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Big ticket buyers, including government organizations, are moving towards eCommerce for online purchases. These purchases have large order sizes and complexities in transactions and approval.

Here is where Punchout comes into the picture. PunchOut catalog simplifies the buying process for B2B buyers.

For suppliers, PunchOut catalogs give a competitive edge if they sell-

• complex, or highly configurable products
• have large catalogs
• fluctuating prices,
• frequent updates in product description and content
• have a high number of transactions

PunchOut is not a temporary trend, hype, or choice. B2B suppliers now have to adopt this technology and go for PunchOut integration to stay in the competition.

PunchOut Technology- the future of B2B transactions

The term “PunchOut” is used when the buyer is redirected from the procurement system to the supplier’s catalog on their website. They are now connected to the supplier’s catalog with complete transparency on the updated prices and offers, all without leaving their procurement application.

The PunchOut method is built to provide an amazing user experience, as it combines all business activities in one place such as product research, ordering, and order tracking, and makes it simple to run within the same procurement system.

PunchOut catalogs also offer businesses several benefits

For example, businesses can track the items that their customers have ordered, as well as the amount of money that they have spent. This information can help businesses to improve their product offerings and make better business decisions.

Additionally, PunchOut catalogs can help businesses to save time and money. PunchOut catalogs are often less expensive to produce than traditional catalogs, and they can be created more quickly. This means that businesses can reach their customers more quickly and cost-effectively.

With PunchOut integration, the suppliers-

• Present their catalog to a wide range of customers
• Improve customers’ buying experience
• Retain more customers
• Strengthen customer relationships
•  Increase sales

Let’s discover how it works.

How Does a PunchOut Catalog Work?

PunchOut catalogs are a great way for businesses to simplify the online purchasing process. By integrating with the buyer’s procurement system, PunchOut catalogs reduce the transactional touchpoints. This saves time and money for both the buyers and sellers.

Here is the mechanism of the PunchOut catalog.

PunchOut Setup Request (PSR)

In the B2B sector, ERP or procurement applications are used to make purchases in an organized manner. When a buyer wants to purchase, they initiate a PunchOut setup request from their procurement system to the supplier’s eCommerce site.

This request is translated and validated at the supplier’s end. After the validation of the credentials, the buyer is logged in to the supplier’s PunchOut store and view their catalog.

CIF catalog is the popular format that PunchOut solutions use to import catalog data to the buyer’s procurement system.

Shopping

After securing the connection, the client can select the items from the supplier’s catalog. It is as simple as shopping from any online eCommerce store by simply adding items to the shopping cart.

Order placing

The electronic purchasing order has been placed by the user. The checkout verifies all the items in the cart, analyzes budget information, and approves the purchase. The PunchOut catalog enables the details of the order in the supplier’s procurement system so they can start the fulfillment procedure.

Shipment

The PunchOut catalog provides advance shipment notice to the customer’s registered no and e-mail address.

Benefits of PunchOut Catalogs

Corporations, governments, and large institutions follow specific budgets and strict policies in B2B purchases from vendors. PunchOut helps all types of organizations to streamline their procurement system with certain benefits such as:

1. Increased Productivity

During purchase, a stable online connection is created between the supplier’s website and the buyer’s eProcurement application. That helps the buyer to access the well-organized catalog on the supplier’s website and allows users to save time.

2. Docflow Centralization

Better management of information and purchase can be done with a single PunchOut catalog because customers provide the requirement through an eProcurement application. Businesses can set specific internal doc flow rules and manage the process.

3. Reduce cost and errors

PunchOut catalog is beneficial in reducing labor costs. Suppliers do not update their catalogs manually on different platforms, so PunchOut is a cost-effective approach. The process is automated so we see a substantial reduction in errors.

4. Real-time updates

Fluctuating prices and vital product information are automatically updated on the supplier’s website which allows customers to have access to real-time updates. This process is managed by the suppliers and gives a clear picture to the buyers of the actual cost.

5. Protection

Businesses consider purchases through PunchOut catalogs as safe. They deal with verified vendors and predetermined pricing that make the transactions safe.

6. Effortless Integration

PunchOut catalogs can integrate effortlessly with the buyers’ eProcurement solutions. This creates a seamless purchasing experience for the buyers.

7. Provides B2C experience

B2B eCommerce purchase journey isn’t linear. Hence PunchOut catalog, allows users to have an enriched B2C-like experience by providing fast product research with the necessary comparison and easy checkout.

PunchOut catalogs allow businesses to offer their customers a more streamlined purchase experience.

And Finally

Suppliers and resellers now need eCommerce platforms with tight PunchOut integration abilities for streamlined procurement. VARStreet provides PunchOut-ready eCommerce stores to the sellers to expand their reach and scale their business. VARStreet has a rich experience in handling a range of procurement applications and PunchOut integrations like jaggaer punchout catalog, jd edwards punchout catalog, peoplesoft punchout catalog

With VARStreet, the buyers can connect to the supplier’s eCommerce store through their procurement application with a single sign-on and have a smooth purchase experience.

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