Food & Beverage Archives - Cloudfy B2B Ecommerce Software

Managing B2B ecommerce security risks at peak times

Cloudfy Inc — Thu, 21 Dec 2023 12:20:49 +0000

Large volume business to business (B2B) ecommerce orders have high values that make them attractive targets for cybercriminals. They have many ways to exploit system vulnerabilities and gain access to confidential company data and other sensitive information.

Attacks can include viruses, malware, malicious software or attachments, false websites and misleading emails. Potentially, one of the most serious types of attack is ransomware, representing almost a quarter of all attacks. Criminals design software which infiltrates business systems and stops them working. Often there is no way to restore operations without the encryption key.

However, according to data service experts three quarters of attacks also have an element of human error. Any planned security measures must take account of both technical and human vulnerabilities.

Defending against security breaches

With a clear understanding of B2B ecommerce security risks there are many things you can do to stop the criminals.

You can use measures to protect online transactions and sensitive customer information, like credit card details or login credentials. These allow you to maintain compliance, protect integrity and ensure confidentiality. Your data is still available when you need it but you can stop unauthorized access, fraud, and cyber threats.

Measures include secure payment gateways, encryption technology, firewalls, and robust authentication processes. You can ensure safe handling of your customer data and financial transactions during your busiest times. Most importantly, a proactive approach helps build customer trust by safeguarding their sensitive information and blocking potential threats.

Example: Henry Schein Inc.

Around three quarters of business transactions for Henry Schein Inc. are via ecommerce and electronic data interchange (EDI). A data breach seriously affected business for the leading distributor of medical and dental products for over four weeks. Cybercriminals stole company data and bank account information for some suppliers.

On 14 October 2023 a major cyberattack of its core systems, included distribution and ecommerce, causing serious sales disruption. A month later the company confirmed key systems remained unavailable with work hampered by the Thanksgiving holiday.

A delay in filing full third-quarter results is expected, along with an insurance claim related to the incident in 2024.

Security risks

Threats for B2B ecommerce companies aren’t only about physical computer systems. There are also exposures in software, networks, and infrastructure.

B2B sellers deal with more complex products, have a more diverse customer base, and manage larger order volumes. Criminals also know that sectors such as energy and petroleum, for example, are time-sensitive and can’t afford business disruption.

High order values and risks to customer loyalty also catch the attention of cybercriminals. Because they can cause more damage, they can demand more for the return of key data. Targeted companies might be more likely to pay a ransom demand to minimize the repercussions of delays, especially during peak times.

Ransomware – a major B2B ecommerce threat

As the name suggests, criminals can hold your company’s critical information to ransom. They can smuggle software into your business systems that encrypts your data. Only they have the encryption key that unlocks your information. However, making a payment doesn’t guarantee you’ll get your data back. Regulators and insurers increasingly advise against making ransom payments.

Sometimes, criminals simply threaten to encrypt your data and demand payment when they haven’t accessed your systems. Or they might introduce a screen locker that stops people using their computers. Your first level of protection is to have access to skilled IT professionals who can quickly identify whether an attack is real or threatened. If criminals gain control of critical data none of your security scans or restoration processes will help.

The damage caused by ransomware is much greater than the price of the ransom. As well as the ransom itself, many businesses lose revenue and future business opportunities.

Without access to your business critical systems, you can’t make sales or support your customers. Adverse publicity damages your reputation and might deter customers and investors in future. The costs of recovery could even put your business survival at risk.

Regular backups for your key data and business systems allow you to respond and recover from ransomware attacks quickly. While you might lose some information you can get everything up and running again without paying the ransom or damaging your reputation.

Security risks in B2B ecommerce

Many B2B companies moved online during the pandemic and might not have had time to implement good security practices. Moving on, adopting more new channels could create gaps in security awareness and expertise. Manufacturers, distributors, and wholesalers are still prioritizing issues associated with pressure on their supply chains. As a result, unaddressed vulnerabilities could leave operations open to criminal attacks.

Example: Colonial Pipeline
In May 2021 a ransomware attack on Colonial Pipeline hit the headlines. Americans feared fuel shortages for essential journeys. With a highly connected national energy infrastructure everyone was aware of the impact. Supply chain interruptions, shortages and disruption of essential services led to increased prices.

The US Cybersecurity & Infrastructure Security Agency (CISA) has since expanded its ‘CyberSentry’ capacity. This provides additional visibility for faster detection of cyber threats that could affect critical operational networks. CISA says: ‘The days of relegating cybersecurity to the CIO or the CISO must end. CEOs and Boards of Directors must embrace cyber risk as a matter of good governance’.

Originally, criminals would target ecommerce sites that hadn’t updated their security to steal money. They have now become more sophisticated, targeting specific industries and groups they can disrupt, giving them more power and access to larger payments.

B2B ecommerce businesses and supply chains in countries like the UK, US, and Canada are likely to have more at stake. It’s worth the criminals’ effort to look for and exploit any type of vulnerability. They might even study business and employee patterns and processes to find the weakest security links. Employee training is a high priority to maintain good security practices, especially at peak times.

Other risks

Remote desktops

With a remote workforce, a virtual private network (VPN) maintains online privacy by masking IP (internet protocol) addresses. A VPN provides encrypted and secure connections to the worldwide web. Without it, attackers might remotely access systems and processes and undermine your business.

Brute force attacks

A brute force attack is a relentless process of trial and error. Usually automated, these attacks often involve guessing potential usernames and passwords. Alternatively, they might use valid credentials stolen from other breaches across multiple systems. This is why your security should include a strong password policy and enforced updates for employees and customers.

Email engineering

Because emails are such a common business tool it’s easy to take their security for granted. Social engineering attacks like phishing and spear phishing target individuals. Business email compromise (BEC) attacks impersonate genuine email account owners to gain access to critical information. They can look very convincing, so staff training and ongoing reminders are essential, not just during peak times.

These emails look credible but have been designed to persuade someone to use a rogue link or open a compromised document. This immediately introduces a harmful program that can infiltrate your business systems. Cyber criminals can then steal your valuable data or lock it up so you can’t access it. Spam filters will prevent these emails, and this can be an effective approach. Also use regularly updated anti-virus software to protect against known threats.

Software updates

Maintaining software is often time-consuming and can disrupt business processes. However, failing to install updates for known vulnerabilities will expose your whole organization to risk. When you have a software as a service (SaaS) B2B ecommerce platform you receive regular updates in the cloud. This is just one of the ways you can make sure your defences stay up to date.

System sharing

In B2B ecommerce, business system integration provides seamless end to end solutions that improve performance and customer service. However, rogue software can scan for shared data that will allow it to infect other computers and systems. Reliable and thoroughly tested integrations and security protocols are needed to prevent this from happening.

The post Managing B2B ecommerce security risks at peak times appeared first on Cloudfy B2B Ecommerce Software.

Why Food & Beverage Companies Need a Purpose Designed B2B Ecommerce Platform

Cloudfy Inc — Wed, 13 Dec 2023 13:59:17 +0000

Food & beverage (F&B) companies can realize great benefits through B2B ecommerce. Efficiency is a top priority when products have limited shelf lives, competition is high and margins are tight. With stringent compliance and regulatory requirements, the right B2B ecommerce solution helps you meet the F&B sector’s unique challenges.

Speed and accuracy are essential in the F&B sector. Challenges from spoilage to compliance and stringent margins make effective and reliable sales processes vital.

You already know most consumer ecommerce platforms don’t have the features needed for business to business (B2B) F&B sales. With Cloudfy’s cloud based B2B ecommerce solution for the F&B sector you can easily manage around-the-clock ordering for multiple locations.

Cloudfy is purpose designed for complex high volume sales and helps you simplify your operations and reduce your costs. Your customers can easily order what they want, when they need to, with clear information about pricing and deliveries. With a sales rep app and customer ordering app included, you’re ready for anytime, anywhere sales.

Just one of Cloudfy’s many bespoke features is serialized licence number management. Cloudfy allows you to easily assign unique licence numbers to your wholesale orders for simplified tracking, returns and recalls.

You can simplify your order-to-cash (O2C) processes, reduce administration and be ready to scale your operations as your business grows.

B2B ecommerce features purpose designed for the F&B sector

SEO

Search engine optimization (SEO) features improve your B2B ecommerce site’s search engine rankings, helping you attract new customers. They might include easily customized page titles and descriptions, and keywords for each page and product on your site. Along with well-structured pages and links containing relevant keywords you’ll help customers find you online.

Easy user interface

Your customers will buy online if it saves them time so easy site navigation, helpful searches and simple reordering are key requirements. With early to late opening hours, around the clock self-service is ideal in the F&B sector. Your customers can manage their payments, returns, and back orders at convenient times. All their accounting records are at their fingertips and they can easily download copy invoices and account statements. Your B2B ecommerce site can automatically create tailored order lists based on their purchasing history.

For multi-site businesses centralized ordering with multiple delivery addresses simplifies everything. Advanced account and order management features support separate locations and accounts along with delegated purchasing with central spending control. Separate buyer accounts with their own order lists provide flexibility, easy reporting and analysis. Alternatively, if requirements change, global updates can be made to all lists.

Back office support

Manual data entry slows down processes and can introduce errors. Connecting your B2B ecommerce portal with accounting, warehouse management and order processing systems improves processes. Tried and tested integration with your enterprise (ERP) systems provides a complete view of your business operations.

Product information

Effective product information management (PIM) allows you to create customer specific catalogs and to restrict order quantities or product combinations. This is especially important if you have a large product catalog. You can establish exclusivity deals and hide products according to your customer’s profile.

Bespoke promotions

No two customers are the same, so your promotions must be personalized to meet their needs. Advanced marketing features give you flexibility to run promotions based on pricing, selected rewards, or custom bundles, for example. With access to detailed reports, you can easily evaluate the effectiveness of different approaches.

Real time reporting

Tight F&B profit margins demand fast and effective reporting. If supply costs increase, it’s essential to calculate the impact on revenue quickly and update pricing. Your customers also need to calculate their own margins before placing their orders. Easy to use calculators can update recommended retail prices (RRP) or provide a picture of gross profit based on sale prices.

Inventory visibility

You can improve visibility throughout the supply chain with accurate and reliable inventory information. Color coding can show when stocks are running low to help your customers manage their orders and avoid delays. You can also provide ‘back in stock’ notifications.

Delivery options

Making sure your customers receive their orders when they need them is critical. Delivery configuration features allow you to show delivery days by location and latest order times. You can also include options for third-party premium deliveries for urgent orders on weekends or Bank Holidays, for example.

EDI and PunchOut

For your larger customers you can streamline purchasing with electronic data interchange (EDI). You can even create their own bespoke PunchOut catalogs to simplify their internal procurement and approval processes. Your customers can also place their orders using Excel spreadsheets or their own favorites lists. No matter how orders are placed, you can manage them all seamlessly within your own business systems.

D2C sales

If your current business model is exclusively B2B your ecommerce platform offers opportunities to explore direct to consumer (D2C) sales. This could provide a new revenue stream to complement your existing trade-only channels, helping you diversify your sources of income. With the right B2B ecommerce platform you don’t have to launch an additional website or add to your IT overheads. You can explore new consumer-focused markets quickly and cost effectively.

Book a free Cloudfy demonstration today to discover the power of a purpose designed B2B ecommerce platform for your F&B operations.

The post Why Food & Beverage Companies Need a Purpose Designed B2B Ecommerce Platform appeared first on Cloudfy B2B Ecommerce Software.

Food & beverage ERP solutions to help reduce your costs and improve profitability

Cloudfy Inc — Wed, 18 Jan 2023 08:19:51 +0000

To keep pace with demand in the fast-moving food and beverage (F&B) sector enterprise resource planning (ERP) systems have become essential tools. With such a wide range of options available, how do you choose the right one for your F&B business?

Ideally, your ERP system will have all the functionality you need for finance, accounts, and purchasing so customizations and workarounds won’t be needed. You’ll also want to be sure integration with other key systems such as your business to business (B2B) ecommerce platform, production, warehousing and distribution can be achieved seamlessly.

With over a decade of experience meeting the needs of B2B operations, here are some things the Cloudfy team suggests will help you make your choice.

Your F&B business requirements

Firstly, it’s important to be aware that many ERP systems are designed for the most general business processes, so they might not work well in the F&B environment. Create a checklist of your top priorities, such as:

Accounting and operations – margins in the food and beverage sector have always been tight. The rising costs of raw materials and inflation are also affecting the spending power of your customers, so you will want to have accurate and up to date information about all aspects of your business in real time. If it’s difficult to integrate an ERP solution with inventory, purchasing and sales processes to minimize human data entry errors you won’t have the complete picture you need.

Compliance – stringent regulations make quality control a priority. You can save time and simplify your compliance and reporting processes when your quality control functions are integrated with your ERP system to help manage your supply chain and quality control data.

Production and storage – the limited shelf-life of many F&B products means you will want a clear and reliable view of production and storage that will alert you when products are reaching their expiry dates. Data about spoilage, damage to packaging and real or potential contamination will all help you improve performance and profitability and minimize waste.

Warehousing – the time your products spend in your warehouses is unprofitable for your business, so you will want to maintain peak efficiency from use of space to picking, packing and despatch. Stock tracking and management are essential to meet demand, ensure food safety, build brand value, and support business growth. Making sure you can take advantage of state-of-the-art warehouse management systems and processes that help you to optimize your performance is an important requirement.

How your ERP system supports your business

The F&B sector is critically sensitive to market trends and supply chain disruptions. Availability and cost of raw materials, effective and environmentally sustainable distribution, efficiency and cost-effectiveness are key elements of success.

Accuracy – an ERP system helps you manage and streamline everything from procurement and finance to human relations and marketing. Most importantly, it provides a single source of accurate and reliable information about your key business operations. When orders are placed via your B2B ecommerce platform, electronic data interchange (EDI) or through your field sales team, you can reliably confirm stock availability, prices, and shipping information.

Consumer preferences – your consumers are much more aware today of the environmental and health implications of their food and beverage choices. You will need to respond to these changing preferences and be able to demonstrate how you are reducing your carbon footprint and supporting producers. Your ERP can help you consolidate large amounts of data from many sources into useful reports for both internal use and external reporting.

Regulations – across the sector, the regulatory landscape is changing continuously, creating significant administrative overheads. Compliance failures can be damaging to your brand and costly if they result in fines. Your ERP will help you collect and monitor key data to help you meet your obligations.

The organizational benefits of an ERP in the F&B sector

When choosing an ERP system for your food and beverage business, you will want to have clear and measurable goals in mind so you can be confident you will achieve a good return for your investment.

Accurate and reliable near real-time information shared across your organization means you can manage business performance more effectively, plan for growth with confidence, and improve efficiency so you can reduce your working capital requirements. Other benefits include:

Costs – you can quickly highlight opportunities for cost reductions.

Performance – companies that implement an ERP system can reduce process times, helping to optimize performance.

Agility – accurate information helps companies to make data-based decisions quickly and with confidence.

Efficiency – with a clear overview of business operations you can reduce duplication, improve production efficiency, and reduce costs.

Customer service – you can automate processes to confirm order details, inventory levels, and delivery times to reduce the number of order status requests your team must deal with.

Traceability – an ERP system allows you to track products throughout the production cycle to meet food safety regulations and to maintain quality.

Automation – – inventory management, product tracking, and order management are all time-consuming tasks. You can free up resources for other activities through automation using internet of things (IoT) devices and B2B ecommerce self-service.

Collaboration – with a reliable shared source of information your internal teams and suppliers can collaborate more effectively to build better relationships and improve communication.

Production – the complexities of recipe and formula management can be more easily managed when your ERP supports modeling of process changes.

Quality – sensors can input information such as temperature or consistency directly to your ERP system and highlight when pre-defined thresholds are reached.

Allergens – your ERP system can also help you to manage the stringent requirements for isolation of specific ingredients.

Seamless business systems and processes

Cloudfy is a leading software as a service (SaaS) B2B ecommerce solution, designed to help your growing food and beverage business to simplify, save and scale.

Based on our extensive experience in business to business solutions, Cloudfy offers a cost-effective approach that will seamlessly integrate with your ERP solution.

To find out more book a free Cloudfy demonstration.

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