How Orderwise ERP Software helped my client make over £20m

> Orderwise #1 ERP for distribution and warehouse businesses

I worked with a couple of entrepreneurs back in 2007, that had started up a high margin distribution style business. I remember my first encounter with them, when they were in the very early days struggling, and saying to them they would be retired and living on their private islands in a few years.

I had helped them with search engine optimising their website and a few newsletters up to this point, and they were impressed by the results and my approach. They felt comfortable that whatever their web needs I could deliver, so it was only natural to give me a call when Tesco had a specific business need that required an online ordering system.

I remember this call vividly. It went like this ‘Ed we’ve just had a meeting with Tesco and they want need to be able to place orders online, can you help’. They were clearly upbeat, having had a great meeting with Tesco. My response was ‘Yes, of course. Whatever you need we can build’. We had done a lot of custom web application builds at this time, so this was bread and butter.

The project started by analysing their current business system ERP, Orderwise. I had no experience of Orderwise whatsoever, but with the test account available with Orderwise, I got to work understanding the complete system. Within a couple of days, I had a full understanding of the system, and put together a detailed proposal outlining the solution and costs.

The proposal made it easy for the client to understand, and they gave me the go ahead for £10k to complete the prototype.

The way the online system worked was unique, and not off the shelf, standard retail online ordering system would fit their needs, so bespoke was the best solution.

Orderwise were great. Their customer support helped understand the technical aspects of getting data in and out, and their costs were also covered in the proposal for writing a few custom elements required at the Orderwise’s end.

We build the prototype within 6 weeks, much to my client’s amazement. They were thrilled. So thrilled that they went on to ask for extra requirements and this began the beginning of the client spending over £600k over 6 years, as extra elements were required for new large retailers.

In 2012, the client went on to sell their business to a large Chinese multinational for over £20m, a large part in thanks for our online ordering system and Orderwise being able to cater to their business needs.

If you need help getting the best out of your Orderwise system or any other business system then drop me a line.

> That Ordering System's Abilities

for new users to sign up for a new account online
for the administrator to approve and assign the account
for the new customer to place and order: selecting their method of delivery, products available for them to purchase
to set pricing according to country and method of delivery
to track the the status of all orders
to view the status of orders through an Android of iPhone
to pick their language (English, French or Chinese) on the online ordering system
for the system to send the orders to to Orderwise
for Orderwise to send the orders back with updated status and order details to the online system
for Orderwise to send through updated customer and product details

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> Advantages & Disadvantages of Orderwise ERP Software

Orderwise is a tool that helps businesses work better. It has some advantages and some not-so-good things.

Here are the advantages:

Orderwise helps people work together better. It provides a unified platform that integrates data and processes across an organisation, allowing for better coordination and communication between different departments.
It makes work easier and faster. By automating repetitive tasks and streamlining processes, Orderwise can significantly improve operational efficiency, reducing the time and effort required for various business functions.
It helps people make good decisions. A centralised database in Orderwise ensures that data is consistent and accurate across all departments. This helps in making informed decisions based on reliable information.
It helps people understand what customers want. With access to real-time customer data, Orderwise can help enhance customer service by providing a 360-degree view of customer interactions, preferences, and history.
It helps people follow the rules. Orderwise can assist in ensuring compliance with industry regulations and standards by incorporating features that help track and manage compliance-related processes.

Here are the not-so-good things:

People need to learn how to use it. Employees need to be trained to use the new ERP system, and this can result in a learning curve that may impact productivity initially. Resistance to change from employees is a common challenge during ERP implementation.
People need to ask for help if they have problems. Organisations become dependent on the ERP vendor for updates, support, and future development. If the vendor faces financial issues or discontinues support, it can pose challenges for the organisation.
If the people who made Orderwise stop working on it, it might not work anymore. Organisations become dependent on the ERP vendor for updates, support, and future development. If the vendor faces financial issues or discontinues support, it can pose challenges for the organisation.