In these days of data driven business, immediate access to real-time data has vital benefits for brands and wholesalers, leading to improvements in efficiency, reduce errors and grow sales. For FMCG companies sales order management software can help manage this data and provide critical insights...
Consolidated data in an omnichannel world
Omnichannel is crucial to survive in a B2B world. A recent study by Forrester Research found that 52% of B2B buyers expect to make half or more of their purchases online in 3 years, with the remainder being purchased through other channels. Additionally, 60% of B2B companies report that their B2B buyers spend more overall when they interact with multiple channels. Omnichannel B2B customers are also more likely to become repeat and long-term customers.
To get omnichannel right you must provide a well aligned and synced experience across all your channels which is totally reliant upon having consolidated data. But this is one of the biggest challenges’ that businesses face today.
A sales order management software helps with that. Orders coming directly from buyers via your self-serve B2B eCommerce solution together with orders coming in from your field teams – sales reps, merchandisers and van drivers. All is aggregated to provide a single source of order status information and you can process it quickly and efficiently – approve orders, amend them and make sure orders are integrated into your ERP system to ensure timely order fulfillment.
The right solution gives you a foundation for consistent and seamless execution across all internal departments and field teams. Drive customer satisfaction, encourage repeat business and inspire long-term loyalty by delivering a fast, accurate and seamless experience while also improving your operational cost-efficiency.
Beyond providing you total control of the sales cycle, it allows you to better understand your customers and how your products are selling.
Using data for decision making
According to B2B International, most businesses lose 45 - 50% of their customers every five years. Those that hang onto their customers do so by adapting their business decisions to their customers’ needs and working towards building long-term business partnerships with them.
The way to build strong business relationships is through understanding what your customer wants.
An order management system provides a holistic view of your customers’ transactions, so you can make better business decisions. You can derive valuable insights into order fulfillment issues, top and least performing products, customer buying trends, and more.
Gain sell-through visibility at your retail stores to make informed production decisions and devise campaigns (e.g. to promote ‘dead’ inventory). You can assess channel effectiveness to optimize and promote the perfect sales channels mix for your wholesale customers.
Use dashboards and reports to continually assess your order-to-cash operations.
Data sharing across the board
The insights gleaned from collecting and analyzing data should not just be for sales.
Sharing data both upwards and downwards means everyone has access to the same real-time data and decisions can be made quicker. Sharing data encourages collaboration between teams and departments enabling them to solve problems together. Everyone can learn more about what the customer expects and can decide together how to meet their expectations. This kind of behavior drives efficiency and innovation within a company.
In the B2B world, if you don’t collect data and make smart decisions – you’re set for failure. A lot of data could go to waste with mismanagement and misunderstanding, but using the right sales order management software means you will always be on top of your game.
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