If there’s one thing we’ve learned about eCommerce, it’s that customer expectations change all the time. The digital landscape has never been more dynamic — or competitive – than it is now, because of the COVID-19 pandemic.
To stay relevant, legacy merchants who were once mostly physical and mortar have been obliged to spend considerably on their online presence. The epidemic has put a lot of pressure on merchants to keep up with consumer expectations for near-instantaneous, omnichannel service, from same-day delivery to social commerce and self-service solutions.
It will be difficult to match client expectations in 2022 if you don’t have the following strategies well-integrated into your operation. As ongoing supply chain disruption and shifting reasons for shopping online continue to affect consumer behaviour, you may give your company a competitive advantage by taking action now:

(1) Provide several payment choices. : Accepting the typical payment card alternatives is no longer adequate for your online store. The number of payment alternatives available to consumers has grown in tandem with the expansion of digital purchasing capabilities.
Consumer shopping behavior has shifted dramatically as a result of the rise of digital wallets and cryptocurrency. Credit cards are losing popularity.
Due to strong patronization by young consumers, the use of Buy Now, Pay Later (BNPL) programs nearly doubled compared to the same period in 2020. It’s critical to offer a variety of debit and layby options if you want to attract the discretionary spending of younger customers. One of the most common reasons for eCommerce cart abandonment is a lack of attractive payment choices. If customers have an option between you and another vendor who provides BNPL services, it’s very clear who they’ll choose. You can increase conversions and exceed customer expectations for a smooth payment process by giving customers flexibility and choice in how they go through the checkout process.

(2) Ecommerce returns as a growth strategy. : Customers return things for many reasons, ranging from a simple change of heart to more sophisticated issues such as damaged or defective merchandise.
Return management will be one of the most essential CX management techniques in 2022, with supply chain difficulties expected to persist for some time. You’re missing out on a major chance to add revenue-saving activities into your return workflow if you regard returns as the end of a customer relationship rather than an opportunity to create customer loyalty. As the epidemic compels customers to rely more on internet purchasing, they have more expectations for a variety of return options to fit their needs. According to Magneto Solutions, 69 percent of consumers desire the ability to return online purchases to a physical store, and more than half prefer extended return/exchange windows. Your firm can streamline the return experience and sustain client relationships by investing in a variety of tactics such as in-store returns, self-service return portals, and free return shipping for exchanged items. Consumers are far more inclined to shop with your business in the future if they know the return process is simple.

(3) Bringing in-person experiences to the digital realm : While many consumers are turning to eCommerce out of necessity, there is a growing demand for immersive shopping experiences that counteract the impersonal nature of online purchasing.
Over a fifth, (22%) of returns are made because the goods do not look like what the customer expected when they bought them. Augmented Reality has been a game-changer because it provides the immersive quality that eCommerce frequently lacks, allowing customers to ‘experience’ things before they buy them and see how they will look. Such tactics, when combined with real-time chats with customer service employees via live chat, go a long way toward reducing return rates.Some digitally native firms are taking it a step further by moving online shopping away from static product catalogs and toward 3D-rendered virtual store experiences, where customers can browse real product displays and even converse with avatars dressed as store personnel.As these tools grow more popular, failing to embrace their potential will make your company appear behind the times. The more enjoyable your shopping experience is, the more likely shoppers will become paying customers.

(4) Putting money into social commerce : Getting new clients has never been more difficult — or more expensive – than it is right now. Increased competition, lesser organic reach, and greater sponsored search prices have rendered many client acquisition tactics unworkable in the long run, even as more customers migrate online to satisfy their requirements.
Which is the more cost-effective option? You should meet your clients where they are already.
As social media platforms become the primary means for researching companies and items, social commerce, in which consumers may complete their full purchase trip within a social media app, has exploded.
One of the most significant benefits of social commerce is that the majority of digitally native firms are already heavily reliant on social media for brand storytelling and community building, especially in the COVID-19 era, when in-person activations are risky. Social commerce is merely an extension of these capabilities, as it eliminates the need to direct potential consumers away from your profile to complete transactions – a friction point that might cause shoppers to abandon your funnel.
However, if you’re going to invest in social commerce, you need to be highly aware of what your customers want. To develop consumer confidence and readiness to purchase from your business, high levels of social proof are required, which involves being very active in communicating with your customers across platforms. Responding to comments, soliciting input on new products, and finding pain points in the purchasing process are all ways to encourage your followers to buy.

eComGlobus: Building Memorable E-Commerce Experiences

It’s not just about location or how quickly you fulfil orders to make fulfilment a competitive differentiation for your ecommerce firm. It’s also about providing a great buying experience that personalises every touchpoint, from the first website visit through the delivery of a package to your customer’s door. eComGlobus are committed to assisting merchants in growing their businesses by improving the consumer experiences both before and after the sale. Merchants can create flexible, responsive shopping journeys and fulfilment strategies that enhance customer satisfaction and loyalty by combining best-in-class ecommerce fulfilment with advanced personalisation and customer support during the purchasing trip.

Revenue growth is critical for e-commerce enterprises. In just over a decade, the e-commerce industry has grown by leaps and bounds, revolutionising the way consumers shop. The goal of e-commerce enterprises globally today, led mostly by B2C behemoths like eBay and Amazon, is to satisfy as many customers as possible while continuously scaling up their website traffic, thereby growing their reach. To grow their business, many of these e-commerce companies are adopting a multi-channel business model, but this comes with its own set of obstacles. Lack of consistent branding and messaging across various channels; difficulty with inventory management for each channel and the risk of inventory mixup; managing multiple customer relationships across various channels, which is not only time-consuming but also expensive are some of the challenges faced by e-commerce sellers in a multi-channel model.

What is meant by e-commerce marketplace integration?

This API-based application connects various online marketplaces to a single selling platform in a two-way manner. By connecting diverse e-commerce processes, establishing linkages with inventories, and transferring data from many channels into a single operational platform in real-time, the e-commerce marketplace integration facilitates multi-channel sales.

It lets you organize your product lists across a variety of online marketplaces, including Lazada, Noon, Walmart, Amazon, and others. E-commerce marketplace integration has numerous advantages. Uploading new product details, downloading pending orders, writing invoices, producing labels, printing dispatch manifests, tracking orders and shipments, checking and updating inventory stock, and more can all be done with this tool.

What Are the Advantages of Using an E-Commerce Marketplace?

(a) It automates the selling process : By automating the entire workflow, including product upload, figure updates, order administration, and so on, e-commerce marketplace integration removes the majority of manual operations.

(b) Increased Data Transfer Speed : The data flow is rapid and secure because of the real-time connectivity of APIs from all seller platforms. Each data transfer request is verified. It reduces errors by removing friction in the data flow from marketplaces to online stores and inventory.

(c) There is no platform switching : One of the most advantageous aspects of marketplace integration is that it eliminates the need to switch platforms to handle operations. Instead, all operations may be managed from a single dashboard. E-commerce marketplace integration also saves time and effort for sellers like you by simplifying the selling process. This allows you to focus on other important tasks.

(d) Expand Your Channel Coverage : Through increased listing performance, integration improves product visibility. It allows retailers like you to connect your gateway to a variety of marketplaces.

(e) Outshine the competition : Another advantage is that it makes it easier for e-commerce sellers to compete. By repricing products as needed, you can claim the buy box at any time. You can also control discounts and maintain uniformity across all marketplaces.

(f) Increase the visibility of inventory : You can centralize data across all channels with multichannel inventory control software. The major advantage is that you can keep track of inventory at all of your stocking locations. If a default delivery destination is unavailable, or if the default location is an out-of-stock product, you can deliver it from the next closest location.

(g) Expand Your Audience : Another advantage is that selling on several platforms allows you to increase brand awareness. It enables you to reach out to new consumers by exhibiting your products on different platforms and developing a brand presence across multiple channels.

(h) Make Demand Sensing Better : Overstocking can be avoided by integrating an e-commerce platform. It occurs as a result of inadequate forecasting and data collecting, as well as poor planning and anticipation of demand fluctuations. A multichannel inventory control software gives you precise sales estimates, allowing you to avoid overabundance or undersupply situations that cut into a company’s profitability.

(i) Eliminate Errors : E-commerce marketplace integration guarantees that all processes are integrated seamlessly, reducing the risk of errors affecting your everyday operations.

What are the Characteristics of an E-Commerce Marketplace?

(a) A single dashboard : You may assess the efficacy of your sales campaigns across several marketplaces using an accessible centralized dashboard. It allows you to keep track of the marketplace’s best-selling products, account-level orders, current orders, lifetime sales, monthly sales records, and more. An E-commerce marketplace connection allows data to flow between marketplaces and inventory through a single dashboard, making it easier for you to do all of your tasks.

(b) Real-Time Information : One of the most important characteristics of e-commerce marketplace integration is real-time communication between different platforms. It ensures that all figures are updated in real-time, including inventories, orders, and product data. It allows you to sell products across numerous channels while keeping optimal stock levels, eliminating the risk of overselling or underselling.

(c) Robotic Crons : Automated crons are a feature of e-commerce marketplace integration that eliminates manual errors. Crons are commands that prompt the server to complete a preset task on time. It saves you the time and effort of repeating the same tasks, allowing you to focus on more important tasks. It also helps you to increase the speed with which data is sent between different platforms.

(d) Bulk Product Management and Upload : Online shopping mall With integration, you may quickly and easily post bulk products from your online store to the marketplace. This allows you to manage your product catalog more efficiently and devote more time to other critical operations.

(e) Order management centralized : This is one of the aspects of e-commerce marketplace integration that allows merchants to perform all types of order-related operations from different platforms from a single location, such as accept, reject, ship, or cancel orders. If e-commerce sellers cannot manage online orders on schedule, they risk losing existing or potential clients. Sellers don’t have to log in to numerous platforms to manage their orders thanks to a centralized order management system.

(f) Support for multiple seller accounts : Marketplace connection enables you to manage several accounts from the same marketplace at the same time, regardless of geographic limits. You can sell the same inventory from a single location using numerous accounts.

(g) Shipment and tracking automation : The automatic dispatch of inventory is made easier with e-commerce marketplace connectivity. You may connect with prominent carriers using centralized inventory management software to ensure that each order is completed and products are delivered to clients on time. With a marketplace connection, you may also track a shipment in real-time. All other details, such as billing/shipping address, shipping carrier, tracking code, and live position, are given to sellers to monitor from their website once the goods are released for delivery.

(h) Live Notifications that are Automated : The connection of an e-commerce marketplace guarantees that you receive automated live notifications on your web portal. On your portal, you can get immediate updates on any new orders received or refused, low inventory, and so on. For more live notifications, you can further customize the marketplace.

Conclusion :

Logix Platform provides an E-commerce marketplace integration for multi-channel e-commerce sellers, it allows you to sell across different channels using a single platform. It also allows you to reliably target more clients across many geographic locations and receive real-time order distribution changes. Most importantly, it eliminates the need to move between different channels manually, allowing you to post products in bulk. It allows you to devote more time to your work.