Grow E-commerce and Digital Transactions Management

Many people think that selling online is more profitable than the traditional way. And this is true, but not most of the time and only when you are fulfilling a number of commercial criteria on an ongoing basis.

In the old days, people would go from store to store to gather information about a product or browse the yellow pages for local plumbers to fix a faucet. Today, we browse the internet and we order online. It all sounds all so simple. But what can we buy online safely? And from whom? When do we pay? Or where do we go when the product or service is not to our liking? Which e-shop gives the best price or value for money? But will our personal and financial information, such as mobile number or credit card be safe? 

Potential customers consciously or unconsciously are considering those aspects and it takes a lot of time and effort to convince them to buy from you and not from one of the 10, 50, or 200 alternative online stores that offer the same service or product. Or simply buy the product or service from a shop or store in the neighborhood? Because that is what most people are used to, still.

So what does it take to develop a successful and profitable e-commerce business? Whereas ten years ago it was still possible to develop an e-commerce business from the garage or kitchen, nowadays most business sectors are already occupied by large nationals or multinational companies that are taking major market shares in the e-commerce space. For instance, the global short stay accommodation business is already dominated by a few large players, such as Booking.com, Expedia or Trivago.

In order to grow a sustainable e-commerce business, the following 5 criteria should be met for a start:

• A customer value proposition that fulfills the needs or solves the problems of the target segment better than any other supplier does today.

• A branding strategy that covers all possible channels of communication (e.g. search, social media, offline, referrals) resulting in a strong brand presence and an image of trustworthiness, and service excellence.

• An omni-channel CRM implementation that guarantees service excellence and an NPS of 75 at each stage of the customer experience journey, regardless the brand touch point.

• A committed and agile organization, able to do whatever it takes to outperform the competition and to satisfy target customer needs, any time, any where.

• Visionary and decisive customer centric leadership ensuring:

  • A continuous inflow of new business models to create leverage and increasing profit margins.

  • The organizational agility to stay ahead of 'leapfrogging' competitors.

  • An engaged and empowered staff meeting increasing customer expectations every single day.