In this tutorial, we will be showing you how using Odoo can benefit a small or medium-sized business.
As times have progressed, businesses big and small have become more complex in their operations. With several departments having to function and share information to one another, the need for an integrated system has grown by leaps and bounds.
More and more small business are implementing ERP systems. In fact, once an ERP system is implemented, it often becomes the backbone of many corporate-scale businesses. Such systems can seamlessly integrate business lifecycles, such as production, inventory management, order processes, and more. An example of this system would be Odoo, one of the most popular ERP systems currently available.
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What is Odoo?
Odoo, which used to be called OpenERP, is a software suite of business applications and modules relating to accounting, manufacturing management, CRM, sales, and more. Odoo was founded in 2005 by Fabien Pinckaers and is an open-source project. This project being open-source and affordable is what led to its success across many businesses.
Odoo works on the principle of modules that can be installed. These are designed to seamlessly and efficiently communicate between themselves and exchange information. This open-source ERP consists of over 30 main modules and more than 16,000 third-party apps and plugins in the app store. With this many plugins, you can be sure that your business will find the right modules for the job.
Since this ERP is usually self-hosted and resides in the business, it can easily be used by businesses of all sizes and requirements.
Some of the features of Odoo ERP include:
- User-friendliness
- Up-to-date and modern
- Integrates with third-party solutions
- Global support
- Less implementation cost
- Readymade apps
- Flexibility
- Highly modular design
The Benefits of Odoo to Small Businesses:
Using Odoo can help your small business website be more efficient and productive, helping you get more done in less time. Here are some of the benefits that Odoo can bring to your business:
1. Facilitates decision-making
Small businesses can make quick decisions as the data provided by Odoo is processed in real-time. Enterprise businesses can save time when making decisions related to inventory management, marketing, accounting, and all other aspects of their business. Making timely decisions can save small businesses from incurring losses and missing deadlines, while also providing a responsive perspective of what works and what doesn’t.
These organizations are also able to detect any potential issues that could be harming their productivity level. With an integrated operations report, company managers are able to make decisions quickly without much delay.
2. Improves Productivity
Small enterprise businesses can reap the benefits of increased productivity by implementing Odoo ERP into their business activities. When most or all aspects of the business are managed efficiently by a single system, employees can focus more on their core business activities.
3. Provides Data Transparency
When you decide to integrate Odoo ERP into your small business, you rule out the possibility of errors occurring when exporting or re-entering the data. The integrated system ensures that each department is handled through its own set of information, reducing the chance of errors or discrepancies in the data.
Additionally, all departments have equal access to any information in a few clicks. This method of data access helps maintain transparency in the organization, reduces the chances of information errors, and also reduces the expenditure on human resources.
4. Encourages Collaboration
In the absence of an integrated system, small businesses often find it challenging to meet their goals of effective collaboration. Employees might usually have a hard time sharing information and keeping this data the same across all users. This results in poor communication and a lack of collaboration.
However, when a system like Odoo is implemented, it provides access to information for all employees at all levels in the organization. Thus, they are in a better position to see the overall picture and understand things better within the organization.
5. Adapt to the Changing Business Environment
The business world is fast-changing with new trends setting in every day. Such industry changes may require considerable time and capital investment from the business to keep up with the competition. This can sometimes cost more than what the business can afford to invest.
With Odoo’s affordable modules, even smaller businesses can adapt to the changing norms, integrate an ERP into their system, and perform better in their target market. It also boosts their confidence and encourages them to stand shoulder-to-shoulder with the other players in the market.
6. Gives a Competitive Edge to Small Businesses
Odoo has fully-integrated and customizable solutions to suit the needs of almost all small and medium-sized businesses. The system is mature and is able to handle small business workflows and aptly meets all organizational requirements.
Odoo as an ERP benefits your business and increases its confidence by allowing you to customize and make your ERP yours. The low operation and maintenance costs further help Odoo’s case compared to other systems.
All these factors together provide a competitive edge to small businesses in the market. It helps them to increase operational efficiency and bring the whole organization under a single user interface.
7. Odoo’s Affordable Value Benefits your Business
Some of the “most affordable ERP” options also burn a hole in the pocket of small business organizations. When compared to the numerous ERP’s out there, Odoo is one of the most affordable and pocket-friendly. Its value for money towards small businesses allows them to start with the most basic functionalities at a minimal cost.
Additionally, businesses can scale up the Odoo’s module as their business needs grow. However, as a small business owner, you can exercise full control over the IT cost and carry out operations with the default functionality of Odoo.
Thus, Odoo as an ERP provides the most affordable value to smaller business organizations. Of course, the savings apply even if the business is larger – Odoo in general is more affordable and is cost-effective.
8. Reduces Costs
By integrating an ERP system into their business, small businesses can reduce a significant burden of overall operating costs. Odoo does so by streamlining all the data into one software application. Thus, one can save the cost of managing different software’s for each department.
9. Customizable Framework
Since Odoo is built on a modular framework, it gives businesses the freedom to develop new business functionalities that can effortlessly integrate with Odoo. Small businesses have needs that are distinct from others. With Odoo’s customizability, they can develop and integrate functionality required by their business.
10. The Bottom line
Odoo ERP is one of the most feasible and beneficial integrated systems for small businesses. With limited resources and several other constraints as a small player in the market, a small business can really improve and grow from the benefits of this wonderful system. Odoo can bring the whole business unit under a single interface and make things easier to manage, with modules existing for almost any business model.
While choosing an integrated system, small businesses need to compare the cost, benefits, and end ROI (or return on investment). The Odoo ERP platform is one such system that stands true to all these factors. It provides wide functionality, scalability, customization, and an intuitive user interface, all at the same time. Most importantly it is affordable and fits every budget, big or small.
Now that you know about Odoo and how it can benefit your business, you’ll now need someone that can manage and maintain your Odoo instance to ensure that it’s always there when you need it. Our fully-managed Odoo hosting is a premium and very valuable asset for any business looking to have a hassle-free Odoo hosting experience. We install, configure, and maintain all of your server’s services and systems 24/7.
If this guide helped you see why Odoo can benefit your business, feel free to share this on social media using our share shortcuts. Let us know what you think of Odoo in our comments section below as well.
An ERP system can be so beneficial for many companies however they are unaware of it or are cautious. As a marketing analyst for an SaaS company I will admit that it is worth implementing. Thanks for sharing this informative piece.