Navigating the vast SaaS landscape of today can make selecting the right Order Management Software (OMS) feel incredibly complex. An often overlooked challenge stems from the diverse nature of businesses thriving across various channels. Single channel, multichannel, and omnichannel retailers have needs specific to their business models.
Systems that are great for a large omnichannel chain may be overkill for a smaller retailer. On the other hand, a simpler, more affordable OMS would be perfect for a single-channel retailer but might not cut it for larger stores. To ensure seamless order processing, inventory tracking, and streamlined logistics, an affordable, robust, and adaptable OMS is essential.
In this article, we reveal our top five order management software picks to help you optimize your logistics setup. We take a deep dive into each solution's key features and capabilities and how they can help you make order processing simpler and more user-friendly.
Why you need to add order management software to your tech stack
Order management, being a core business process, is deeply tied to how customers perceive brands. It also has all the trappings of a legacy function. Companies that have been processing orders a certain way will prefer doing so because of inertia. Most businesses continue to use arcane manual processes, which involve a lot of paperwork, data entry, invoicing, and request forms.
Unfortunately, these methods are very costly and can add as much as $506 to each order. A study by SalesForce also found that 72% of salespeople were spending far too much time with laborious manual data entry and order management processes.
Not only do manual processes add billable hours, but they increase errors, introduce bottlenecks, and slow everything to a crawl. Sharing information across different departments also becomes harder as many organizations are moving to multi and omnichannel distribution models. The lack of real-time inventory visibility and order routing can result in higher shipping costs, longer delivery times, and missed fulfillment targets.
Modern purchase trends exacerbate these problems. As we noted in our last post on on-demand returns, many companies are seeing their margins drop as the value of returned products is increasing faster than their sales. Many consumers buy multiple items online and return the ones they don't want to compensate for a lack of hands-on experience. Return fraud has also jumped in the post-pandemic period, eating into retailers' profits.
The solution here is to minimize costs wherever possible without a loss in service/product quality. Order management tools can help you do just that. Most order management software today is cloud-based and can readily integrate with other suites in your tech stack. They easily automate many of the manual processes, such as invoicing, payments, returns, and exchanges that take up so much time.
From a logistics perspective, the analytical capabilities of existing order management solutions can be indispensable. By understanding purchase behavior, companies can identify order patterns, such as items that are often purchased together or complementary products. Businesses can use this information to implement order aggregation strategies, where multiple orders are combined and shipped together.
Additionally, purchase behavior analytics can help companies optimize their delivery routes and transportation networks, too. Businesses can reduce fuel consumption, improve logistics efficiency, shorten fulfillment times, and enhance customer service by minimizing their travel distances. Finally, purchase behavior analytics can greatly optimize reverse logistics processes, such as returns and exchanges. By analyzing return patterns, and customer feedback, you can identify exchange opportunities to cut back on refund requests.
No two order management suites are the same, though. Each does a few things better than the rest. Here are five tools that can help you take your order fulfillment to the next level.
Our top six order management software picks
Cin7 OrderHive
Founded in 2012, OrderHive has grown to become a recognized brand in the inventory control and management market. In 2023, the company secured all its operations under a new name — Cin7. Today, the software is known for its user-friendly interface, scalability, and ability to simplify complex order and inventory workflows for businesses of all sizes. Given its vast ERP-like capabilities, the order management suite is particularly useful for large-volume sellers.
Cin7's standout feature is its comprehensive multi and omnichannel management capability. It allows businesses to effectively manage inventory across multiple sales channels, warehouses, and locations from a centralized system. The capability is available through Cin7 Omni, which consists of integrated inventory management, out-of-the-box Third-Party Logistics (3PL) integrations, and automated warehouse management.
Cin7 starts at $325/month (5 users) for their Standard version, which includes their multichannel order management suite and is a great place to start. You can give the standard, retailing, and manufacturing versions of the app a once-over with their 14-day free trial.
Shippo
The inspiration for Shippo came from its founder, Laura Behrens Wu's personal frustration with the complexities and inefficiencies of the shipping process. While interning at LendUp, Wu realized that the existing shipping solutions were expensive and time-consuming for small businesses. The multi-carrier shipping process was (and still is) fairly complex, and retailers often have a hard time finding the best rates. She created Shippo, which not only has a powerful order management system built into a single platform but helps retailers secure better shipping rates, too.
The company offers an API and web interface for address validation, multi-carrier support, shipping labels, tracking, batch label creation, and discounts. It integrates with popular platforms like eBay, Amazon, and Shopify and aggregates packages through the customer's accounts. By pooling shipments from all its clients, Shippo can negotiate discounted rates with carriers through collective volume, which it then passes on to its customers. Shippo claims that its customers can expect up to 80% off on their shipping rates.
Shippo's pricing is based on the number of shipping labels rather than user count. You can give them a trial run with their free version. Their monthly plan starts at $10 for 0-60 labels and goes up to $200/month for 7,500-10,000 shipping labels.
Skubana by Extensiv
Skubana was a product of its founder Chad Rubin's personal struggle to find a unified order and shipping management system. Rubin, who took over his family business of selling vacuum cleaners, began selling on eBay and Amazon. However, the disparate nature of online operations, like organizing inventory, analytics, reports, labels, and tracking shipping, made things difficult. At the time, he had to use multiple different products patched together to keep track of everything.
He founded Skubana to create a centralized order management system. The app is built around the idea of simplifying multichannel operations, so it can seamlessly integrate multiple channels, which almost makes it feel like a single-channel operation. Skubana does so by combining order processing, shipping, inventory management, and analytics from different channels into one platform. Businesses can manage their operations efficiently, avoid errors, and gain a unified view of all their business activities from one dashboard.
The company was renamed Extensiv and, given its strengths, has positioned itself as an omnichannel order fulfillment service. While no pricing details are given, online reports suggest it starts at $999/month for 1,000 monthly orders, making it one of the more expensive solutions on the list.
ShippingEasy
ShippingEasy certainly didn't have an easy start. Its primary product — software integrating with online checkout systems — wasn't performing well. In 2012, the then-hired CEO Katie May and her team decided to rebuild the product from scratch based on customer feedback. By actively engaging with a small group of clients and listening to their grievances, ShippingEasy gained valuable insights and created a successful product.
May's team became hyper-focused on making every aspect of the app as simple as possible. The result was a tool that has since been widely regarded as one of the best shipment and order management software out there. The app's UI is deliberately simple so as not to overwhelm the user with excessive options.
ShippingEasy can also automatically update inventory across all your sales channels. Users can manage orders from its centralized dashboard and can add or take out features as needed. Like Skubana, ShippingEasy also helps its customers secure discounted rates from USPS and UPS.
You can try the app out with its free version, which allows 25 shipments per month. Their paid subscriptions start with the growth plan (200 orders) at $19.99/month, which can be scaled to 10,000 orders with the enterprise plan.
Ordoro
Founded in 2010 by Jagath Narayan, Ordoro started as a solution to e-commerce order and inventory management complexities. The company had an unwavering commitment to simplifying operations and has steadily grown to a dedicated team of 16 employees. Today, the platform processes an impressive $1.7 billion in Gross Merchandise Value (GMV) annually, demonstrating its substantial impact on the e-commerce industry.
Ordoro integrates with almost every major ecommerce platform out there, including Amazon, Shopify, and eBay. The order management software imports all orders from your sales channels into your account and can update inventories automatically, too. Shipping labels can be printed en masse with a single click from the dashboard. Furthermore, Ordoro enables its customers to enjoy some really great discounts with USPS and UPS, thanks to order aggregation and volume pricing.
Ordoro is by far the best tool for SMBs looking to try an order management software out. Unlike other apps, you can print as many shipping labels as you want with the free version. However, features like automated rules and presets, advanced analytics, add-on modules, and API access are available in their paid versions, which start from $59/month. The software also has an inbuilt drop shipments manager, which brings all the features of an enterprise-level order management software to individual users.
How to select an order management software for your team
While having choice is good, companies, especially small and medium businesses (SMB), should be wary of IT bloat. Most SaaS-based products are fairly affordable, which often causes brands to overinvest in them. A Freshworks report also found that 89% of IT professionals waste a full day every week due to bloated software and unnecessary features.
While most companies have around 14 applications available, on average, only half are used. Here are a few ways to make sure you don't end up falling prey to IT bloat when selecting an order management software for your business.
Work backward from your business requirements
Let's consider Shippo, Skubana, and ShippingEasy origins. All of the founders created the tools because they were confronted with problems that had no readily available solutions. A "requirements first" philosophy is always a great place to start.
But it's also easy to misinterpret what "requirements" mean here. For example, ShippingEasy started with a certain feature set, but the entire app was redesigned with customer inputs later. The case illustrates why user requirements need to remain central to any purchase decision.
You can use a need assessment to identify gaps in your current and desired outcomes. The need itself can be an imperative (such as increased error rates) or an opportunity (like a chance to improve due to the availability of better tools).
Always keep your Total Cost of Ownership (TCO) in perspective
One of the bigger promises of SaaS products is their extremely affordable prices. Many companies often buy them based on low upfront cost while ignoring their TCO. Many studies have discovered that SaaS-based tools can end up being just as or even more expensive than on-premises installations if managed improperly.
This scenario is partly due to IT bloat and also because, many times, renewal costs aren't well understood before purchase. SalesForce is particularly well known for its aggressive renewal policies.
TCO typically consists of the initial purchase price, maintenance expenses, operational costs, training, and the expected lifespan before replacement. Also, when selecting your order management software, consider evaluating two or more vendors to keep things impartial.
Integration is king
All cloud-based tools need integration to work. After all, since SaaS tools are sold as standalone products, their ability to merge seamlessly into any tech stack is vital. However, order management software has far more specific requirements.
Beyond being able to integrate with Customer Relationship Management (CRM), Human Resources Management (HRM), and project management tools, an order management app also needs reliable integration with 3PL vendors and e-commerce storefronts. The five tools we’ve discussed above satisfy all three integration criteria and can help you manage all aspects of your fulfillment process with ease.
Conclusion
There's a lot of evidence to support the fact that simplifying fulfillment with order management suites can greatly reduce costs while improving customer service. They can automate most tasks, provide deep insights, and help you secure great discounts with your 3PL partners. Even so, it's important to remember that order management systems are only a part of the puzzle.
By using DeliverySolutions’ extensive logistical capabilities, you can leverage your order management tools even better. We offer a range of post-purchase solutions through our unified omnichannel software that helps our customers shorten delivery times, drive down costs, and improve customer satisfaction. DeliverySolutions also partners with enterprise-level platforms, including Blue Yonder and Manhattan Associates.
Have questions? Feel free to shoot us a message. We're always happy to discuss how we can help you streamline your order orchestration and fulfillment.
Topics from this blog: Improvement Efficiency Logistics