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CUSTOM SOFTWARE
Connecting Bol.com to AFAS: how it works
Yes, you can connect bol.com to AFAS. In AFAS SB through the online shop integration, which includes bol. In AFAS Profit through a partner's integration, an integration platform or custom software on the REST API. Transferring orders is the easy part; whether it adds up shows in the payouts, the VAT and the returns.
First: which AFAS do you have?
AFAS has two packages. AFAS SB is for smaller businesses, AFAS Profit for businesses that run their entire bookkeeping, orders and HR in it. For an integration with bol that makes a difference, because each offers a different route.
What needs to go back and forth between bol and AFAS.
- Orders. Every sale on bol becomes an order or invoice in AFAS, with items, quantities and the VAT rate per line.
- The payout. Bol doesn’t pay per order. You get a statement of revenue and costs per period, and then one amount in your account. Commission, shipping costs and returns have already been deducted by then.
- Returns. A return should become a credit note, not a deleted order. Otherwise your turnover is overstated.
- Stock. If you also sell the same item elsewhere, one system has to determine the stock and the rest follows.
Transferring orders works with almost any route. Whether your books are right, you only see at the payout.
The routes for AFAS SB.
AFAS SB has an integration with an external service that imports sales from dozens of online shops, tills and payment providers. Bol is one of them. For a business that just wants its bol sales in the accounts, that’s usually the first place to look. Do check how that service books the payout and bol’s costs, and whether that matches how your accountant wants it.
The routes for AFAS Profit.
An integration from a partner. AFAS has a partner network, with an overview of partners and certified integrations. Look there first for an integration with bol that fits the way you work.
An integration platform. If you sell on more channels than bol, there’s often a platform in between that bundles all channels and has one integration with AFAS. You do then have an extra system with its own subscription.
Custom work on the API. Profit has a REST API. With GetConnectors an integration reads data from Profit, with UpdateConnectors it creates or changes it, such as an order or a journal entry. Access runs through a token you create in Profit itself, and AFAS has a test environment to try the integration out first. On bol’s side there’s the retailer API, for orders, shipments, returns and your offers. With that you build an integration that follows exactly the way you book.
The routes side by side.
| Route | Costs | When it fits |
|---|---|---|
| AFAS SB online shop integration | Varies by service; ask AFAS. | You use AFAS SB and mainly want your bol sales in the accounts. |
| Integration from an AFAS partner | Varies by partner. | You use AFAS Profit and there’s an integration that fits the way you work. |
| Integration platform | An extra system with its own subscription. | You sell on more channels than bol. |
| Custom work on the API | Usually €3,500 to €12,000 upfront, then €249 a month for management. | No existing integration follows the way you book. |
What to look out for.
- Booking method first. Agree with your accountant how turnover, commission, shipping costs and the payout are booked, and through which clearing account they reconcile. If you only book the net amount, your turnover is understated.
- VAT. Make sure the VAT rate comes across per order line, and agree how the VAT on bol’s costs is booked.
- One collective account or one per buyer. Decide in advance whether all bol sales go to one account or to an account per buyer. Per buyer quickly fills up your contacts database.
- You need to see what goes wrong. An unknown item or an order that doesn’t come through should trigger an alert. Ask where it ends up.
- Customer data. What bol passes on is there to handle the order, not for your own marketing.
When it pays off.
If a few orders a week come in, booking them by hand is fine. An integration becomes interesting when retyping is daily work, or when someone has to reconcile every payout by hand.
What TrompTech does here.
If an existing integration fits the way you work, we’ll tell you. If not, we build the integration between bol and AFAS Profit as custom work, on the APIs of both. The example on the custom software page, a webshop connected to Exact, starts at €9,500. Custom work usually costs between €3,500 and €12,000, then €249 a month for management. You get a fixed price upfront. All amounts exclude VAT.
If you want the work between your systems ready for approval in one place, take a look at what TrompTech Layer does. Tell us how you work now, and we’ll look at which route fits.
Do you use Exact Online? Then read connecting bol to Exact Online.
Custom software usually costs between €3,500 and €12,000, then €249 per month for maintenance, excluding VAT.