In today’s fast-moving world, it is impossible to fully predict what will happen next. But no matter what comes your way, you know that in business, cash is king. In other words, having strong cash flow will help you better overcome any obstacles you may face tomorrow, next month, or next year.

Which means we need to talk about your inventory.

Right now, your inventory is a liability. Until it turns, it is dragging down your cash flow. But it does not have to.

Instead, you can transform your inventory into an advantage. How? By tapping into the power of APIs.

What Is an API?

API stands for “application programming interface,“ which is the horribly dull name for a data connector with workflows built to automate your most mind-numbingly boring tasks. Yes, we are talking about all those spreadsheet-filled steps you have to take to export data from one program, service, or platform into another — plus all the email back-and-forth it takes to act on that data.

In most cases, an API will handle tasks by securely embedding the capabilities of other platforms (or programs or services) into your financial accounting software. After you enter or upload data just once, to one platform, an API will safely share that data where it needs to be shared. Automatically.

You have interacted with APIs many times in your life, perhaps even many times today. If a website offers you the option to “log in with Google” or to “Pay with PayPal,” or if you have browsed through an Instagram feed directly from your favorite restaurant’s website, those interactions were all API-driven.

APIs: the Natural Next Step for Data Sharing & Communication

APIs are the natural next step for growing a business right now. Harvard Business School professor Antonio Moreno explains the evolution of APIs in his Harvard Business Review article, “How Digital Integration Is Reconfiguring Value Chains,” saying:

“The standardization of interfaces between modular components has historical precedents that date back to the 19th century, when interchangeable parts revolutionized manufacturing and gave rise to mass production. In the 1970s, electronic data interchange (EDI) allowed systems to exchange data. Today, by letting businesses easily establish automated, real-time communication between their systems and those of other firms, the latest digital interfaces — particularly APIs — have dramatically reduced the cost of coordination.”

This reduced “cost of coordination” can be a huge benefit to your bottom line. It dramatically increases your distribution company’s flexibility by allowing you to tap into new and creative revenue streams.

Using APIs to Boost Revenue

With seamless, real-time data sharing and workflows, your company can instantly and effortlessly coordinate complex processes.

For example:

• If you would like an automated way to handle inventory after webstore orders, you could use an API to check if the item is in stock, deduct the purchased quantity from your ERP’s inventory, and update your webstore to display the new stock levels.
• If you would like to offer same-day local delivery but do not want to manage a fleet, you could use an API-connected service to white label deliveries through Uber.
• If you need faster ship times to customers in other countries and do not want to build new international warehouses, you could use an API to connect to a service that allows you to rent houses overseas as distribution centers (like Airbnb-ing a tiny warehouse).
• If you have excess warehouse space, you could use an API to connect to a service that rents your available space to overloaded distributors.

These are all real APIs, and enterprising developers are designing new ones regularly. APIs like these give even small distributors the power to quickly, easily, and affordably tackle uncertainty by expanding their footprints and diversifying their revenue.

How to Access APIs

As a modern innovation, APIs need modern technology to run properly. If you are curious about integrating APIs into your processes, you will want to use a modern, cloud-based financial software solution.

Here at Accounting Business Solutions, we recommend Acumatica Cloud ERP for small to mid-sized distribution companies wanting to get started with APIs and cloud capabilities.

Unlike many other “cloud” ERPs out there, Acumatica was engineered for the cloud from the ground up. Because of this, it has robust and wide-ranging inventory flexibility drawn from its:

• Built-in inventory capabilities
• Marketplace-enabled inventory solutions
• API-driven, open architecture that simplifies the process for connecting to the APIs you are interested in

Start Here

In his HBR article, Moreno outlines three steps to follow, so you can get started off the right way with APIs:

1. Modularize your processes. Break each of your processes down into separate tasks.
2. Identify external APIs you are interested in by exploring public API platforms. The APIs we talked about earlier are the Acumatica native Shopify integration, the Uber Direct API, Wareclouds, and Flexe. There are many others.
3. Pinpoint where your processes and external API capabilities intersect. This is where you will find opportunities to augment your business through APIs.

But before you can begin optimizing your inventory tactics with these steps, you will need clear insight into your inventory metrics.

Learn how to gain the inventory insight you need with the white paper “Turn Inventory into Cash Flow.”

Access the White Paper

 

Accounting Business Solutions is a respected accounting and business management software solution provider. We provide experienced sales, consulting, implementation, training and support services for small to medium-sized companies located in south central and southeast Texas. Our portfolio of solutions includes cloud based, hosted and on-premise options.

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Sources

IBM. “What Is an API?” article. Accessed 2025. https://www.ibm.com/think/topics/api

Harvard Business Review. “How Digital Integration Is Reconfiguring Value Chains” article. 2025. https://hbr.org/2025/09/how-digital-integration-is-reconfiguring-value-chains

Postman. “Uber Direct API” webpage. 2024. https://www.postman.com/uber/uber-direct/collection/avopunf/uber-direct-api

Acumatica. “Acumatica Native Shopify Integration” webpage. Accessed 2025. https://www.acumatica.com/acumatica-marketplace/acumatica-native-shopify-ecommerce-integration/