FourChain™ : Sales Automation, Web-based quoting and eCommerce for IT VARS

e-Commerce versus e-Business? What is the difference?

There are many e-commerce systems available offering the familiar 'shopping cart' experience. But for IT resellers who have built their business by developing strong customer account relationships there is much more to e-Business than merely taking customer orders via the web.

E-Commerce is just one facet of an e-Business strategy. E-Business means building your complete business with electronic tools to help you manage your entire business better, while helping your customers manage their entire business relationship with you. By helping them take their own costs out of the process of obtaining your products and services, you'll save them time and money.

For industries where the products sold by all resellers are essentially the same, this extra level of service is what will keep customers coming back again and again.

e-Business via FourChain provides...

■	A completely web-based system that is faster, easier, more convenient and less costly for the customer than the typical document-based (spreadsheets, Word documents, etc.) manual system it replaces. Customer requisitions (quotes) can be initiated online and shared within the customer organization for budgeting and/or approval prior to ordering. This can reduce the customer's own transaction costs dramatically.
■	The ability to segment customer users into requisitioners (those who need the product or service), and purchasers (those who procure them) where needed. The system handles the needs of each differently and helps the customer control un-authorized purchases.
■	The user-specific option to allow the customer purchaser choose the source of the product among your multiple sources, if desired, giving them some control over price and time of delivery. Many corporate and government customers are seeking this to give them the flexibility and accountability they desire.
■	The ability to limit the customer's product selection, on a case by case basis to only those products or vendors approved by the customer, which re-enforces their own procurement decisions and policies. This helps customers meet their own contractual obligations and reduces mis-ordering and returns.
■	The ability to create customer-specific product bundles that re-enforce the customer's own product standards, and allows a complete package of items to be purchased in a single step.
■	Complete order management, including special tools to facilitate high volume or repeat orders - the kind that mean more business for you!
■	The ability to convey or collect additional customer-specific information on the order to facilitate the customer's internal needs. Items such as control numbers, asset tag numbers, configuration instructions and other information can be communicated throughout the procurement process.
■	The ability to create custom reporting for customer management purposes.
■	A platform for integration to your back-office or other systems to give the customer complete start-to-finish visibility of their own orders.

Compare FourChain to standard e-Commerce systems and the difference is clear !