Connect Online Sales with Your Venue
Ecommerce and Online Sales Integration with EPOS
Connect relevant online sales with your wider EPOS operation while keeping each customer journey clear.
A website product order is different from booking an activity or paying a reservation deposit, so EPOS Bookings approaches each workflow according to what is being sold. Ecommerce integrations can be considered for named platforms and interfaces following technical review, with the required product, order and payment information agreed before a connection is relied upon.
Separate product orders from bookings and reservations
Online commerce can describe several different transactions. A customer buying a branded hoodie from a venue shop is placing a product order. A family reserving a soft play session is making an activity booking. A restaurant customer paying a deposit is completing part of a reservation journey.
Those transactions need different information and operational processes. Product orders may require fulfilment details, while activity bookings need dates, times and capacity. Reservation deposits need to remain associated with the relevant reservation.
Defining the transaction type first makes it much easier to decide what information needs to connect with the EPOS or booking system.
In everyday use
Define what information needs to move
A useful ecommerce integration begins with the data required by each system. For a product order, that may include the relevant product, quantity, order reference and payment status. The business also needs to establish which system is responsible for each record and the direction in which information should move.
This should be agreed for the intended workflow rather than assuming every connected platform automatically synchronises every field in both directions.
If you already use a particular ecommerce platform, provide its name and the required interface or workflow so its technical options can be reviewed before compatibility is confirmed.
Follow an online merchandise order through the venue
Consider a leisure venue that also sells branded merchandise online. A customer visits the website and buys a venue T-shirt. The agreed integration needs to provide the operational information required to identify and fulfil that product order.
If the business offers collection, staff need a clear order reference and process for confirming what the customer is collecting. If delivery is offered, the fulfilment workflow needs the appropriate delivery information.
This is separate from the same customer's activity booking. Even if both transactions involve the same venue, a merchandise order and a timed activity reservation have different operational requirements.
Test exceptions as well as successful orders
Testing should cover more than a perfect completed sale. The business also needs to know what staff should do when an order is cancelled, refunded according to the agreed process or appears to be missing an expected update.
Use representative test orders and follow them through the systems involved. Check that staff can identify the order, understand its payment status and recognise which system should be updated when something changes.
Clear staff ownership is important. Decide who monitors online orders, who handles fulfilment and who investigates an order when the information does not appear as expected.
- Define whether the journey is a product order, activity booking or reservation
- Agree which product, order and payment information needs to move
- Establish the direction of required data movement
- Test completed, cancelled and appropriately refunded orders
- Test the process for a missing or unexpected update
- Assign responsibility for online order fulfilment and exceptions
In everyday use
Scope the integration around your existing platform
Ecommerce platforms and interfaces differ, so a named system should be technically reviewed before an integration is promised. The useful starting point is the exact customer journey and the information staff need afterwards.
EPOS Bookings can then consider the required connection alongside product sales, stock and other relevant EPOS functionality. This creates a defined integration rather than assuming universal compatibility with every ecommerce service.
Your questions answered
Frequently asked questions
Can EPOS Bookings integrate with an ecommerce website?
Ecommerce integrations can be considered for named platforms and interfaces following technical review. The required data and workflow should be defined before compatibility and scope are confirmed.
Is an online product order the same as an activity booking?
No. A product order concerns goods and fulfilment, while an activity booking usually involves a date, time and capacity. Reservation deposits are another distinct transaction type.
Will every piece of data automatically synchronise between systems?
The required data movement should be agreed for the specific integration. Product, order and payment-status information may be relevant, but universal two-way synchronisation should not be assumed.
What should we test before launching an ecommerce integration?
Test successful orders as well as cancellations, the agreed refund process and missing updates. Staff should also know which system owns each part of the workflow and who handles exceptions.
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Discuss your ecommerce integration
Book a demonstration with EPOS Bookings to map your online products, bookings or reservation payments. Bring the name of your existing ecommerce platform and the customer journey you need to support so the required integration can be reviewed.