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One of the first signs that your eCommerce business might need an iPaaS is when day-to-day operations become increasingly complex. For instance, if you find that multiple departments are relying on manual data entry to move information between systems - such as uploading order data from your eCommerce platform into your accounting software - this can quickly create bottlenecks. Not only do these repeated tasks increase the risk of human error, but they also consume valuable time that could be better spent on strategic initiatives like marketing, product development, or customer service.
An iPaaS can automate many of these labour-intensive tasks, ensuring data flows seamlessly between solutions. For example, when your inventory management platform communicates directly with your ERP system you minimise the risk of overselling or stock-outs - particularly during busy trading periods. By centralising and streamlining these processes, an iPaaS helps maintain data consistency and improves overall operational efficiency.
A study by The Data Warehousing Institute found that employees spend up to 30% of their workweek manually re-entering and searching for data when integrations are missing.
Another clear indicator that it’s time to consider an iPaaS is when you’re undergoing a major technology transformation. Perhaps you’re migrating your online store to Shopify Plus for its robust enterprise features, or you’re implementing a new ERP system like NetSuite to gain better oversight of your financials and supply chain. Such transitions offer a valuable opportunity to “do the plumbing” behind the scenes and align your whole tech stack. This is much more efficient than bolting on integrations after your new systems are live and business-critical. Implementing an integration platform during the initial rollout can save you considerable headaches later on.
70% of eCom IT leaders stated that lack of integration inhibits the business’s ability to easily adopt new technologies.
If your brand is expanding internationally or you’ve recently opened new subsidiaries, you’re likely dealing with an increasingly intricate web of data. From country-specific pricing and taxation rules to inventory synchronisation across multiple warehouses, the complexity can quickly escalate.
For instance, managing different tax regulations and currencies across various marketplaces (Amazon, eBay, regional online stores) can be especially challenging without a centralised integration framework. Each subsidiary or marketplace might require its own dedicated systems - leading to data silos where crucial customer, inventory, and financial data becomes fragmented. By implementing an iPaaS, you unify these channels, enabling real-time visibility across your entire eCommerce business. You also reduce data inconsistencies and errors, ensuring a smoother experience for customers regardless of where they’re shopping.
Business agility is a significant competitive advantage in eCommerce. If you notice that launching new products, integrating new applications, or entering new markets takes longer than it should, it may be time to invest in an iPaaS. Traditional point-to-point integrations solve their purpose but can become laboured as your business grows and needs additional flexibility.
An integration platform allows you to quickly integrate new solutions - think marketing automation tools, payment gateways, or customer support platforms, without having to start from scratch or rip out existing tech infrastructure.
As your brand grows, the ability to accurately measure and interpret performance becomes increasingly crucial. An iPaaS not only unifies data from multiple sources but also empowers you to generate robust dashboards and analytics in real-time. With information flowing seamlessly between systems, you gain a holistic view of key metrics, such as order fulfilment times, cart abandonment rates, and inventory levels across all your sales channels. This level of transparency supports data-driven decisions and lets you respond quickly to customer demands, market shifts, or supply chain disruptions.
By centralising your data within an iPaaS, you can easily integrate with dedicated analytics or business intelligence platforms. This helps transform raw, siloed data into actionable insights that drive competitive advantage and fuel strategic growth initiatives.
In a survey cited by IDC, nearly 70% of businesses indicated that real-time data analytics is crucial for decision-making.
Lastly, consider that implementing an iPaaS is not merely a solution for today’s challenges but an investment that prepares your eCommerce brand for the future. Technology evolves quickly, and an iPaaS gives you the agility to adapt to new software platforms, business models, and customer expectations without having to constantly re-engineer your integrations. Whether you plan to adopt AI-driven personalisation, expand your omnichannel presence, or experiment with emerging payment methods, having a flexible integration layer will help you move swiftly and confidently knowing it’s not going to mess up your whole tech infrastructure!
