Which route to take when you enter an e-commerce development project? From entrepreneurship to continuous improvement, there are many steps that need to be overcome on this path. In this article, I present a safe roadmap for you to implement successful e-commerce. Follow along!
10 STEPS OF E-COMMERCE DEVELOPMENT
For good e-commerce development, try to follow the following steps:
1 - Entrepreneurship:
This is the phase where you will create the e-commerce business and open the company. To do this, there are several methods you can use, such as the Business Plan or the E-commerce Startup method . With a Business Plan, you do extensive planning before starting the e-commerce implementation. In the startup method , you plan, implement, and test simultaneously. Choose the method that best suits you.
It's worth mentioning that if you already have an established business selling in a physical store, then in many cases you can skip this entrepreneurial step. In other words, you can use the structure of your existing business to also create your e-commerce store. In this case, the idea is to create a unified business , that is, a business in which your online and physical channels are integrated and function as a single channel.
2 – Creation of the virtual store:
The easiest way to create an online store today is through e-commerce platforms. There are thousands of them on the market, in different formats. The most practical are those that can be rented, such as VTEX , Shopify Plus , and Wake Commerce , for example. You can further improve things by integrating the deco.cx CMS and DXP with one of these platforms, as deco.cx allows you to create front-ends with faster loading speeds, which contributes to search engine optimization (SEO), generates more visits, and improves the shopping experience.
The platforms I just mentioned have something else in common. They are all headless , meaning they have decoupled front-end and back-end . This allows for optimizations to the storefront without shutting down the online store and therefore without compromising the customer experience. It's also possible to evolve your online store practically by adding ready-made applications tested by other companies via Application Programming Interface (API) in a plug-and-play process.
To conclude this topic, it's important to note that anyone wanting to start an e-commerce business with a business plan will likely want to use a top-of-the-line platform from the beginning. However, those who do it via the startup method will need to test concepts with free and limited platforms at the start or, instead of platforms, use channels like social media and messaging apps.
In any case, if you need support for e-commerce development, turn to Agência e-Plus . Click the button below and start a conversation with our team via messaging app to learn more about our support:
3 – Promotion of the virtual store:
In fact, in Brazil, for every 100 unique visitors to an online store, only 1 makes a purchase (+/- 1%). Namely, most Brazilian online stores receive 10 thousand visitors per month, which generates an average of 100 sales per month. As can be seen, this is a very low sales number and, in many cases, it does not even make the online store viable.
To sell more, therefore, it is essential to continuously invest in marketing. With marketing, you can attract many more visitors to your online store. But not only that. Marketing also allows you to retain more customers, build loyalty, generate a higher average order value , and increase the conversion rate to above just 1%, among other advantages.
I recommend investing above all in Digital Marketing. Use, for example, an organic traffic strategy combined with Inbound Marketing and Marketing Automation with platforms such as RD Station and E-goi. Additionally, continuously run paid traffic campaigns through advertising platforms such as Google Ads and Meta Ads.
Remember that to generate both paid and organic traffic for your online store, you can count on the support of Agência e-Plus. Click the button below and contact us via messaging app to learn about our e-commerce marketing services:
4 – Daily e-commerce management:
Every e-commerce business has a bureaucratic part, which are administrative routines such as accounting, billing, personnel department, accounts payable and receivable, etc., which need to be managed.
Furthermore, there's also the management of the online store itself, which involves Big Data analysis and the application of Conversion Rate Optimization (CRO) . You also need to manage promotions, store design , shipping, exchanges and returns, among other factors.
In a small e-commerce business, like those run by micro- entrepreneurs (MEIs ), one person can handle all of that, and even make their own coffee and clean their workspace. But when the company is an SME or larger, then it's necessary to have a team.
When undertaking a business using the startup method, it's possible to start alone and then, as the company grows, hire more people. For example, you start selling clothes on a social network and double your sales in three months. Then, you can hire someone to help with sales and management. Next, you open an online store with 5 products and hire another person, and so on.
5 – Meeting sales targets:
When developing your e-commerce's organizational culture , you create, within the concept of Vision (Mission, Vision, and Values), an objective that should be achieved in the next 4 or 5 years. This is where your sales goals fit in.
In other words, starting from the Vision's objective, an e-commerce strategy should be created with daily sales targets that must be met. Achieving these targets will lead to the fulfillment of the Vision in the long term.
There are entrepreneurs who work with realistic goals, that is, with objectives that they know they can complete. Other entrepreneurs, however, work better with utopian goals, that is, the type “aim for the moon, because even if you make a mistake you will be among the stars”. Anyway, choose your style! Have your way!
6 – Professional service:
Even if your online store is fast and your shipping is unbeatable, you will need to offer professional service. That is, in the service channels you will have to ask questions and refer consumers in multiple actions.
Use channels such as chat on product pages, phone, email, and messaging apps, for example. Be quick to respond. Also, pay attention to objections. Offer counter-proposals to close more sales.
Today, with the advancement of Artificial Intelligence (AI), it's possible to integrate a chatbot into your online store capable of providing extremely humanized and convincing answers to consumers. In many cases, using this type of chatbot can improve customer service and, therefore, generate significantly more online sales. It's worth testing.
7 - Logistics:
For successful e-commerce development, scientifically control the transportation, handling, and storage of products. This control will depend, however, on the type of logistics. For example, you must define whether you will work with cross-docking or dropshipping , that is, with your own inventory or with third-party inventory. Furthermore, you must determine how your reverse logistics will work, which concerns the exchange and return of products. This is also very important.
Today, companies such as Correios, Melhor Envio and Loggi, among others, offer shipping and reverse logistics services for e-commerce at competitive prices. In addition, there are also click and collect options and collection points, which are also very useful and should be evaluated by you as an entrepreneur.
8 – After-sales:
After publishing a product page in your online store, advertising it, selling the product and delivering it, the next step is to carry out after-sales. That is, you will need to contact the customer to see if everything is ok.
In this context, it is possible to contact by e-mail or telephone and ask the customer if he was satisfied with the product and the delivery. Show that concern for the customer and they will remember you for future purchases.
Tools like RD Station Marketing make this process easier. Through RD Station, you can send automated messages to all customers who have purchased from your store. Easily send, for example, thank-you messages, order status updates , and new offers, among others.
9 – Adaptation to consumers:
The first step to adapting your e-commerce to consumers is knowing your consumers. The easiest way to do this is through customer data platforms and digital experience platforms.
These tools allow you to track and gather information about consumers who visit your online store. You can find out, for example, which parts of your store consumers visit most, where they click most, among other actions that give clues about their interests and behaviors.
Based on this, you can change the layout of your e-commerce site to adapt it to consumer interests, define more targeted promotions, create new page elements, integrate new applications that may be useful, and keep your customers focused on their purchases.
10 – Continuous improvement:
In a world where innovations are constant and change people's lives in the blink of an eye, investing in continuous improvement is fundamental. Therefore, you should invest in the continuous improvement not only of your online store, but of all departments and work processes of your e-commerce business. Optimize one thing a day, but optimize consistently. Make it a habit to achieve small advantages each day , because these advantages can certainly make a big difference for the well-being of your e-commerce business in the long run.
Try applying, for example, the Kaizen philosophy through technical training to achieve more consistent e-commerce development. This philosophy will help you eliminate waste and increase productivity. Furthermore, have a data-driven business. Nowadays, data is key to achieving continuous and consistent improvements.
SUPPORT FOR E-COMMERCE DEVELOPMENT
As you can see, e-commerce development goes beyond simply creating an online store. It encompasses everything from entrepreneurship to continuous improvement, so the online store is only one part of the process. Work hard on these processes, refine them until you obtain the jewel, that is, the outlier e-commerce business.
Remember, you don't have to do it alone. You can always count on the support of Agência e-Plus. The e-Plus Agency is certified on the best e-commerce platforms and tools on the market, such as VTEX, Shopify Plus, Nuvemshop, Linx Commerce, Wake Commerce, uappi, Vnda, deco.cx, RD Station Marketing, E-goi , Meta Ads and Google Ads.
With more than 10 years of tradition, Agência e-Plus has already developed more than 400 e-commerce projects in Brazil, Portugal, Spain, Costa Rica, Ecuador, Argentina and other countries. You can hire the e-Plus Agency from anywhere in the world. To do this, click the following button and start a conversation via the messenger app right now:
