API development: 4 best practices to avoid unwanted mistakes
21 Jul 2022
March 2022 | by Sky.One Solutions
In 2021, Brazilian e-commerce increased by 11.5% in total retail , according to research by Abcomm . Within this growth, 80% of shopkeepers are part of one, or more than one, marketplaces . Therefore, integrating with the marketplace has become a necessary challenge for anyone looking to expand their online sales.
Platforms such as Amazon, Mercado Livre, B2W and others, facilitate the exposure of products and ensure greater reach for dissemination, which makes these channels great for generating new customers .
Currently, there are some options for those who need to integrate the ERP used in their business with one or more marketplaces, in this article we will talk about the most relevant ones. Read until the end!
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In summary, marketplaces function as an “online mall”, where it is possible for consumers to search for products from different segments on the same platform.
In addition, the payment methods offered by merchants are diverse, as each one chooses how the billing and delivery of products will be carried out. Thus, customers can select the seller that best meets their conditions.
Still from the customer's point of view, in marketplaces it is possible to see and provide feedback on the product/seller, this helps in the relationship of trust between store and consumer.
On the business side, the advantages of selling on a marketplace are also many. Meet some of them below.
One of the biggest advantages of selling on marketplaces is the visibility generated by these platforms. As they are highly accessed sites, the product catalog available there can capture sales more quickly .
Creating a virtual store is usually something that requires investment. Even if done on a free platform, a designer, an e-commerce analyst, the purchase of a domain, among other costs, are required.
In a marketplace, the shopkeeper will already have most of what he needs to start selling. Thus, the processes become simpler and the investment in tools smaller . Businesses that already have their own e-commerces can also sell on marketplaces, just integrate data effectively.
With more visibility and reach of qualified leads, sales of shopkeepers who opt for marketplaces are greater. In addition, the profit also increases, since the investment made is smaller in relation to the creation of an e-commerce.
Businesses that dedicate their sales to marketplace platforms, when well managed, tend to expand. Lower costs and increased sales generate more capital available for the merchant to invest in other areas: whether in increasing product inventory or in marketing.
But to grow a business, every decision needs to be data-driven.
Before integrating a store with a marketplace, it is necessary to know if your company's target audience is on that platform, the relevance of the site in your segment, what products will be sold and what is the best model for your business.
The most basic definitions are Marketplace B2B ( Business to Business , where companies sell to their peers), Marketplace B2C ( Business to Consumer, where businesses sell to consumers) and Marketplace C2C (Consumer to Consumer, consumer to consumer). .
Marketplaces are still divided into products, such as Shopee and Enjoei, for example, and services, such as GetNinjas and Uber. When choosing, opt for a platform that highlights the product to be sold.
Having chosen the marketplace, or marketplaces, it is necessary to choose how the marketplace integration will be. Some of the options for this are:
Many companies seek to internally develop an application that integrates their ERP, CRM, BI and e-commerce to marketplaces and, for that, the work of a developer is necessary .
When performed internally, integration with the marketplace is something that allocates time and resources from your IT team , which needs to put aside other more strategic tasks to work on its development.
Generally, only the cost of creating the integration is calculated, but it is necessary to bear in mind the additional costs that this generates: implementation, maintenance and error correction.
It is worth remembering that, when creating an application, it needs to be updated every time one of the systems (from the company or the marketplace) is updated, if this does not happen, the marketplace integration breaks and the platforms are unable to exchange data with each other.
Learn more about how to invest in the integration of your business systems! Listen to episode #7 of Sky.Cast!
Another option is to hire the service of an iPaaS platform that integrates all your business systems, such as Integra.Sky . Thus, it is not necessary for your IT team to create new functionalities and applications.
Learn more about iPaaS technology, an increasingly present trend in the market.
Companies invest in iPaaS solution in search of performance
With Integra.Sky , the merchant has access to processes and flows, number of transactions, systems or applications, APIs, databases and files: everything the company needs for a marketplace integration. In addition, packages are divided by the size of the Gigs consumption required for your store, meeting your profile.
The Integra.Sky also offers the option of contracting onboarding, mapping constructions and integrations, and training to use the application. The technology requires learning , which makes it more accessible to your team members.
Have more agility and security in your business, reduce costs and time in application development and still count on cloud architecture and a team of specialists at your disposal .
Using an integration platform to automate the exchange of data between systems reduces the number of billing errors and increases control over inventory.
Understand how it works in practice here Integra.Sky.
This content was produced by SkyOne's team of cloud and digital transformation experts.