Re: How to choose an ecommerce product?
John Greenan / http://www.alignment-systems.com
6 Jun 2008 7:57AM ETSpam!
> In the part I, I had discussed briefly about how most of the small
> businesses go about selecting a product, whereas a successful small
> businessmen would be careful and would evaluate the product based on
> various aspects listed below before making a choice. I will relist all
> the important factors, which one should consider before buying an
> ecommerce product (www.ritecart.co.uk) or software for their company.
> 1. Ease of configuration
> 2. Ability to Scale
> 3. Useful latest features
> 4. Available marketing tools with the product 5. Ability to
> analyze data (analytics, not only google analytics!!)
> 5. Reports 7. Integration (with other modules, Like epos with near
> realtime online/offline synchronization of data and other
> packaged application )
> 6. Customer Service
> 7. Technical Support
> 8. Technical Implementation Aspects
> 9. Build vs Buy Ease of Configuration- It is very important that
> the product is configurable and suited for one’s current needs
> and future needs, Like some of the things one may want to
> determine that how easy it is to · Add products, categories and
> catalogs. Can this be dynamically created using administrative
> tool and dynamically displayed on the user side? Can it support
> multiple images with different resolution to be displayed on the
> user side? · Look and manage all the orders placed by the
> administrator? Before placing the order, does it check for
> inventories? Does it notify the administrators, if the
> inventories go below a threshold value? Can the administrator
> mix and match the shipment to the customer? · Create new sales
> store and new warehouses for inventories? Can the store’s
> inventory be picked up from different warehouses? · Define
> several types of prices for the same product like list price,
> default price, component price, sale price etc? Can the price be
> dynamically setup using a rules engine? · Associate a product
> with host of features like size, color, height, width, UOM,
> density, length etc? Can the product be setup and shown on the
> user side on any of the feature mentioned above or any of your
> new custom features? · Return an order, look at shopping
> list/wish list, browse through the items last visited, go to
> most popular products in store, discounted product or special
> product in store, look at promotional products, place a review
> on the product, recommend a product or provide a valuable
> feedback and look at the products which are most sought by the
> people who had brought the same product as the customer in past?
> · Can I select or add a new payment processor easily? I may want
> to use PayPAL today but I may need GoogleCheck out tomorrow. How
> many Payment engines does the product support? · Customize my
> shipment company or add a new shipping company? Can I integrate
> directly with ups, RoyalMail, USPS, Fedex etc? Ability to Scale
> As the company grows, eCommerce infrastructure should be able to
> grow with you, supporting more customers, products, and traffic
> as needed. Unfortunately, this doesn’t always occur, which is
> why scalability is such an important element in any ecommerce
> product (www.ritecart.co.uk) . It is very important to know on
> what technology is the product built upon. Does the vendor have
> enough support or knowledge on the product? This may sound like
> a mute point but all these factors do really matter. It may be
> easy for a vendor to use an opensource product and provide the
> required solution but most of the opensource solutions fail in
> the kind of support you get and to the kind of ownership
> you/vendor have on the product. It has been my experience that
> even with the best of the open source products, when you look
> deep into the code, you realize that the pieces of code have
> been written by people who really don’t know what the other
> coders have been writing introducing lot of overheads in the
> code and a code which is in no way modular or object oriented,
> making it all the more difficult for any vendor company to
> provide support. Important point is look for a company that
> treats your online store as an important long-term investment,
> and has a product with that track record. These priorities will
> keep you and your site up and running—whether your order volume
> is five a day or five thousand—without skipping a beat.
> Remember, an eCommerce company or product should support the
> total growth of your business, not limit it.
>
> Useful latest features Although this may not sound important or required
> but this does remain one of the most important criteria while selecting
> an online ecommerce solution or product. The latest features provide
> means and ways to improve your marketability and thereby the sale of
> your product. To name a few, · Products Last visited by the user ·
> Ability to provide reviews by the user · Ability to list down the
> product rated higher by user community · Create Composite product and
> offer discount for composite products · Dynamic pricing of composite
> products. To price dynamically user created composite products More
> current features product has, easier it is, for the merchant to rollout
> new marketing initiatives. Also it is very important that the product is
> designed and built in such a way that it is easier to add/remove
> features. Available marketing tools with the product Sooner or later you
> will want to provide returning customers with a special discount, or use
> a coupon as a promotional device. Does your ecommerce product
> (www.ritecart.co.uk) or solution allow for that contingency in your
> checkout? Can you easily generate creative marketing content and
> integrate it into the site’s infrastructure? Can you easily identify
> your targeted customers based on the data you have by analyzing the data
> in hand? and or does the system seem limiting? Coupons and other
> promotions can be key conversion tools, so make sure your ecommerce
> product (www.ritecart.co.uk) allows for this kind of marketing
> flexibility. Remember, promotions and marketing tools can make a
> difference in the crowded online marketplace, and can help set you apart
> from others who have their online presence in the market. Ability to
> analyze data Once you have your ecommerce solution deployed, you will
> want to find ways and means to increase the sales of your product. You
> may want to look at your current customer base, understand their trends,
> their demographics, their preference, and the overall customer behavior.
> All these helps you to prepare your business better, find effective
> marketing tools and eventually get more sales done. To effectively
> achieve this, you would need means to analyze your data. As a product
> selection criteria, it is very important that you specifically know that
> what are the different analytics, which are provided by the tool Reports
> Reports are important for the management as it helps them to see the
> overall picture of the order and sales in the organization. It is
> important to know what are the different reports supported by the
> ecommerce solution. I would recommend that one should list all of the
> reports required for the organization and try to ensure that those
> reports are covered or are generated by the ecommerce solution. It is
> also necessary to know how easily more reports can be added or generated
> by the system. Other important aspect of reporting is the support of
> different formats. The most common formats are CVS (Microsoft Excel),
> PDF (Adobe) and Quickbooks. Integration Integration is one of the key
> non functional requirements; one should look at, before choosing
> ecommerce software (www.ritecart.co.uk). Some of the key questions would
> be how easy is it to integrate with third party software? Does the
> ecommerce provider have the pluggable modules provided like Epos (Online
> electronic Point Of Sale) and Accounting package? Palindrome Software
> Labs (www.palindromesoftware.com) has been very successful in marketing
> and selling its RiteCart enterprise product, which has ecommerce, epos,
> accounting and other pluggable modules. Major sales in the RiteCart
> enterprise have been the epos and ecommerce combination. RiteCart
> (www.ritecart.co.uk) has n tier architecture for its epos module. Epos
> module has online/offline synchronization with the order management,
> warehouse management and ecommerce module As I said earlier, ecommerce
> solution should be the tool for business to enhance its marketability,
> sales and in no way should limit it.
>
>
> Customer Service Any online retailer will understand how important
> customer service is to maintaining the success of a business. In
> choosing an eCommerce package, as a consumer, customer support is all
> the more important. Make sure that eCommerce software provider does
> provide with the elements you need to keep an online business operating
> at its peak level at all times. Does the vendor offer notifications
> regarding product updates or enhancements, personalized service, and
> technical support? Is there an option for an online help with live chat
> and IP2IP calling (www.supportnow.biz)? Keep in mind that the eCommerce
> solution provider should offer the same individualized service that one
> would want to give to his customers. Technical Support In the same vein,
> one shouldn’t have to jump through hoops to get someone to aid you if
> there is a problem with your online store—so make sure the service
> providers have experienced, reliable technical support and are committed
> to fixing a coding error or bug quickly. Quality counts; be assured that
> your ecommerce service provider (www.palindromesoftware.com) has people
> behind and are equally committed to quality and the customer experience
> as you are. Technical Implementation Aspects This is one of the most
> neglected factors by the ecommerce customer community. Remember,
> Ignorance is not always bliss. it is important to understand that the
> product development technology plays a vital role in defining product
> features, customization, support and ease of product usage. It is fairly
> common these days to use a scripting language to build products because
> that is the easiest way to build a product for the product supplier!!
>
> I encourage customers to ask some specific questions, to name a few ·
> How can I customize the product behavior? Does it use XML or Property
> files? · How can I change my query? Can I change without looking into
> the code? · How can I change the content? · Can my Home page flash
> dynamically pick up product images, price and other details from my
> database · What language is used for development for product? Scripting
> language like PHP and others are a huge no, no. Make sure that your
> product is built using a software language like Java or .NET (most
> preferred ones) · Can I add more modules to my product? How simple is
> it? Is the development Object Oriented
>
> Our product RiteCart (www.ritecart.co.uk) is built using robust
> MVC/Struts framework, which is modular, extensible and configurable.
> Technologies used in this product are Java, XML, BSH. Build vs. Buy Over
> the period of time, this has become one of my favorite customer
> questions. Build or Buy? I usually answer this by asking a question- how
> much ROI do you expect out of your ecommerce investment and product?
> Building is an expensive option (not from cost point of view but from
> ROI Point of view). You can build your solution using one of these
> options 1. Build with a good reliable vendor onsite (with or without an
> open source solution)
> 10. Build with a good vendor offshore
> 11. Build with a small vendor onsite/offshore
> 12. Go for your own development with some open source tools
>
> Point 1, 2 &3 are feasible but one should ask himself the following
> questions, is the cost feasible? Will the vendor understand all the
> functional needs of the ecommerce solution? How long has the vendor been
> in the ecommerce solution market? Will the solution be ever built? Will
> it work as per expectations? Can the software vendor be relied upon? How
> much time will it take? What impact does it have on my business if it is
> not delivered to my satisfaction? Finally for option 4, if you decide to
> pursue an open-source application to manage your store, make sure to
> thoroughly research and examine your options. Is the project
> continuously updated, or has it been stagnant for a long time, with very
> few updates on the project and very little news as to where it is
> headed? Several open-source solutions are released every year. However,
> very few have the longevity that you will need to be used as a
> foundation for your online store. Examine the programmers behind it, and
> others who use the program. Buying option is a much easier option. One
> can feel and see the solution. One can make sure that he has got
> everything in the product he needs. Also, he can be rest assured that
> the company has the required functional, technical and support expertise
> to support all of his needs. Finally, look at the company that’s behind
> your eCommerce solution (www.ritecart.co.uk). What have they done in the
> past? Are they a growing enterprise, likely to continually make
> improvements to their firm, and pass on those benefits to you? When
> considering a package, make sure that the company you are dealing with
> is credible, with a solid reputation to back up any claims. See where
> your customer and technical support will come from. Is it in-house or
> out-sourced? Do they have a solid, supportive community in the form of a
> forum, blog, or network of satisfied eCommerce businesses
> (www.ritecart.co.uk)? Examine the philosophy behind the company. Ask for
> references or email others, who’ve used their services in the past, and
> see what they have to say about the different aspects of the company you
> may be working with. These are the people who are going to help you
> build your business and make it a success; so choose wisely. Ritecart
> product (www.ritecart.co.uk) is sold in two flavors (Lite & enterprise).
> If you are looking for ecommerce software, Please request for a
> quotation from our Sales team. We have got the right product for you
> tagged with the right price!!! Author is working as a Senior Retail
> Analyst with Palindrome Software Labs (www.palindromesoftware.com).
