How To Perform a Gap Analysis for Merchant ERP Software

Upgrading your enterprise resource planning (ERP) system is one of the biggest technology investments your merchant or distribution business will make. If you're committing to the cost and effort of deploying new software, you want to be confident it will deliver maximum value to your operations.

The most effective way to ensure your investment pays off is to conduct a thorough gap analysis. But what exactly should this analysis cover? And how can you use it to select ERP software that will genuinely transform your operations?

Let's take a deeper dive and help you create a clear roadmap for choosing the right ERP solution for your business.

Why Your Business Needs an ERP Gap Analysis

Think of a gap analysis as your business's GPS. It shows you exactly where you are now, where you want to be, and helps you plot the most efficient route between the two points.

Without this clarity at the decision-making stage, you risk investing in an ERP system that doesn't fully address your business needs—or worse, creates new problems instead of solving existing ones.

For merchants and distributors, the stakes are particularly high. Your business likely handles thousands of SKUs, manages complex supplier relationships and needs to maintain tight control over stock levels and delivery schedules. If crucial functionality is missing from your ERP it could seriously impact your efficiency and profitability.

What To Include in a Gap Analysis

The first part of any good gap analysis is forming a crystal-clear picture of your current operations. Start by taking a detailed inventory of how your business runs today to create a snapshot of your systems and processes.

Get your team together and map out:

How orders flow through your business, from initial customer contact to final delivery
What your current systems can (and can't) handle with ease
The key performance indicators (KPIs) that drive your decisions—from stock turns to delivery times
Where your team wastes time fighting with clunky systems, workflows or data silos

Any spreadsheets or workarounds you've created because your current ERP system (or manual process if you’re not yet using ERP software) falls short

Next, look ahead and envision where your business needs to be. Work with your leadership team to define:

What growth are you targeting over the next few years?
How is your market changing? For example, your customers may be demanding faster deliveries or new service options.
Where could you strip out wasted time and effort from your daily operations?
What improvements in customer service could give you a competitive edge?
Which reporting challenges need addressing to better understand and manage your business operations?

With your current and future states mapped out, you can identify exactly where the gaps lie. These gaps become your blueprint for selecting a new merchant ERP system with each one representing a specific capability of the software. For instance, if your team spends hours on manual stock checks, you know real-time inventory management is a necessity to help you meet customer demands.

Turn Your Gap Analysis Into an Action Plan

Once you've completed your gap analysis you can transform those insights into selection criteria for your new merchant ERP system.

Start by prioritising your requirements based on their business impact, cost implications and technical complexity. This hierarchy will help you focus on the features that deliver the most value and avoid being distracted by nice-to-have extras that could inflate your ERP implementation costs. Developing a structured evaluation framework will help you clearly set out what you need from a new system.

When you're ready to engage with vendors, make sure they can demonstrate exactly how their solution will address your specific gaps, ideally with a personalized demonstration or tour. Also be sure to ask about their experience with similar merchants and distributors—they should be able to share relevant case studies and references.

The right technology partner will understand the unique challenges your business faces. Look for vendors who can demonstrate the specific functionality you require, who can prove their system will scale as you grow, and who can offer flexible configurations to match your way of working.

What Your Gap Analysis Can Reveal: CFT Ltd’s Story

A well-executed gap analysis often uncovers surprising insights. For example, when CFT Ltd, a major UK distributor of fastening systems, conducted a gap analysis before investing in new ERP software, its leadership team discovered several critical requirements, including:

Better sales order processing to support telesales operations
Specific financial reporting capabilities
Greater scalability to handle increasing order volumes
Custom functionality for factoring service integration

These findings helped CFT Ltd select Merlin by Aptean to address its immediate needs and support future growth plans.

Read CFT Ltd’s story in full.

Get Expert Implementation Support From Aptean

Selecting and rolling out an ERP system is a significant undertaking for any business. Working with an experienced provider like Aptean can help ensure your gap analysis leads to the right solution choice.

At Aptean, we understand that every merchant and distributor faces unique challenges. That's why we take a different approach from the standard ERP sales process.

Instead of giving every potential customer the same generic demo, we focus on your specific needs.

Personalised discovery call: Our "mini process review" identifies where you're losing time, money and business opportunities and shows how our ERP can solve these challenges.
Clear implementation plan: We'll outline every feature, step and cost needed to launch your new ERP—giving you a realistic roadmap with no hidden surprises.
By-your-side support: We'll train your team and provide ongoing technical support to help you get the maximum value from our software.
Regular health checks:Our expert assessments ensure our merchant ERP software keeps pace with your business, identifying new opportunities to work smarter as you grow.

For further support, download our vendor-neutral guide, 7 Steps to an Stress-Free ERP Roll-Out. It's packed with practical guidance on choosing and deploying the best-fit solution for your merchant or distribution business.

Want to see how our ERP for merchants and distributors can transform your business? Book a free process review with one of our experts.