Order Tracking

Is order tracking for you?

Consider the level of order tracking you need.

• Should you simply use the built-in order tracking offered by many online couriers?
• Would you benefit from an integrated order tracking system of your own?

It is important that you choose the right approach to match your capabilities as well as your requirements. Ineffectual order tracking can be worse than no order tracking at all, so bear in mind some of these considerations before you decide on the type of order tracking you need:

Built-in order tracking

If you only need order tracking for a part of your business process, for example at the delivery stage, it can be relatively easy to set up.

• Delivery order tracking - many online courier companies - such as TNT, UPS, etc - offer this as a free service. Your customers will need e-mail facilities to receive the shipment number and internet access to visit the courier company's website.
• Website functionality - do you already have a storefront website set up to handle sales electronically? If so, your 'shopping cart' software will usually be able to incorporate tracking data from a courier service. Check with your web developer or ISP.

Integrated order tracking systems

If you're supplying complex products, you may need to be able to integrate order tracking with some of your internal processes - allowing you to track orders from the moment a sale is made. A fully integrated system should be able to generate e-mail notifications, GSM and website content automatically and in real-time. Consider:

• Status reports - is an item on back order, in production, at the warehouse or in transit?
• Real-time inventory information - by knowing lead times for out-of-stock items, you can plan further ahead.
• Customer receipts - these clarify purchase details, plus shipping and handling charges.
• Order histories and audit trails - these allow you and your supply chain partners to monitor the flow of goods.
• Data transfer - find out if the system uses XML (eXtensible Mark-up Language). This universal internet communication will help facilitate smooth data transfer.

E-commerce systems allow you to integrate online order tracking with internal systems:

• BT Ignite's e-store provides online order tracking for GBP 25 per month for a 25 item catalogue.
• IBM's WebSphere Commerce Business Edition is a fully-fledged solution, available for around GBP 50,000 per processor.

This information based on Crown Copyright 2003