ERP integration: connect your ERP to the rest of the business

Your ERP or accounting system is meant to be the single source of truth for the business. In practice, it often only knows what someone has typed into it. Orders arrive in a web store, customers are managed in a CRM, stock moves through a warehouse system, and each of those changes has to be copied across before finance can rely on the numbers.

ERP integration connects those systems directly, so your ERP stays complete and up to date without the re-keying.

What is ERP integration?

ERP integration is the automatic exchange of data between your ERP or accounting system and the other applications your business runs on. Zynk connects ERPs such as:

• Sage including Sage 50, Sage 200, Sage 200 Cloud Standard and Sage Intacct
• Oracle NetSuite through our NetSuite integration
• Microsoft including Dynamics 365 Business Central and Dynamics NAV 2009 R2
• Other finance systems such as Access Dimensions, Intuit Enterprise Suite, Xero and QuickBooks

On the other side sit the systems that create and consume ERP data: ecommerce platforms such as Shopify and Magento, CRMs such as Salesforce and HubSpot, warehouse and order management tools such as Linnworks and Mintsoft, and databases and files such as SQL Server, Excel and CSV.

The cost of a disconnected ERP

When your ERP isn't connected, the gaps are filled by people and spreadsheets:

• Double entry. Orders, customers and supplier invoices are typed in twice, once where they start and again in the ERP.
• Out-of-date stock and pricing. Sales channels show figures that no longer match the ERP, leading to overselling or incorrect prices.
• Slow month-end. Finance spends days reconciling transactions that should already have been posted.
• Errors that spread. A mistake keyed into one system is copied into the next, and is harder to trace each time.
• Projects stall. Moving to a new ERP or adding a channel becomes a large IT project because every connection is bespoke.

What you can sync

The records involved depend on your systems, but a typical ERP integration with Zynk covers:

• Sales orders and invoices from ecommerce, marketplaces, CRM and EDI into the ERP
• Customers and suppliers, created once and kept consistent everywhere
• Products, prices and stock levels, maintained in the ERP and published to every channel
• Despatches, payments and credit notes, posted back so ledgers stay current
• Purchase orders and goods received, linking suppliers and warehouses to finance

How ERP integration works with Zynk

1. Choose the systems and the direction. Decide which system owns each record, for example products in Sage 200 and orders in Shopify.
2. Map the data. Match customers, products, nominal codes, tax codes and any custom fields to fit how your ERP is set up.
3. Set the schedule. Run integrations on a schedule, on demand or in near real time, depending on volumes and how quickly each team needs the data.
4. Monitor with confidence. Every transfer is logged and errors are flagged, so problems are fixed before they reach the ledger.

Zynk is low-code, so new connections and process changes take minimal development time. When you add a sales channel or switch ERP, you change the configuration rather than rebuild the integration.

What to look for in ERP integration software

• Native connectors for your ERP and your other systems, not just one side of the flow
• Support for the records your business relies on, including orders, stock, purchasing and payments
• Flexible mapping for custom fields, multiple companies and multiple warehouses
• Two-way sync with clear rules about which system wins
• Logging and alerts your team can act on without calling in IT
• One platform that also covers CRM integration, order processing and reporting as you grow

Get started with a template

If you run Sage, a ready-made template can get you live quickly. Popular ERP templates include Shopify to Sage 200, Magento to Sage 200, Linnworks to Sage 200, WooCommerce to Sage 200 and Sage 200 to Salesforce.

See all integrations to check the systems you use, or browse templates for a pre-built starting point.