that results in a substantial sales increase can also create business disruption when the e-commerce system is not integrated in “real time” to the “back office” system.

For example, I recently received an inquiry about our ERP software solution from the president of a small fastening company who had read my previous article “how to choose the right software for your company” which was published in a popular trade magazine. When speaking with her, she told me that she recently “turned off” her despite the fact it was extremely successful in producing a substantial amount of new sales. The reason for “turning off” the was that the “back office” system did not produce the proper inventory status information.

Not having this data resulted in severe business disruptions. Realizing that she would lose customers and her company’s high rating on the web, the president decided to “turn off” the until she could find suitable new “back office” software for her company. As a result of the high level of stress created by the business disruptions, many of her staff members decided to leave the company, increasing her business disruptions.

Another Example Of How A So-Called Successful Website Can Create Unnecessary Business Disruptions:

Recently, three presidents of very successful electronics e-commerce companies told me they have excellent e-business retail stores that enabled them to grow their businesses substantially. When I asked them how good their inventory control is in the warehouse, they all admitted that this was one area that required great improvement as:

1. Misplaced inventory was “collecting dust” and was not found until the next physical count took place in the warehouse. Quite often, when the misplaced inventory when found, it was obsolete. The inventory that could have been sold became excess inventory since new inventory was ordered while it was misplaced.

2. Incorrect shipments resulted in a high rate of returns, and double freight bills.

3. Credit issued for returned inventory resulted in additional workload for the accounting department results in the loss of vendor early payment discounts.

Make Your Website A Success With An Integrated Computer System

While selling on the Web can be a very powerful tool, as you can see, it can also be a “double-edged sword” resulting in severe business disruptions. With an integrated computer system, the Web, the “back office, and the warehouse information will be updated in a “real time” mode without the danger of data being corrupted or lost. An automated warehouse will insure shipment accuracy, prevent inventory from being misplaced, and the company Website will always reflect an accurate count of the inventory available in the warehouse. This will your company’s customer relationship management effectiveness and encourage customers to become recurring clients.

If your is attractive, informative, marketable, and if it has traffic direction and a integrated computer system in place, it will then enable your company to go to the “next level.” You will then only be limited by your imagination and your budget. The question is, “What is your destination?”
Since 1980, Dan Kaplan has worked with corporate executives to improve purchasing, increase warehouse and distribution efficiencies, and implement software solutions that result in substantial savings and productivity improvements. To lower your operating costs, reduce your warehousing and distribution business"s quote generation process from 3 weeks to 3 hours and invoice cycle from months to one day, go to http://www.smcdata.com


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