When surveyed in the Industry Outlook near the end of 2024, distributors didn’t anticipate emerging technologies like drones, warehouse robots, and chatbots would greatly impact their business through 2025, but some were taking steps to include technological advancements in their business. Many conceded that new tech might be beneficial in the office, but most agreed there wouldn’t be any major changes to the warehouse any time soon.
As the industry continues to move forward and technology advances, businesses that can adopt tools that make them more efficient and more profitable will have a leg up. There were four key areas where distributors felt technology was going to be worth the investment and effort.
- Data and analytics/business intelligence
- Automation of core business processes
- AI tools such as ChatGPT or CoPilot
- E-commerce enhancement
The automation of core business processes and data analytics/business intelligence tools were anticipated to have significant impact. These tools were primarily credited with saving time and creating more efficient business practices, allowing members to get back to the most important focus — customer relationships. About half of members who were not already using these tools were looking into them or open to learning more about them moving forward.
NetPlus spoke with a handful of our business service provider partners for their expert input and guidance when it comes to adopting and implementing new technologies designed for modern distribution.
Dill
Dill 
is an accounts receivable automation and payment portal platform for construction and industrial distributors. Their mission is to turn cash quicker for those who deserve it the most. CEO Catherine Jiang offered her input to NetPlus distributors.
JIANG: “Cash flow is king, and it’s a struggle for a lot of people. We build tools to fix that problem.
The tide is changing. The next generation of contractors and industrial customers is coming along. We’ve found that for a large majority of these end customers, they’re starting to expect a higher level of customer service from their distributors including improved online experience around payments and things like that to improve their experience.
If you’re starting to think about automating processes like accounts receivable, that’s already a huge first step, realizing that maybe there is a need for something like this.
The next step would be to look at your list of NetPlus partners and do some research online. Read articles, determine best practices, and build your own knowledge base on what you think is best for your company. Decide what you’re looking for in a solution then reach out for demos with different partners. It’s helpful to find a partner that prioritizes onboarding time to make sure that timeline is compact in a couple weeks, not many, many months. Find a vendor that feels like a partner.
Technology can feel very scary, especially with this new world of AI layered on top of it. But technology is the means to the end, which is ultimately increased productivity, efficiency, and improved customer experience. Increased revenue, reduced cost, and increased margins. That should be the ultimate goal. Technology is the means to a more successful end for these construction and industrial distributors.
At the end of the day, distributors that don’t adopt technology to increase efficiency and productivity are going to be left behind. In the current economic climate, bottom line and cash flow could not be more important.”
LeadSmart Technologies
LeadSmart Technologies is a customer relationship management tool completely reimagined. Their AI-enabled solutions, like the Channel Cloud SmartCRM and Customer Intelligence Platform empower manufacturers and wholesale distributors to use your company’s data to its fullest potential by bringing siloed data from ERP, marketing automation, e-commerce, and other areas into a single unified platform unlocking never before seen insights into customers, teams, and your whole company. CEO and Co-Founder Kevin Brown provided his advice on emerging technologies and trends he’s seeing.
BROWN: “We’re at a really interesting point in time for distributors and manufacturers. After years of talking about digital transformation, we’re finally seeing people take action — but there’s still a gap between adopting tools and truly using them to make better decisions.
A lot of companies have done the hard work of modernizing: upgrading ERPs, launching e-commerce, automating marketing. That’s a huge step forward. But what I see often is that all this data ends up in silos. You’ve got accounting data in one place, customer touchpoints in another, quotes and opportunities buried in spreadsheets or emails. It’s nearly impossible to step back and get a clear picture of what’s actually happening in the business.
That’s where AI has a real opportunity to move the needle. Not as some futuristic, buzzword-heavy promise, but as a practical tool that helps teams make faster, smarter decisions based on what their data is already trying to tell them. And ‘trying’ is the optimal word.
But before anyone jumps into AI, the first step is clarity. What are your goals? What does success look like? Once you know where you’re going, it’s a lot easier to figure out which systems need to talk to each other, what data you need, and where technology can actually help — not just check a box.
We also need to move past the idea that technology replaces people. The best implementations I’ve seen use AI and automation to amplify their sales teams, not to replace them. Doing exponentially more with the same people. It’s about giving your people the insight they need to have better conversations, spot risks earlier, and uncover opportunities they’d otherwise miss. A good example of this is using AI to identify lost sales, quotes that need following up on, alerting teams to categories customers aren’t buying and what they may have stopped buying.
The bottom line is, this isn’t about buying software. It’s about investing in outcomes. AI is just a tool — it’s the strategy and execution that turn it into something valuable.”
Moblico
Moblico provides practical, easy-to-use solutions in mobile technology that simplify operations, engage customers, and support growth. Co-Founder and CEO Pierre Barbeau lent his expertise in this area to help guide NetPlus members to the
next right step for them.
BARBEAU: “We’ve been working with the wholesale distribution industry for 15 years now, and we’ve seen transitions over the years. Younger executives are taking over independently owned businesses and starting to adopt technologies.
One thing that has become really apparent and is now very much driving all this is a change in customer expectations and the introduction of technology that allows for automation and data intelligence. Contractors are looking for more Amazon-like speed, mobile first access, personalized service, and they want this all in real time. Meanwhile, we know distributors still are facing shortages in labor, an aging labor force, rising operational complexity, and obviously always pressure on their margins.
We expect to see an increase in those digitized transactions, but also converting those into an intelligent automation using AI and mobile tools. There was a time when those were nice to have, but I think we’re at a point now where they’re must haves, and they become fundamental in how distributors operate, engage, and grow their business.
We’re seeing distributors who adopt mobile-first, AI-powered engagement are getting a clear competitive advantage. Not only in serving their customers faster, but in building smarter, more efficient teams behind the scenes. And it’s not just about the technology, but it’s also making sure your team is prepared to adopt and use the technology.
To compete and win, independent distributors need to adopt what I think are three key things. One is mobile-first engagement. Meet your customers where they are. Second is AI-driven automation. AI is allowing for not just automation, but really reducing friction or pain points, especially within the operations across different workflows. You’re making it easier for your team to process and do those things that are aimed at supporting customers in a more efficient way, saving time and money. And if you haven’t done so already, you need to make sure your data is clean and usable. You need that data set available to use these tools. It’s fundamental.
There are a lot of things you can do in the short term that allow for your company, your team, your technology stack, to take those first steps. You’d be surprised, once the ball gets rolling, it is very much like a snowball effect.”
ROC Commerce
ROC Commerce is an omni-channel commerce solution designed to produce strong revenues, increase profitability, and deliver a maximum return on investment, combining portal, catalog, quote, and e-commerce features and strategies for a rich customer experience across all channels and devices. General Manager Michael Benedict provided his insights for NetPlus.
BENEDICT: “We’ve found that 87% of B2B buyers would pay more for a supplier with a better e-commerce portal and experience and 85% of business buyers wish to manage their relationship with an enterprise without interacting with a human. Those two kind of go hand in hand. People say e-commerce portal, but that doesn’t mean I want to buy everything online, it’s that I want the ability to interact with the organization online.
Looking at most platforms, there are steps you can take. You can start with the catalogue and quote commerce concept if your business process isn’t in a place to be able to deal with commerce transactions today. Make sure you get your product online, get it wired into your ERP so customers can see their specific pricing and then they can interact with a sales rep for a quote or reorder. A lot of organizations are moving to using the digital interface to replace their order management or their quote system in the ERP to be able to put together more robust quotes for the client.
One of the core challenges to this is having good data. That’s the main thing as it relates to the digital experience, for distributors to be able to get clean, rich data with good units of measure, good descriptions, images, all of that. That’s one of the biggest hurdles to setting up a website.
Distributors have to decide when it’s right for their business, but they need to objectively understand the data, which is they are losing clients and they are losing revenue.”
Intuilize
Intuilize is a software solution that harnesses AI to help distributors transform their pricing and inventory management through a collaborative, team-based approach. Their implementation methodology ensures organizational buy-in and systematic change management. CEO and Founder Nelson Valderrama gave us his thoughts on how distributors can successfully navigate technology adoption with their entire team.
VALDERRAMA: “ I think there are three critical factors reshaping distribution that require a collaborative organizational response. First is volatility. Since 2008, teams have been managing unprecedented disruptions: financial crises, supply chain challenges, COVID, tariffs. These aren’t individual challenges; they require coordinated team responses across departments.
Second is workforce transition. As baby boomers retire, organizations must systematically capture and transfer decades of tribal knowledge. This isn’t just an HR issue, it requires a structured process involving operations, sales, and management working together to document and preserve critical institutional knowledge.
Third is the integration of digital natives into traditional distribution teams. These new employees bring fresh perspectives but need structured onboarding. They won’t accept outdated processes like memorizing catalogs or part numbers. Successfully integrating them requires a collaborative approach to modernization that respects both experience and innovation.
Distributors really have three paths forward, and each requires careful team consideration. Option one is to maintain the status quo with team alignment. This can work if your entire organization agrees your niche is protected and disruption unlikely. However, this requires honest team assessment of competitive threats and unanimous agreement on risk tolerance.
Option two is isolated experimentation. Some organizations try new technologies in silos without cross-functional coordination. Without proper change management and team buy-in, these initiatives typically fail to deliver ROI or create internal friction.
Option three is systematic transformation with full team engagement. The most successful approach involves these aspects: cross-functional teams identifying and prioritizing challenges together; structured implementation plans with clear roles and responsibilities; comprehensive training programs ensuring every team member succeeds; regular milestone reviews with stakeholder input; and updated management processes that address concerns proactively.
These organizations succeed because they approach transformation as a team sport, not an individual initiative. They invest in proper planning, allocate resources for training and support, and ensure every stakeholder — from warehouse staff to senior leadership — understands their role in the transformation journey.
The key takeaway is this: Technology adoption in distribution isn’t about finding the right software — it’s about building the right implementation team and process to ensure sustainable success across your entire organization.”
