How Microsoft Dynamics 365 Business Central Enables Modern B2B eCommerce Success

3 min read ● Silk Team

Today’s B2B buyers expect much more than they did in the past. Many of today’s B2B buyers want many of the same conveniences they get from eCommerce sites when they purchase goods and services.

Today’s buyers expect to be able to:

• Buy using a self-service model
• Have real time inventory visibility
• See price quotes that have been customized to their needs
• Get their orders fulfilled quickly

In order to meet the above expectations, manufacturers, wholesalers and distributors will have to do much more than put up an eCommerce site. They will need a robust back-end system that ties together all of their operational, inventory, finance and customer data.

Microsoft Dynamics 365 Business Central has a key role in making modern B2B eCommerce possible because it links operational systems with digital sales systems. Business Central will also help organizations connect their back-end systems with eCommerce platforms so that those platforms can provide the kind of digital buying experience that modern consumers demand.

Why ERP Is Important For Modern B2B eCommerce

Unlike retail eCommerce where there are fewer operational requirements, B2B eCommerce is more complex. Many organizations will have to deal with large product catalogs with multiple SKUs, contract-based and customer-specific pricing, bulk orders and recurring purchases, multi-warehouse inventory management and detailed financial and compliance reporting. These types of operations are usually handled by an enterprise resource planning (ERP) system.

Business Central serves as the back-end operational system that allows eCommerce systems to provide the type of modern digital buying experience that B2B customers are looking for. It will allow organizations to process orders and generate invoices in their back-end systems and then provide the status of those orders to their customers through their eCommerce platform.

Real Time Inventory Visibility

One of the most important elements of a successful B2B eCommerce operation is having real time inventory visibility.

Business Central will provide real time inventory visibility of all of your company’s inventory at:

• Warehouses
• Distribution centers
• Fulfillment centers
• All other locations in your supply chain network

When you integrate Business Central with your eCommerce platform, your inventory levels will automatically update in both systems.

Benefits of Having Real Time Inventory Visibility

• Allows customers to know what is available before they complete a purchase
• Will reduce the number of times you over-sell a product or understock a product
• Will improve your ability to plan for future inventory needs
• Will improve the communication between your warehouses
• Will give customers the confidence to make purchases knowing that they will receive the products they ordered

Automating Order Fulfillment

Manual entry of orders will result in longer lead times and a greater opportunity for data entry errors. Business Central will help automate the entire order cycle.

If a customer places an order through your eCommerce platform:

• The order will automatically transfer to Business Central
• A sales order will be generated within Business Central
• Your inventory levels will be updated
• The fulfillment process for your warehouse will begin
• An invoice will be generated
• Your financial records will be updated

Benefits of Automating Orders

• Reduce the time it takes to fulfill an order
• Reduce the amount of manual labor required to enter each order
• Improve the accuracy of each order
• Streamline the fulfillment process

Business Central will enable companies to take care of more orders in a given period of time while continuing to run their business efficiently.

Flexible Pricing Models

Many organizations use tiered pricing models for B2B customers. A common example would be a manufacturer who offers different prices based on the quantity being purchased. Other examples might include offering contract pricing for long term customers, customer group pricing, promotional pricing and negotiated pricing.

Business Central will allow you to develop and implement these pricing models within your ERP and to synch them with your eCommerce platform.

Each time a customer logs onto their account they will see their custom pricing based upon their agreement or previous purchasing history.

Product Catalog Management

Many manufacturing and distribution companies have thousands of products with various options such as different colors, sizes, weights and etc. Each of these products may have different pricing rules and inventory levels.

Business Central provides a central location for you to manage all of this product information, which includes:

• Product description
• SKU and item # information
• Product category information
• Pricing and discount structure information
• Inventory levels

When you connect your eCommerce platform to Business Central, any changes you make to product information in Business Central will automatically be updated in your eCommerce storefront.

This eliminates the possibility of having inconsistent product information throughout your eCommerce channel and makes managing your product catalog easier.

Financial Systems Integration And Real Time Financial Reporting

Another benefit of using Business Central as part of your B2B eCommerce operation is the ability to fully integrate your financial systems.

All sales transactions entered through your eCommerce platform will be automatically entered into your accounting system within Business Central. This will provide your finance team with real time access to:

• Revenue performance reports
• Accounts receivable reports
• Tax reports
• Financial reports
• Profit margin reports

Having your financial systems synchronized in real time will eliminate the need to manually reconcile your financial systems and will provide you with a high degree of accuracy.

Multiple Channel Support

Many modern B2B companies are selling through multiple channels such as:

• eCommerce storefronts
• B2B ordering portals
• Sales representatives
• Online marketplaces

Managing these channels independently will add operational overhead to your organization.

Business Central will provide a single platform to manage all of your sales channels by providing a central repository for all of your orders, inventory, pricing and customer data.

Using a single platform will provide consistency in your data and improved interdepartmental communication.

Long Term Scalability

As you grow your digital commerce capabilities, scalability will become increasingly important. Business Central was designed to support long term growth by allowing for:

• Automated workflows
• Real time operational data
• Integration with multiple eCommerce platforms
• Single platform business management

This architecture will allow you to increase your online sales while minimizing the additional operational complexity.

Closing Comments

Modern B2B eCommerce requires a seamless integration of customer facing eCommerce storefronts with backend operational systems. Microsoft Dynamics 365 Business Central will serve as the ERP backbone of these digital commerce environments.

With its real time inventory visibility, automated order processing, flexible pricing models and integrated financial reporting, Business Central will enable B2B companies to operate more efficiently while delivering a modern online buying experience.

For manufacturers, distributors and wholesalers pursuing digital transformation, Business Central will play a significant role in supporting scalable and efficient B2B eCommerce operations.