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Today’s manufacturers are exploring new ways of doing business in the post-COVID world. Many are moving away from traditional distribution, wholesale, and retail networks in favor of selling to other businesses (B2B) or directly to individual customers (D2C). This promises some exciting opportunities, but B2B and D2C sales also bring three core obstacles to success:
- Ensuring tax compliance.
- Delivering exceptional customer experiences.
- Seamlessly scaling business operations.
How can manufacturers turn these obstacles into steppingstones with the help of the right technology?
Ensuring Tax Compliance
Tax laws, which were complicated before the pandemic, have been made even more complex to keep pace with skyrocketing ecommerce sales. There are over 13,000 tax jurisdictions in the US, including individual states, counties, cities, and municipalities. Add any applicable international regulations, like the EU’s value-added tax (VAT) system, and tax compliance can become an unmanageable burden for any company, particularly small and midsized businesses.
Tax compliance automation software can help companies navigate this complex labyrinth of laws and jurisdictions.
Automating tax compliance is the key to preventing errors and freeing employees from memorizing reams of regulations that will just keep changing. Avalara tax automation software, natively integrated with Acumatica Cloud ERP, takes the guesswork out of taxes. Together, they help users:
- Automatically and accurately calculate taxes—from standard sales and use to specialty taxes.
- Get the right licenses and registrations as their companies expand across state or international borders.
- Verify, store, update, and access tax documents, so it’s easy to manage exempt sales and avoid back taxes or penalties.
- Manage and file tax returns while keeping clear, auditable records.
Delivering Exceptional Customer Experiences
Today’s consumers have high expectations. They want fast, convenient, personalized shopping experiences, and, if those expectations aren’t met, it can spell lost sales or damaged reputations for D2C manufacturers. But this can be prevented if you develop and deliver a true omnichannel experience for your customers.
Accomplishing this requires a few key steps: making the customer journey consistent at every touchpoint (online, in-store, by phone, etc.), providing a consistent brand feel online and in-store, and using customer data to design individualized experiences. These steps would not be possible with manual processes, but, with a fine-tuned ERP solution, they become second nature.
Acumatica Cloud ERP gathers all your marketing, sales, billing, finance, and customer data into one central solution. With this 360° view of your entire business, you have instant access to the real-time information you need to create memorable customer experiences that will give your business a competitive advantage.
Seamlessly Scaling Business Operations
Exploring new B2B and D2C sales channels opens the door for growth, but even growth can be an obstacle if you’re not prepared for it. Aging technology platforms and outdated manual processes can become a liability, leading to lost sales, tax noncompliance penalties, and wasted effort.
But the right technology will scale with your business and equip you with the power to create lifelong customers. For example, Acumatica Cloud ERP automates manufacturing, inventory, and order management processes—making your B2B and D2C sales run faster and more accurately, while your employees work on creative, value-added tasks. Pair this will Avalara tax automation, and you’ll have a system ready to do all the heavy paperwork while you focus on growth.
How Acumatica and Avalara Can Help
By expanding into B2B and D2C sales, manufacturers are exploring new opportunities and facing unique challenges. Acumatica and Avalara have put together a new guide—Three obstacles to B2B and D2C sales success and how technology can help—to help manufacturers meet these challenges. By implementing technology like Acumatica Cloud ERP and Avalara tax compliance tools, manufacturers can drive growth and build a base of happy, loyal customers. Download our guide to see how we can help you run and grow your B2B and D2C sales channels—and your entire business—today.
