AI transforms B2B order processing from hours to minutes amid workforce shortages

Artificial intelligence is revolutionizing B2B order processing by dramatically reducing the time and effort required to handle sales transactions. As workforce shortages plague businesses and customer expectations for faster service grow, AI-powered automation offers a compelling solution by transforming hours-long manual processes into minutes-long automated ones. This shift enables sales representatives to focus on relationship building with customers rather than wrestling with data entry and product lookups, ultimately improving both operational efficiency and customer satisfaction.

The big picture: B2B organizations facing an aging, shrinking workforce are struggling to meet customer demands for faster fulfillment and multi-channel access while manual order processing creates significant competitive disadvantages.

• Manual processing of orders received via email, Excel, or PDF is time-consuming and error-prone, requiring extensive data entry and product identification.
• Customer service representatives spend excessive time deciphering partial product descriptions and tracking down items in complex catalogs, delaying order processing during peak demand periods.
• These inefficiencies ultimately disappoint customers and jeopardize future business opportunities in an increasingly competitive landscape.

Key benefits: McKinsey & Company‘s research shows B2B sales organizations using generative AI tools report improved efficiency, increased revenue, and enhanced customer experience.

• Solutions like DataXstream’s OMS+ system integrate with SAP environments to automate order entry directly into back-end systems, transforming hours-long processes into minutes-long ones.
• The system can process orders from various formats (email, Excel, PDF) without manual rekeying, handling even complex 500-line orders efficiently.

How it works: AI-powered order processing systems employ intelligent automation to streamline product identification and order management.

• OMS+ Intelligent Automation can locate products with incomplete descriptions, such as finding an iPhone 16 when a customer simply types “16” among thousands of catalog items.
• The system supports searches using manufacturer numbers, UPC codes, SKUs, and even enables full-text searches for attributes like customer names without requiring specific order numbers.
• Image recognition capabilities allow customers to upload photos of desired products, with AI matching them to the closest available catalog items.

Why this matters: As AI capabilities expand in order processing, customer expectations are rising, creating new competitive standards for B2B suppliers.

• McKinsey notes that customers becoming accustomed to AI benefits like instant responses, 24/7 availability, and self-service features may increasingly prefer suppliers equipped with these technologies.
• Sales representatives freed from data entry tasks can dedicate more time to developing trusted customer relationships, providing strategic value that complements the efficiency gains.