E-commerce solutions alleviate much of the stress involved with running an online marketplace. Still, not all solutions are created equally. Many offer services and features that others don’t. The best solutions should handle facets of your business that you often overlook. They should make it easier to understand your marketplace and seamlessly integrate with the infrastructure you’ve built.
Although there isn’t a one-size-fits-all e-commerce software, there are numerous features that most businesses should consider when choosing one.
1. Easy to Set Up
Choosing an e-commerce platform that is easy to integrate with your website is essential. These solutions are designed to make it easier to run your business. They shouldn’t require extensive coding knowledge to integrate or use, and their dashboards should be easy to understand. The best options often include educational material that walks you through using their product.
Even if it’s easy to use, you’ll likely need help at some point. When you find yourself needing assistance, you should be able to reach their customer service team easily. Platforms with 24/7 customer service are ideal since you never know when an issue will arise.
2. Easy-to-use Dashboards
One of the hallmark features of an e-commerce solution is a dashboard that makes every facet of your business easy to view. The best options display revenue data, shipping data, and more in a centralized location with easy-to-interpret visuals. These dashboards provide a bird’s-eye view of your business, allowing you to make informed decisions easily.
Some e-commerce software may split your data into multiple dashboards, whereas others have one central page to view data. Regardless of which option you choose, the data should be easy to find and understand. The data must be updated in real-time or at least once a day to be effective.
3. Marketplace Integrations
It’s worth considering software that easily integrates your marketplace with the most significant players in the e-commerce ecosystem. Although you may sell most of your products on your website, integrating with marketplaces like Amazon can boost sales.
The largest barrier that most businesses face when integrating with other marketplaces is the time spent uploading products. Some solutions let you store product content, specifications, and photos in a centralized location, eliminating time constraints.
4. Third-party Logistics
Handling your warehousing and shipping in-house becomes challenging as your business scales. Over time, you’ll have to increase the size of your onsite warehouse to accommodate your growing volume. Outsourcing your logistics processes eliminates the burden of storing, packing, and shipping your orders. Still, it can be difficult to match customer orders to the most efficient warehouse.
Solutions that offer third-party logistics (3PL) services make managing your customers’ orders easier. Some feature APIs that you can integrate with your existing warehouse partners. These APIs make it easier to handle direct-to-consumer logistics without severing ties with your shipping partners.
In some cases, an e-commerce platform has their own warehouses. These options can pick, pack, and ship your products without you lifting a finger. Usually, you can have your products drop shipped directly to them, and they’ll handle the rest.
When using a service that manages your warehousing, packing, and shipping, it’s essential to choose one that’s trustworthy. It should make it easy to track your inventory levels and where your products are located.
Assuming your business sells on multiple marketplaces, the platform should seamlessly integrate with the various sites and manage orders accordingly. If you’re using the platform’s warehouse and shipping services, they should minimize errors and optimize shipping times. Frequent customer returns and slow shipping can slow your growth.
5. Scalability
Ideally, your business will grow over time. Selecting software that can manage a large number of SKUs prevents you from having to choose a new platform after your business scales. As your order volume increases, you’ll want the platform to monitor the growing order volume without error.
You may outsource various aspects of your business over time. The best solutions can easily integrate with your third-party partners. If your partners need assistance, the solution should offer customer service and educational material to help.
6. Fair Prices
When choosing an e-commerce solution, you want it to save your business money over time. Even if a platform results in savings by reducing the time spent on various aspects of your business, the costs of the service may outweigh the benefits.
Some options charge hefty upfront fees that aren’t ideal for a small business. Upfront fees may result in you paying more than you can afford since you have to pay regardless of whether or not you make sales.
Platforms that charge a percentage of your transaction fees ensure you never pay more than you can afford. That makes them an ideal solution for most.
Comprehensive E-Commerce Solutions
Although there are numerous e-commerce tools to choose from, only a few offer comprehensive characteristics that make them suitable for nearly any online business.
If you’re looking for an e-commerce solution that’s right for your business, it’s essential to consider their features before committing to one. Choosing the right solution early on saves you time and trouble down the line.
Want to hear how Tradefull could help? Contact us today and hear about our complete e-commerce solution.
