In the world of modern technology, buying and selling of goods and services are going on over the internet through a number of platforms and devices. It is indeed the marketplace of E-commerce which has revolutionized the traditional way of doing business. A business’s ability to compete in the digital marketplace now depends on how it fully integrates E-commerce platforms into its core marketing strategies. E-commerce platforms provide the infrastructure for transactions while the interactive activities on the platforms help to persuade customers to make purchasing decisions.
Together, the E-commerce platforms and interactive engagements provide a unified ecosystem by feeding off each other and create a seamless synergy that increases market reach and sales. Thus, through E-commerce marketing, businesses move customers smoothly from the “desire” stage to the “action” stage thereby facilitating a complete transactional relationship.
It is a fact that a concerted strategy to integrate E-commerce platforms into business strategy is due largely to increasing competitive pressures in an ever-evolving marketplace, fast-changing customer behaviours as well as rapid advances in technological innovations.
Indeed, E-commerce environment empowers customers to compare prices, features and reviews of different products and services. As a result, businesses need to differentiate themselves from their rivals by offering unique benefits such as superior quality, convenience or customer loyalty programs. Businesses also need to conduct market research to plan their sales strategies through effective gathering and processing of vast amounts of data on consumers and market trends.
Implementing E-commerce Strategies
To unlock the potential of E-commerce platforms in the digital marketplace requires some underlying strategies. Some of the strategies are:
- Responsive Website Design
Responsive website design is an imperative for the e-commerce environment. E-commerce sites cater for the burgeoning segment of mobile users by providing a variety and fluid contents across various platforms. Consumers can easily access information and opinions from various sources regarding product descriptions, reviews, ratings, blogs and videos. Consumers can also share their own opinions and feedback with other consumers and businesses through posts, comments, reviews or ratings on those social media. These features enable consumers to make an informed purchasing decision. Consumers also expect businesses to be more responsive, transparent and accountable, and to provide seamless and consistent service across all channels and touchpoints.
- Leveraging Search Engine Optimization (SEO)
Search Engine Optimization is a critical aspect of any digital venture and ensures that a product or a service appears in relevant searches. This way, search engine optimization creates visibility and attracts the right audience to a company’s products and services. Some of the channels that can be optimized to capture potential customers’ interests and boosts sales are Meta (Facebook, Instagram) Twitter and YouTube. A deliberate effort at establishing a mutual relationship between E-commerce and digital marketing can significantly boost a business’s unique opportunity to drive online sales in remarkable ways.
- Generating Consumer Insights with Advanced Data Analytics
It is important to keep track of buyers’ behaviour, preferences and engagement patterns and use the insights to fine-tune a business’ E-commerce strategies. A set of core data-related technology components such as a Data Warehouse, a Customer Relationship Management (CRM) system and a Data Management Platform can be deployed to provide a 360-degree view of a customer’s purchasing life cycle.
Data Warehouse is a centralized repository of data from multiple sources. It can generate actionable insights based on unified and accurate data. Customer Relationship Management (CRM) data can also help to get a holistic overview or a big-picture understanding of the customer. Benchmarking should also be an integral process e-commerce strategy. Through data analytics, benchmarking can help draw comparisons with industry metrics and evaluate performances. It can enable a business to pinpoint opportunities for improvement and fine-tune their actions for market leadership.
- Exploring Emerging Technologies & Trends
The rapid development of new technologies such as artificial intelligence (AI) immersive technology and has opened up new possibilities for e-commerce businesses and consumers alike. These technologies can enhance the online shopping experience, create new value propositions, and transform the e-commerce landscape. Artificial Intelligence (AI) can analyze large amounts of data with regard to customer behavior, preferences, feedback, and social media from various sources and provide personalized recommendations, offers and contents.
Artificial Intelligence (AI) can also automate and streamline various e-commerce processes such as inventory management, pricing, marketing, customer service, and fraud detection. Artificial Intelligence (AI) can also help e-commerce businesses to predict customer demand, optimize pricing, and improve customer retention and loyalty.
Immersive technology transforms the digital experience by bringing together the virtual world with users’ sight, sound and event touch. Virtual reality and augmented reality are forms of immersive technologies for creating, displaying and interacting with applications, content and experiences. This new trend of technologies allows a person to feel part of an artificial or simulated environment.
Virtual reality and augmented reality can enable customers to virtually try on a new product, explore different scenarios, and interact with brands in a more stimulating way. Virtual reality and augmented reality can also help e-commerce businesses to display their products in a more appealing and informative way, and to differentiate themselves from competitors. The global immersive reality market size is expected to hit over $134.18 billion by 2030 due to the proliferation of smartphones and connected devices.
- Using Open-source Solutions
User interface elements such as product catalogs, checkouts and account management are some of the open-source staples for an ecommerce platform. Open-source solutions allow a business to accommodate evolving customer demands or needs.
They can easily be integrated with IT frameworks and seamlessly connect to third-party Enterprise Resource Planning (ERP), Customer Relationship Management (CRM) or BI software. Open-source content management systems and product information management software also eliminate the costs associated with proprietary systems and allow companies to configure the software according to the requirements of the product catalog on any platform.
However, to achieve growth in ecommerce through open source, companies need the services of engineering talents. Developers will help the company to customize the software to match its unique needs and address potential security risks.
Dealing Privacy & Security Concerns
Even though E-commerce is a powerful marketing tool for businesses to remain relevant in the digital marketplace, the associated risks cannot be underestimated. This is because it involves the exchange of sensitive information such as personal and financial data between customers and businesses. This makes it vulnerable to cyber-attacks such as hacking, phishing, or identity theft. Businesses need to ensure that their e-commerce platforms are robust, secure and compliant with relevant privacy laws and regulations.
Conclusion
In the closing, new-age strategies of ecommerce require companies to place digitally-enabled commerce at the core of their operations by creating seamless experiences that exceed evolving customer expectations. Businesses also need to monitor and analyze their competitors’ strategies and performance, and adapt quickly to changing customer preferences and market trends. E-commerce strategies allow businesses to anticipate customer expectations through the effective use of electronic channels. E-commerce businesses will also need to constantly monitor and evaluate the effectiveness and efficiency of these technologies to enable them adapt and innovate accordingly.
BERNARD BEMPONG
Bernard is a Chartered Accountant with over 14 years of professional and industry experience in Financial Services Sector and Management Consultancy. He is the Managing Partner of J.S Morlu (Ghana) an international consulting firm providing Accounting, Tax, Auditing, IT Solutions and Business Advisory Services to both private businesses and government.
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