When presented with a buffet, you don't stop at just one dish; you want to relish the flavor of every item on the menu. And why not? You should grab every possible thing. Similarly, running an e-commerce business, as a merchant you wish to list your product on every possible e-commerce platform to relish the perks of each and every platform. This keeps your hands full. In a lot of ways!!!! Now, unlike eating food at a buffet, handling multiple platforms can become a bit hectic. There is an endless list of tasks that need to be taken care of, like packaging (not provided by all the platforms), order management, inventory management, order tracking, order returns, customer service, product listing, product bundling, and this can go on and on…
Keeping track of everything is more than exhausting. It leads to missed orders, missed updates, lost track of orders, stocking, or overstocking since inventories are not managed optimally. Also, you cannot focus on the improvement of the product or building a better strategy since you are struggling with the basics. This is like a loop where you are always overworked and yet not working on things that actually need your attention.
Don’t worry! It is not impossible to break this loop. You just need Multi-Channel Integration. This blog can be the ultimate answer to all your work overload problems. Give it 5 minutes, and the key takeaways will be less burden, organized working, and a better flow of business. Basics first!
In simple words, it connects all the e-commerce platforms, where you are selling your products to one channel where you can manage all the platforms together in a streamlined manner. It is as simple as the definition seems but has a lot of deeper lengths of the term. It gives you:
Let's paint a clearer picture by listing the benefits of a multi-channel integration strategy!
Multi-channel e-commerce integration is a must-have tool for every e-commerce seller who is willing to expand without going crazy! It will help you channel your strengths and overcome your weaknesses. Here is the list of benefits that multi-channel integration offers:
The first and primary effect is internal, as it helps streamline the process as it all passes through a centralized platform rather than an entangled web. Also, management becomes much easier because sellers only need to follow and manage the unified platform rather than multiple platforms.
While listing your products across multiple platforms, your products are exposed to a wider audience. Every online shopper checks multiple platforms before actually buying a product. Presence across platforms also increases your visibility and creates a kind of trust amongst the shoppers. This way, your business will be able to get more people to buy your products.
While multi-channel integration is increasing the visibility of the products, there will be improvement in the conversion rates. When shoppers will find your product across different platforms, you will not have to do much, people will start buying your product on their own.
Note: Your product listing has a great role to play. Make sure that you take time and make efforts to frame it well.
Risk is very much part of the business but putting all your eggs in one basket is always risky. So will multiple channels, the risk is divided. Even if one channel goes down, the other channels can cover up the loss. Also, there is near to no dependence on any particular channel.
Selling on multiple channels not only gives your products exposure to different markets but also gives you insights into the audience and markets as to who wants to buy what, from where, and at what frequency. Also, different platforms serve different kinds of audiences, so sellers can plan their marketing and selling strategy accordingly, using the data received from other channels.
With multi-channel integration, you don't have to jump from site to site to update the data, manage orders, inventory, etc. Just one channel would serve the purpose. Hence, the processes would be streamlined. Also, the scope of error in this case would be less. Multi-tasking would lessen and the management of business would become more efficient.
You know all the benefits of multi-channel integration and by now, you must be willing to take up the right inventory management software which can help you with the same.
You must know the features of Multi-Channel Integration so that you know what you are signing up for. Here is the list:
With multi-channel integration, sellers don't have to do website hopping for updates and data analysis. Just one dashboard will serve all the purposes. These dashboards on a general note are really easy to use. So the sellers can have low to no technical knowledge to grab the benefits.
Bulk orders are the most difficult to manage, but multi-channel integration software makes these easy to handle and manages the product catalogs without the intervention of the seller. Simple uploading has to be done on the software.
Real-time updates refer to the updates done to be carried out on different platforms altogether. With multi-channel integration, these do not need to be carried out manually across various channels. The changes in stock, listing, and product information are updated in one go.
Order management is the most crucial feature of e-commerce integration, as it helps merchants get information on all the orders in one place. Here, the merchant can manage acceptance, rejection, tracking, and delivery all together.
A single seller can have multiple seller accounts depending on the region where they are selling the products. Such seller accounts are usually very confusing and hard to manage. But with multi channel integration, all those accounts can be managed in a single place.
Updating inventory is a constant and rigorous process. It has to be updated to avoid underselling or overselling. This task is also simplified with e-commerce integration software. Inventory is updated automatically if stock is reduced or added.
After knowing all this, you just need to head on towards a hassle-free business. But this blog doesn’t end here! You need a strong marketing strategy for your business’ growth to take a flight. So here are 9 marketing tips for you:
In a nutshell, multi-channel integration will streamline your business’s day-to-day operations. Also, it will keep your accounts linked together so that all of them are on the same page, representing the same information, availability, and description. MapMyChannel is one such Multi-channel e-commerce software that will assist you with multi-channel inventory management, flexible order management, bundle making, data optimization, etc. It is like a one-stop solution to all those overwhelming problems mentioned above. Also, it is easy to work on so even with minimal technical support, you can do this on your own. And of course! The experts of the team are always there to help you.
Take the next step toward scalable growth. Get Started with MapMyChannel Today!
