Good To KnowPunchOut Catalog: What you should know
A PunchOut Catalog enables access to a supplier's online store from the purchasing company's e-procurement system. But how does a PunchOut work and what advantages does it offer buyers and suppliers?
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A PunchOut Catalog can considerably simplify the procurement processes between retailers and suppliers. However, setting it up is often complex and almost impossible without prior knowledge. In our article, we explain what a PunchOut Catalog is and how we can support you in setting up a PunchOut interface with PunchCommerce.
What is a PunchOut Catalog?
A PunchOut Catalog describes a form of catalog procurement in the B2B sector. Here, the buyer can access the supplier's online store via their procurement system. A PunchOut is therefore the access to the provided product catalog and the subsequent transfer of a shopping cart into the calling procurement system.
How does a PunchOut work?
A PunchOut enables the buyer to access their supplier's online store directly via their own procurement software. The buyer can access their supplier's online catalog or online store via their e-procurement platform or ERP system.
Let's assume, for example, that you are a supplier and offer various IT products to medium-sized companies that resell them to the end consumer. You have been working with your customer, MaxMustermann GmbH, for some time. To simplify the purchasing process, MaxMustermann GmbH asks you to set up a PunchOut Catalog.
You provide MaxMustermann GmbH with the access data and the URL for accessing the web-based product catalog. The PunchOut Catalog then communicates with MaxMustermann GmbH via an interface (e.g. via the OCI or cXML protocol) with their internal procurement system. This can usually be found as a link within the procurement platform.
If a Max Mustermann GmbH employee now needs additional IT products, they can select them via the company's own procurement platform. To do this, he simply has to click on the corresponding link within the platform. Now the employee can go directly to your online catalog without having to log in again and without having to leave the procurement platform. Here they can see all the products listed in the catalog, with current prices, availability and product information from your catalog.
The MaxMustermann GmbH employee can now browse the PunchOut Catalog and add items to the shopping cart - just like in a normal onlineshop. A connection between your web-based catalog and the MaxMustermann GmbH procurement solution is maintained.
However, when the user, in this case the MaxMustermann GmbH employee, leaves the PunchOut Catalog, no order is sent to you. Instead, the filled shopping cart is transferred to the MaxMustermann GmbH procurement platform. The order process can now be completed here.
What are the advantages of a PunchOut Catalog?
A PunchOut Catalog significantly simplifies the purchasing process between customers and suppliers. Customers can purchase goods from their suppliers without leaving their procurement systems. PunchOut catalogs are usually based on standardized protocols such as cXML or OCI to ensure smooth integration between the systems of suppliers and customers.
Both buyers and suppliers benefit from the up-to-dateness of the PunchOut Catalog. Prices, availability, discounts and delivery times as well as shipping costs are always updated directly and displayed in real time. Manual forwarding by the supplier to the customer is no longer necessary. The commercial liabilities are created directly in the buyer's system.
The advantages of a PunchOut Catalog summarized once again:
Integration into procurement systems
Dynamically adapted content
Simple order processing
Increased efficiency
Standardization
How does PunchCommerce support the creation of a PunchOut catalog?
A PunchOut interface requires technical knowledge, particularly with regard to the protocols used, such as cXML and OCI, as well as experience in the hurdles that arise during implementation (e.g. necessary product classifications). The connection to existing websites is very time-consuming and technically demanding. Many companies today lack the necessary expertise. For this reason, specialized companies are usually commissioned for this task.
With PunchCommerce, this is no longer necessary. With our SaaS solution, you can connect online stores or product catalogs with various procurement platforms such as Ariba, SAP, Coupa and Jaegger within 5 minutes. The use of PunchCommerce is not only cost-efficient, but also saves resources and requires no specialist knowledge on your part.
