Alternatives to Linnworks?
Discussion
I've just had a conversation with Linnworks as they have decided to "implement exciting new features" and as such my current monthly bill will now be changing from £40 (+VAT) to £150 (+VAT).
I've decided these features aren't exciting enough to justify my monthly bill more than tripling, so will shortly be informing them where to stick it.
I don't particularly need the software, but it is nice to have, so my question is - are there any (cheap) alternatives to Linnworks?
All I need it for is for stock control (Ebay & Amazon) and for printing orders - nothing else.
I've decided these features aren't exciting enough to justify my monthly bill more than tripling, so will shortly be informing them where to stick it.
I don't particularly need the software, but it is nice to have, so my question is - are there any (cheap) alternatives to Linnworks?
All I need it for is for stock control (Ebay & Amazon) and for printing orders - nothing else.
This has been a bit of a blow to myself also, I am still half way through migrating from 'TradeGecko' only to discover the price increase (although double for myself).
TradeGecko is a good program and is a lot easier to use for phone orders etc but if you have a technical glitch they can take ages to respond. I had an issue with their software messing up my stock levels which took approx. 7 days to even reply too even with constant hassling from my part, unfortunately this error caused me to lose thousands of pounds in sales. This spurred me to look at alternatives including LinnWorks, tbh I am quite happy I can pick up the phone and speak to somebody if there is an issue. You can see the value for bigger sellers when a days loss of takings can equate to tens of thousands of pounds, a few hundred quid a month for that peace of mind isn't a bad price to pay!
Another trick other platforms do is charge per channel integration, LinnWorks provide unlimited integrations, if your a multi platform seller this is good value. I only sell on Magento & eBay but once I am up and running i'll stick everything on Amazon and see how I get on.
I've looked into the logistics of setting up a stock control/order management program simply for the small seller, I definitely think there is a gap in the market for people who sell on eBay & Amazon from home or on a casual basis. £35 a month or so would be an acceptable figure and there are 10 times as many of these people as there are the bigger sellers.
If somebody has a few hundred K and would like to fund this project please give me a shout
TradeGecko is a good program and is a lot easier to use for phone orders etc but if you have a technical glitch they can take ages to respond. I had an issue with their software messing up my stock levels which took approx. 7 days to even reply too even with constant hassling from my part, unfortunately this error caused me to lose thousands of pounds in sales. This spurred me to look at alternatives including LinnWorks, tbh I am quite happy I can pick up the phone and speak to somebody if there is an issue. You can see the value for bigger sellers when a days loss of takings can equate to tens of thousands of pounds, a few hundred quid a month for that peace of mind isn't a bad price to pay!
Another trick other platforms do is charge per channel integration, LinnWorks provide unlimited integrations, if your a multi platform seller this is good value. I only sell on Magento & eBay but once I am up and running i'll stick everything on Amazon and see how I get on.
I've looked into the logistics of setting up a stock control/order management program simply for the small seller, I definitely think there is a gap in the market for people who sell on eBay & Amazon from home or on a casual basis. £35 a month or so would be an acceptable figure and there are 10 times as many of these people as there are the bigger sellers.
If somebody has a few hundred K and would like to fund this project please give me a shout
Edited by Mudgey on Thursday 22 September 09:47
We are about 3/4 into building a product which deals with multi channel, stock control, and cheap shipping. Everything is modulated so you can turn on the services you need. Nothing to see really but you can always sign up for the beta launch http://www.packdash.com/
There has to be a market out there for something like this - a sort of Linnworks "Lite" if you like.
Like thousands upon thousands of others, I sell on Ebay & Amazon - not a lot, but enough to warrant a tool that can sync stock levels (essential) and print invoices (very nice to have). I don't want / need all the other crap Linnworks have decided I need & especially not when my monthly bill goes from £48 to £180...
Like thousands upon thousands of others, I sell on Ebay & Amazon - not a lot, but enough to warrant a tool that can sync stock levels (essential) and print invoices (very nice to have). I don't want / need all the other crap Linnworks have decided I need & especially not when my monthly bill goes from £48 to £180...
uber said:
We are about 3/4 into building a product which deals with multi channel, stock control, and cheap shipping. Everything is modulated so you can turn on the services you need. Nothing to see really but you can always sign up for the beta launch http://www.packdash.com/
Interesting Lee - what are your plans for it or are you developing for another ? I know a guy who got huge backing for Electio which is developed by the Metapack guys however its a shipping model only.Edited by DSLiverpool on Sunday 25th September 08:13
DSLiverpool said:
Interesting Lee - what are your plans for it or are you developing for another ? I know a guy who got huge backing for Electio which is developed by the Metapack guys however its a shipping model only.
It's all in house and being developed to roll out as a product. It started out as an out the box Stripe style API which quickly turned into something a bit more like a managment tool. For small retailers it really is plug and play so they have access to a number of cool features & great rates with a click. Larger retailers will be able to mimic Argos/Prime Now style delivery using what is avalible in that location i.e local courier or UberRush etc.Edited by DSLiverpool on Sunday 25th September 08:13
As a part of that stock control is key so features heavily into the system
Pricing will be free for the shipping API only and we are looking to put out the small business for less than £30 a month.
northwest monkey said:
There has to be a market out there for something like this - a sort of Linnworks "Lite" if you like.
Like thousands upon thousands of others, I sell on Ebay & Amazon - not a lot, but enough to warrant a tool that can sync stock levels (essential) and print invoices (very nice to have). I don't want / need all the other crap Linnworks have decided I need & especially not when my monthly bill goes from £48 to £180...
Been saying this for the last couple of years, I don't know why there are so few offerings out there.Like thousands upon thousands of others, I sell on Ebay & Amazon - not a lot, but enough to warrant a tool that can sync stock levels (essential) and print invoices (very nice to have). I don't want / need all the other crap Linnworks have decided I need & especially not when my monthly bill goes from £48 to £180...
Inkfrog Open is good. May struggle with very high volumes but if you're doing tens of orders per day rather than hundreds/thousands, then it's ideal. Neatly designed and costs $9 a month, definitely due a price hike but even then it'll be good value.
I also use M2E Pro with magento - worth checking out if you use that platform.
Neither are as fully featured as Linnworks, but both are far far cheaper.
loafer123 said:
It doesn't help with stock control, but we use Zenstores for order processing and it is fantastic.
+1 we moved to this a year ago and I its just works! Simple as. I know it doesnt have stock control right now but I am aware they are working on that. However from when I started to use it prices have went up quickly!XMT said:
loafer123 said:
It doesn't help with stock control, but we use Zenstores for order processing and it is fantastic.
+1 we moved to this a year ago and I its just works! Simple as. I know it doesnt have stock control right now but I am aware they are working on that. However from when I started to use it prices have went up quickly!Nice stuff.
Gassing Station | Business | Top of Page | What's New | My Stuff