Despite the recent spike of eCommerce growth because of the global pandemic, running an eCommerce operation could be challenging, especially for startup owners. There are the usual problems of putting your products out there, developing marketing strategies, having an online platform, product sortation and deliveries, payment methods, and eCommerce returns and policies.
Most people would feel overwhelmed with all that is needed to launch an eCommerce store, and most of the time, they end up discouraged, wishing they did everything on the fly. By doing so, at least they would have had an actual output, albeit incomplete. However, that mindset is not an attribute of a business leader because being one is all about being prepared for all business possibilities.
So if you think you still have a long way to go, do not fret. Surely with an ample amount of time, you would get there along with your eCommerce business. To help you get started, here is an article about four aspects of business operations you need to pay attention to.
Core aspects of an eCommerce Operation
1. Marketing
When we say marketing, it is not just about selling your products or services to people, but it is also about creating the strategy that serves your business for the long run. Any marketing strategy’s end goal is to be sustainable and later expand the business’ reach organically.
When working on the first phase of your marketing strategies, you could start with identifying your branding, target audience, competitors, and window gaps to capitalize. If you have done a SWOT analysis back in college, you have an idea of how you could spearhead your marketing efforts before launching your website or store live.
2. Sales and business development
After your establishing your marketing efforts, it is up to your sales team to do the groundwork. In this case, you would need your very own supplier, partners, and contractors to make your eCommerce store functional. Marketing was focused on creating a strong brand and online presence. On the other hand, sales should be focused on implementing and using analytics to monitor sales trends. They make conceptualized digital marketing initiatives happen using analyzed data. Sales and business development are what you need to convert leads.
When it comes to your eCommerce website or store, you need a team that would keep reaching out to potential customers, selling your products or services in a tailored and personalized approach. To do this, you could start with having a centralized system of communication, probably a CRM software that also has a help-desk feature to better communicate with your customers.
3. Financing
Accounting and bookkeeping is the most crucial aspect of any business operations since it involves money and budget. eCommerce startup owners often do this role by themselves. It is understandable since it is their own money they are investing with, and being a startup initially means having limited human resources to fill every post needed.
But it is advised to leave this aspect of your operations to specialists. Accounting and financing are far more complicated than what you are dealing with now, and you would only realize it when your business has exponentially grown out of your control. There are taxes you need to comply with yearly, or else you would have IRS banging by your doorstep, and most importantly, there are facets of financing such as return policies that could affect your customer retention.
4. Circulation
Last but certainly not least is your means to deliver on those marketing promises. Thanks to Amazon, consumers expect fast and convenient package deliveries, and even if you are a startup in the business, you need to follow through with these consumer demands.
At first, it might be easy and practical to hire local drivers to do your bidding, but you would need more substantial transportation solutions in the long run. You could partner with lorry transport services that would allow you to offer same-day delivery services. Imagine the impact on your sales! Looking forward, you would also need warehousing services for your supplies and better sortation and circulation of goods.
You must remember that customer satisfaction is your utmost goal because being in the eCommerce industry is all about delivering on what your customers want while scaling your business. Making sure that they get their packages quickly is one way to boost customer loyalty.
Indeed, the eCommerce business is continuously booming. However, it does not mean that everybody could do it. It takes more than just intrigue and interest to launch an eCommerce website and store, you need the right talent, services, and most importantly, you need to anticipate everything that could happen. If you have all of these, then you’re good to go.
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