eCommerce businesses have never faced a more competitive marketplace than they do today. With the rise in online shopping and a host of marketplaces to choose from, your customers will have high expectations for a seamless purchasing and delivery experience. In order for your marketplace and fulfilment to work hand in hand, you need an online shop with an excellent user experience (UX) and one that can automatically integrate with your fulfilment solution. In this article, we share our best strategies that will make the most of your marketplaces and ensure great fulfilment technology integration.
No 1: Choose your eCommerce technology very carefully
Have you ever been on a website that offers beautifully presented products, but when you go to purchase it feels like an unending maze? Well, that is exactly the scenario you will want to avoid when choosing your eCommerce technology. According to Baymard Institute’s 2022 UX research, the average abandonment rate of customers at checkout is a staggering 70%. There are a number of reasons for this, but by far the biggest is complications during checkout. To overcome this, you need to think carefully about the eCommerce platform you use for your online shop.
In our experience Shopify and WooCommerce are the two best platforms for ease of use and integration with preferred payment methods.
No 2: Design your shop with your customer in mind
You should always design your online shop for your customer. You want them to be able to move about your shop easily to find what they are looking for and, when they do decide to add to cart, the option to do so is ready and waiting. The best way to achieve this is through thorough testing. Ask:
- Can I find what I’m looking for?
- Are my products visually appealing and descriptive enough?
- Have I been introduced to complementary items or alternatives?
- How easy is it to add to cart and purchase?
Ultimately, you want to aim for an Amazon quality experience, taking your customer from A to B as quickly as possible with easy-to-use applications and an autofill checkout.
No 3: Make sure your logistics management is in one place
Getting your items where they need to go quickly, efficiently and with good communication is the second part to fulfilling your customer’s expectations. To do this well, you need to have your logistics management in one place. This will give you maximum control of your orders and allow your fulfilment partner to action picking, packing and dispatch ASAP. This is why we have dedicated years to developing a state-of-the-art logistics management platform – Despatchlab – because happy customers are repeat customers.
No 4: Automating your processes reduces problems
Sometimes it can feel reassuring to keep some manual processes in place in your order processing and fulfilment. But the fact is that manual steps in your procedures will only create problems and cause mistakes. Always opt to automate where you can. This is at the foundation of great integration between eCommerce and logistics systems and it’s going to save you time and money too.
No 5: Always opt for direct integration between your marketplace and fulfilment technology
Along the same lines as automating processes, you should try to keep the integration between your marketplace and your fulfilment direct. That is, remove any third-party steps in between. They will add time and become the weak point at which your orders may go wrong.
No 6: Think carefully about your product range
Customers expect variety from a business and that goes for luxury and budget brands alike. Offering customers only one or two products in a shop doesn’t work as it isn’t economically viable. You need to create an online shop that offers relevant and exciting choices. Spending time on developing your range, items for upselling and seasonal products will greatly benefit your business and steady your revenue.
If you would like to know more about our seamless integration between marketplaces and our fulfilment technology or discuss how we can help your business in 2023? Give our team a call on 0333 567 5888, email us at sales@diamondlogistics.co.uk or complete our contact form below.
