ONMMERCE PLATFORM FOR YOUR WEBSITE Things to consider before tying the knot with an Onin! Gommence Platform)With stupendous growth in eCommerce the number of available plat- forms, the choices present are vast and flexible, There are cases where, short-sightedness while choosing an eCommerce platform or path taken has resulted in challenges especialy in areas of scalability. For example, Marks & Spencer faced many consequences for not choosing the right cloud server to host thelr website, They realized about the problem when the data could not be moved to their in-house website design and management. This resulted in increase of the time-to-market of their refurbished website. To avoid situ ns like these, Martlack Enterprise has collated an es- sential list of considerations to keep in mind while making your deci sion. Additionally, related FAQYs are also answered which will help you in making the decision wiser. Aperfect business solution should be future ready, cost-effective and which lets you choose what's best for your business and not paying a premium for features which are not essential for your business, Choosing an online platform is like getting into a long-term relation- ship. Aspects such as scalability, compatibility, dependability, reliabil ty and business understanding are priority things to consider.The below guide will assist in making the dec’sion about the platform and also focuses on the concerns & question that should be looked Into before making your investment. vedTechnology: Let's get the core values strong Technology is the nucleus of the platform, around which it is built. From a technology standpoint, an eCommece platform should be: Scalable - As demand being driven by consumers and various external as- pects, the platform should have capabilities to scale up (in peak demand cycle) and scale down (in bleak demand cycle) based on the volatile business requirement. Secure - The platform should provide the best security standards such as PC! DSS, 1SO 27001 (certifications that assure you about high security and confidentiality of your website) critical and technology should be robust enough to pro- vide a world-class standard, The ability of your website to load needs to be high. VL Reliable and available - For the anytime, anywhere S&S p> consumer, the availabilty of online sale channels is very QUESTIONS TO ASK 1m Is scaling up or down according to needs automated? Does the platform meet security standards? a What is the percentage of availability of your website? 014 Marck AlRights Reserve. © 2007.2 fa} is)Omni-channel Capability: Your store is not just a point of sale The platform should have the ability to handle marketing, selling and servicing in an integrated manner across multiple channels such as online, mobile, social etc. The spread of smartphones and tablets Is seen as a phenomenon and about 70% of the growth in the Indian internet users is mobile only. Having a good user experience on devices that most matter today - Smartphones and tablets, is a need. It is imperative to make sure your vendor is in pace with the developments in the technology world. Digital avenues and trends emerge overnight, hence, you need to choose a platform that is agile enough to adapt. Not just on the outwardly front, the whole platform should be integrated on an internal level as well Order management, marketing management, engagement and design capability are all areas that need to be scrutinized. QUESTIONS TO ASK Which channels all avalabe to make eee ara S < mete 4 atone Cet Sree Pee VF A ces Nee pe art ed er, eee en eee Cee en er nett: Pine ree een Tuer ce nn ee ed 014 Marck AlRights Reserve. © 2007.2Product Catalogue Imagine walking into a store with no proper category signs and jumbled up order of products, This automatically makes you ‘sceptic about the store, however, you still walk in looking to buy toothbrush. You are able to locate toothpaste, but a tooth- brush is nowhere near in sight. Unable to find the product you were looking for, you leave the store, The stores toothbrush ‘stack next to the shampoos serves little purpose as the custom- er has left due to faulty categorization and reduced searchabil- y You want customers to find what they are looking for as efficiently as possible, just as you would in a physical store, Custorners will not to meticulously search for the products they are looking fo. An inflexible, irelevant product catalogue with dull cate entries, non-descriptive product descristions and substandard pictures are an immediate turn off for customers, ‘Additionally itis dificult to predict what you would be selling in the future. Hence, yur company needs tobe agile in adapting to any kind of offers, sales or promo- tlons as eCommerce is an on-going model of change. Simplified and integrated one point data management system wil drastically save on che effort and budget re- {quired to maintain inventory isting and streamline processes within your organiza tion, Do ere ee Cn ee te ee romenriets 3 Sere 2 erate aes Re aa re (© 2007-2014 Margack Al Rights Reserved.Report and analyse: “Without data! You're just another person with opinion” —_—— Your eCommerce site is a mine of data you need to get valuable insights out of. ‘The required tools for this activity are the reporting and data analysis capabili- ties of your platform, Your platform should be able to track customer behaviour and log all available data from various channels used, as you never know when you might need insights on behaviour you are not tracking. You may choose to run your campaigns on non-conventional trends or specific behaviours, and hence, collection and analysis of data is an important factor you would want to look into. ‘Your business exists to serve the customer; the more you know about them, the better. Customer insights help in ‘the continual improvement of your website as well as products, For a truly customer centric approach to bus ress, you need to grow on the data you collect. QUESTIONS TO ASK 18 How does the platform log data? '& How easy sit to monitor business metrics, eg is: order sizes, etc.2 1 How easy sit to create reports on specific behavioural aspects across the channels? Are the reports adequate to provide (© 2007-2074 Manlack Al RightsReserved 1m quick answers to questions you might have about specific behaviours? 1m Ave there dedicated applications for data analysis and insights on the website? How effective ae they to extract business Inteligence from the data? fo) ro 1 sit easy to track specific consumer behaviour on a daily basis?cre gece ara ge a ens poo e eit eae mR ee ae eC a a ee ny also provide robust and OPEN APIs for integrating with other in-house systems. These capabilities allow the retailer to stream line internal business processes and achieve a ONE inventory and ONE customer view for all employees. This way, there will be no time wasted in logging in inventory on two different systems; your existing inventory management can be integrated with ren ee ie ae ea ee eee ee Gere en eee ae anges form and give you the ability to build new applications through third party integration. Cio eens eee eee er ec Ser to Oe Oe nn ean ee ee eee a SR Raed Cae ed ee a Me ec form or server should support easy migration of data to another platform. If you want a divorce from your platform, you should be able to get it! Coons eee eo cee & aTotal Cost of Ownership Its important to consider total cost of ownership - the sum total of direct and in-direct costs A platform may look reasonable given the current require- ments of your website; however, it might cost you a lot more down the line, with add-on and indirect costs. To make the cal- culation of this number easier, the below table lists the costs 6 © you need to consider under licensing and Saas platforms. Lucense fora complet suite of Mulehannal Com ‘one ume implementation cost on mater and time bass Incudngthree tages pian Bull, ploy ntastruetrelaraare) Softare icensng such s server, enact Infasoucture monterig ane maintenance ‘nerementa Coss or implementation arin ance on mace ante basis ‘ssona confor nema spe the requirement Monthy Fees ‘onetime implementation cost on material and ‘ime eas. ncucng tree sages. pln, bul, epi Infastrucure montoring and maintenance Incremental Coss for inplementaton ana Maite ance on mater arate basiVery Lites Oe een et eee Prreaaee eee Ps ea nese ce by SS ers Ce) (© 2007-2014 Marck A Rights Reserve, ° ]Time to market and User Control Timing is as important as your offering to your customers. Your winter collection release in summer will not interest anyone, in most retail organizations, IT resources are scarce. Itis vital for an Omni-channel platform to provide control for business users to interact with the system with- out continual support from IT. In a digital economy time-to-market is critical, business users need to make quick changes and update websites to stay ahead of the competition. When end-users are dependent on IT, bottlenecks can de- velop that slow down the company’s response to competi- tors and changing market dynamics. Running back and forth with the IT technicians to make small changes on the website is exhausting and time-consuming, Your managers should be able to manage daily updates, offers, promotions and sales on the website with minimal effort from the IT team. Moreover, capabilities to moderate changes on your website should be available on smartphones and tablets as well, so that things go even when the decision maker is travelling or on the move. The ability to provide limited access to the control panel is important for security and monitoring of the website. Eg: The order processing staff should be given permission to access only the order pro- cessing front of a platforms control panel. Rae ond 014 Marck AlRihts Re ery © 200Conclusion - Key Steps to Choosing your eCommerce Platform Your company can potentially save a lot of money by selection of the right eCommerce platform and shorter time-to-market. Below are the steps to get yyou to your eCommerce platform in less than half the time the selection process would normally take: Make your online goal clear Define your goals and strategies right at the be- ginning. Build your online roadmap with clear aims and objectives. This will help you know ‘your expectations and requirements from an eCommerce platform Have a look at their expertise Have a look at how developed their Omni-chan- reel capabilities are. Do their mobile, social and offline capabilities stand ground? Get a preview ‘Ask the ones who have comme through to this sep to develop the Basic prototype or concept of the website with your custom requirements Narrow down your options Go through the portfolios of available eCom- merce platforms in the market. Start narrowing by looking at companies which provide com- plete solutions with minimal added integration expenses, Get down to your shortlist By now, you should have 2-3 choices you are looking at. Start scrutinizing your choices through the considerations given above. Also, get answers to the questions in the guide above from the eCommerce platforms. Discuss with your board Present the blueprints to your decision making committee and go ahead with the one which Suits your brand the best. Itis important to remember that: Integrated and seamless commerce via all channels (omni-channel) is a priority in today’s world, even for companies that are just starting off. With the lines blurring between online and offline retail, retailers need to be cautious of their online footprint. Hence, your eCommerce platform should be able to keep up your brand reputation. 014 Marck AlRights Reserve. © 2007.2 3 |@mnartjack Enterprise About MartJack Enterprise Martjack is an Enterprise Class Omni-Channel Commerce platform built for Retailers, Brands and Entrepre- neurs. The platform offers comprehensive features and the flexibility to build and manage Omni-Channel business based on unique needs of retailers. With Martjack Enterprise, retailers are empowered to execute multi channel merchandising and marketing; manage operations locally and globally; and develop unique capabilities that differentiate their brand and shopping experiences across web, mobile, social, and store. Martjack Enterprise is trusted by 350+ Enterprise Retailers and Global Brands. The client list includes: Walmart >|< EXjnaruresoasxer «= olanks SRGNEERUS = we CTURTLE SargeethaY CASIO. LuLu DL WULOCRAFT | ‘© 2007-2014 Margack Al Rigs Reserved.