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How EqualLevel GO “Levels the Playing Field” for Small & Disadvantaged Businesses

When making purchases, procurement professionals expect the same functionality they experience as consumers shopping online at home. They want a seamless experience between their purchasing or Enterprise Resource Planning (ERP) system, and their approved vendors’ most up-to-date product and pricing information. In order to do this, businesses need to have a PunchOut store or the capability to PunchOut. Because this can be technologically complex, public sector organizations often inadvertently favor larger, more sophisticated vendors with this capability, and small businesses can get left in the dust. 

“Every year since we have had our PunchOut store, sales have increased.”

Robin Peterson
Midwest Technology Products

How can small/disadvantaged vendors compete against the big guys, especially if don’t have an online presence already?

EqualLevel GO gives small OEMs or distributors, who may have limited IT capabilities, the opportunity to establish a PunchOut catalog store, or PunchOut store, that integrates with ERPs. This allows small companies to appear alongside their larger competitors.

A PunchOut store is a web-based, supplier-managed catalog storefront. The PunchOut store can be custom built on top of an existing eCommerce site or, more commonly, managed for the supplier by a third-party solution provider. Buying organization employees can access the supplier’s PunchOut store directly from their eProcurement marketplace, also known as “punching out” to the supplier’s site, or “PunchOut.” PunchOut allows the organization to maintain full control over order approval and payment.

How PunchOut works

The customer connects, or “punches out,” from their company’s system to a supplier’s eCommerce site. The PunchOut site identifies the buying organization and displays the appropriate products and prices. The shopper searches and selects goods they wish to purchase and adds them to their cart on the PunchOut site. At the end of the shopping session, the shopper checks out, which sends descriptions and prices of the goods placed in their cart to their ERP system.

Benefits of EqualLevel GO

EqualLevel GO’s PunchOut commerce site is scalable, easy-to-use and administer, and is provided at no charge to sellers when combined with EqualLevel’s buy-side eProcurement Marketplace solution. 

EqualLevel GO customers experience tangible benefits, such as:

Increased Average Order Value

PunchOut catalog store, combined with up-selling and cross-selling, is a powerful combination that increases total and average order value. Suppliers can show related and complementary products in their PunchOut store shopping cart and can anticipate and make adjustments that will increase the average sale.

Greater Ability to Attract Big Customers

When it comes to gaining large customers, a PunchOut catalog store is a win-win. Big enterprises are often on the lookout for suppliers who can allow them to order directly through their ERP procurement system. For many large organizations, PunchOut is a ”must-have” for engagement.

Improved Sales Productivity

A PunchOut catalog store streamlines the sales process because it produces more accurate orders. This means less time is spent correcting orders, which improves response times and overall productivity.

Improved Customer Relationships

By simplifying the purchasing process, suppliers strengthen customer relationships by receiving and responding to orders more quickly.

Click here to learn more about EqualLevel GO.

Further Reading

Small/disadvantaged customers like Midwest Technology Products, GBEX, and El Paso Office Products have implemented, or are in the process of implementing, EqualLevel GO to ensure their products are showing up in the search results of big buyers. Below are their stories:

Supplier Spotlight: Midwest Technology Products

Supplier Spotlight: El Paso Office Products

Supplier Spotlight: GBEX

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Agencies Move Away from Full Suites in Favor of Best-of-breed Solutions

In the past, public sector organizations utilized a single unified software solution, also known as a full suite solutions, for their operations data. Despite the efficiency and uniformity of these systems, full-suite solutions have shortcomings. Today, organizations are moving away from full-suite solutions to create specialized patchwork platforms made up of best-of-breed solutions.

The Shortcomings of Full Suite Solutions

In general, updates for full-suite solutions can be infrequent and lengthy to install due to their size and coverage. This renders the functionality of the suite incomplete and workarounds to support the ever-advancing needs of department users becomes commonplace. In addition, the lack of focus equates to departments utilizing solutions that are not built for their specific functional needs.

What is a best-of-breed solution?

With cXML integration standards and the accessibility of open Application Programming Interfaces (APIs), agencies are now able to create a custom platforms that utilize best-of-breed solutions for each individual department function. With best-of-breed implementation, organizations ensure that their full-suite systems are open, their standards are based with APIs, and they have well-detailed documentation to optimize the approach.

The Benefits of Best-of-Breed Solutions

Best-of-breed solutions are designed to adapt and offer focused performance and specialization. They are smaller than full suites and run independently, updating smoothly and seamlessly without affecting other systems, accelerating beneficial returns, and reducing project risks.

The specialized nature of best-of-breed solutions allows manufacturers to quickly accommodate market changes and align solutions more closely with strategic business goals. Thus, agencies using best-of-breed solutions are more likely to create nuanced approaches to problems, quickly respond to market fluctuations and meet personalized requirements.

Because these systems are optimized for each niche, implementation and training (if necessary) are lighter, while user experience is generally straightforward and involves fewer stakeholders. Organizations then have access to in-depth documentation that outlines functionality for each solution and its respective performance report which can be used to promote efficiency.

The Best Solution for Your Organization

Businesses are presented with a multitude of solutions. To find the one best suited for your organization, select a solution that:

  • meets your specific functional needs without compromises
  • is built on a modern SAAS technology stack
  • helps maximize your ability to leverage the current enterprise system, and
  • has a strong product roadmap of future innovations.

Organizations and teams should consider best-of-breed solutions rather than bearing the costs and disruptions that come with outdated monolithic systems.

Click here for more information on EqualLevel’s best-of-breed eProcurement solution.

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