Order tool buyIT brings EDI to the sales representatives

EDI as a “digital secret weapon” for outside sales representatives

Human qualities will arguably always remain the most important assets for outside sales representatives: among others, they need to be highly customer-oriented, have a sense of humor and be persuasive. But then, how do sales reps on the road keep a good overview of ever-changing prices, product ranges, minimum order volumes, discounts, order histories, or even the current order status? Something akin to a “digital secret weapon” for outside sales representatives has been available for quite some time: buyIT. Read this EDI blog entry to find out all about this ingenious order portal and its many uses.

Outside sales representatives are usually highly communicative people. Depending on the industry and business model, they are in touch with countless people on an everyday basis. However, at night or early on the following workday, they have to tackle an additional task that is usually less than exciting: they have to transfer the orders acquired during the day into the corporate ERP system or use another software solution to enter the information, which is a tedious process.

But it does not have to be like that! More and more companies are equipping their field service employees with our online tool buyIT. It is used for recording orders on site during a client meeting (or shortly afterwards) using a laptop of tablet and transferring this information directly into the company’s own ERP system. Another great benefit of this tool is that it provides updated information for sales representatives even when they are on the road. It gives them an overview of the latest rates, discounts, order histories, free samples given to clients, and specific needs of new and repeat clients. A functioning internet connection is all that is needed to start using buyIT.

buyIT is a great choice for many different purposes in numerous industries:

For outside sales representatives:

• record orders when on site with the client
• receive updated information about conditions, rates, discounts, etc. while on the road

For small clients:

• convenient order tool available 24/7
• internet access is the only requirement

Small clients order from suppliers via buyIT

buyIT can not only be used by a company’s outside sales representatives to record orders during on-site client meetings. One example among many is that retailers or manufacturers of hairdresser supplies can use buyIT to connect to numerous small hairdressers, which allows the latter to place their orders in an easy and straightforward process. As a matter of course, retailers in other industries can also use buyIT to connect to small clients. It is very likely that your own company would also benefit from buyIT, regardless of the industry you are in.

Whether you use it as an order portal or as a tool for your outside sales representatives: buyIT is very easy to use. All you need is a functioning internet connection and a mobile device (e.g., a laptop or tablet). All functions can be adjusted to meet the needs of the industry or company in question. The principle is always the same: sign in, enter order data and send them along with the order states and invoice.

Order data automatically incorporated into the ERP system

The idea behind buyIT is to give many small clients the opportunity to place their orders 24/7 and to ease the workload of telesales employees. For added benefit, orders placed via buyIT can be incorporated directly into a company’s own ERP (Enterprise Resource Planning) system using the existing EDI solution. In addition, client-specific price lists and discounts can be created, and article master data can be updated automatically.

If you would like to make buyIT available to your field service employees or if you would like to use it to connect your small clients to your ERP system, please do not hesitate to contact me using the contact box on the right-hand side. buyIT has much more to offer than the examples shown in this blog post. We will be more than happy to discuss these benefits during a personal meeting. We look forward to meeting you!

About the author

Christoph Stenech
Head of Sales at EDITEL Austria