Ecommerce
Ecommerce: harder than you think
Ecommerce is the buzzword of the post-Covid world, because overnight everyone had to almost exclusively turn to online platforms to buy basic goods. But a shift to digital needs to have a planned and purposeful approach for it to be successful, regardless of business size.
In fact, I’m going to quote a 2020 McKinsey article where they state ‘to enable speed in e-commerce, companies need to get a bewildering number of things right.’ While this quote is applicable more to larger organisations (think a Company that operates a large e-commerce business just like GoDaddy), but the idea of this step being overwhelming is true for many.
I often see that brands don’t know where, or how to start.
What does selling online mean for your business?
My key piece of feedback is that you need to first and foremost understand what selling online means for your business. If you are an established business, will you shift to an omni-channel sales approach? And if yes, how will that build on your offline properties and established brand, and in parallel impact your marketing and operations?
A business starting out solely as an ecommerce venture will need to drive awareness and traffic to begin selling, so beyond the set-up and design of the store itself, you need to have a solid go-to-market launch plan to ensure you are being found by your target audience.
Leverage the data digital delivers
Ordering, logistics, customer care and other key business areas are all important points to consider when launching this business model – you are, after all, accessible 24×7 to anyone, anywhere.
And, don’t forget that Data. Is. Your. Best. Friend. Not only can you track exactly where your traffic is coming from and how it is performing in terms of conversions and sales, but the power of being able to consciously design the customer journey that you want through the myriad of digital channels that you have at your disposal is the stuff that dreams are made of.
From data-driven testing and learning to qualitative user testing, it’s this part of the ecommerce sales model that puts a twinkle in my eyes.