How can I automate the exchange of business documents with my suppliers and customers?
EDI is the ideal technology to automate the exchange of business documents with your suppliers and customers. It provides guidelines, protocols, and processes to streamline and standardize documents for creation, transmission, and processing by computers.
What is EDI?
EDI (electronic data interchange) is a technology for exchanging business data and documents without the need of paper. Originally developed in the 1970s, EDI remains the dominant method of sending and receiving business documents in numerous industries.
Is EDI outdated?
While it is a legacy technology, EDI remains essential in numerous industries. It’s the standard for exchanging business data and documents like purchase orders, shipment notifications, claims processing, invoices, monthly statements, and more. The staying power of EDI is a testament to its value.
Why choose to invest in an EDI solution?
EDI opens up new opportunities for your organization. You can do business with prominent buyers who will exchange purchase orders, invoices, claims processing, shipment notifications, and other business documents only through EDI. The technology also makes you more efficient, particularly if you rely on manual data entry or paper-based processes.
These are great reasons to work with an EDI solution provider. Positive ROI takes the form of reduced costs and increased sales or document throughput due to streamlined partner relationships.
What are the typical challenges companies face with EDI, and how does Corsica address them?
Here are the most common challenges that we see when companies come to us for help with EDI.
- Not considering the future state of EDI and potential technical debt.
- Not engaging an EDI expert to meet the requirements of trading partners.
- Not planning for future trading partner relationships.
- Not understanding the differences between VAN and point-to-point.
- Choosing the wrong cost model for EDI.
- Not accounting for your technical support needs.
- Not accounting for your backend integration needs.
Read more about these challenges here: 7 Common EDI Issues.
What is EDI integration and why is it important for businesses?
An EDI system must connect with other essential systems to allow for full automation of document workflows. EDI integration ensures that an EDI system can effortlessly transmit and receive documents to other systems like ERP, SCM, CRM, eCommerce, and so on.
EDI integration is important because it reduces errors and manual interventions, creating smoother processes and lower costs.
How can I integrate EDI with my existing ERP, backend system, or eCommerce platform?
There are many ways to achieve EDI integration. You will generally need an integration platform that sits between your EDI system and the other system(s) that you need to integrate. This integration platform handles data mapping as well as data transfer. Integration can follow a real-time model, in which data is transmitted instantly, or a batch update model, in which data is collected and transmitted at regular intervals.
Why choose cloud-based EDI integration?
The cloud is a great fit for EDI solutions. With the infrastructure component fully covered, your team can focus on their core responsibilities rather than troubleshooting EDI hardware.
This is especially true when you need to integrate EDI with other systems. Cloud-based integration offers the reliability you need when coupled with managed services.
What are managed EDI integration services, and how can they benefit my business?
EDI integration gets incredibly complex in a B2B scenario. A lot can go wrong if you don’t have expert technicians managing your integration.
Our B2B EDI experts have worked in the field their entire careers. They know EDI inside and out, and they’re familiar with the challenges of B2B integration. Our managed services give you full access to the EDI experts you need to keep your integration running.
What are the advantages of using a managed service provider for EDI over handling it in-house?
EDI experts are difficult to find. They receive high salaries and may change jobs frequently due to the high demand for their services. This makes it challenging to manage EDI in-house.
In contrast, an EDI managed service provider offers consistency of service, contractual promises, and peace of mind.
Which companies offer managed EDI services?
Here are some leading providers of managed EDI services:
- Corsica Technologies
- Cleo
- TrueCommerce
- SPS Commerce
Note that Corsica Technologies offers 100% predictable monthly pricing and unlimited service consumption for EDI. It’s unclear whether these other companies offer the same benefits in terms of predictable billing and unlimited service.
What are Walmart’s EDI requirements?
Suppliers doing more than 5,500 invoices per year are required to run true EDI through the AS2 communication protocol. Learn more: Walmart’s guide to getting started with EDI.
What are Target’s EDI requirements?
Target does not publicly specify their EDI standards, though suppliers must be able to use EDI to receive purchase orders. Learn more here: Standards for Target suppliers.
Where can I find an EDI RFP template?
You can use Corsica Technologies’ free EDI RFP template.
The template covers:
- Your current EDI landscape (if any)
- Details about your company
- Details for the vendor to fill in
- Your required EDI capabilities (with vendors rating their competency in 27 categories)
- Backend integration(s) required
- Roles and responsibilities
- Required SLA/SLO
- Legal requirements
Download the template now to get the full picture and start your EDI RFP process.
