Maintaining a successful E-commerce site is a vital part of a thriving business model these day. E-commerce benefits companies by increasing the sale efficiency because order processing is done with less time. E-commerce also facilitate international expansion with 24/7 available web stores, which result in increased revenue for the company. However, the benefits of E-commerce extend beyond the scope of the company, as the customer is also affected by this phenomenal. E-commerce provides customers with a convenience shopping experience. The customer can now place orders outside office hours at their suppliers for example. In order to benefit from these advantages of E-commerce, the E-commerce strategy has to be properly defined. But which strategic components are the key to success in E-commerce?
B2B E-commerce is a much bigger part of the economy compared to B2C E-commerce and it is expected to grow more in the future. Recent trends in the E-commerce market encompass increased use of mobile technology to order at websites. In order to anticipate at this trend, the firm should find the right software for the business. The E-commerce software must be scalable, secure and user-friendly. Moreover, the E-commerce site must be compatible with mobile platforms so that the customer shopping experience will be enhanced. Also technology is an important pillar for successful E-commerce companies.
Leadership and competence are also two important key factors for E-commerce success. The leaders of the business shall cultivate a company culture where information sharing is stimulated. Cisco, the worldwide IT market leader, share information among employees, partners and customers. This enhances the transparency of the company and this trust mechanism will result in more growth for the company. The more the customer and the partners trust the company, the more they are likely to do business with the company. Partnerships are especially important for companies as they increase competence. It is critical to have partnerships between emerging net businesses and larger companies with established brands, since they increase knowledge to better serve the customer.
Governance is one of the most important issues to resolve in E-commerce. Without good governance, your organization will waste time, people and money. One way to establish governance is to set and enforce goals and metrics. A successful e-commerce company, Coolblue, is an excellent example of this. The goal customer satisfaction is measured with the Net Promotor Score: ‘’ If you had a company, would you hire this service representative you just talked to?’’ These metrics gives the company better means to target their goals, thus the waste of resources will be less.
Which other ways do you consider to thrive in e-commerce?
Reference:
Hartman, A., Sifonis, J. G., & Kador, J. (2000). Net Ready: Strategies for Success in the E-conomy. New York: McGraw-Hill.
Lecture 4 (2016). Sana Commerce. Information strategy: RSM.
http://www.websitemagazine.com/content/blogs/posts/archive/2011/09/27/four-strategies-to-e-commerce-success.aspx
Some innovating ideas around customer satisfaction and loyalty
