Seamless ecosystem integrations for eCommerce

Use a single payments abstraction layer in your backend (or a library like Stripe Connect / Spreedly) that normalizes methods, errors, and webhooks from all gateways into one “PaymentIntent” model. The frontend shows one unified wallet/card UI, while routing logic, fallback, and reconciliation (fees, settlements) happen centrally based on gateway metadata.

Connect to ERP/accounting via order and payment webhooks flowing into an integration service that maps them to invoices, ledgers, and tax lines, then posts through ERP APIs (SalesOrder, Invoice, Payment, CreditNote). Use polling or webhooks from ERP for payment status and payouts so finance dashboards reflect real‑time cash and AR.

Key flows: rate‑shopping (address + weight → carrier rates API), shipment creation (label and tracking ID), status webhooks (in‑transit, delivered, exception), and return initiation (RMA, pickup, refund). Wrap each carrier’s API behind a logistics service so your app always talks to one unified “Shipping” interface regardless of provider.

Maintain a single source of truth for products and inventory (PIM/OMS) and push changes out to channels via marketplace APIs or a multichannel tool, listening to order webhooks to decrement stock centrally. Use SKU/ID mapping tables, periodic full syncs plus real‑time deltas, and strict rules about which system owns price and availability.

Pitfalls: tightly coupling directly to legacy ERP/CRM schemas, relying on batch file drops, and no error observability. Middleware/iPaaS (MuleSoft, Boomi, Make, custom Kafka layer) helps by offering canonical data models, retryable workflows, monitoring, and prebuilt connectors, so your store only integrates once with the hub.

Avoid point‑to‑point spaghetti by adopting an API‑first, event‑driven architecture: your store emits standard events (OrderCreated, PaymentCaptured, ItemReturned) onto a bus and downstream systems subscribe. As you add tools, plug them into the bus or a central iPaaS, enforce naming/versioning standards, and document ownership so each domain has one authoritative system.