How to choose an offline SFA system for preselling and van selling - criteria and a field test

A sales rep app is a tool someone uses dozens of times a day – in a shop, in the car, in a customer’s warehouse with no signal. That is why, when an FMCG distributor or manufacturer chooses an SFA (Sales Force Automation) system, the feature list from a sales presentation says little. What matters is how the system behaves on an ordinary Tuesday on the route.

Below are the criteria worth checking and a test scenario you can run in one day. We write as the maker of the AMPER MSF app, so for each point we also say how AMPER handles it – and at the end, when AMPER is not the right choice.

Preselling and van selling – the difference

Preselling – the sales rep takes an order and the goods are delivered later by the warehouse or a driver. What matters is customer prices, promotions, stock availability and getting the order to the ERP quickly.
Van selling – the sales rep sells from a van: hands over the goods on the spot, issues a document and often takes cash. Add van stock, goods issue documents and printing on site.

Many companies run both models – sometimes the same rep on the same day. The system should handle both in one app, not in two separate ones.

1. Offline work – full, not an emergency mode

The most common disappointment after an SFA rollout: “offline” only means the app does not freeze, but without a connection it cannot calculate promotions or show the customer’s price.

Check whether, without internet:

the full catalogue, the customer’s prices, order history and balances are visible,
promotions and free goods are calculated in the cart the same way as online,
an order or a document can be saved and is sent automatically once the connection is back.

In AMPER: AMPER MSF keeps its data in a local database on the device and syncs it in the background. Promotions are calculated in the app even without coverage, and an order placed offline waits in a queue and is sent once the connection is back.

2. Customer prices and trade terms

In FMCG a “list price” hardly exists. A customer has their group’s price list, category discounts, time-limited prices, a credit limit and overdue payments.

Check whether the app:

calculates the specific customer’s price on its own – from the group price list, the category discount and the time-limited price,
shows the credit limit and overdue payments before the order is placed,
handles the units you actually sell in: pieces, cases, pallets.

In AMPER: price lists are assigned to a customer or a customer group, discounts to categories, and prices can have validity dates. The customer’s credit limit and overdue payments are visible in the app.

3. Promotions – the same in the field and in the online store

If the company also runs a B2B online store, the most expensive mistake is two different promotions: one in the sales rep app and another online. The customer compares and calls to complain.

Check:

whether one promotion can apply in both channels – and whether it can be limited to one,
which types the promotions engine supports: free goods per multiple, free gift of choice, fixed price, line and cart discounts, required mix, quantity and value thresholds,
whether a promotion can be limited to a customer group, individual customers and a budget.

In AMPER: you define a promotion once and choose whether it applies in AMPER MSF, in the AMPER B2B online store or in both. See an example cart with price lists and promotions.

4. Van selling – documents and printing on site

Check whether the sales rep can:

choose a warehouse – e.g. the van stock – and issue a goods issue document on the spot,
print the document on a mobile printer,
take cash and issue a cash document.

In AMPER: AMPER MSF handles orders, goods issue notes (WZ), cash documents and printing on a mobile printer, among other things. The ERP integration writes documents there – orders, goods issue notes and invoices – with no re-keying in the office.

5. Two-way ERP integration

SFA without integration is a second system someone in the office has to copy data from. Ask the vendor specifically:

what data the system takes from the ERP – customers, products, prices, stock, balances,
which documents it writes to the ERP – orders, goods issue notes, invoices,
whether the integration with your ERP is ready and where it already runs,
who maintains it after go-live.

In AMPER: ready-made two-way integrations with Comarch ERP XL, Comarch ERP Optima, SAP, Microsoft Dynamics, WF-MAG and Subiekt GT, and a REST API for other systems. AMPER works with Comarch ERP XL at Kompania Dystrybucyjna, among others. Details: AMPER ERP integrations.

6. Visits, routes and merchandising

Check whether the app supports:

visit plans from the manager and the rep’s own plans,
tasks and surveys assigned to a visit,
shelf photos and display checks,
manager reports – who visited whom and what they sold.

In AMPER: visits, tasks and surveys configured in the admin panel, shelf photos with product recognition, and sales target tracking.

7. Rollout and training

The best app is useless if the sales reps do not adopt it. Ask:

how long training takes and when a rep starts working in the new system,
how long the rollout took at a similar company with the same ERP,
whether you can talk to a customer who uses the system.

In AMPER: a sales rep starts working in AMPER MSF the day after the training – that is how it goes in our rollouts. The rollout at Kompania Dystrybucyjna – the app for 145 sales reps, two online stores and the Comarch ERP XL integration – took 4 months.

8. Deployment model and cost

Check:

whether the system runs in the cloud (SaaS), on your own servers, or both,
what exactly the price covers – modules, number of users, integration, setup and maintenance.

In AMPER: you can choose SaaS (AWS, Azure or OVH, 99.99% SLA) or an installation on your own servers. We set the price individually – here is what the quote is made of.

Test scenario: one day in the field

Before you sign, ask for a test account and go through this scenario with one sales rep:

Turn on airplane mode before setting off on the route.
Open the customer card: order history, balances, credit limit.
Place an order with this customer’s price and a promotion with free goods – check that the free goods are added automatically.
Add the same product in cases and in pieces.
If you run van selling: issue a goods issue document from the van and print it.
Take a shelf photo and fill in the visit survey.
Turn off airplane mode – check that the documents were sent automatically and reached the ERP.
Place the same order in the online store as the customer and compare prices and free goods.
Check in the manager panel that the visit and the order are visible.
Ask the sales rep how long it took to learn the app.

You can try AMPER MSF right away – the demo login details are on the app page.

When AMPER is not the right choice

Better to say it up front:

You only need visit notes. If your sales reps do not take orders and a simple CRM with a calendar is enough, AMPER will be more than you need.
You want to set the system up yourself in an hour. We implement AMPER: we map your price lists, promotions and ERP integration. It is not an app you download and start using after creating an account.
Your sales reps use devices other than iOS and Android. AMPER MSF runs on smartphones and tablets with these systems.
You service installations rather than sell goods. For service jobs, inspections and warranties we have another product – AMPER Flow.

Summary

When choosing SFA for FMCG distribution, test the system in the field, not in a presentation: without coverage, on real customer prices, with a promotion and a document that has to reach the ERP. If you want to run this scenario on AMPER, book a demo.