The 5 Best Ship and Debit Management Software in 2022
August 22nd, 2022 (Updated 03/10/2023) | 9 min. read
By Garth Hoff
Imagine that you want to try to complete your ship and debit claims management process manually without any level of automation. Is the mental image of manipulating multiple in-coming and out-going claims management spreadsheets already giving you nightmares, when all you want is to have your claims paid and returned to protect your margins ASAP? That is why we have decided to examine the best ship and debate management software (or as it is referred to in some circles including Pricefx, as ‘channel management’ software – the terms are interchangeable) variants on the market today.
At Pricefx, we have been providing ship and debit management software to enterprise-level businesses like yours for a few years now, and total pricing solutions packages for more than a decade already. So, with our award-winning expertise in ship and debit management and its role in pricing in general, we figure it’s only right to provide you with a ‘best-of-the-rest’ review list of ship and debit management software vendors currently on the market.
So, let’s get started by providing you with a table snapshot of the 5 best ship and debit management software (also referred to as channel management or rebate management software) options for you to consider for your company (other than Pricefx of course). But if you’d like to simply know the ship-and-debit features that Pricefx has to offer, simply scroll down below and check out the section, ‘Why is Pricefx Writing About Its Channel Management Competitors?’
Reviewed: The 5 Best Channel Management Software in 2022
The table above and more detailed descriptions below give an outline of the top 5 channel management software vendors that generally (although not exclusively) work with large scale enterprise organizations.
To clear up any confusion – As you may have noticed above, due to the close relationship between ship and debit claims and rebates management, some software vendors include their ship & debit management tool as a part of their rebate management system. Meanwhile, Pricefx and some other pricing software vendors have a separate ship and debit system and call it ‘channel management’.
If you are interested only in rebate management and have no requirement for a ship-and-debit claims system, please check out our recent article comparing the 6 Best Rebate Management Software.
As is usual in the ship and debit management software space (and in the price software world in general) most of the software vendors do not list their prices on their website or elsewhere. On the other hand, many vendors may look favorably upon request to organize a demonstration as to how their solution can assist your ship and debit management needs and arrange a quote for your business from there.
Please be aware that the reviews in this article are based upon publicly available information gathered from open-source reviews, rankings, and testimonials from leading software comparison sites, G2, Gartner and others.
Naturally, undertaking your own additional research is advised in combination with the information supplied below to make up your mind on the channel management software that is right for your business.
Please note, any other company trademark used in this article is owned by those companies and not by Pricefx. Nothing in this article is intended to suggest any affiliation with or sponsorship by companies other than Pricefx.
1. Vistex Channel Management
Price: N/A – Pricing information can be obtained directly from Vistex.
Description: Vistex helps business improve profitability through the automation of complex ship and debit claims programs, program performance insights, incentive calculating incentives accurately, avoiding overpayments, compliance management, streamlining reimbursements, and better organization of the entire channel management lifecycle.
Functionality:
- Special Pricing Agreement (SPA) management
- Channel Data Management
- Channel rewards (Loyalty Programs) management
- Design Registration
- (Marketing Development Fund) program management
- Global Payment Program
- Price Protection/Channel Inventory
Unique value: Vistex’s Channel inventory function protects company price margins by identifying when price reductions are initiated by your trading partners.
2. Vendavo Rebate & Channel Manager
Price: N/A – Pricing information can be obtained directly from Vendavo
Description: Vendavo’s system does not differentiate nor breakdown rebate management and the channel management system into two separate systems as many vendors prefer to do. Vendavo’s standalone Rebate & Channel Manager instead allows teams to create and manage deals through to accruals to payment generation and end-to-end reporting, and to assess the potency of each deal to maximize your revenue and ensure not losses to mis- or inefficient management.
Functionality:
- Analyze Ongoing Rebates
- Automated Workflow Approvals
- Channel Connect Integration
- Rule configuration for auto-settlement of claims and deductions based on reasons, thresholds, reference numbers, and other defining attributes.
- Auto-matching and resolution of all trade deductions based on eligible promotion balances.
Unique value: Customer and end-user portals enable information sharing of deals and agreements with partners with easy connect services across business channels.
3. PROS Rebate Management Solution (Powered by Enable)
Price: N/A – Pricing information can be obtained directly from PROS.
Description: Like Vendavo, the PROS system has ship and debit functionality built into its overall rebate management system, which is powered by its partner, Enable. It is an overarching rebates system touching on the management of customer rebates incentives and supplier ship and debit claims with full transparency on the terms of each deal and audit trail of the workflow and approval process
Functionality:
- Rebate Agreement Management
- Managing supplier ship and debit claims.
- Incentives Management
- Automated workflows and approvals for clear sales guidance.
Unique value: PROS rebate plus ship and debit management functionality combined as part of a holistic pricing platform.
4. SAP Rebate Management (Including Channel Management)
Price: N/A – Pricing information can be obtained directly from SAP.
Description: Regardless if you are using SAP ECC or SAP S/4 HANA, the rebate and settlement management system of SAP allows for rebate processing, ship-and-debit management, condition contracts, accrual processing, settlement management, reporting, and mass processing.
Functionality:
- Rebate System includes ship-and debit functionality
- Transparent rebate accruals and settlements
- Auto Claim Amount Calculations
5. Salesforce Rebate Management (Including Channel Management)
Price: N/A – Pricing information can be obtained directly from Salesforce.
Description: Salesforce Rebate Management allows businesses to create and scale incentive programs while also supporting channel partners. Sales teams can identify cross-sell opportunities and see their accounts’ incentive attainment, manage ship-and-debit claims, view comprehensive account activity, historical payouts, attainment progress, and account activity, all within the Salesforce CRM.
Functionality:
- Ship-and-Debit rebate processing
- Customer loyalty claims processing
- Rebate Member Product Aggregation
- Eliminate incentive overpayments
- Effective accrual calculation and payouts
Unique value:
- Salesforce Rebate Management is suitable as an adaptable rebate and ship-and-debit management tool for users regardless of business size or type.
Why is Pricefx Writing About its Channel Management Competitors?
Pricefx is a channel management software market leader. As one of the few pricing software vendors on the market today that includes ship-and-debit management as one of its top line functions, Pricefx is one of the top-ranking pricing software on the Gartner Review Site with a score of 4.7 out of 5 and a similar high ranking of 4.5 out of 5 with G2). Consequently, we would like you to know from our position as a channel management leader of all the best ship-and-debit management tools currently available on the market.
Back in 2011, the Pricefx founders unearthed that the existing on-premises pricing software had a lot of room for improvement to cover the functionality that many businesses were craving.
The answer that we came up with – The Pricefx team created a quality ship-and-debit management tool that is just one module of holistic pricing software tool designed to manage all the pricing functions of your business.
It is one of the critical parts of Pricefx’s award-winning and easily CRM-integrated ‘one stop pricing shop’ encompassing price optimization and management, pricing analytics, sales compensation, managing your agreements and promotions, and of course, your rebate and ship-and-debit claims management.
Pricefx’s channel management module empowers you with the ability to automate and validate your ship-and-debit claims in any industry and/or country. Addressing some of the most common problems encountered during the reconciliation process, the Pricefx ship-and-debit solution guarantees a more streamlined system with long-term cost savings and improved customer satisfaction.
No more manual checking, double checking and manually cross-referencing the numbers on an Excel spreadsheet where a potential error could end up losing your company millions. Pricefx’s channel management module offers adaptable, innovative technology to take the manual handling out of claims, freeing up the workforce and producing accurate calculations with speed. Furthermore, it can be used to process claims from distributors in any country, giving them transparency as claims move through the pipeline. Other benefits include:
- Efficient validation
- Reduced risk of costly and embarrassing miscalculations
- Improved trust and stronger relationships between distributor and manufacturer
- Simplified processes
- Reduced manpower
- Full integration with existing software
- Decreased turnaround time
Learn more about Pricefx’s channel management solution in the handy article below:
What is Your Go-To Ship and Debit Management Software?
Outside of Pricefx, now you also have an introduction to 5 more of the best ship-and-debit management software available on the market today. In combination with an introduction to our award-winning pricing software and channel management functionality, you have the full set of information that you will need to select the right software that will be the best fit for your company’s unique ship-and-debit management needs.
If you are searching for a ship and debit management software solution that you can help your business transform with a future-proofed price management, analytics, and real-AI-informed price optimization solution, then Pricefx is precisely what you will need.
To aid you through your decision-making process, examining direct comparisons for yourself between Pricefx and some of the other pricing and ship-and-debit management software out there may prove invaluable;
On the other hand, if you already know that a total pricing software package will fit your company’s needs, this article below can help you finalize your choice;
