How to choose an order taking app
Order taking apps for sales reps and trade shows look alike on their websites. These are the questions that tell them apart. Ask them of any vendor; our own answers are beside each one.
- 1
Which tablets does it run on?
Many order taking apps are built for iPads only. If your team already has Android tablets, or you would rather buy them, check before anything else.
Selenic Orders
Android tablets. It is designed for a tablet screen, and is not available for iPad or iPhone.
- 2
Does it really work with no signal?
Most apps say they work offline. Ask what happens in practice: can a rep find products, see the customer’s prices and place the order with no connection at all, and is an order ever lost when the signal drops?
Selenic Orders
Yes. The whole catalogue, the customers and their prices are on the tablet. Orders are saved the moment they are placed and sent at the next sync, or straight away with Send Now when there is a connection.
- 3
Where is our catalogue and customer data held?
Most order taking apps run on the vendor’s own cloud platform, so your customer list, prices and orders are stored with them. That suits many businesses. If it matters to you, ask.
Selenic Orders
On your own tablets and your own systems. Tablets sync with a folder on the tablet or your own FTP or SFTP server, and can send orders to your own Google Drive. Your catalogue, customers and orders never pass through us; the app contacts us only to keep each tablet’s licence current.
- 4
How does it connect to our ERP or accounts system?
Some apps support a fixed list of systems through a connector or an API. If yours is not on the list, or is old, ask what the alternative is.
Selenic Orders
Through files, so it works with any system that can export and import them. Products, customers and prices come in as CSV, JSON or XML, and orders and new customers go back out in whatever shape your system expects, through templates you can edit.
- 5
Can we start without an ERP at all?
Not every business has one, and not every trade show team wants to wait for an integration project.
Selenic Orders
Yes. Products and customers can be entered by hand on the tablet, or brought in from a spreadsheet, and orders printed or collected as spreadsheet files.
- 6
Does each customer see their own prices?
An order at list price that should have been at contract price is a credit note waiting to happen.
Selenic Orders
Yes: price lists, quantity breaks, sale prices and promotions, with minimum quantities and order multiples kept as the order is built. Tax is worked out line by line, including zero-rated exports for customers with a VAT or EORI number.
- 7
Can the customer sign, and do they get a copy?
A signed order settles arguments later.
Selenic Orders
The customer signs on the screen, credit limits are checked before the order is placed, and the order can be printed or saved as a PDF on the spot.
- 8
Can several salespeople use it, and can we tell who took each order?
Shared logins make it impossible to see who sold what.
Selenic Orders
Each salesperson signs in with their own PIN, so every order carries their name, and several tablets can share one setup. Each order number carries its tablet’s ID, so two tablets never send the same number.
- 9
Are prices published, or is it demo only?
Many vendors ask you to book a demo before they will say what it costs.
Selenic Orders
Our prices are on our website, and the app can be tried on a sample catalogue before you connect or enter anything.
When another app may suit you better
No app suits everyone. Look elsewhere if:
You want iPads
Selenic Orders runs on Android tablets only.
Your customers order online themselves
Selenic Orders is for orders taken face to face. It has no web shop or portal for customers to order from.
You track where reps go
It has no GPS check-ins, visit tracking or route planning.
You take payment at the door
It records the order, the signature and the customer’s credit; it does not take card payments.
Common questions
Is an order taking app worth it for a trade show?
Usually, if you take more than a handful of orders. The order is priced correctly, signed and sent to the office as a file, with nothing typed again after the show. For a few orders with one price for everyone, a printed order form can be enough.
Do order taking apps work without internet?
Most say they do. Ask whether a rep can find products, see the customer’s own prices and place the order with no connection at all. Selenic Orders keeps all of that on the tablet.
Do we need an ERP to use an order taking app?
Not for Selenic Orders. Products and customers can be entered by hand or brought in from a spreadsheet, and orders printed or collected as spreadsheet files.
Try it before you decide
Install the app and choose "Show me how it works" to take an order on a sample wholesaler's catalogue. Still on paper? See paper order forms vs an order taking app.