A dealer order portal lets your dealers and retailers log in, see their own price list, place orders, check credit and track dispatch, without phone calls or WhatsApp voice notes. Off-the-shelf B2B tools suit simple catalogues. A custom portal, from Rs 360,000, suits distributors with customer-specific prices, schemes and credit limits.
Key Takeaways
- Phone and WhatsApp orders cause errors in items, quantities and prices.
- Each dealer should see only their own prices, schemes and balance.
- Credit limits and outstanding balances must be visible before an order is confirmed.
- Order bookers in the field can use the same portal on a phone.
- Integration with your accounts or stock system is usually the most complex part.
Why Do Distributors Need a Dealer Order Portal?
A distributor of paints, electrical goods, pharmaceuticals or FMCG products in Pakistan may take hundreds of orders a week by phone, WhatsApp text, voice notes and visits from order bookers. Someone then types them into the system. Wrong items, wrong quantities and disputes over agreed prices are common, and nobody can easily see whether a dealer is already over their credit limit. A dealer order portal moves ordering online: each dealer logs in, sees their own prices, places the order and tracks it.
This guide is part of our software cost series. If you only need a public product catalogue without ordering, see our B2B catalogue website guide.
What Should a Dealer Portal Include?
| Feature | Why it matters |
|---|---|
| Dealer logins | Each customer sees only their own account |
| Customer-specific price lists and schemes | Ends disputes about agreed rates and bonus offers |
| Credit limit and outstanding balance | Orders over the limit are held for approval |
| Quick reorder | Dealers repeat last month's order and adjust quantities |
| Order status | Received, approved, packed, dispatched, delivered |
| Order booker mode | Field staff place orders on behalf of shops from a phone |
| Statements and invoices | Dealers download their ledger and invoices |
| Stock availability | Shows what can be supplied now |
Should You Build or Buy?
| Situation | Better fit |
|---|---|
| Small catalogue, one price list, few dealers | Off-the-shelf B2B ordering tool or a wholesale store set-up |
| Customer-specific prices, schemes, credit and field order bookers | Custom portal |
| Must sync with existing accounts or stock software | Custom, if that software allows integration |
A simpler route for some businesses is a wholesale online store with dealer logins and tiered prices, which we cover in our wholesale store guide.
How Should Credit Limits Work?
Each dealer has a credit limit and payment terms. When an order would take the balance over the limit, the portal can block it, allow it with a warning, or send it to a manager for approval. Dealers see their balance and overdue invoices when they log in, which often prompts payment without a reminder call. Payments received are recorded against the account, either by staff or automatically through a payment link.
What About Integration With Accounts and Stock?
Most distributors already use accounting or inventory software. The portal is far more useful when approved orders flow into that system automatically, and stock and balances flow back. How easy this is depends entirely on the existing software: some have documented ways to exchange data, others only allow manual exports. We check this before quoting, because it often decides the budget. Any statutory or government reporting from your accounts system is outside our scope; ask your adviser about those requirements.
How Do Order Bookers Use It?
Field staff visiting shops use the same portal on a phone: select the shop, see its prices and balance, enter the order and submit. Orders arrive at the warehouse immediately rather than at the end of the day. Managers can see visits and orders per booker and route.
How Do You Get Dealers to Use It?
Dealers who have ordered by phone for twenty years will not switch overnight. Start with your most active dealers, set up their accounts for them, and show them quick reorder on their own phone during a visit. Keep accepting phone orders at first, but enter them into the portal so dealers see their history there. Some distributors offer a small scheme on portal orders during the first months to encourage the habit.
How Is Dealer Data Kept Separate?
Price lists and balances are commercially sensitive. Each dealer must only see their own information, staff access should follow roles, and every login should use strong passwords. Test this carefully: a portal that shows one dealer another's prices damages trust quickly.
What Does a Custom Dealer Portal Cost?
A portal with logins, price lists, ordering and status sits near the start of our web app range, from Rs 360,000. Credit control, order booker mode and integration with accounts software increase the cost. See web app development.
Frequently Asked Questions
- OWASP — Top 10 web application security risks
- web.dev — Progressive Web Apps
- OWASP — Authentication Cheat Sheet
How we researched this: Feature and build-vs-buy tables are editorial, based on how distributor portals are commonly scoped. No B2B tool or accounting product is named or priced. Statutory reporting is excluded and readers are sent to their adviser. Our prices come from the published list.
Too many orders by voice note?
Message us on WhatsApp for a fixed quote, or see our published pricing first.