United Stationers has the technology and data in place to help resellers automate a wide variety of business functions, enhance customer service and even reduce costs. By offering multiple methods of data communication and file exchange, you choose the method that’s most compatible with what you currently have in place. As a result, resellers can easily integrate United as a supplier into their existing process with a minimum of resources.

Data to Power eCommerce

Whether you’re updating your site to sell office products online or starting from scratch, United Stationers provides you with rich content to enhance the shopping experience. Use our eCommerce Database 2.0 to populate your site’s online catalog with about 40,000 items, complete with pictures, descriptions and manufacturer logos. These products are grouped by category, section and subsection to make searching a breeze. Your customers can also access product attributes that enable them to perform online comparisons, or quickly choose the right supplies for their printer or other business machine. To see our data in action, check out our catalog at www.biggestbook.com.

How do we get the information to you? Every quarter, we publish the eCommerce Database 2.0 in XML format, available on DVD or through FTP download. If you’re already working with our aligned eCommerce System Providers, it’s even simpler. You’ll automatically get the information within their Web application.

Updating Your Back Office System

United offers a quarterly, subscription-based price and item reference file called Unitape that contains your net pricing and basic item information for about 40,000 products. Just load the information into your own systems and you have immediate access to the up-to-date information you need. Using Unitape, anyone in your organization can get a clear picture of the entire United Stationers line and pricing, without ever leaving your system. Prices can be easily updated through EDI or a simple file download from our web site.

Link Electronically to Increase Efficiencies

United Stationers’ eLink enables you to easily exchange and access the information you need electronically by providing a common interface for streamlined communication. Resellers have
the option of sending and receiving documents in multiple formats, including X12 and plain text. And, because this exchange takes place directly with our system, you won’t incur any third-party Value-Added Network (VAN) costs.

You can use eLink to simplify a variety of day-to-day functions:

Ordering Documents
Transmit orders throughout the day as you receive them from your customers or group these into order batches for periodic transmissions.

eLink gives you direct access to a full range of Order Flow Documents:

• Purchase Orders
• Item/Price Changes
• Purchase Order Confirmations
• Inventory Position

Verify stock status and price before you place your order or download United’s daily inventory position directly into your system. This enables you to present our inventory to your customers as if it were your own.

And, because eLink is interactive, there’s no waiting for an acknowledgment when an order is placed. The system provides immediate feedback.

Financial documents
Resellers can easily access credits, statements and invoices to electronically update their financial systems. eLink lets you stay on top of your business whenever it’s convenient for you.

Shipping documents
Don’t make a phone call to check the status of an order. Resellers can receive Advanced Shipping Notices, an Electronic Manifest or use the supplied tracking numbers to access delivery status directly from UPS. You can give your customers immediate, accurate answers and always know when your orders are shipped and received.

Tying it all Together

One of the most vital parts of United’s system integration is people. Our experienced Customer Technical Support team is always ready to consult with your IT staff on implementation strategies to ensure rapid, successful system deployment. They can provide specifications, set up testing and support you on all eLink functions.

Copyright 2004 by United Stationers Supply Co.