Digital Transformation for Manufacturers Running SAP ERP: B2B Commerce and Self-Service for Customers

Key Takeaways

• Although manufacturers may prioritize digital transformation, getting the most value out of digital transformation initiatives can be difficult.
• Manufacturers running SAP ERP can leverage eCommerce websites and self-service tools to drive digital transformation and improve the customer experience.
• With an SAP eCommerce integration, manufacturers are well-equipped to provide customers with outstanding digital experiences.
• An SAP eCommerce integration helps manufacturers engage with customers and find the best ways to improve customer retention and loyalty.
• The enosix platform allows manufacturers to foster exceptional customer experiences.

Want to make the most of your digital transformation initiatives? Here’s how you can use SAP ERP to drive digital transformation and deliver exceptional customer experiences. 

Digital transformation is a top priority for many global organizations. But for manufacturers, it can be tough to figure out the best ways to integrate digital tools and technologies into their everyday operations. Yet, SAP ERP can help manufacturers foster digital transformation and provide B2B customers with exceptional experiences.

What is the customer experience, and why is it important? 

You put your customers at the forefront of your everyday operations. Despite your best efforts, however, you may be missing out on opportunities to provide your customers with outstanding experiences any time they engage with your brand.

Your customers want seamless experiences, and failure to provide the ability to quickly and effortlessly engage with your company online can have far-flung effects. In this instance, customers may need to commit significant time, energy, and resources to get the products and services they want. The result: Frustrating and time-consuming customer experiences that can cause your business to fall behind its rivals.

Why eCommerce and self-service are key for manufacturers

Today, eCommerce and self-service represent valuable opportunities for manufacturers to engage with customers and grow their businesses. This is due to the fact that your eCommerce website can promote self-service, which benefits both you and your customers.

An eCommerce site encourages customers to engage with your brand 24/7. They can use the site to view your inventory, place orders, receive status updates on current orders, and more. You can also incorporate self-service tools into your eCommerce site that allow customers to get the products and services they need without delay, and without tying up valuable salesperson time.

Together, eCommerce and self-service enable your business to provide a seamless customer experience. At the same time, you can use eCommerce and self-service to:

1. Learn about your customers

You can leverage analytics as part of your eCommerce site to identify customer patterns and trends. Analytics empower your customer engagement strategy and helps you find the best ways to engage with customers.

2. Drive brand awareness

Your eCommerce site can extend your market reach. Prospects can find your eCommerce site to learn about your business and how it supports your customers. They can also use self-service tools to set up an account, place orders, and stay up to date about your brand, its products, and its services.

3. Boost transparency

With your eCommerce site, you can minimize the risk of miscommunications that could otherwise damage customer relationships. For instance, you can provide customers with pertinent shipping and pricing information, so they know exactly what to expect when they place an order.

Ultimately, integrating your SAP ERP with front-end eCommerce tools helps you deliver B2C-style experiences in B2B environments. You can leverage SAP ERP to personalize the customer experience, so customers instantly get the products and services they want, exactly when they want them. Plus, SAP ERP can be integrated into the Salesforce Commerce Cloud, so you can optimize your eCommerce and self-service experiences.

4 Benefits of SAP-eCommerce integration for manufacturers

Reasons why manufacturers use SAP ERP in combination with Commerce Cloud include:

1. Real-time product and customer data

Connecting SAP ERP and Commerce Cloud can help you maintain up-to-date product and customer data. In doing so, they allow you to share real-time pricing and inventory availability built on business logic in SAP with your customers.

2. Speed

Thanks to SAP ERP and Commerce Cloud, your customers can immediately convert their online shopping carts to orders with accurate shipping and pricing information. Customers can keep products in their online shopping carts for as long as they choose. Then, when they are ready to finalize their purchase, they can proceed to checkout — without having to reenter any information.

3. Order history

With SAP ERP and Commerce Cloud, you can let your customers see their order history directly on your eCommerce site. This ensures customers won’t have to worry about calling or emailing your company if they want to review past orders. It also reduces the time, resources, and energy your business spends responding to customer calls and emails.

4. Customer-specific pricing

SAP ERP and Commerce Cloud allow you to provide real-time, customer-specific pricing. That way, you can give customers the information they need to place orders at their convenience. You can eliminate disappointment by guaranteeing inventory availability before customers finalize their orders, too.

Ready to realize the full potential of your digital transformation? enosix can help

As you search for ways to digitally transform your operations, you may want to consider the value of eCommerce and self-service. In fact, if you use the enosix platform, you can bring B2C experiences to your B2B customers.

Our platform allows you to bring data from your SAP ERP directly to your customers’ fingertips. With an enosix integration, customers can use your eCommerce site to view order history, invoices, deliveries, inventory, and more. Our integration also ensures that your inventory in SAP updates automatically as soon as a customer places an order.

In terms of getting enosix to work with your front-end applications, you have nothing to worry about. Our platform runs in the application layer of your SAP ERP and covers most common use cases. As a result, an implementation can usually be done in 80% less time than a custom project.

To learn more about how manufacturers can use our platform for e-commerce and self-service, schedule an enosix demo today.