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Web EDI, XML, B2B e-commerce, EDI system, and EDI Third Party FAQ's
Many of the questions that we are asked are listed below. Buyer and supplier enablement, supplier technology, EDI, B2B integration and business-to-business ecommerce questions are covered. You may also want to visit the Glossary section of our web site.Have a question that you do not see an answer for? Call us toll free number at 800-496-3380 extension 10. We will be glad to assist you.
The FAQs are organized into questions that suppliers and questions that buyers ask:
FAQs - BuyersFAQs - Questions that Suppliers Frequently Ask
Top Of Page
What's the elevator pitch on CovalentWorks?
CovalentWorks focuses on the unique needs of small and medium-sized
suppliers. Covalent solutions reduce the costs of doing commerce with customers by improving the
efficiency of transactions, business processes, employees and inventory management.
Competitive suppliers want to:
- increase their efficiency
- help their customers be more efficient
- maintain their customer relationships
As customers continue to emphasize reducing purchasing and fulfillment costs, the opportunities for more efficient ways of doing commerce will continue to increase for suppliers.
CovalentWorks solutions are hosted on the web for easy access. The supplier maintains control of their transactions, their information and their customer relationships.
Satisfied clients are, and will continue to be, the cornerstone of our success.
What is CovalentWorks mission?
CovalentWorks' mission
is to improve the efficiency of buyers and suppliers
by being the leading provider of web hosted solutions
that reduce the total cost of doing B2B commerce
while enhancing partners' business relationships.
What do CovalentWorks solutions do?
- Automate the electronic exchange of commerce information between buyers and suppliers
- Provide an online store that supports the way some buyers want to buy, including online purchases, Punch Out and Round Trip
- Improve efficiency for buyers and suppliers
How long before I see results?
CovalentWorks implementations take just a couple of weeks. Implementation is preceded by planning the tailoring of the solution to your company's needs and your customers' needs.
Is this a big commitment for my company?
Like most solutions, user training is essential. You will probably want to streamline some of your commerce procedures. You may also want to educate your sales and customer service people to make sure that your customers are aware of your company's new capabilities.
Is this a big change for my company?
Most of the suppliers who use our solutions take an 80/20 approach to implementation. They first look for the 20% change that will produce 80% of the benefits. CovalentWorks solutions and our implementation approach are designed to be flexible for the rate of change that is appropriate for your company.
Who in my organization would work with CovalentWorks solutions?
Sales, service, delivery, operations and accounting departments can become more efficient. User roles for CovalentWorks solutions include:- Order configuration and entry
- Fulfillment of orders before delivery
- Delivery of orders
- Accounting for transactions
- Billing
- Accounts Receivable
How can CovalentWorks help increase my value to my customers?
CovalentWorks solutions make it easier for buyers to do business with you. Your customers will be capable of doing business with you anytime and anywhere. Manual commerce documents will be replaced with electronic documents, making you and your customers more efficient. Manual processes and error follow-up are significantly reduced.
Do CovalentWorks solutions replace my phones?
No. Personal service to customers will always require phone conversations. CovalentWorks solutions do replace those transactions that could be better done by your computers "talking" with your customers' computers.
Do CovalentWorks solutions replace my fax machines?
CovalentWorks solutions will greatly reduce the number of faxes you receive and send. Why receive a hard copy purchase order, risk losing it and have to key it into to your back office systems. Why not have your company's computers talk with your customers' computers?
Will CovalentWorks solutions help increase my revenue?
It depends. More and more customers want to automate their business processes with their suppliers. By meeting your customer's needs you have the opportunity to add value to their business. Your customers may be open to doing more business as you help them reach their objectives.
Will CovalentWorks solutions improve my customer relationships?
CovalentWorks understands the importance of your customer relationships. CovalentWorks solutions are designed to improve your customer relationships as you do commerce with your customers online at your web store and as you exchange documents electronically through the Internet or your customer's VAN provider.
What about marketplaces and exchanges?
CovalentWorks solutions can help you hook up to marketplaces and exchanges if you choose to. Many customers prefer a direct hook up with suppliers. They have found it is easier to send and receive B2B transactions directly with their suppliers.
Do I still control my catalog data?
CovalentWorks solutions give you control over your catalog data. You own the solution and your
data. Your customers can view your catalog information online at your web site. Our solutions can
help you send your electronic catalog information to your customers if you want to.
Punch Out and Round Trip capability are efficient purchasing methods that do not require the supplier to distribute
catalog information or customers to maintain large databases of catalog information from multiple suppliers. Efficiency
is generated for the supplier and the supplier’s customers. See the Punch Out and Round Trip pages for more
explanation.
Will CovalentWorks solutions reduce the number of invoices we mail?
Yes. Many of your customers already prefer that they receive invoices electronically because it reduces their costs.
Will my Days Sales Outstanding go down? Will we get paid faster?
Probably. Aging accounts receivable balances are frequently due to incomplete or incorrect invoice accounting codes that your customers need in order to pay you. Most customers want to pay their vendors on time and avoid the expense of manually resolving these issues. CovalentWorks solutions help prevent problems at their source and throughout the interchange between supplier and customer.
FAQs – Questions that Buyers Frequently Ask
Top Of Page
What do you mean by buyers?
Buyers, as we use the term, are customers of suppliers.
Click here to see examples of buyers who transact with CovalentWorks supplier solutions.
How can CovalentWorks help me?
CovalentWorks solutions can help you achieve your efficiency objectives.
You can quickly connect electronically with suppliers. During implementation we tailor our solutions to the
requirements of your business.
Click here to learn more about the business benefits that you and your supplier can
gain
Are CovalentWorks solutions proprietary?
No, CovalentWorks open architecture enables a wide variety of implementations that are
tailored to the specific needs of you and your suppliers.
See the answer to the following question
also.
What standards does CovalentWorks use?
CovalentWorks solutions are open and are not proprietary. Industry standards are incorporated into our solutions based on:
- standards set by several industry organizations including PIDX, CIDX and OFS, along with horizontal standards such as xCBL and various versions of EDI.
- our real world experience with implementations of our solutions for buyers and suppliers
- experience hooking up buyers and suppliers to a wide variety of software including SAP, Oracle, CommerceOne, Ariba, WebMethods, BizTalk and custom applications
What do I do if I have a supplier that could use CovalentWorks solutions to help me achieve my objectives and improve their business?
Please go our contact page and either send an email or give us a call.
Do CovalentWorks solutions work with other channels?
Yes. We have experience with hooking up to a variety of channels including exchanges and third parties such as Ariba, CommerceOne, Pantellos, Digital Oilfield, OFS and Pason. We also have significant insight into how suppliers in this sector are working with marketplaces and exchanges. CovalentWorks solutions help prevent problems at their source and throughout the interchange between supplier and buyers.
