Imagine running a product-based business online via multiple sales channels. Then, imagine having to do the bookkeeping for your individual sales platforms. Now imagine having to cross-reference all of that information to create customer profiles and track your inventory, orders, expenses, and so on.

Yikes!

Luckily, Intuit has released its Quickbooks Commerce platform, making data inventory management a streamlined and simplified process for small business owners.

In this article, we're going to give you a complete overview of the new Quickbooks Commerce platform, including the pros and cons. So, if you want to learn how to use QuickBooks for Commerce to your benefit, keep reading. 

What is Quickbooks Commerce? A Brief Overview

Intuit Quickbooks Commerce, formerly known as TradeGecko, falls under the software-as-a-service (SaaS) category. In a nutshell, it's a cloud-based e-commerce platform designed for small business owners to access and manage multiple sales channels all in one place.

By using Quickbooks Commerce along with other Quickbooks tools, small business owners can sync their inventory, orders, invoices, customer information, employee information, vendor information, expenses, etc.,  from a variety of sales channels into the one platform. From there, they can generate financial reports and gain profitability insights while also avoiding out-of-stocks. Additionally, everything can be done online or offline.

Quickbooks Commerce can connect with different marketplaces, websites, and sales systems providers. Not only does this provide small businesses with flexibility and scalability to an extent but it can streamline the entire process of bookkeeping from start to finish. 

Quickbooks Commerce Features

The Quickbooks Commerce platform for ecommerce businesses is there to integrate and streamline payments, products, orders, and sales data. Essentially, it's an all-in-one bookkeeping tool with various features that will make your life easier while giving your businesses the means to level up.

The features included with the ecommerce platform focus on three distinct areas of online sales: inventory and manufacturing, order management and shipping, and customer relationships.

Let's take a closer look:

Inventory and Manufacturing Management

Quickbooks Commerce offers a nice variety of tools that support your inventory and manufacturing management so you can have complete control over every product you sell. It doesn't matter whether you're in the business of wholesaling or you own a virtual boutique shop with an additional Etsy store; you'll get to take advantage of the following inventory and manufacturing management features:

  • Inventory Control. Your inventory across all platforms is automatically tracked and updated in real-time, so you'll never have to worry about running out of stock 
  • Inventory Optimization. Employs automated strategies such as demand forecasting and re-ordering options as part of your inventory management system so you'll always have the right amount of stock in your warehouse at all times
  • Warehouse Management. Allows you to easily transfer your stock between warehouses to fulfill specific location orders efficiently
  • Manufacturing Management. Supports the automating of manufacturing workflows keeping you in the know during each step of your business process from start to finish

The Quickbooks Commerce inventory and manufacturing management interface is incredibly convenient and easy to use, and it'll keep track of all the complicated backend processes, so you don't have to.

Online Order Management and Shipping

Quickbook Commerce's order management and shipping tools go beyond inventory, allowing small business owners to manage their orders and supply requests in an automated fashion. This is something that enabled business owners to reinforce their online position while simultaneously increase their revenue stream. The features for online order management and shipping include:

  • Order Management. Your orders and inventory will be automatically synced with the option to setup low-stock notifications and re-order triggers for total efficiency
  • Purchase Order Management. Ensures your data accuracy by allowing you to create, edit, and manage purchase orders that also update your inventory automatically  
  • Backorder Management. This tool is what enables you to maintain optimal inventory levels by allowing you to pre-order products at certain times
  • Pricing Management. Price list management lets you manage all your expenses properly, including the use of custom pricing and multiple currencies for location, product type, and customer type 
  • Shipping Management. Simplifies the shipping process by automatically setting up shipping rates by location and the available shipping methods
  • Batch and Expiry Tracking. Offers better insight to how your inventory moves via lot and batch tracking, so you know exactly what is being sold and when and the state and quality it's being sold in

The online management and shipping tools that Quickbooks Commerce offers allows you to manage all your sales channels on one singular platform. You can set up notifications to receive alerts on all smart devices, so you can keep an eye on the entire process and mitigate risks.

Customer Relationships

The extra features that Quickbooks Commerce offers allow you to go beyond your typical customer service experience and marketing tactics to build trust and loyalty. Especially if you're an up and coming brand, the following features can make or break your success:

  • Order Fulfillment. The order fulfillment tool allows you to integrate your inventory, locations, and channels and upgrade the volume of your stock automatically. The result is more efficiency, visibility, and control with fewer expenses and mistakes
  • CRM Technology. Keep your customer and supplier data all in one place with the CRM tool. Quickbook Commerce's CRM technology allows you to integrate every element of your business, including customer support. It'll also record every step of the customer's journey, giving you a better insight into your audience's behavior and needs 
  • Inventory Reports. Run regular data and stock reports so you can understand which of your products are in high demand. This allows you to improve the customer experience by supporting their wants and needs
  • Sales Reports Generation. Generating sales reports is essential to understanding when most purchases are made and how. This tool will allow you to generate sales reports by customer, location, product, channel, time of day, and more so you can improve your revenue stream.

Your entire business depends on lasting, quality customer relationships. The features and tools offered for your business's customer relationships are crucial to your success and growth.

Quickbooks Commerce Pricing

There are five options you can choose from if you're thinking about using and integrating the Quickbooks Commerce platform. Intuit also offers a 14-day free trial, so you can try it out before committing.

Here are your options:

  • Founder: Starting at $39 per month for one user, the Founder option allows for one sales channel integration, up to 50 sales orders per month, one warehouse, shipping rates by zone, multi-currency support, accounting integrations, a mobile sales app, and basic CRM technology 
  • Lite: At $79 per month, the Lite option allows for two users, all of the above-mentioned features, and up to 300 sales per month.
  • Small Business: For $199 per month, the Small Business option allows you to add up to five users, use all of the features that come with the Lite option, process up to 3,000 orders, and you get API access, account management tools, B2B support if needed, more warehouse management options, demand forecasting, and FBA integrations.
  • Premium: The Premium costs $799 per month and offers all the Small Business features plus support for up to 5,000 orders per month, set-up assistance, multi-language document use, and more

There is also a Pro option that Intuit offers to enterprise-level businesses, but you'd have to call and speak with the team for pricing and features. Additionally, if you pre-pay for an entire year of services, you'll get your plan of choice at a discounted rate.

The Pros and Cons of Quickbooks Commerce

As with most SaaS software companies and products, you must consider the pros and cons before diving in. Quickbooks Commerce platform is arguably one of the best accounting integrations software on the market today. It allows businesses total control of their inventory and data management while optimizing their daily workflow processes.

However, the company behind the product isn't without its faults. Namely, they seem to lack customer service and support, which may make your life difficult should you need assistance.

We've laid out the pros and cons for you:

The Pros

  • Perfect for multi-channel sales integration
  • Supports your supply chain management efforts
  • Supports each step of the buyer's journey and your sales journey
  • Offers automation for each component of your business for more efficiency
  • Automatically generates reports using realtime technology to give you daily insights
  • Supports integration with a variety of ecommerce tools and platforms
  • Offers a variety of plans to choose from and a good value for each plan's pricing

The Cons

  • Somewhat poor customer support
  • Software bugs tend to crop up
  • Can be difficult to learn how to use at first

There aren't many cons to using the Quickbooks Commerce platform, but it's still a good idea to make use of the free trial to see how it works for you before you make any commitments.

How to Use Quickbooks Commerce Platform

Using the Quickbooks Commerce platform is a breeze. All you have to do is choose your plan and integrate it with your current ecommerce platform. Once you get past the initial setup which includes tutorials Quickbooks Commerce will integrate with Quickbooks Online to funnel your multi-channel platform into one so you can start seamlessly managing your entire business.

Need help integrating Quickbooks Commerce with your 3dCart ecommerce platform? Contact us today, and we'll help get you started on learning how to use the Quickbooks Commerce platform with your 3dCart account.  Our team is here to answer all of your questions, 24/7.