With so many options on the market these days, choosing your retail or business management software along with industry-tailored solutions or applications has become a more complex task. Two key questions that might come up:

• Does it meet business requirements in terms of specific functionality, ease of use, flexibility, and scalability?
• Can it easily integrate with value-add services and third-party applications that might be required for your industry?

The ability to add on additional solutions or applications as technology or the industry progresses, has become a crucial factor in the final buying decision. To simplify the acquisition and implementation process for SMEs and franchisees, IQ Retail ensures fully integrated solutions, built to accommodate both proprietary and third-party integrations. The goal is to provide a complete turnkey solution.

The specialised proprietary software includes value-added services, built-on products and modular features developed to integrate seamlessly with IQ Retail’s core solutions like IQ Business, IQ Enterprise or IQ POS. Some of the value added solutions include:

• mobile applications like IQ Retail’s Electronic Proof of Delivery (ePOD) and IQ eSales
• product extensions like offline Point of Sale (POS) module that allows IQ POS users to transact offline
• add-on tailored modules like IQ Workshop and IQ SingleView
• integration modules for third-party apps (IQ API and IQ Bulk Exports FTP
• Or even Business Intelligence solutions like Phocas which simply integrates with IQ Retail’s solutions, enabling greater data analysis in a snap shot view

Furthermore, there are three options to integrate IQ Retail software with any third-party application or software solution.

1. Direct code integration with selected third-party service providers.

Our development team performs integrations with partners requesting direct access to the primary software code. Clients can then purchase this licensed value-added product that includes the desired alteration. This way, companies save substantial time and costs due to the existing integration versus using an API or FTP export to install the same functionality by themselves.

A great example is our partnership with PHOCAS, leading BI and data analysis solution. Similarly, partnering with financial companies such as SureSwipe, FNB or Transaction Junction introduces swift EFT payment integrations. Clients benefit instantly from purchasing the modified software to meet their requirements.

2. Integration via API (application programming interface)

Customers can virtually integrate any third-party applications using an API service. An IQ Retail affiliated business partner or third-party developer can perform the integration development via the IQ API.

For example, a client may use an API integration to gain access between the business management software and a third-party e-commerce website to set up an online store platform.

3. Integration via FTP export (file transfer protocol)

Clients can set up an export directly from IQ Retail’s software using the bulk export feature, IQ Bulk Exports. Integration can be done via business partners and external developers.

For example, the customer may be interested in transferring daily transactions from the software to a third-party tool or system outside of the software's initial scope, such as Qlik Sense data analytics or a Sage accounting system.

In a nutshell, IQ API and IQ Bulk Exports are used to integrate any system as long as a CSV or export function is available from the specific third-party software. Information is shared automatically between our IQ Retail solution and the third-party application after the successful integration service.

Contact us to find out more about our products and integration functionality.

IQ Retail, a Kerridge Commercial Systems Company, offers complete business management software and value-added solutions for small to medium-sized businesses and franchises.