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What is a Punchout Catalogue?

Punchout catalogues are becoming more and more in demand thanks to the benefits they offer to your company and the buying organisations such as saving time and expenses.

Alex E. Pjetra (Product Marketing Executive) Written by Alex E. Pjetra (Product Marketing Executive) 6 Aug 2020 in B2B eCommerce

What is a Punchout Catalogue?

A punchout catalogue is a system that integrates with a buyer’s eProcurement application and allows them to access products or services on your website without having to leave their eProcurement system.

How does a Punchout Catalogue work??

The buyer “punches out” from the likes of SAP Ariba, Coupa, Oracle, or any other procurement system and accesses the supplier’s online catalogue on their eCommerce store.

As the buyer enters the supplier’s website, the website launches within the buyer’s browser frame. The buyer then can browse through the catalogue and add items to their cart while the connection between both systems remains intact.

When the buyer wishes to checkout, the shopping cart is then transferred into the buyer’s eProcurement system, meaning that the supplier won’t receive the order when the buyer checks out from the “punchout” site.

Once the order has moved to the procurement system, the buyer can then add and remove items, and edit the order as they normally would with a purchase order. Then, the buyer needs to add the line items to their purchase order and the purchase order needs to be granted financial approval by the buyer’s company.

Finally, when the order gets approved, a purchase order is generated from the buyer’s procurement system and only then is sent to the supplier to fulfill.

What are the key benefits of punchout catalogue for your company?

It is often the case that suppliers, B2B and B2C companies, manufacturers, wholesalers and anyone who is in the trade industry that they may not have a good understanding of eProcurement and don't know how this channel can greatly affect their business.

Successful suppliers and traders who understand the benefits of solutions such as a punchout catalogue, view eProcurement as a strategic business initiative and invest in order punchout catalogues and other technologies that can meet their business needs such as eCommerce webshops.

And it’s predominantly thanks to this kind of investment that allows them to provide a much more streamlined way for their customers to place orders and engage with them while automating their business processes and reducing operational costs.

The key benefits of punchout catalogues are:

  • Real-time ERP integration ensures that you only need to manage one data in one place, your ERP software
  • Always provide accurate, real-time product information directly from your ERP
  • Increase customer loyalty and retention by making it easy for them to do business with you
  • Improve customer satisfaction by providing an eCommerce like shopping experience
  • Real-time availability allows your customers to place orders anytime, anywhere
  • Simplify and centralise purchasing from within the buyer’s eProcurement system

Summary

A punchout catalogue is a system that can help improve and streamline the procurement process. It allows buyers to place orders much easier, improving overall customer experience and customer retention levels.

Therefore, understanding what a punchout catalogue is, what it does, and what benefits it provides to your business is essential if you are looking to make a strategic investment that can help you meet your business needs and make your company’s and your customers’ eProcurement process a lot more efficient and frictionless.

If you’re looking for an eProcurement solution, you should start your research by taking a look at the Aphix Order Punchout Catalogue. It has been designed with needs of the buyer in mind.

Finally, it’s worth noting that you shouldn’t be intimidated by how complex a punchout catalogue solution may sound, because really it’s not complicated.

For more information, send us an email at sales@aphixsoftware.com or call us on +353 (0)41 2137222.

Our expert team will be happy to answer your questions.