5 tools your e-commerce business needs to thrive
The ecommerce industry has taken the world by storm. It has broadened the horizon of success for aspiring entrepreneurs to unimaginable lengths and has redefined convienence for customers.
It is for this reason that global B2C ecommerce sales are projected to cap at $2.3 trillion by the end of 2017 while global B2B ecommerce sales are expected to reach $7.7 trillion.
This promise of success of the e-commerce industry lures millions each year to start their own businesses and has also caused the industry to be flooded with a wide array of ecommerce tools; all of which promise a great deal of value to their customers.
So, how do you decide which of these tools will provide the best value to your business? Here, we have enlisted 5 must-have tools that you need to deploy to see your ecommerce business thrive:
1. BigCommerce
Managing an ecommerce business is a mammoth task; you always have a never-ending to-do list and are guaranteed to feel stretched in a hundred different directions simultaneously.
It is therefore, imperative that you learn the art of leveraging on the right combination of tools to automate most of your mundane day-to-day tasks. This makes you free to undertake strategic tasks that are essential to your company’s success.
One such tool that we would recommend to all e-commerce business owners is BigCommerce which is a renowned store builder packed with an array of features that allow you to host your website with minimum hassle.
It is currently serving thousands of businesses worldwide that range from small and medium enterprises to multinational conglomerates, which indicates its suitability for all types of businesses and industries.
BigCommerce offers off-site hosting functionality and also comes equipped with an easy to use drag-and-drop editor. It is readily scalable and also offers swift resolution of technical issues such as server problems and page malfunction owing to high visitor load.
In addition to this, it also offers detailed SEO features along with seamless integration with Ebay, Facebook, MailChimp, Google and PayPal. It enables you to present unlimited product options, devise product rules, sell intangible products such as event tickets and digital downloads, process orders and manage your inventory.
2. Jungle Scout
In today’s competitive landscape, if you wish to stay ahead of the herd, you need to be aware of the sthrenghts and weaknesses of your competities. This is particularly true in the case of ecommerce businesses which constantly struggle to offer the best variety of products at the best possible prices.
This is where market research tools like Jungle Scout save the day as they allow you to identify the most popular products for your niche and also enable you to track their demand on Amazon. But, why is a software necessary for this?
Well, researching Amazon’s selling process manually can be a painstaking and time-consuming process that involves going over all your related products and their specifications as well as the details of your competitors.
Jungle Scout, on the other hand, saves this time by pulling out all pertinent information within a matter of minutes. In addition to this, Jungle Scout help you make informed decisions about which products you should invest in by telling you the projected revenue of any particular product listed on Amazon.
It also tells you how many units of a particular item is selling as well as its FBA fee so that you know for sure whether a particular product would make a feasible investment or not.
3. Sourcify
Online businesses require intricate management of inventory, budget, workforce productivity as well as day-to-day financials. This can often present you with a never-ending list of tasks that require your attention.
It is therefore crucial that you invest in a task management tool that will make your workload manageable and track your employees’ performance for you. One such tool is Sourcify which reduces the risk associated with manufacturing by critically analysing all the manufacturers of a particular product. This tool connects manufacturers who are looking for clients to companies who are looking to manufacture products. It also supports and guides you through the stages of the product development process, provides you a secure channel for communicating and paying the manufacturer and walks you through the legalities of importing your product(s). One of the app’s crucial features is its money back guarantee in case the storeowner is not happy with the delivered product(s).
4. Salesmate
This is the age of Customer Relationship Management (CRM) where e-commerce businesses are capitalizing on cloud-based CRM software to offer superior value to their customers.
These tools not only automate most parts of your sales process but also provide game changing insights into customer preferences and buying patterns. This in turn catapults the efficacy of your marketing efforts and enables you to convert leads into customers.
Among the plethora of CRM software available in the market; Salesmate distinguishes itself by offering the biggest variety of advanced functionalities that are not present in other software. It enables your sales function to save time in all aspects of the sales process and also paves the way for effective pipeline management.
The software automates key correspondences with customers, generates accurate sales forecasts and also gives you an insight into which type of content is most appreciated by your customers. Moreover, it also maintains your customer database and prompts you to contact customers that have not been engaged in sometime.
5. Inventory Source
One thing an e-commerce business cannot afford is to have people order an item only to find that it is out of stock. The reason for this is that it not only costs you valuable sales but also reduces the credibility of your brand.
It is here that the inventory management software Inventory Source finds it’s crucial applicability as it automatically syncs your inventory, merges order processing and tracking functionality and updates your website with accurate stock information.
Inventory Source is integrated with over 100 drop shipping brands so that you can pick and choose your preferred vendor or add new customers if they are not on the list. It also offers more than 20 integrations with WooCommerce, BigCommerce, Shopify, Amazon and Walmart, among others.
The adoption of these tools will not only simple e-commerce business management for you but will also scale up your profitability manifolds.
This article was written by Erica Silva, a blogger who loves to discover and explore the world around her. She writes on everything from marketing to technology, science and brain health. She enjoys sharing her discoveries and experiences with readers and believes her blogs can make the world a better place. Find her on Twitter: @ericadsilva1
