The Best ERP Systems for Online Sales: Exploring the Advantages of Odoo for eCommerce

Odoo is a powerful and flexible business management system

Today, we will discuss Odoo, an Enterprise Resource Planning (ERP) platform, and examine its benefits for online sales. For this, we turned to our expert from ERPixel – Odoo development company.

AI: What outstanding features does Odoo possess in the context of online sales and why should business owners pay attention to it?

Expert: The key advantage of Odoo for managing online sales is its ‘all-in-one’ principle. Warehouse, Sales, CRM, Finance, and Purchasing all operate within one system. Rarely does an eCommerce platform allow all this to be implemented ‘out of the box’ without the need for a dozen integrations. Benefits for the business: minimal integrations mean minimal risks. All processes are synchronized within one system. This means fewer failure points and lower technical support costs.

One of the main advantages of Odoo for eCommerce compared to competitors such as SAP or Salesforce is the ability to combine all key business processes under one ‘roof’. Instead of tracking your data across several different platforms, you can manage everything from a single system. This gives companies increased control and visibility overall, as well as saving time and resources on integrating and maintaining multiple different systems. While systems such as SAP or Salesforce can offer powerful tools in specific areas like CRM or finance, they often require additional integrations to provide the same level of functionality as Odoo.

Let’s take a concrete example. A company involved in manufacturing and selling footwear decides to implement Odoo. It has manufacturing enterprises, shops in different regions and countries, as well as an online store. Previously, the company used different systems to manage all these processes, as a result, data management was disjointed and challenging. After implementing Odoo, all data began to be stored in one place, from information about manufacturing processes to sales data and reporting. This enabled more effective process management, data analysis in interactive reports, and more balanced decision-making.

AI: What about the flexibility of Odoo, is it suitable for various business models and can it grow with the business?

Expert: Odoo is suitable for both traditional retail and marketplaces, wholesale B2B sales, and subscription models. Modules are easily adapted to specific company processes. Growth without changing systems. When the business scales, there is no need to change the ERP, you just add new modules: loyalty, marketing automation, Helpdesk, production, etc. This is why entrepreneurs who choose Odoo save time and money not only at the start but also in the long run.

This advantage of Odoo certainly deserves special attention. For example, in the NetSuite system, as the business grows, owners may encounter scaling problems, making them seek additional solutions, integrate them with the primary system, and thereby increase their ecosystem support costs. Eventually, what initially seemed like a cost-effective investment can turn into significant future costs. On the other hand, in Odoo, thanks to a flexible approach to modularity, you can simply add new modules as business growth and development are observed, facilitating scaling and process optimization.

Let’s consider the example of a startup that starts its business selling one type of product through its own store. They start with basic Odoo modules: CRM, Warehouse, Sales. Over time, the business grows, new products are added, partner stores open, and an online platform launches for sales. They can easily scale their Odoo system by adding the Website and eCommerce modules, as well as any other necessary modules to support the new business direction. This saves time and resources that would otherwise have gone to implementing a new system and transferring data.

In addition to basic modules, Odoo also offers a wide and deeply integrated functionality for managing online sales, covering the entire customer journey from the first site visit to payment and delivery.

AI: Can you talk more about Odoo’s specialized capabilities for managing online sales?

Expert: Odoo offers a wide and deeply integrated functionality for managing online sales, covering the entire customer journey from the first site visit to payment and delivery.

• AI-based Website Builder. A site can be created in literally a couple of hours with the built-in AI.
• Integration with Inventory. The product catalog is linked to the Warehouse module. All balances, reserved goods, delivery statuses are in real-time.
• Price Lists. A flexible pricing system for different customers, regions, sales channels (for example, different prices for B2C and B2B), plus support for temporary promotions.
• Product attributes. You can easily create variant products with attributes (size, color, material, etc.) and manage them in a single interface.
• Recommended products, badges, Up-selling and cross-selling tools, including ‘Frequently Bought Together’ sections.
• Library of ready-made themes for different industries.
• Automation. After placing an order: the product is written off from the warehouse; an invoice is formed and reflected in the accounting; the delivery or assembly process is launched; an email with tracking is sent to the customer. CMS, ERP, CRM work as a unified system.

The flexibility and functionality of Odoo in managing online sales make it one of the best ERP systems for eCommerce. Unlike other ERP systems like Salesforce or NetSuite, Odoo offers an ‘all-in-one’ workflow that significantly simplifies the management of online sales. For instance, the AI-based Website Builder in Odoo makes creating a website easy, with simple drag-and-drop of components and integration with other modules such as Warehouse, Sales, and Purchasing. This saves time and requires fewer technical skills compared to other systems like SAP, where a large amount of setup and additional integrations may be required.

Let’s consider how Odoo can assist a retail company in managing its online sales. Using the inventory module and BOM (Bill of Materials) interface, the company can easily track inventory and implement order and delivery processes. Personalized pricing is maintained for customers, significantly simplifying markup and discount work. The solution also provides for automated notifications sent to customers regarding order status and updates.

AI: What is the cost of implementing Odoo for online sales?

The cost of implementing Odoo for online sales consists of: Odoo License Cost — from 22 euros per user per month (when paid annually). Hosting and service: We offer hosting with full technical support at a rate from 900 euros per year. System setup and data transfer: If you do everything yourself — it’s free, but it takes time. If we do the implementation, the estimated cost is around 5,000 euros. Additional modules and plugins.

When it comes to implementing an ERP system, cost is always a key factor. The relatively low cost of the license, as well as flexibility in choosing placement (on the company’s own server or in the cloud) make Odoo an attractive choice for many businesses. Compared to other solutions like NetSuite or SAP, which typically require substantial investments in licenses and maintenance, Odoo offers more advantageous conditions. However, it’s important to consider the Total Cost of Ownership (TCO), including expenses such as setup, user training, data migration, and support.

An example could be a small company with a complex business process deciding to switch to an ERP system. Having sent requests for proposals to several companies, the owner found that the cost of implementing SAP or NetSuite exceeded their budget. Turning to the official ERpixel Odoo partner, they received an offer for both implementation and system maintenance within their budget. Ultimately, thanks to the implementation of Odoo, it became possible for them to standardize and automate their business processes, which significantly reduced operational costs and improved efficiency. Thus, even despite the implementation expenses, they were able to save money by reducing operational costs and increasing productivity.