Integration – Xocbox

07 Mar05:16am

Sales Tax Headaches Solved with xocbox and Taxjar

2020 saw an increase in the number of retailers expanding their online sales channels and the trend is set to continue and in 2021. If your business is starting or expanding its online sales channels then one of the things you are sure to encounter is sales tax.

Collecting and reporting sales tax revenue has also become more complex, as the rules have changed for many states which now require tax to be collected if you reach a certain level of sales, or have “nexus” in that state. The confusing part is that not all states have the same rules, so making sure you are in compliance with each set of rules can get tricky very quickly.

This is where xocbox takes the pain out of your monthly sales tax filing and reporting. Xocbox now integrates with Taxjar to provide automated sales tax calculations, reporting and filing.

We use Taxjar’s API to ensure that filings are automatically submitted to the states where you are registered so you never miss a filing date, the correct tax rate is charged at checkout, and you can establish whether you have nexus in all states or just one or two.

If you have been wondering how to cope with all the new laws and changes surrounding sales tax, contact us today to see how we can help.

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27 Jan21:56pm

Creating Trust through Transparency with Online Sales

As more people have shopped online during 2020 than at any other time, consumers’ trust in online retailers has become more important than ever. However, if a retailer fails to recognize the widening gap between customer expectations and the service and product they deliver, this can lead to disappointed customers, who will ultimately shop somewhere else.

Research has shown that there have been more online shoppers due to the pandemic during 2020 with a growing number of e-tailers to choose from, however the quality of service has varied greatly among retailers.

Some of the problems consumers have encountered include late or non-delivery, purchasing a product that is available during the online shopping process only to find it is unavailable at the checkout, and difficult or impossible follow-up with the merchant after delivery or tracking down a product that has not been delivered.

The reliance on online shopping is expected to continue and increase during 2021, placing more pressure on supply chain, inventory management and customer support and retailers will be required to take ownership of the end-to-end customer experience. Once a customer gains trust in an online brand and the service and products they offer, they will not only shop at that store again, but happily refer the retailer to friends and family.

Implementing tools to manage operational complexities and improve customer communications in order to provide a transparent transaction from the buy button right through to product delivery is sure to set the savvy retailer apart from the competition.

Retailers who are looking at ways to improve upon their customer support and product delivery service levels of 2020 are sure to be the winners in 2021.

xocbox provices retailers with the tools to manage their online and retail operations, including order and inventory management, and customer communication tools. Contact xocbox to learn more.

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04 Sep23:31pm

More Business Buyers using Amazon

In a recent survey by B2BecNews, it was discovered that nearly 8 out of 10 business buyers were using Amazon to purchase and you would naturally think that it would be a place where manufacturers and distributors are planning to sell their products, if they are not doing so already.

Corporate buyers would love to see more sellers on the Amazon marketplace, but the survey revealed that the manufacturers and distributors surveyed had no future plans to sell on Amazon marketplace.

The survey, which covered corporate buyers from a range of industries including automotive, consumer electronics, industrial and healthcare products found that a staggering 78.4% of B2B buyers researched and made a purchase from Amazon Business, and it is possible that number would be even higher if more manufacturers made their products available on the B2B channel.

Only about 40% of manufacturers sell on either Amazon Business or Amazon.com, and nearly 50% of manufacturers that don’t sell on Amazon, did not have any plans to do so. 10% planned to do so in six months or less, just over 5% thought they would do so in six months to a year, another 13.5% had plans to sell in 1 to 2 years time, so many are ignoring the opportunity to tap into potential buyers who are seeking products that they may sell.

Corporate buyers, who are accustomed to buying online for their personal purchases, are looking for the same ease and simplicity when they make purchases for their business. Amazon B2B offers buyers a streamlined shopping experience which equals the ease with which buyers shop online for themselves.

Manufacturers and distributers who have a website or portal for buyers often believe that they don’t need to be on a marketplace, but research is showing that this is not the case. The opportunity to buy several types of products from different suppliers in one place is also attractive to busy executives.

The numbers below indicate where buyers are most likely to go for their purchases:

Amazon Business – 78.4%
Alibaba – 36.5%
ThomasNet – 28.4%
Global Sources – 24.3%
Wholesale Central – 16.6%

If you are interested in selling on a B2B portal, but not sure where to start, contact xocbox to learn how we can help. Tel 858-752-3803, or email info@xocbox.com.

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09 Jul18:32pm

Extract Shipment Tracking Numbers from Multiple Dropship Suppliers

xocbox works with many retailers who rely on email to collect data from their suppliers and shipping providers, and all love the ease and simplicity of working with emails. Emails offer infinite flexibility for the sender, but trying to extract uniform information from multiple providers is not as easy for the recipient.

One example of how xocbox is helping its customers is where an ecommerce store selling dropship products switched from using their own shipper to those of their suppliers, and asked for our help.

The retailer was receiving hundreds of emails throughout the day from all their suppliers’ shipping carriers, but the information varied from shipper to shipper making it difficult for the retailer to tie the tracking number to the order, as most of the notifications did not reference the order number, the main point of reference for the retailer.

xocbox was able to parse the information from the various emails and match the customer name to the order eliminating the need for an employee to go through every email and manually match it to the order.

xocbox can now parse data from incoming emails and, based on your requirements, process the data to integrate with other systems or applications that you work with in order to carry out specific tasks, thus eliminating hours of data entry.

If you love working with emails, but wish they could do just a little more without your help, contact xocbox today. Call 858-752-3803 or email info@xocbox.com.

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27 Mar20:28pm

Salesforce buys Mulesoft for $6.5 billion

Salesforce.com Inc, the cloud-based CRM company is continuing its recent acquisitions with the announcement that they will purchase Mulesoft for approximately $6.5 billion. The sale is expected to close at the end of July 2018.

The acquisition of Mulesoft will allow Salesforce to target specific sectors such as health care, financial services and government agencies and expand their Platform-as-a-Service portfolio of products and allow their customers to change and innovate faster, deliver better customer experiences, and increase their own operational efficiency.

Mulesoft’s current customers include such names as Coca-Cola, Barclays and Unilver, providing them with a platform for building application networks that connect enterprise applications, data and devices, both cloud and on-premise.

These platforms enable companies to build applications that suit their specific needs, and pull together data and applications from different sources. The addition of Mulesoft’s technology will allow Salesforce to create an integrated cloud service that combines the best of traditional in-house corporate computing with data and apps from the public internet.

Mulesoft technology makes it much easier for a company that wants to combine various apps, for example, Google Maps, and digital payment capabilities such as those from Braintree, with older software programs and data by pulling everything together, whereas without this technology a company would need to write custom code which may, or may not, even be possible for them.

Salesforce’s goal to double its annual revenue by 2022 to $22 billion will be helped by this purchase, as Mulesoft has been rapidly expanding by connecting applications, data sources and devices using in-house servers or public cloud providers for clients such as McDonalds Corp.

The purchase of Mulesoft will be Saleforce’s largest acquisition ever, and follows its recent acquisition of CloudCraze, the provider of B2B e-commerce technology built on Salesforce’s Force.com platform. It also acquired Demandware in 2016, to offers a retail industry focused Commerce Cloud e-commerce platform. With MuleSoft, it will be able to provide customized integrations of multiple applications to better compete in the business software market.

As both Salesforce and Mulesoft continue their combined technology development, they aim to accelerate customers’ digital development, enabling them to utilize data, cloud apps and devices for a better connected customer experience.

Learn about xocbox integrated enterprise architecture technology.

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14 Mar22:32pm

Inventory Control Leads to Happier Customers

As 2017 progresses, and retailers are confronted with the uncertainties of the border tax and an ever-shrinking labor market, staying on top of inventory is still a guaranteed way to keep customers happy.

I read recently that one of the major turn-offs for shoppers is when they have spent time online choosing a product, especially if the product requires them to spend time choosing variables, such as a piece of furniture which has fabric, finishes and sizes to consider, only to find when their purchase is added to the cart (or later) the product is not available.

Most of these companies use some type of inventory management system to track products that are in stock, sold out or coming soon, yet accurately representing inventory is still one of the most difficult areas for retailers to stay on top of.

The one size fits all approach offered by many of the inventory control products available still leaves enough friction in the process of managing stock to turn customers away.

xocbox works with many different types of retailers, and we see that all have unique business scenarios that make managing their inventory unique. We work with retailers, suppliers and manufacturers and see the supply chain from both ends of the puzzle. Whether you choose EDI, assistance with supplier feeds or are a manufacturer looking to expand your selling outlets, talk to xocbox to see how we can help you fulfill orders and keep your customers happy.

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