I've built my own E-commerce + ERP + CRM solution. Commercial version = good idea?

by emilsb
5 replies
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Long story but keeping it short as possible:

I'm an entrepreneur, marketer but also a full stack developer.

I wasn't satisfied by the features of the off-the-shelf solutions (not to name 5 to 6 digit pricing for ERP systems), I needed a better and tighter integrated one. So during the last few years I've written my own complete solution from scratch.

I have my own custom CMS, and on top of that I've built my own shopping cart, but also an ERP + CRM system. It is a proprietary, completely integrated solution; all orders from the website go straight into the CRM and ERP sections, even if residing on different servers (public website on an public host, ERP on the Intranet). So you can invoice them with a click, or manage customers with the CRM module, again with a click. One of the other benefits of the system is that it can work in a distributed fashion. You can even feed products and orders back and forth from ERP and CRM to multiple sites in whatever geographical locations.

So basically it's a one-does-it-all solution, built to be fast and flexible. You don't need another program, not even a website if you want, it's all included. The product's target would be small to medium enterprises. It will also integrate with WordPress sites if necessary, via a plugin. On the longer run, also with other CMS platforms.

Regarding features, here are some examples.

You can build a website, track conversions, track visitors and everything, even share resource across multiple websites or domains, using the built-in CMS. Then list products, create a custom shopping cart, get orders, manage stock inventory, prepare and print receipts, invoices and pro-forma, local, import and export invoices, manage customers, sales reports, and so on. The ERP even has some neat useful plugins like calendar/reminder, label printing (printing custom labels for packaging), tracking cheques, customs tariff codes, package weight calculation, automatic currency exchange ratio update, multiple companies, multiple departments, multiple inventories per company, transfers, ISO9001 document management, managing employees, ticketing/sales tracking, and a lot of other features I'm not going to mention because this is a long list already. One of the significant advantages of the system is that it's built for speed and volume, handling 1000's of SKU's, 1000's of orders, and so on. It has been in internal daily use for 2 years already without any issues.

My question to you is the following.

Do you think it is worth offering this solution as a commercial product (under SaaS model)? And what would the potential target be?
I'm not sure what the potential of my solution is, and where to aim with it, given the fact that there are so many other solutions out there already. There could be more than one customer segment to focus on with this one.

In few words, I'm looking into offering a fully managed, ready-to-use solution that includes hosting and everything. (The main advantages being, ready-to-use, fully integrated E-commerce + ERP solution, cross-platform (browser based), fast and reliable, distributed model / remote data sync, and the possibility of further customization based on customer request).

Any tips would be appreciated, thanks!
#built #commercial #crm #ecommerce #erp #good #idea #solution #version
  • Profile picture of the author annexasia
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    • Profile picture of the author emilsb
      Originally Posted by annexasia View Post

      While during import export you need to set up the whole system before starting up. If you are not doing that than it may cause problems when you stating your business.
      I really don't understand what you are trying to say here.

      Been doing import and export for years before we had an ERP. We merely used a rather simple accounting and stock inventory program.

      The ERP was actually originally intended for an multi-national expansion that was never completed. And then it evolved.
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  • Profile picture of the author OnlineStoreHelp
    Originally Posted by emilsb View Post

    Long story but keeping it short as possible:

    I'm an entrepreneur, marketer but also a full stack developer.

    I wasn't satisfied by the features of the off-the-shelf solutions (not to name 5 to 6 digit pricing for ERP systems), I needed a better and tighter integrated one. So during the last few years I've written my own complete solution from scratch.

    I have my own custom CMS, and on top of that I've built my own shopping cart, but also an ERP + CRM system. It is a proprietary, completely integrated solution; all orders from the website go straight into the CRM and ERP sections, even if residing on different servers (public website on an public host, ERP on the Intranet). So you can invoice them with a click, or manage customers with the CRM module, again with a click. One of the other benefits of the system is that it can work in a distributed fashion. You can even feed products and orders back and forth from ERP and CRM to multiple sites in whatever geographical locations.

    So basically it's a one-does-it-all solution, built to be fast and flexible. You don't need another program, not even a website if you want, it's all included. The product's target would be small to medium enterprises. It will also integrate with WordPress sites if necessary, via a plugin. On the longer run, also with other CMS platforms.

    Regarding features, here are some examples.

    You can build a website, track conversions, track visitors and everything, even share resource across multiple websites or domains, using the built-in CMS. Then list products, create a custom shopping cart, get orders, manage stock inventory, prepare and print receipts, invoices and pro-forma, local, import and export invoices, manage customers, sales reports, and so on. The ERP even has some neat useful plugins like calendar/reminder, label printing (printing custom labels for packaging), tracking cheques, customs tariff codes, package weight calculation, automatic currency exchange ratio update, multiple companies, multiple departments, multiple inventories per company, transfers, ISO9001 document management, managing employees, ticketing/sales tracking, and a lot of other features I'm not going to mention because this is a long list already. One of the significant advantages of the system is that it's built for speed and volume, handling 1000's of SKU's, 1000's of orders, and so on. It has been in internal daily use for 2 years already without any issues.

    My question to you is the following.

    Do you think it is worth offering this solution as a commercial product (under SaaS model)? And what would the potential target be?
    I'm not sure what the potential of my solution is, and where to aim with it, given the fact that there are so many other solutions out there already. There could be more than one customer segment to focus on with this one.

    In few words, I'm looking into offering a fully managed, ready-to-use solution that includes hosting and everything. (The main advantages being, ready-to-use, fully integrated E-commerce + ERP solution, cross-platform (browser based), fast and reliable, distributed model / remote data sync, and the possibility of further customization based on customer request).

    Any tips would be appreciated, thanks!
    I think if you sit in between the people using quickbooks and those not ready for SAP/Oracle, etc, you could find a need. That being said, price it aggressively enough and you could use it for those same companies using quickbooks as well.
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    • Profile picture of the author emilsb
      Originally Posted by OnlineStoreHelp View Post

      I think if you sit in between the people using quickbooks and those not ready for SAP/Oracle, etc, you could find a need. That being said, price it aggressively enough and you could use it for those same companies using quickbooks as well.
      You are right on this one. But I'm not in the same boat as quickbooks. In many respects what I'm building will be completely different, at least that I know now.

      Since posting, I've already kid of figured out several potential segments and discovered some pain points.

      The main issue is, I am unsure about the potential earnings out of this project. Not until I have an MVP up and running and I begin promoting it. That's the tricky part.It is quite tough to figure out at this point.

      Even a single-module MVP is quite costly and time-consuming to launch, so I'm looking at ways to minimize time and cost. Will it ever get enough momentum? Hard to say. Even an MVP implementation does require the master platform and a cloud distributed solution just to merely function, as the system has to be designed as a scalable solution from scratch. This is no thing to quickly wrap up, even if I have hundreds of thousands of lines of its code written already and an implementation tested live for 2 years.

      I'm going to segment and launch it differently though. Nothing like an usual ERP; so I'm not going after SAP or any of the kind anytime soon. But rather having a group of interconnected platforms and a meta-platform to hold them all (basically a master service or platform). I'm not sure if the master platform can be called ERP, since accounting will be missing, at least for a while.

      My strength will likely be in these areas: Stock management, invoicing, CRM and collaboration. Another segment will be web services (ecommerce and stuff). I have some ideas for a different platform that will integrate with this one which focuses in services for security, perfornance and auditing websites. That's a different project though. I'm currently raising funds for all these.

      However I'm not going to have full accounting in anytime soon, just the basic part (invoicing, cash in and out). Profits, balance sheet, claims etc aren't my thing. There are lots of headaches with accounting, it's country-specific and it changes all the time as laws and regulations change all the time. I'm looking at simply providing integration with some existing accounting programs for now, and keeping only the primary part of accounting, the part that can be designed in a country-agnostic fashion. I personally know one provider of accounting software that I might eventually partner with.

      Each module or combination, have their specific users.

      For example some users might really appreciate my CRM + web services integration, I have some neat ideas there. Others will focus on stock management + invoicing. It depends. I'm looking at something more like offering a platform-based, customizable solution for now, some low-to-high approach rather than jumping straight to launching a full ERP. Taking things one step at a time.

      Kind of difficult to explain it though. Hope it makes sense to you.
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  • Profile picture of the author Oziboomer
    Originally Posted by emilsb View Post

    My question to you is the following.

    Do you think it is worth offering this solution as a commercial product (under SaaS model)? And what would the potential target be?
    I'm not sure what the potential of my solution is, and where to aim with it, given the fact that there are so many other solutions out there already. There could be more than one customer segment to focus on with this one.

    In few words, I'm looking into offering a fully managed, ready-to-use solution that includes hosting and everything. (The main advantages being, ready-to-use, fully integrated E-commerce + ERP solution, cross-platform (browser based), fast and reliable, distributed model / remote data sync, and the possibility of further customization based on customer request).

    Any tips would be appreciated, thanks!
    If you can offer your Saas service at a reasonable monthly cost then get it out there and start promoting.

    Look at some of the competitors and what they are charging and decide on where you want to position your solution.

    Can you splinter your offer so you have three price points to put out there and test?

    Monthly $149....$297...$497...and maybe enterprise level POA ??

    Offer some free trials and get some customers using the system.

    Ask for feedback and then modify as you go.
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    • Profile picture of the author emilsb
      Originally Posted by Oziboomer View Post

      If you can offer your Saas service at a reasonable monthly cost then get it out there and start promoting.

      Look at some of the competitors and what they are charging and decide on where you want to position your solution.

      Can you splinter your offer so you have three price points to put out there and test?

      Monthly $149....$297...$497...and maybe enterprise level POA ??

      Offer some free trials and get some customers using the system.

      Ask for feedback and then modify as you go.
      Well it's pretty much what I am doing now, so you are right.

      I have decided to go with it in two completely different directions, but still, the more I think about it, the more sense it makes.

      1) The first one is to offer the application straight off as a bespoke, standalone solution to a few clients based on POA. Just a few live implementations. That will help us to not only make some money, but have it done quick by using the existing solution. My platform is ready to enter this stage, so it makes sense. It is past MVP in this regard. Pros: more money, product ready to use. Cons: difficult to sell, larger customers required.

      2) The second one is to prepare an MVP turnkey version and price it like you described, free trials, get customers, get it rolling. This will take longer and it's more difficult to do (long story why) but nevertheless we'll get there. Pros: large market size. Cons: Investment and time.

      Actually 1) helps with the 2) in the whole process.

      Both models will share the same platform, so all improvements and fixes will reflect in both the bespoke and the turnkey versions. Side note, I had 2-3 potential customers interested in 1). Who doesn't want a bespoke suit at the price of off-the-shelf one BTW (as it is now).

      My idea is just like auto manufacturers'. They build an unique chassis then offer different priced versions for different customers. The chassis I have already.
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  • Profile picture of the author CortexNetworks
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