Selling Direct-to-Consumer (DTC) across multiple channels isn’t a new approach for wine producers, and many of you reading this may be using a DTC platform to handle your transactions. So why do you need an ERP system? A DTC platform extends and enhances the data in your ERP system. This article will explain how ERP works seamlessly with DTC platforms to eliminate manual processes and third-party systems, improve compliance, and elevate your consumers experiences.
What is 365WineTrade?
What we can tell you is that integration is a critical conversation to have with your ERP vendors and partners. It is important to have a vendor that understands your business and has a system specifically for the wine and spirits industry.
The word “integration” can mean you still have to manually import/export data when what you really need is a seamless and automatic processes to connect, consolidate, and centralize your information from multiple sources. This is where 365WineTrade and our nationwide team of integration experts excel. We built our solution on Microsoft Dynamics 365 Business Central and the Microsoft Cloud so integrations are easier and more reliable.
How 365WineTrade Integrations Work
365WineTrade has built-in integrations for Commerce7 and other DTC platforms out of the box, and we are constantly building out new integrations for customers across DTC, eCommerce, 3PL partners, Innovint, Microsoft applications, and more. No matter the systems you use, chances are we can either eliminate them entirely and bring that functionality into 365WineTrade or provide an effortless integration.
The Value of DTC Integration
How will the 365WineTrade DTC integration make your life better? Here are a few ways we simplify some of the most important, and most difficult, areas to manage.
Automatic Revenue Recognition
One of the most unique challenges in the wine industry is the large lag times between sale and shipment. Deferred revenue can be a huge liability and extremely difficult to track if you are doing this manually or in a bunch of different systems or spreadsheets. If deferred revenue isn’t accounted for properly, it can cause serious issues when it comes to financials, inventory, and compliance.
Some wineries can have millions of dollars of wine sold online at events, through wine clubs, etc. that can’t be shipped immediately. These sales are made in the DTC platform, but the product is sitting in warehouses or with 3PL partners due to heat holds. Sometimes the sale gets canceled. It’s a very complex process to manage.
365WineTrade consolidates and tracks all transactions and revenue from end to end, including properly recognizing deferred revenue. It tracs revenue and COGS by channel, accounting for and matching inventory, tracking shipment dates and more. Revenue isn’t recorded until the product ships, so your financials and inventory remain accurate.
Reservation Management
Many wineries have increased revenue opportunities beyond wine sales and tastings to booking elite experiences. While this reservation is considered a sale in the DTC platform, recording the revenue gets tricky especially with the uncertainty of if or when you might get a cancelation or a rescheduling on a moment’s notice. The revenue from a deposit or advance payment in DTC must be recognized properly as deferred revenue in the ERP (financial) system. 365WineTrade does this automatically.
Flexible, Powerful Reporting
You may have multiple entities, websites, brands, and/or tenants where transactions and billing must remain independent. The problem is this can create data siloes which prevent you from seeing the rolled-up view of your business — without a lot of manual calculations and spreadsheets. The reporting in DTC platforms can only go so far, it’s tying it into your ERP systems that will give you the information and automation you need to run your business.
365WineTrade allows you to maintain separate cost centers and tenants but can consolidate your financials so you can slice and dice and report on your information just about any way you want to see it. Roll everything up to track revenue and performance across the organization, by channel or by brand. Drill down at a transaction, invoice, or line-item level. Know exactly what you shipped vs. what you sold. Reconciliations and reporting are much easier and more accurate in 365WineTrade.
Flexible DTC Transaction Import
365WineTrade can pull in data from DTC and other external systems on a scheduled basis or, depending on your operations and resources, you may want this done once a day or even weekly. Whatever your preferred cadence for sharing data, you have the flexibility to define it. We will help you implement best practices and data governance around your specific business.
Direct-to-Consumer (DTC) Compliance
If you have a DTC platform, it’s likely handling many aspects of your DTC sales process, calculations, and fulfillment. However, when you are selling in an omnichannel model — it’s important to have a consolidated picture of everything sold and shipped out of the system whether it was on your website, in your tasting room, or out of your 3PL warehouse. 365WineTrade consumes all this data so you can validate the time and volume of all shipments to each state.
Invest in One Scalable System for Any Sales and Distribution Model
The wine & spirits industry holds many opportunities for growth. We see many producers, distributors, and importers crossing over into new territory. With 365WineTrade, you only have to invest in one ERP solution built to handle any type of business model.
Next Steps
If you would like to learn more about 365WineTrade and our ability to integrate with DTC platforms, please contact us any time to start the conversation or schedule a personal demonstration.
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