Overview
Modern Retail has been in business since 1998 and has been integrating with Point of Sale (POS) and Enterprise Resource Planning (ERP) systems since 2005. We have also done integrations with various marketplaces, Customer Relationship Management (CRM) systems, distributors, Product Information Management (PIM) systems, marketing platforms, etc. Additionally, we have integration with Shopify, BigCommerce, WooCommerce, and Magento. Needless to say, we have come across many different types of integrations.
This article is meant to explain the approaches most commonly used by Modern Retail when connecting to 3rd parties.
Integration Approaches
Modern Retail integrates these systems using one of the following:
- Application Programming Interface (API)
- File Transfer Protocol (FTP)
- Other
API
There are really two options when it comes to doing an integration using an API. We could either use:
- Vendor's API
- Modern Retail's API
Vendor's API
Over the last few years, cloud-based systems have become very popular. What's nice about many of these cloud systems is they come "pre-packaged" with an Application Programming Interface (API). An API allows 3rd party systems, like Modern Retail, to communicate with it to pass data back and forth. If the vendor has an API, Modern Retail can usually get it "talking" our Integration Middleware, and hence, your website.
Modern Retail's API
Modern Retail is also happy to work with your vendor to see if they can use our API. This approach has worked well for many vendors because it quickly allows them to offer integrations with Bigcommerce, Magento, Shopify, and WooCommerce by simply using our API. Modern Retail's Open API can be found here:
I believe you'll find our JSON API to be both modern and robust. However, we're not perfect and are always willing to add endpoints to fit your particular needs.
FTP
Don't fret if your vendor does not have an API, because in most cases, Modern Retail can still do an integration with them. The most common method when an API is not available is to use FTP.
Basically, Modern Retail will work with your vendor to pass files back and forth over FTP. These files are typically sent to Modern Retail in CSV or XML format and processed by our Integration Middleware. Similarly, Modern Retail will create CSV or XML files to be digested by your system. Oftentimes, the entire process can be completely automated with the two systems exchange data back and forth 24 hours a day.
For more information about Modern Retail's Inventory CSV/XML Uploader read:
Other
Modern Retail is happy to talk to your vendor to understand what type of integration would work better for their particular system. We have lots of experience in doing integrations, and sometimes all it takes is a conversation to figure it out.
Please don't hesitate to Contact Us if you need any help in getting your POS, ERP, CRM, PIM, distributor, etc. integrated with Shopify, WooCommerce, Bigcommerce or Magento website. Thank you.