OFBiz Problems? Solve Them with Expert Support and Consulting from Open Plus
UK online retailers would be wise to consider Apache OFBiz for its lower costs, but consultancy may be necessary for the support you need
Posted by Killian McAleese, 26th April 2011
For most of us it doesn't take a lot of convincing to agree that open source is a pretty good option for ecommerce and multi-channel retailers, and OFBiz is one of the best know solutions retail businesses are likely to come across, hence we offer OFBiz expertise in our consulting services.
Regardless of what the expensive proprietary vendors say, the OFBiz facts speak for themselves, but implementing it requires in-house technical expertise or an outside cunsultant.
ERP and CRM
Apache OFBiz is now a leading enterprise automation software project which includes Enterprise Resource Planning (ERP), Customer Relationship Management (CRM), e-commerce functions and more.
It's impossible to tell exactly how many businesses use OFBiz because it's free and involves no contract, but known users include BT.com, 1800flowers.com and DKNY. And there are many, many more, some of which can be seen here on the OFBiz website.
But one of the most important things for UK businesses considering OFBiz to address is whether you have the in-house resources and expertise required to implement and use it, and if not, whether you can afford outside support services from a consulting company.
Make no mistake, one or other is certainly required. And despite there being numerous helpful tutorials on YouTube, remember that a do-it-yourself attitude with OFBiz can only go so far.
Implementation, Running and Support Costs
The inherent danger with businesses considering open-source software projects like OFBiz is the illusion that they are free.
It's quite true that many such product is free, and you're cutting costs with the decision, but remember nothing is free in business if it ends up taking up lots of your and your employees' time and energy. Could this time not be saved and the financial costs minimised by hiring a consultant's services?
Be careful to consider the potential complexity and customization involved in implementing OFBiz. Your business isn't like every other business: it's special, it has a USP, a specific product and service range, and presumably you've worked hard for your customers.
So it's not difficult to imagine that you may need to customise OFBiz to suit your specific needs. After all it is a maleable software solution designed with customization in mind. And with the work you've already put in, why, at this stage, would you accept a 'one size fits all' approach that doesn't do everything you want and risk fumbling the ball?
Furthermore, whether you like it or not, you're going to run into costs when it comes to training and employing staff to use OFBiz. You'll also need to arrange ongoing support: OFBiz is free and there's therefore no obligation, nor indeed any company behind it as such, to support you.
Consultancy and Support
Luckily these days you can combine the low-cost solution offered by OFBiz and other open-source products with the 'pay as you go' potential of cloud computing through a third-party consultancy.
You'll have to pay one way or another, but you can employ someone else to arrange the implementation, hosting, training, support and whatever else you need. And most importantly, all of this can be done to fit your business.
It's still cheaper than an expensive proprietary vendor, but the consultancy solution provides the attention, customization and piece of mind required for you to stop worring about why your software is failing and get on with running your business.
Open Plus and Apache OFBiz
Find out more about how Open Plus utilises OFBiz in our retail and ecommerce consulting services, including implementation, training and integration you can phone us or fill in the form on our contact page.
Read about the open-source software products we offer expert consultancy services in on our Open-Source IT Solutions page.
Alternatively, if you would like to read in more detail about our specific consulting services, see our What We Do page.
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