Choosing the wrong B2B ecommerce software can have lasting and expensive consequences if it proves to be incapable of coping with the full demands of EDI (Electronic Data Interchange), warns GXS.
Understanding eCommerce
Simple online shopping basket and checkout software is far removed from complex EDI systems capable of integrating seamlessly with accounting, warehouse and logistics systems.
EDI can be implemented in a number of different ways, prompting important questions for the business concerned:
- Do you simply wish to exchange business documents such as invoices and purchase orders or will you need much more from your system?
- Do you need to integrate your B2B ecommerce software with your other business systems? Will your EDI system need to draw data from your existing accounting systems?
- Will you need your B2B ecommerce software to integrate with your existing warehouse system to help reduce costs and speed up despatching?
Finding the right B2B ecommerce system for you can mean exploring a number of EDI options that include:
- EDI via Value Added Network (VAN). This involves secure document and data exchange via private networks.Users need accounts with an EDI VAN provider which supplies them with secure electronic mailboxes.
- EDI via Virtual Private Network (VPN) which uses the Internet or other public telecommunications networks to carry out private transactions. The principal benefit is the much lower cost.
- EDI Software is an option which enables companies to take much greater control of their EDI B2B ecommerce environment, rather than outsourcing the management of their EDI infrastructure or using hosted solutions. Users will run EDI software on a network of PCs behind a company firewall. However, this typically requires extra IT resources.
GXS is the leading global provider of EDI and B2B ecommerce software and solutions, enabling companies across the world to reduce their overheads and trade more efficiently.
At least three quarters of all Fortune 500 companies use GXS solutions to boost their supply chain networks, optimize product launches, automate warehouse receiving and manage electronic payments.
GXS is headquartered in Gaithersburg, Maryland with operations and offices around the world. Contact GXS for more information about EDI and B2B ecommerce software.
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