Shopify-Odoo Inventory Integration: eCommerce Efficiency Boosted in 30 Days

Struggling to keep your Shopify store and inventory in sync? Learn how SayOne helped an e-commerce store fix its syncing issues and boost sales by 20% in less than a month.

Executive Summary

Our client, a mid-sized retail e-commerce store built on Shopify, used Odoo as their inventory management system. They used “add-on” connectors to sync data across Shopify and Odoo, which became inefficient as the order volumes increased drastically. This lack of sync led to inventory discrepancies, delayed order processing, and a 15% increase in customer returns. As a result, they partnered with SayOne to achieve a long-term solution that supports smooth scaling as well. By integrating Shopify with Odoo’s inventory module using SyncSpider, we simplified their operations, reduced order mismatches by 50%, and enhanced operational efficiency within a month.

The Challenges

The Shopify store experienced the following issues that led them to connect their Shopify store with the inventory system, Odoo.

Order Mismatches and Returns

Discrepancies between stock levels in the store and the inventory system led to overselling or stockouts, resulting in lost sales, customer dissatisfaction, and higher return rates.

Manual Order processing and data entry

Orders from Shopify required manual import into inventory systems, causing delays, errors, and increased operational costs as order volumes increase.

Lack of Advanced Reporting and Forecasting

The Shopify reports lacked detailed insights like supply chain analysis, seasonal trends, or custom KPIs, affecting proactive decision-making.

Complex Workflows for Custom or Variable Products

Handling custom SKUs, variants, or seasonal products involved labor-intensive manual updates, prone to errors in syncing between platforms.

The Solution & its Implementation

We addressed the limitations of the native Odoo-Shopify connector, which struggled with high order volumes, by implementing SyncSpider, an app-to-app connection tool that enables e-commerce businesses to automate effortlessly. SyncSpider automated the complete workflow of Odoo inventory and Shopify to handle each critical operation, from product import to order tracking.

We configured SyncSpider to align with our customer’s unique workflows to solve their challenges and enable smooth order management in the following ways.

• Real-time bidirectional syncing of inventory levels ensures stock updates in Odoo instantly reflect in Shopify, preventing mismatches.
• Automates order transfer from Shopify to Odoo, including fulfillment tracking and invoicing, reducing manual work and speeding up processing.
• Odoo's integrated reporting tools pull Shopify data for comprehensive analytics on inventory, sales, and customer behavior.
• Automatic SKU generation and product synchronization, including variants, tags, and images, streamlines creation and updates across systems.
• Updating the tracking information and order status of fulfilled orders enabled customers to track the status directly.

The implementation was completed in around 25 days, during which we overcame the following challenges.

• There were mismatches in SKUs and product data formats, which could have led to sync failures if not standardized. We used test syncs to identify the inconsistencies and fixed the mismatches.

• We overcame the slowing down of sync from Shopify’s API rate limits by sending updates in smaller batches and scheduling non-urgent updates during low-traffic periods.

• In order to handle errors during the sync, we set up error alerts to get notified of any sync failure. Also, we configured the integration to try again automatically if a sync fails.

Results

• Syncing data between Shopify and Odoo reduced order mismatches by about 50%, leading to a 25% decrease in returns and a 20% increase in sales.
• The automation led to a 30% faster order processing and a 60% decrease in manual tasks.
• Real-time insights enabled proactive choices, leading to better financial decisions from ERP data and a 50% improvement in reporting efficiency.
• Automation and simplified workflows improved task completion rates by 75% and improved customer satisfaction by 20%.

Key Learnings

• Error alerts and automatic retries reduced sync failures to under 1%, maintaining operational continuity.
• Developing precise data mapping between Shopify and Odoo eliminates manual data entry errors.
• Implementing a flexible integration framework enabled the client to handle a 50% surge in order volumes without system bottlenecks.

Looking Ahead

With Shopify and Odoo effortlessly connected, the client is ready to scale effectively. They intend to use SyncSpider to integrate more tools, such as CRM and marketing software, to improve customer interaction and increase sales.

Contact us today to transform your e-commerce business.