DIGITAL INTERACTIVE SERVICES
The essential guide to e-commerce management: Crafting a winning strategy
E-commerce has fundamentally transformed how businesses – old and new – operate, offering opportunities to expand operations and reach global audiences. As online sales continue to skyrocket, the global e-commerce market is expected to hit $6.09 trillion in 2024, reaching $8.09 trillion by 2028. Businesses must stay agile and adopt robust strategies to keep up with this growth and stay ahead of the competition in today’s highly saturated market. Effective e-commerce management can help businesses streamline operations and meet the ever-evolving demands of digital consumers, delivering a competitive edge.
Challenges in managing an e-commerce store
When it comes to managing an e-commerce store, businesses often face significant hurdles, which can affect their operational efficiency. Some of the most common challenges e-commerce retailers must overcome include:
- E-commerce inventory management: Balancing supply and demand
- Shipping and fulfilment: Ensuring timely delivery to local and global audiences
- Customer acquisition and retention: Standing out in a highly competitive and saturated market and encouraging repeat purchases
- Cybersecurity: Protecting your customers’ sensitive information
- Supply chain volatility: Managing external factors that can disrupt the flow of goods
- Market saturation: Competing in a market where countless options are available to the customers.
Crafting an effective e-commerce management strategy can provide solutions to these challenges, with e-commerce management services enabling businesses to craft winning strategies and maintain a competitive edge.
Understanding e-commerce management
E-commerce management goes beyond just operating an online store; but encompasses the processes, tools, and strategies necessary to run that store efficiently. This involves several key components, including:
- Inventory management
- Order management
- Product management
- Warehouse management
- Payment processing
- Customer service management
- Marketing and advertising
- Mobile commerce
Although it can be challenging to simultaneously manage all these aspects of e-commerce management effectively, it can offer benefits like:
- Enhanced efficiency through streamlined operations that save time and resources
- Improved compliance and security through measures to safeguard sensitive data and meet industry regulatory standards
- Data-driven decision-making through advanced analytics capabilities
- Elevated customer experience and loyalty through a smooth shopping journey
All these contribute to enhanced trust and credibility, encouraging repeat business and customer retention, which is one of the biggest challenges for businesses today.
E-commerce management best practices
Crafting a winning e-commerce management strategy involves adopting a series of best practices that can help businesses streamline their operations, optimise available resources, and enhance customer experience. Some of the key steps businesses must consider include:
Build a user-friendly website
A user-friendly website is the cornerstone of success for an e-commerce store. Prioritising fast load times, mobile responsiveness, intuitive navigation, and a design reflecting brand identity can help create a seamless shopping experience and attract customers.
Leverage omnichannel marketing strategies
Expanding your reach through an integrated omnichannel strategy and ensuring consistent communication across platforms is crucial in e-commerce management. Businesses can leverage various social media platforms for targeted campaigns, email marketing to promote customer engagement, and optimise content for search engines to increase organic visibility.
Prioritise exceptional customer service
Excellence in customer experience becomes a differentiator in today’s highly competitive market. Steps like offering 24/7 support, implementing robust return policies, and ensuring data security foster customer trust and loyalty, encouraging repeat purchases and word-of-mouth publicity.
Optimise e-commerce inventory management
Accurate e-commerce inventory management not only prevents stockouts and overstocking - improving operational efficiency - but also enhances customer satisfaction. Real-time tracking software, demand forecasting tools, and regular audits of inventory strategies help businesses optimise their inventory levels.
Continuously test and optimise
Continuous testing can help businesses ensure their online stores evolve with market trends. A/B testing website layout, pricing strategies, and call-to-action buttons, gathering customer feedback, and analysing KPIs can help identify potential areas for improvement and optimise the customer experience.
Invest in integrated technology
Investing in the best-in-class tech is fundamental to e-commerce management, helping businesses enhance their operational efficiencies. Selecting platforms that integrate seamlessly with existing enterprise systems, implementing secure payment gateways, and automating routine tasks can help streamline e-commerce processes. A cohesive tech stack can make this possible, enabling businesses to scale effectively and stay competitive.
E-commerce management services are at the heart of this step, with tailored marketplace management solutions from Infosys BPM empowering businesses to ensure business continuity beyond disruptions. With services encompassing brand governance, catalogue management, marketing operations, customer/back-office support, and reporting and analytics, Infosys BPM has helped 500+ retailers manage over 10 million SKUs and over 1 million product pages. By leveraging cutting-edge technology and industry insights, Infosys BPM is helping retailers build a robust e-commerce foundation, elevate their operations, and navigate future trends when it comes to effective e-commerce management for a sustainable competitive edge.
Conclusion
Effective e-commerce management is the backbone of any successful online business. By understanding the key components it addresses and leveraging e-commerce management services, businesses can achieve operational excellence and foster sustainable growth. With the right strategic approach and tools, businesses can unlock limitless possibilities when it comes to managing their online stores.
