If you’re in e-commerce, you know that the sector is exploding. Further, there is no indication that growth will cease or even level out in the future.
Nonetheless, there is still much room to develop when operating in a fast-paced industry. How?
Well, you can increase your e-commerce market share by closely examining your processes and using automation to do more with less.
Invariably, your site is open 24 hours a day, seven days a week. In addition, you can take orders at any time of day or night. However, only the largest e-commerce sites can afford to have personnel on the job 24/7. When it comes to everything else, automating critical operations ensures that your e-commerce site continues to function even when your employees are sleeping.
If you feel your brand can benefit from automation, keep reading to learn more.
Automation in simple terms
The basic concept is to identify operations that can be automated by software, applications, or other technological tools.
Why?
Instead of wasting necessary employee time on tedious tasks, you could have the same activities completed on demand. Also, you or your staff can work on more forward-thinking and strategic initiatives to help grow your online business.
You can automate almost any process within your e-commerce business. In fact, inventory management, email marketing, and human resource management may all benefit from eCommerce automation.
Why should you automate your E-commerce workflows?
If we’re being honest, many of the tasks associated with e-commerce are tedious and time-consuming. Yet, they must be done for your business to scale. That doesn't change the fact that doing them manually is time-consuming.
Assume you're in charge of order fulfillment. Depending on the type of products and services you sell, you might have a lot of data to input. You may also need to work on printing shipping labels and sending email alerts. On the other hand, you could use order management software to manage all of the above.
Data accuracy
There isn’t any question that you will start to collect a lot of data as your e-commerce sales skyrocket. Just a few examples, include: Order information, customer data, and stock numbers. To keep things operating accurately, you probably enter and store data in several systems. But, do you really want to enter all that data manually?
What about human error?
Even the most competent and cautious individuals are prone to mistakes. Small mistakes have the potential to snowball into far more prominent issues. Yet, if you don't keep adequate inventory records, you risk not being able to fulfill critical orders. Why not integrate automation to mitigate errors?
Productivity
This post isn’t about replacing humans, it’s about getting the most out of your people.
When standard, but critical procedures are automated, employees may dedicate their time and attention to other tasks. You can then give your complete attention to tasks that need intellect and personal service As a result, you have more time to build connections and interact with your customers. Further, you can double or triple your overall productivity.
Wondering where to start? You can automate a variety of e-commerce processes, including:
Maintaining and updating inventory levels
Marketing
Order fulfillment
Accounting
Shipping and delivery
Customer support
Refunds and exchanges
Invoicing
Email marketing for abandoned shopping carts
Analytics
Also, consider these benefits of automation:
Save a significant amount of time.
Streamline processes.
By connecting your ERP and POS systems, you can optimize inventory management.
Enhance the client experience by providing a variety of fulfillment choices, drop-shipping, simplified returns, and enhanced customer service.
Decrease overall costs since you won’t have to hire more people.
Devote more time to strategic and decision-making elements of your business.
Simplify marketing by sending pre-programmed emails and posting on social media.
What are the most effective eCommerce automation tools?
When a customer searches for a product on their phone or laptop, the online shopping process begins. Your product marketing will have a significant impact on whether or not a buyer decides to purchase them. So, check out these popular eCommerce automation tools:
OptinMonster: If you're looking for an easy way to increase conversions, this might be an excellent resource. You can use its scroll boxes and exit-intent popups to gain more subscribers and conversions.
ZenDesk: A customer relationship management (CRM) application.
InfusionSoft: An all-in-one solution that connects to over 200 different apps and platforms.
Workflow: This tool helps to optimize your workflows (thus the name), allowing you to send out your desired messages and products at the appropriate moment.
Hootsuite: Use this to schedule your social media posts.
Buffer: Another widely-used social media scheduler. Buffer also provides exceptional campaign analytics.
Improve customer service by integrating AI
Use AI to automate your customer interactions when you’re not available. As a result, you can add live chats to your site. If you make customer service management more straightforward, you'll notice an increase in customer satisfaction, customer engagement, and a better overall customer experience.
Increase profits with eCommerce automation
Automation improves efficiency, resources, and streamlines your site’s operations. Further, using eCommerce automation provides an opportunity to compete with larger organizations even if you have limited resources.
This should be taught in schools.