How EDI ISV Interlink Commerce streamlines EDI onboarding with ECGrid API integration.
Interlink Commerce needed to modernize how trading partners were onboarded and managed. By embedding ECGrid's APIs directly into its customer portal, Interlink transformed onboarding from a weeks-long process into a unified workflow that takes hours.
Overview
Like many B2B ISVs building EDI services into their platforms, Interlink Commerce needed to modernize how trading partners were onboarded and managed. As customer expectations shifted toward faster activation and simpler workflows, relying on fragmented, manual systems was no longer sustainable.
To deliver a more streamlined experience for both customers and internal teams, Interlink Commerce chose to embed ECGrid's APIs directly into its customer portal, transforming onboarding into a single, unified workflow.
The challenges
Before fully leveraging the ECGrid API, Interlink Commerce's onboarding process depended on multiple disconnected systems. Users were required to move between portals to validate trading partners, configure connections, and check status, increasing friction and slowing time to value.
Building and maintaining direct connectivity with multiple Value Added Networks introduced both cost and operational risk. Interlink Commerce needed a centralized network that could reliably reach virtually any trading partner without forcing their team to manage individual VAN relationships.
The ECGrid solution
By integrating ECGrid's APIs directly into their customer portal, Interlink Commerce created a single unified workflow for trading partner onboarding. Customers could search, validate, and activate trading partner connections without leaving the Interlink interface.
The centralized network access eliminated the need for Interlink Commerce to maintain individual VAN relationships, reducing both operational cost and connectivity risk.
Leveraging the ECGrid APIs was the defining step in improving our customer portal. This deep integration allows us to consolidate connection management and network search into a single, unified tool, enabling us to dramatically streamline our onboarding process and provide an unparalleled time-to-value for our customers.
The results
Trading partner activation time dropped from weeks to days. Standard buyer setups are now completed in approximately two hours. Across nearly ten years of operation on ECGrid, Interlink Commerce has experienced zero VAN connectivity issues. Customer satisfaction and support responsiveness improved significantly.