eCommerce Data Integration: Meaning, Benefits and Pitfalls
Tags: ecommerce, database, webdev, programming
Published: 2022-04-08 11:10:18

Data is used in almost all aspects of the eCommerce business. Online merchants use it to make a first impression on their customers about the products they offer. Finally, SaaS eCommerce solutions are based on this concept. Data is the basis of all methods of trading, inventory control, ordering, warehousing, and much more. 

Constant data acquisition means [integration with eCommerce platforms](https://medium.com/@API2Cart/why-is-it-important-for-b2b-saas-solutions-to-invest-in-ecommerce-integrations-4e0b1af79932). For you as a B2B software vendor, integration with shopping platforms is essential to succeed.

This article explains the process of eCommerce data integration and its potential impact on a SaaS company.

##What Does eCommerce Data Integration Mean?

**eCommerce data integration** allows SaaS vendors to efficiently manage and control their business operations. Namely, it enables them to manage information about products, shipments, orders, and much more of their customers' online shops. eCommerce data integration is necessary to access client stores.

Moreover, eCommerce data integration can save valuable time for B2B SaaS solution vendors and allows them to concentrate on other essential tasks. It also ensures that accurate and up-to-date product information is available to customers across all sales channels, helping to prevent out-of-stock scenarios. If software providers strive to grow their customer base, eCommerce data integration is essential. 

eCommerce data integration is necessary for SaaS software suppliers like shipment management, email automation, order and inventory management, warehouse systems, ERP, and other providers, whose clients have online shops.


##Main Advantages of eCommerce Data Integration for B2B SaaS

Even though you understand what eCommerce data integration is, it is not enough, as you have to fully comprehend why this connection is required to make your [SaaS solution](https://api2cart.medium.com/b2b-saas-integration-with-ecommerce-platforms-a-unified-approach-73b60363487b) competitive. In addition, it is generally better to be linked to more shopping platforms since that means being surrounded by opportunities to expand your business.

A robust eCommerce data integration will allow the following:

* Increase your customer base by integrating with Magento, Shopify, BigCommerce, WooCommerce, Opencart, PrestaShop, and other popular shopping platforms. By connecting with them, you gain access to a large number of online stores based on these platforms.
* eCommerce data integration provides you with ready access to a multitude of online merchants who may become your potential customers. Furthermore, as a SaaS solution vendor, this integration enables you to collect and process the required data directly from online stores based on eCommerce platforms.
* Connection with various shopping platforms will bring advanced functionality to you, opening additional revenue streams for your company.
* Your profits will increase because more customers bring in more revenue.


##Functionality You Can Implement Having Robust eCommerce Data Integration

For B2B SaaS businesses whose clients are online store owners, eCommerce data integration enables them to offer the following functionality:

**Email Marketing System**
* Send emails introducing new items, discounts, and special promotions
* Track order history
* Keep customers informed about order status
* Recover abandoned carts
* Work with product reviews

**Order and Inventory Management Software**
* Get orders from any sales channel
* Synchronize inventory data across different platforms
* Create shipments and update order statuses
* Create reports to track the situation on each sales channel

**Shipping Management Software**
* Monitor and sync inventory levels
* Import orders from multiple sales channels
* Automatically generate shipping labels and update order statuses
* Create shipping labels

##The Challenges of eCommerce Data Integration

You must be aware of the [integration pitfalls](https://api2cart.com/business/6-difficulties-api-integration-way-avoid/) that can occur.

1. Typically, integration development takes 4-12 weeks. During that time, your developer will become familiar with the platform logic and architecture, put effort into reducing friction between the product and the system, and more.
2. Secondly, be ready to spend several thousand dollars plus any additional fees if additional development is required. After the integration is complete and it has been successfully iterated, it will need developer work and attention because new versions will appear. It will also mean the updates that need to be made. Also, clients may require custom modifications and improvements.

3. Besides that, each integration is tons of work to do and has its own set of challenges that never go away after the work is done, but they must be solved. You will need someone to be reliable and experienced for better results, but it can be difficult to find and not easy to allocate if they are a part of your product team.          

##What is the way to easily implement eCommerce data integration?

The best solution for all integration issues is to use a [third-party option](https://api2cart.com/how-it-works/?utm_source=dev.to&utm_medium=referral&utm_campaign=ecommercedataintegrationkh.ol). It allows B2B SaaS solution vendors to focus on other business needs while maintaining all implementations.

The key benefit that such service offers to B2B SaaS vendors is a connection to multiple shopping platforms via a unified API. It is an excellent choice for software vendors, such as shipping, order, inventory management systems, etc.

First of all, it allows SaaS software to get, add, update, delete and synchronize online merchant's data based on popular shopping platforms, including WooCommerce, Magento, Shopify, OpenCart, and other platforms.

It saves significant amounts of money spent on building integration modules and other expenses.