Top 5 E-commerce Integration Requests from Mid-Market Brands

The behind-the-scenes setup that keeps growth from getting messy

E-commerce leaders usually want something pretty simple: a system that can grow with them without creating more work for the team. Once orders start picking up or a new channel gets added, the cracks in disconnected systems start showing right away.

Data lags. Inventory counts drift. People spend way too much time fixing issues that shouldn’t exist. Revenue can slip overnight without anyone noticing until it is too late.

This is why integration and automation have become a major focus for brands trying to scale without burning out their teams. For mid-market companies running on NetSuite, a strong integration strategy can cut out a lot of manual cleanup, keep every channel aligned, and pull back revenue that used to get lost in the day-to-day shuffle.

After speaking with many CFOs, COOs, and operations leaders at fast-growing retail, wholesale, and lifestyle brands, we notice the same five integrations are mentioned most often. These integrations offer the most stability, visibility, and value for teams aiming to grow without adding more staff.

If your brand is moving into new channels or getting ready for a busy season, these five integrations are essential and shouldn’t be missed.

1. Shopify

Shopify sits at the center of most modern ecommerce brands, and you can feel it the moment order volume starts to climb. The connection between Shopify and NetSuite becomes the place everyone checks to see what is really happening. Ops wants orders that move cleanly from click to fulfillment. Finance wants numbers they don’t have to second-guess. And most teams just want fewer curveballs in their day.

When the Shopify integration is truly working, everything feels lighter. Teams get the automation they have been hoping for. No waiting on slow batch updates. No digging through old exceptions that keep resurfacing. A solid connection gives leaders the confidence to launch new products, push bigger promotions, and actually trust the numbers that guide their decisions.

If strengthening this integration is on your list, this page is a good place to start.

2. Amazon

Amazon can drive a massive surge in orders, but it usually brings a layer of complexity that catches teams off guard. Orders, fees, settlements, variations, marketplace rules, all of it starts piling up. Before long, things get messy.

And if the integration isn’t set up the right way, teams end up juggling spreadsheets just to keep Amazon in check instead of relying on their ERP. That slows everything down and makes mistakes even more likely.

Mid-market brands often look for automation that accurately reconciles settlements, updates inventory in real time, and eliminates error-prone workflows. Once this connection is reliable, teams can spend less time fixing problems and more time scaling new listing strategies and promotions.

Our clients on AlturaCare ask us to support these requests because they want someone proactively watching the integration rather than reacting once something breaks.

3. Walmart Marketplace

Walmart is becoming a more important channel for mid-market brands. The challenge is that Walmart demands a level of accuracy that many internal systems find hard to maintain. If inventory values are off or acknowledgments are delayed, brands can face penalties or have their listings suppressed.

Brands ask for automation that validates data before it leaves NetSuite. Clean status updates, stable inventory syncs, and fewer manual checks create the breathing room teams need to expand confidently into Walmart’s marketplace audience.

Walmart usually becomes a priority right after Shopify and Amazon, especially for brands preparing for their next major revenue milestone.

4. Target DVS

Target DVS appeals to brands that want tighter control over their assortment and a direct relationship with Target’s online shelves. It gives teams more ownership, but it also raises the bar on accuracy. Orders need to move cleanly, inventory has to stay aligned, and finance depends on data that actually reflects what happened that day. If any of those pieces slip, the workflow turns messy fast.

Brands that land in the DVS program usually want a setup that cuts out as much manual work as possible. The fewer touchpoints, the easier it is to keep up with Target’s requirements and avoid the back-and-forth that slows teams down. When the connection runs the way it should, operations feel steadier, and teams can focus on growing the channel instead of fixing yesterday’s mistakes.

5. BigCommerce

Growing wholesale and DTC hybrid brands often choose BigCommerce for its added flexibility and the space it provides to build more specialized workflows. It becomes even more powerful once it connects cleanly to NetSuite. Teams want automation that can handle bundles, custom catalogs, and inventory spread across multiple locations with as few touchpoints as possible.

A strong BigCommerce integration reduces error volume, improves reporting accuracy, and strengthens the operational spine behind complex order flows. For many mid-market brands, this is the integration that enables an omnichannel strategy.

Why these integrations matter more for mid-market brands

Mid-market brands have something unique. Enough volume to create real complexity, but not enough internal staff to manage it without the right systems. The result is a growing need for automation that reduces manual tasks while supporting expansion into new revenue channels.

This is precisely where Altura’s clients see the biggest lift. We have seen clients cut their month-end close from 10 days to 4. Others have unlocked millions in annual revenue by automating outdated manual processes that were holding them back. These wins come from stable ecommerce integration, cleaner workflows, and continuous optimization that keeps the system improving over time.

If your brand is preparing for its next stage of growth, two strong next steps are here.

1. Strengthen your system foundation

2. Add proactive support and automation oversight

You can also explore related articles on the Altura blog to dive deeper into channel expansion, NetSuite best practices, and the role of automation in scaling smarter.

The 3 Most Common ERP Performance Failures (And How to Fix Them)

ERP problems don’t always scream. Sometimes… they whisper

ERP issues don’t usually show up with alarms or flashing alerts. Instead, they slip in quietly. Maybe a report is late, a team slows down, or someone creates a spreadsheet workaround that eventually becomes the norm. It seems minor at first, but it can turn into a big problem.

Over time, these small inefficiencies add up. You lose time, waste money, and execution slows down. For companies with $10M to $100M in revenue, facing these ERP problems is almost expected.

The good news is that most ERP breakdowns fit into just a few categories. Once you identify them, you can fix them, and the return on investment can be significant.

Let’s look at what usually goes wrong, what it costs, and how you can fix it for good.

1. The integration headaches that drain revenue

High-growth brands usually rely on a network of systems. Shopify or Amazon drives demand. NetSuite handles accounting and inventory. A 3PL ships the product. And a tool like Celigo ties it all together.

At least, that’s how it’s supposed to work.

When one of those connections breaks, chaos follows. Orders get stuck. Inventory data becomes unreliable. Your team shifts from scaling to firefighting. And while the stress is visible, the real cost often isn’t.

Take one retailer we worked with. They were losing 2% of annual revenue—$400,000 on a $20M business—because Amazon and Shopify orders weren’t syncing with NetSuite. Their team just called it “system issues,” but it was really a revenue leak.

Contrast that with Softies, a DTC brand that cleaned up its order flows. By stabilizing their integrations and cutting 10 manual order-entry roles, they unlocked $2.3M in new revenue and saved over $500K annually.

When integrations break, the ripple effects hit every team:

• Finance gets unreliable numbers

• Ops loses trust in inventory data

• Customer support gets buried in tickets

• Leadership starts making decisions in the dark

Fixing this starts with visibility. You need to run a real diagnostic: map out your data flows, find where things are breaking, and link those issues to business outcomes. Then, rebuild your system based on how your business actually works today, not how it was first set up. 

With a scalable integration strategy, you can protect revenue, save time, and grow without adding more staff.

2. Reporting that’s slow, outdated, or flat-out wrong

Let’s be honest: reporting problems aren’t just a finance issue. They affect every team and every major business decision. When ERP reports are late, messy, or inconsistent, the whole company feels the impact.

We’ve worked with businesses where the month-end close took more than 10 days. That kind of delay isn’t just frustrating. It’s expensive. In one case, we helped a client reduce it to 4 days, saving more than $57,000 in annual productivity costs.

Why does this happen so often? Usually, the root causes are pretty clear:

• Messy or inconsistent data coming from upstream systems

• NetSuite modules that aren’t configured correctly

• Bloated transaction volumes that overwhelm the system

When leaders stop trusting the data, they start to hesitate. Inventory purchases get delayed, forecasts become less accurate, and strategic plans turn reactive. In short, everything slows down.

The solution isn’t to work harder; it’s to clean up your data environment. This means tightening data flows, reviewing accounting structures, and automating routine tasks such as reconciliations and report preparation.

SMYTHE is a great example. They were spending hours manually reconciling Shopify data. We automated that flow and saved them more than $10,000 annually. But more importantly, their team started trusting their data again… and that trust translated into better, faster decisions.

3. Manual workarounds are costing you more than you think

When ERP systems can’t keep up, people fill in the gaps. Someone builds a spreadsheet, another person manually fixes a field, and everyone insists it’s just temporary.

But six months later, it’s the new normal.

Manual workarounds kill profitability quietly. Here’s how:

• Time gets wasted on tasks that should be automated

• Orders move more slowly, delaying revenue and cash collection

• Labor costs rise for low-value work

• Human error increases and impacts customers and partners

In many product companies, up to 15% of orders need human intervention. If you process 20,000 orders a year, that’s more than $62,000 wasted on time alone.

It gets worse when teams start to see the system as fragile. They stop trying to improve it, and minor optimizations feel risky, so manual work continues.

That’s why automation needs to be intentional. Begin by mapping your end-to-end processes. Find the repeated manual steps that take a lot of time and don’t add strategic value. Once done, rebuild those flows in NetSuite and your integration tools so they run automatically.

Don’t just assume things are better. Instead, track the impact with real numbers… error rates, time saved, and revenue gained. Automation builds efficiency and confidence at the same time.

Why these ERP problems keep happening

If it feels like you’re constantly battling the same ERP headaches, you’re not alone. These issues aren’t unique to your company. We’ve seen them across dozens of industries… from eCommerce and retail to wholesale and manufacturing.

Most ERP challenges come down to the same root causes:

• The system was built for where your business was, not where it is now

• Your internal ERP owner left or is stretched too thin

• Integrations were duct-taped instead of being properly designed

• Reporting was built around short-term needs, not long-term architecture

• Your vendors focused on tasks instead of business outcomes

The result is a system that works most of the time, until it suddenly doesn’t.

That’s why we believe in a structured, repeatable approach. We've seen it work with all of our clients, and it leads to faster results, fewer surprises, and clearer ROI.

How to fix your ERP without blowing it up

The best part? You don’t need to rebuild everything from scratch. In most cases, the foundation is solid so you just need to realign it to today’s business.

Here’s the four-step approach we use with nearly every client:

1. Run a quantified diagnostic

Start with the facts. Our clients on AlturaCare start with a comprehensive system HealthCheck that shows where things are failing, how much it's costing, and where the biggest returns are. It also helps get leadership aligned around fixing it.

2. Align systems with how you operate today

Your ERP should match how your business actually runs today, not how it was first set up. That means aligning it with your current financial setup, inventory flow, sales channels, and how your teams really work.

3. Rebuild automation around scale

Eliminate as much busywork as you can. Focus on automating tasks… like forecasting, reconciliation, and order fulfillment. The goal is to keep operations running smoothly even as your business scales—preferably without adding more people.

4. Build in continuous improvement

Your ERP isn’t a set-it-and-forget-it system. The best-run companies treat it like a living asset that evolves with the business. That’s why they rely on embedded partners rather than one-and-done consultants.

What happens when you get ERP right

When your ERP starts supporting the way your team actually works, everything gets easier. Month-end gets wrapped up faster. Orders move with fewer errors. Revenue climbs without hiring more people. Costs drop. Teams spend less time putting out fires and more time moving the business forward. And leadership gets the visibility they need to make smart decisions.

That’s when your ERP stops holding you back… and starts helping you grow.

What could that look like for your business? Take a look at our NetSuite Optimization Services. And if you need data to help make the case internally, Gartner’s ERP benchmarks are a great place to start.

Growth shouldn't come with operational chaos. Let’s fix what’s slowing you down so you can scale faster, smarter, and with more confidence.

See what your ERP can really do. Book a call with us today and start uncovering the ROI you have been missing. Ready to run faster and scale smarter? Talk with our team about AlturaCare and get a plan built around your business.