5701 Lonetree Blvd.
Rocklin, CA 95765
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Today’s customers have choices when it comes to online purchases. They read reviews, do price comparisons, share their good/bad experiences via blogs, Facebook, Twitter, etc. So, it is critical for the success of any e-tailer to develop a full service concept around their e-commerce site. Just an online catalog with a shopping cart or a buy button won’t cut it anymore.
A full service e-commerce integrates Web front-end with back-office operations to create a seamless solution where orders from the Web are processed with maximum automation on the back-office side. Such a system not only automates processes to increase efficiencies but also enriches data mining capabilities of the entire e-commerce process; thus increasing better decision making potentials for a business in this competitive global market place.
The Web front-end of a full service e-commerce includes of the typical elements: CMS driven site, online product catalog, shopping cart, customer profiles and order tracking and history tools.
Beyond the typical elements of e-commerce on the Web, we also recommend developing reviews / rating modules, social networking modules, cross sales modules, product compatibility modules, customer loyalty / reward modules, etc.
The purpose of the full service solution is to get Web customers to have a rock-solid online shopping experience on your e-commerce site and at the same make it extremely efficient and cost-effective to handle the order on the back-end from printing warehouse picking slips, real-time shipping estimates, shipping labels to sending customer’s order status and tracking information via email, SMS, etc.
With the advent of smart-phones like iPhone, Android phones, etc. customers now expect serious e-tailers to offer mobile shopping, status checking, and geotargeted coupons and offers. However, we do not think mobile integration is for every e-commerce company. If you are selling products that have a very large consumer base, a mobile integration plan makes sense. But if you are selling to a vertical market, the mobile integration may or may not be the natural next step of evolution of your e-commerce platform.
Once you have implemented a custom-built full service e-commerce solution, you will have a seamless system that works efficiently to save time and cost and increases your visibility on the Internet and helps you build your brand online. Here are some benefits worth pondering.
Using a purpose-built Content Management System (CMS), you will be able to create thousands of combinations of product pages to increase your organic search engine optimization (SEO).
The USPS offers an API to estimate shipping charges along with estimated date of arrival. You can make your e-commerce site feel like the big boys such as Amazon.com.
By integrating a live chat module to your e-commerce Web site, we will be able to give your customer service agent a way to assist the customers better, right from their Web browser.
When a customer calls your customer service agent for an issue with finding a product or some other odd question, the customer service agent can optionally take over the customer’s shopping cart to assist with any issue and then let the customer continue or actually complete the order on agent’s system.
Depending on your business the social network integration can be as simple as letting customers use their social network account in lieu of registering on your site or the integration can be more involved.