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In today's dynamic markets finding unique ways to stand out is crucial: do it faster, do it better, or at a lower cost. Or all-together? Integrating seamlessly into what your customers already rely on is a strong differentiator as it affects all three. In this post we will explore how. These findings are based on our experience at Makini with getting live dozens of enterprise integrations with EAM/ERP/WMS systems for numerous industrial technology products.
Do it faster
Customers care about how fast they will realize the value of a new product. This is directly linked to how quickly it can be integrated into existing systems. Based on data we have gathered at Makini, integrating with customer’s EAM/ERP/WMS takes anywhere from 3 to 18 months, from very simple to very complex integrations respectively. Having readily-available integrations helps to reduce 3-18 months to a couple of minutes. This makes your product deliver value faster than competition and, by doing that, sets you apart.
Do it better
Businesses thrive on efficient processes. Introducing new technology can disrupt these well-oiled systems, potentially leading to setbacks rather than improvements. Instead of a new, better way of doing things, your customer may end up with double-data entry or extensive staff training, burdening them with complex change management. Having readily available integrations with ERP, EAM, or WMS your customers already use, you can fit into an existing process rather than making them change it. While your competitors are disrupting what already works, this is a sure way to stand out.
Do it at a lower cost
Adopting new technology is an investment. It is not only the cost of using a new product, but also the cost of implementing it. You can think of this capital expenditure (CAPEX) as an entry-ticket price. It is not uncommon for implementation to be more expensive than the product itself and customers know that. The lower this CAPEX is, the more attractive your product is. Having out-of-the-box integrations dramatically reduces usual hefty implementation costs, or even eliminates them. Customers will appreciate the work you’ve done in advance to make implementation easier and this is another way to look better than your competition. This also opens opportunities to go lower into the market after customers who otherwise wouldn’t be able to afford your product because of high implementation cost.
Final thoughts
This by no means is an exhaustive list of ways in which integrations help you differentiate, but this is a good start. It is likely your customers and prospects have considerations listed above in mind already, so saying something like “and by the way, we are integrated with the exact system you use today” will resonate and get attention.
Building EAM/ERP/WMS integrations in-house can be time consuming and, ultimately, a bad use of your engineering resources. You can scale your customer-facing integrations without relying on your engineers by using Makini, the leading Unified API solution across EAM/CMMS, ERP and WMS systems.
Learn how Makini’s Unified API can help you build 100+ product integrations with ease by scheduling a demo with one of our integration experts.
