Stop Asking This Question About ERP Integrations When Vetting eCommerce Agencies

(and What to Ask Instead)

If you’re in the middle of evaluating eCommerce agencies for a major website overhaul or platform migration—and your business lives in the B2B or industrial space—there’s a high chance this question is top of mind:

"Have you integrated [eCommerce platform] with [my ERP] before?"

It sounds like the right question. It’s technical. It’s specific. It feels like a smart way to filter for experience.

But here’s the reality: it tells you almost nothing useful.

Why This Common ERP Question Fails

When you’re beginning to evaluate eCommerce agencies, it’s tempting to anchor the conversation around a familiar question: “Have you integrated our ERP with this platform before?” It feels concrete, verifiable, and specific.

But in reality, it’s a poor litmus test for whether an agency is truly equipped to deliver on your project.

This question may confirm past exposure—but it won’t uncover the current capabilities, team, or methodology that your project requires. And in a landscape where ERPs, platforms, and client requirements evolve rapidly, historical exposure doesn’t guarantee present-day relevance or success.

The deeper issue? This question reveals nothing about how the agency plans, communicates, adapts to change, or navigates the complexities of multi-system integration in a real business environment. These are the qualities that ultimately determine whether your project stays on time, on budget, and aligned with your business goals.

Whether you're in manufacturing, distribution, D2C, or a hybrid model, what matters isn't whether they've done the exact thing before—it's whether they know how to diagnose, design, and execute for your specific context.

Have they integrated an ERP with an eCommerce platform? Probably. But can they:

Align that integration with your business logic and operational constraints?
Collaborate with your internal teams, IT stakeholders, and third-party vendors?
Build a site that drives measurable business outcomes—not just connects data?

That’s the level of discernment you need. Otherwise, you’re navigating your agency search with a question that only scratches the surface, while the real risks lie far deeper.

What Most Merchants Don’t Realize About ERP Integrations

There are three common assumptions that quietly derail eCommerce projects—and they show up in nearly every industry, from B2B manufacturing to D2C retail.

1. Past experience doesn’t predict present success.
It’s easy to be impressed by a case study from five years ago. But if the agency can’t tell you what worked, what didn’t, and whether the same team is still around—that “experience” is little more than smoke. Relevance matters more than résumé.

2. Modern tools have changed the integration game.
Platforms like Celigo, Jitterbit, and Boomi have made once-daunting integrations far easier to execute. These tools handle the heavy lifting—if your agency knows how to use them well. An agency reinventing the wheel isn’t being thorough. They’re being inefficient.

3. Legacy systems aren’t the problem anymore.
Whether you’re running NetSuite, Microsoft Dynamics, or a decades-old AS400, the real challenge today isn’t whether you can integrate. It’s whether the agency has the strategic chops to map your operations to the right data flows, identify owners, and avoid internal disruption. Most integration failures aren’t technical—they’re managerial.

So What Should You Ask Instead?

If ERP-first thinking won’t get you there—what will?

The best agencies don’t sell plug-and-play solutions. They ask questions. They prioritize collaboration. They show their work.

Here are three questions we recommend asking that reveal how an agency actually operates under pressure:

1. What percentage of your website migration projects in the last year went over budget?

This is the single best question to uncover whether an agency runs tight, disciplined projects. A vague answer should raise concern. A clear, data-driven response—especially one that shows ownership and reflection—signals maturity.

2. What types of solutions would you use to integrate [Platform] with [ERP]?
This isn’t about naming tools—it’s about seeing how they think. Do they default to Jitterbit or Boomi without asking questions? Or do they explore tradeoffs, ask about your architecture, and explain which system should be the source of truth?

3. Can you share references from past clients with similar integration needs?
Ask for names. Then actually call them. You’ll learn:

Did the project finish on time?
Was the integration smooth?
Did the agency stay engaged after launch?
Would that client hire them again?

Those aren’t small details. They reveal how your agency partner thinks, plans, and navigates complexity—qualities that matter far more than a case study from five years ago.

Why This Matters So Much in B2B & Industrial eCommerce

If you’re in manufacturing, distribution, or industrial supply, your ERP isn’t just a tool—it’s the operational heartbeat of your business. So it's natural to hyper-focus on the integration.

But here’s the hard truth: a perfect integration won’t save a bad website.

If your product catalog isn’t usable, your UX is broken, your search doesn’t convert, and your checkout process is clunky, then no amount of back-end plumbing will move the needle.

Would you rather:

A flawless ERP connection and a site no one wants to buy from? Or
A site that drives revenue and integrates reliably?

The integration should support business outcomes—not become the primary goal.

Final Thoughts: What Actually Makes a Great eCommerce Partner?

When evaluating agencies, many manufacturers focus on the wrong signals. A long list of past clients, a portfolio full of flashy sites, or a vague promise to "handle integrations" can feel impressive—but they don’t predict success for yourproject.

Instead, look for patterns of repeatable success.

Ask about how projects are scoped, how scope creep is managed, and whether the agency is as comfortable building for B2B operations as they are with DTC design.

One of the most critical but overlooked questions is: Who will actually be working on my project? Past experience doesn’t matter if the right people aren’t in the room when it counts.

A Better Framework for Evaluation

If you want to go beyond surface-level vendor selection, here’s a practical checklist you can bring into every agency conversation. These questions build on the strategic ones above—but focus more on ongoing process, ownership, and alignment.

Who will be on our project team, and what similar work have they delivered?
How do you prevent budget overruns during complex replatforms?
What’s your go-to integration strategy for ERPs like ours—and when do you go custom?
Can you walk us through results you’ve driven for a manufacturer or distributor?
What’s your approach to post-launch evolution—who owns performance beyond go-live?

This framework isn’t about checking boxes—it’s about creating a conversation. A good agency won’t just answer these—they’ll welcome them. Because they reveal alignment, transparency, and whether your project will be treated like a transaction… or a long-term success story.. They’re an invitation into a deeper conversation—about how an agency thinks, how they manage change, and how they take responsibility for results.