically sent with the order.
From there, the customer has two distinct paths to place an order:
- Credit Card: When an order is placed on a credit card, the payment will be processed via Magento/Payment Gateway. The authorization and capture automatically creates an invoice in Magento and the transaction ID will be passed to Sage with the order and prepayment. From there, your business will pick, pack and ship out the order.
- On Account: A customer is only allowed to pay on terms if allowed by the system (they are allowed a company credit limit). However, if the items in their order exceed the “Company Credit Limit” synced from Sage, then a message will appear urging the customer to please pay via a credit card or contact us to add credit to their account.
Once the customer enters their desired payment method and it is accepted by the system, the order will then be passed to Sage. If a customer paid by credit card, their prepayment would be included. However, if they paid on terms within their credit limit, a prepayment will not be included. The invoice process will all take place within Sage.
It’s important to note that when the final order is created in Sage, it should be associated with the correct company or customer because the “Ship Site” for orders will ultimately be determined by the associated “Ship To Address” in Sage X3. This also determines the logic for which warehouses will fulfill each order.
As discussed in our previous touchpoint articles, erpCommerce™ automatically updates customer information. For B2B users, we only sync addresses from Sage X3 to Magento. This means that when a user places an order, they will only be able to use a pre-approved address from the ERP system. This method effectively reduces the chances for orders being shipped the incorrect or outdated address and streamlines the process of updating all the customer information needed for the order.
For B2C customers, ordering follows much of the same initial process. However, only credit card payments are acceptable for B2C orders and they will be processed via Magento/Payment Gateway. The authorizing and capture creates an invoice in Magento and we then pass the transaction ID along with the order to Sage with a prepayment.
Once the order is sent to Boomi, the status in Magento should change to “In Process.” Again, the order should be associated with the same customer as identified in the B2C “Customer Sync” process to ensure the order is being fulfilled by the correct warehouse.
Like with our other touchpoints, the order process in erpCommerce™ is able to be customized to a customer’s needs. We can extend multiple orders to different shipping locations and ensure that Magento does not charge a cart upfront. This means that if a customer orders 20 items but only 15 are in stock, only 15 items will be sent and charged for – no refunds necessary. If more complex logic is needed for your organization’s ordering process, Pixafy can support it because erpCommerce™ is designed to be scalable.
Connect with us today
A seamless ordering process is the backbone of your business, and the experts at Pixafy are here to help you optimize it. While our standard solution can be deployed quickly, we also take the time to discuss your company’s business processes and expectations from integration so we can provide you with the best product possible. Additionally, our unique erpCommerce™ solution can work with additional ERP systems.
Contact us today with any questions you may have about orders or to learn more about our erpCommerce™ solution.
For other installments in our Standard Touchpoint Series:
Why ERP And ECommerce Pricing Integration Is Crucial For B2B Companies
The Benefits of Streamlining Inventory with erpCommerce™ for B2B Companies
The Importance Of Product Integration For B2B Companies
Integrating Your Organization’s Most Complex Touchpoint: Customers
Check back soon for our next installment in our Standard Touchpoint Series.
