When shopping online it's easy to forget the vast machinery that goes on behind the screen. That's because the API does such a seamless job that you don't have to think about it.

Read more: See Visma's integrations here.

What is a good online store?

The online store has in many ways surpassed the physical store. Shelves, categories and offers make it easy to find what you need. When the systems at the back speak, the customer journey is adapted at all stages, from the selection of goods until they are picked up or delivered.

“However, what distinguishes the really good online stores from the physical stores is personalization. Good online stores show different showcases to different customers based on who the customer is, where they have moved in the online store and other data and history,” explains Skjørten.

But how does such a process take place?

“The online stores are integrated with services that know and analyze the needs and desires of customers. For example, search history is good data feed for the systems that understand the usage pattern and the needs of customers. Using the services provided by the APIs, the online store can show the customer the most relevant goods and offers for them.

Online store where API integration provides excellent customer experiences

When you click through an online store, there's a whole symphony of systems that each play a small part in giving you the perfect shopping trip. The skirt explains what is happening at the back.

— The goods are usually not stored in the online store itself. They are retrieved from an ERP system via APIs. Photos, descriptions, inventory and price are collected from here. Perhaps the online store is also integrated with a service that allows the customer to see reviews from others who have purchased the same.

Many also use APIs from a proposal service that generate both upsell and upsell. And once the customer has found everything he or she should have, and put it in the shopping cart, another integrated system comes on the line.

— The online store wants the customer to shop even more! The online store will automatically analyze all previous purchases of this item. Just like the knife seller in the square, the system shouts out to the customer: “Not enough about it! Everyone who buys this knife also buys a cutting board, so you should bring that with you in the basket!”

Smart customer management with API

When you go to payment, you probably set a number of systems and integrations in motion. They fill in the address and a call is made to one or more transport providers who calculate both the price and the expected delivery time.

“Also, when paying, the customer usually gets more options because the online store is integrated with a payment provider.

And while you have been at the digital checkout, the online store has communicated with the store's ERP system and created customer relationship, order, invoice and delivery via the ERP system API.

Everyone expects fast delivery time. Preferably yesterday!

As soon as you've paid, the last act of the System Symphony begins. The goods should be picked, packed and sent to the door or post office.

Everyone expects fast delivery time. At least after corona. We would have liked to have received our orders yesterday!

What happens now is that the store's ERP system communicates with the warehouse system, whether in-house or at an external logistics provider. In the warehouse, employees pick up your order on their handheld device, with the exact location of where the goods are located.

“Perhaps the warehouse is also equipped with robots that pick completely on their own. Then it is communicated with the carrier's systems and labels with barcodes are retrieved and affixed to the package,” says Thomas.

When the package is on its way, you will be notified on the phone. Yet another action that takes place via an API. From here, you can follow the package almost meter by meter, until it lies waiting in the mailbox.

And this is just the beginning. The online stores that are not on this train are not going to have much to line up with against the competition in the years to come, concludes Skirten.

Do you want to know more about how advanced needs in finance, orders, procurement and warehousing are covered by an automated system?