User:GlitteringEyesBlog/draft article on Multi-Channel Management Platform

A Multi-Channel Management Platform (MCMP) is a platform created for online merchants selling across multiple marketplaces. This could include any combination of marketplaces for online selling, also called sales channels. For example, eligible merchants might be selling on their own company e-commerce website, Amazon, eBay, Sears.com, Newegg.com, LivingSocial, Groupon, 3dcart, and other sales channels as well. In short, a MCMP helps these merchants get organized so they can more effectively grow their ecommerce business. A MCMP focuses on supporting efficient operations so merchants can devote optimal time and resources to growth, as opposed to spending it superfluously on keeping up with daily operations.

Why a MCMP?
Selling on multiple marketplaces can be rather complicated. Each of the major marketplaces has different standards and requirements merchants must adhere to. Mastering the sales channels, however, isn’t even half the battle for online merchants. Online selling comes with a whole host of factors to deal with. Where does the inventory come from? How does it get from the supplier to the end customer? Is there a record for this? Does the inventory listed on those marketplaces actually exist in that quantity? What about multi-variant stock keeping units (SKUs) or multi-ASIN listings? The list goes on.

As can be deduced by its name, a Multi-Channel Management Platform (MCMP) offers a way to manage an online multi-channel business and significantly reduce the chaos. What is the result? In one enterprise-class platform, merchants are equipped with a robust tool set to streamline operations in their online retail business. This simplification sets off a domino effect of increased time, resources, and new business opportunities to devote to growth-related initiatives. In effect, a MCMP is more than just a management platform – it is a catalyst for growth. A MCMP is the solution for online merchants looking to grow their business and keep up with it for years to come.

Growth is not magical. It is intentional. It requires time. A MCMP targets operational efficiency so a multi-channel merchant can instead spend valuable time and resources focusing on growth.

The Components of a MCMP
As previously mentioned, a Multi-Channel Management Platform is made up of multiple components. It looks at a business from every angle to overcome the obstacles preventing growth. A MCMP combines the following components into one enterprise-class management solution.

Sales Channel Integrations
Sales channels are any entity that processes a transaction on your behalf. This includes major marketplaces like Amazon, eBay, and Sears.com, as well as several ecommerce platforms, flash-sale sites and more. Typically, the integrations with a MCMP include:

Item Matching/Publishing
The ability to find a match for the item you are selling on a marketplace or to create a new listing on a marketplace for that product.

Inventory Publishing Controls
The ability to allocate percentages of total inventory across all listings on all marketplaces in the case that an item is being sold on multiple marketplaces. This control prevents overselling.

Global Pricing and Re-Pricing Controls
The ability to effectively control product prices to remain competitive and protect margins. A MCMP can offer global pricing controls across all sales channels, as well as a repricing agent for Amazon to maintain real estate over the buy-box.

Full Order Lifecycle Management
The ability to automatically download orders, manage the workflow for any fulfillment method (dropshipping, cross-docking, merchant fulfilled, Fulfillment By Amazon (FBA)), and notify the originating sales channel with shipment information.

Order Management System (OMS)
A quality, high-volume OMS grants the ability to fulfill orders originating from any sales channel, using any fulfillment method, in one efficient interface. This is one part of the larger ecommerce engine that is a MCMP. The OMS deals with any of the four primary fulfillment methods in conjunction with the Inventory Management Software.

Pick Pack Ship / Merchant Fulfilled
This refers to the method in which a merchant fulfills orders manually from already-owned inventory that is being stored in the merchant’s warehouse. A MCMP can automate and streamline this process in a number of ways. It can assign a “hold code” to signal the next logical step in the fulfillment process to more accurately direct the process. It gives the merchant the ability to filter inventory listings based on stage in the fulfillment process and other filters. It can assign a batch of orders to individual warehouse employees by creating work reports. It can print shipping labels and find the lowest shipping rates. All of this and more can be done from a single interface.

Dropshipping
This term refers to the method in which a merchant creates and transmits purchase orders to the supplier to send directly to the customer. Someone (usually the merchant) then proceeds to update the tracking information on the sales channels once the order is shipped. All of this requires a significant amount of tracking and cooperation from multiple parties. A MCMP automates this process based on how much each supplier is able to automate, even to the point where dropshipping can be a completely hands-off procedure for the merchant.

Cross-docking
Cross-docking is where orders accumulate all day long and a bulk purchase order is submitted at end of day. The merchant generates a bulk purchase order for each supplier to ensure the products are shipped to the merchant’s warehouse. Once the products arrive, the merchant will scan the items in to receive the stock and immediately turn around and ship the items off to the end customer. As one might assume, this method, though viable, leaves room for a significant amount of human error resulting in low order turnover. As with the previous two fulfillment methods, a MCMP can make things easier here, too. Among other things, it can allow a merchant to select a number of orders and create a purchase order with ease on the interface. Overall, the MCMP enables complex cross-docking orders to be managed at a much faster rate than before and dramatically increase the number of orders an employee can manage in an hour.

Fulfillment By Amazon (FBA) / Third-Party Logistics Provider (3PL)
In this method, a merchant outsources the handling of orders to another party, either Amazon for Amazon merchants or what is called a 3PL or Third-Party Logistics Provider. Of course, the merchant is still responsible for the orders making it to the rightful customer, regardless of whether the merchant has a hand in the process. A MCMP helps a merchant to track how much inventory is in stock at these locations and make sure it is automatically updated in the listings. They can also reorder inventory to stock at those locations and prepare shipments and transfers between locations, all through one streamlined interface.

Inventory Management Software
Perhaps the most difficult part of managing an online retail business is keeping track of the goods being sold. Having inventory in the right place, at the right time, in the right quantity, both physically present and listed correctly, is imperative to the success of the business. A strong MCMP is all over this. It can manage inventory levels for all sales listings across all sales channels for each and every Stock Keeping Unit (SKU). Some MCMPs can support multi-variant or “one-to-many” SKU relationships as well, which is a critical functionality for online clothing sales.

Looking at the MCMP a few steps back, when factoring in other MCMP functionalities such as listing based Unit of Measure conversions; the ability to manage inventory levels for base components included in kits and assembly items; sales order management, and purchasing management, the holistic value of a MCMP in terms of inventory management becomes clear. It provides integrity in tracking inventory and visibility to the true demand across all listings, kits, and assembly items for each Stock Keeping Unit. While this sounds like a logical thing merchants should always be on top of, with thousands upon thousands of variations of SKUs on multiple sales channels, it is a rare thing for many. A MCMP makes this a reliable reality.

Supply Chain Management (SCM) & Catalog Automation
Supply Chain Management deals with the flow of goods from the originating supplier to the end customer. In the ecommerce industry, this term is typically affiliated with the term “order fulfillment” or “order management,” as discussed above. SCM depends on both the relationship with the supplier and the method(s) being used to fulfill orders. A MCMP categorizes suppliers as either integrated or non-integrated. If a supplier is considered “integrated,” this means merchants can incorporate supplier data into the system automatically by establishing a technological connection. This connection can be made over EDI, flat-file via File Transfer Protocol (FTP), or via an application programming interface (API). This creates an environment for smooth and efficient inventory management. Suppliers can regularly update and add items, including price and availability, through the platform.

If a supplier is non-integrated, a MCMP can still improve SCM. Items and costs can be updated periodically through manual tools or by importing files. This works best for lower volume suppliers.

For merchants using cross-docking or dropshipping order fulfillment methods, the MCMP can automatically create purchase orders for these types of orders as soon as a sale is made. Especially in the case of drop shippers, this process can be completely hands-off with the help of a MCMP.

Cross-Channel Automation
A MCMP can also have a great impact by automating cooperative processes between sales channels and suppliers. It can automatically update pricing on all sales channels, as well as repricing floor and ceiling values. It can publish and sell inventory based on inventory information received from the supplier (so, the most accurate inventory levels). The system can automatically update inventory across all sales channels whenever a sale takes place. Again, for drop shippers, a MCMP’s cross-channel automation can handle drop shipping so the merchant might never have to lift a finger.

A MCMP can automate the processes involved when a transaction occurs as well. Some MCMPs support electronic transmission and receipt of supplier product and catalog data, price updates, supplier availability, purchase orders, advanced shipping notices, and supplier invoices. Automating these historically manual processes frees up an immense amount of time warehouse employees. If merchants spend less time dealing with operational duties like these, they have more time to focus on growth related initiatives. This maximizes cash flow and increases their economies of scale.

Business Intelligence
The beauty of combining sales channels and supply chain into one cooperative platform through a MCMP is that merchants now have complete visibility to the real costs and revenue associated with each and every order, across all channels and from all suppliers. The data warehouse houses all sales transactions under one roof, matching them to their individual purchasing transactions, shipping fees, product costs, and so on. Through a MCMP, merchants can visualize this information in a dashboard setting, making comparison and analysis easy. Merchants can pinpoint profitability values and see exactly where they are succeeding and where improvements should be made.

Financial Integration
A MCMP purposes to create a deeply integrated, comprehensive look at managing the full business needs of a multi-channel merchant. An enterprise class solution digs deep into solving these real world problems that multi-channel merchants face. A strong MCMP integrates with other quality enterprise resource planning (ERP) financial management solutions, such as Microsoft Dynamics GP, or offers its own substantial solution.