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Odoo and Shippo
The Odoo Shippo Connector is a nifty tool that allows businesses to seamlessly integrate their Odoo apps with Shippo. But what are Odoo and Shippo? And how does the Odoo Shippo Connector help companies?
Odoo offers an extensive range of software tools that help businesses run their day-to-day operations. This suite of business management software includes CRM, e-commerce, inventory, accounting, manufacturing, and warehousing tools, among many others. It includes 30 main applications, which are used by over 5 million companies around the globe. Its vast customer base can be attributed to the flexibility and integration offered by the platform — businesses can keep adding apps to their existing suite as their business grows and new applications are continuously being developed to meet customer needs and expectations.
On the other hand, Shippo is a software company that allows e-commerce businesses to fulfill their shipping needs without any hassle. It is essentially a platform that connects its clients to over national and international 50 shipping carriers. When a customer buys from a Shippo user, the order details are automatically transferred from the e-commerce platform to Shippo so that the operations team can instantaneously begin working on fulfilling the order and it can be sent out for delivery. The platform allows for order tracking and even shows when an order has been fulfilled so that this information can be sent back to the e-commerce platform.
What is the Odoo Shippo Connector?
What if a company wanted to utilize both Odoo’s tools as its enterprise resource planning (ERP) software and Shippo as its shipping provider? That’s where the Odoo Shippo Connector comes in, allowing customers to easily and smoothly integrate both so that data can be automatically synced between the two without the need for human intervention.
For example, when a customer places an order with an Odoo user, the information registered in the Odoo e-commerce software will automatically sync with Shippo so that the order can be fulfilled. Similarly, any shipping providers or delivery methods selected by the client in Shippo will show up on the Odoo website. When an order is sent out, all the details of the order, such as total cost, delivery time, tracking number, etc., are synced to Odoo. Odoo software can then send this information to the client via email.
Essentially, the integration of Odoo and Shippo via the Odoo Shippo Connector allows companies to streamline and automate the order placement and delivery processes of e-commerce platforms without having to lift a finger.
Benefits of the Odoo Shippo Connector
Since the Odoo Shippo Connector does come with a $300 price tag, some small companies might find themselves wondering: why spend money on this application when they could simply perform all of this manually?
The answer to that is simple: to stay relevant among the competition and with the times. As the e-commerce industry is increased swelling and new businesses with innovative models are coming up, it is important to offer your customers the best of the best. And with the Odoo Shippo Connector, work on fulfilling your customer’s order can begin instantaneously. The more you can speed up order fulfillment, the happier your customers will be. And you can’t put a price tag on customer satisfaction.
Furthermore, one of the biggest new trends in the e-commerce industry is automation. Technology has the potential to streamline processes that once required considerable time and effort and were also liable to human error. By simply purchasing the Odoo Shippo Connector, businesses not only save time but also a considerable amount of the money that would have gone to those that would have to manually oversee the entire process. You might be spending money initially but your return will be far greater.
Finally, the best part about the Odoo Shippo Connector is that it is an incredibly flexible tool — it grows as your business grows. If you are a small business catering only to domestic clients, you can choose a carrier that is affordable and delivers to domestic clients. However, if you’re ready to scale your business internationally, you can simply add another carrier that suits you best. Your Odoo software will register this information automatically.
How to Set Up the Odoo Shippo Connector
There is a simple process that will allow you to connect Odoo with Shippo using the Odoo Shippo Connector. Once you have purchased the application, go to GoShippo and (if you do not already have an account) sign up. After signing up, log in to your account and go to Settings. On the left-hand side of the page, you will see a menu in which you will click on the Carriers page. After adding your desired carriers from the list available, you should now visit the API page in the left menu and copy the API key provided. Now, return to the Odoo Shippo Connector application with the API key in hand. To set up Shippo Shipping Instance, all you have to do is go into Shipping Methods and select Shippo. Here, you will enter the API key you copied into the API Key field. Your work is done! If you want to update the carriers in Odoo as well, just click on Update Carriers and the information will be synced instantaneously.
Implementation of the Odoo Shippo Connector
As a user of the Odoo Shippo Connector, you have two options to choose Shippo as the delivery method after a sale is made: during the confirmation of the sale or during the validation of the sales delivery.
If you want to add Shippo as the delivery method when confirming the sale, go to the tab containing the specific sale order. Here, select Shippo in the Delivery Method field and click on Get Rate. Under the Shippo Tab, click on Add a Line to add the details of your package, such as size and delivery time, to get the exact delivery rate. Next, click on Get Shippo Rate. This will display a list of carriers and packages that you can choose from. Make sure to select a rate that has Estimated Days written as greater than 1 or a tracking number will not be generated. Once you have selected your preferred rate, press on Set Price and the delivery details will be added under the sales order’s details. Click on Confirm Order, go to Delivery, and press Validate to confirm the picking of the order. If a pop-up menu is displayed on the screen, simply click on Apply to continue with your order fulfillment. After this, you will be taken to a page that will show you all of the shipping details of the order and allow you to download the shipping label.
However, if you prefer to add Shippo as the delivery method while validating the sales delivery, simply leave the Delivery Method tab blank and proceed to Confirm the order. Go to Delivery and press on the Additional Info tab. Here, you can select Shippo in the Carrier field. Once you have done this, go to the Detailed Operations tab in the same menu and press on Put in Pack. You will be shown a pop-up menu in which you can add the order details, such as size and delivery time, and click on Save. Next, go to the Shippo Rates tab near the top-left side of the screen and select your preferred rate from the list. Finally, you can click on Validate and print out the shipping label.
Conclusion
Using the Odoo Shippo Connector will save your business a lot of manpower, time, and money. It is easy to use, affordable and, best of all, it allows you to sync data between the many different software you use to run your business with a single click. Gone are the days when you had to manually ensure the fulfillment of every order — the Odoo Shippo Connector does the work for you.