As you grow your eCommerce, it faces the potential to outgrow the core capabilities of your system. For that reason, it’s important to build a tech stack that will grow with your business.
The growth of your business is the desirable outcome. However, without the right architecture to support your growth your store cannot operate at its optimal level. Online sites need the right bandwidth to manage high traffic volumes, sales spikes, increased order fulfilment, customer support, and returns management.
Some of the biggest issues with selling online include:
- Selling across multiple online platforms can lead to stock and delivery issues.
- Increased risks of cybersecurity attacks as data increases.
- Delays in customer service, such as page load times and response times.
To support your security, logistics and sales, there are simple ways to make your tech stack scalable.
Shopify Plus’ cloud-based platform for infinite scalability
A sudden increase in site traffic has the potential to crash your website. It is important to manage your website’s capability so customers don’t come to your site, face challenges with load times and accessibility, and then leave without making a purchase due to frustration.
Your back-end platform needs to handle increased traffic with ease. Using a cloud-based infrastructure means that you can scale fast, and with few limits.
Shopify Plus is a cloud-based solution relied upon by more than 600,000 merchants. The solution operates on a multi-server system based on Docker with the Rails app and has added AWS features. The solution reports 99.9% uptime for their customers, regardless of load levels. The solution is tested and updated on a regular basis to ensure security is a priority.
The Shopify Plus solution bases pricing on the merchants’ volume. All this means that merchants don’t need servers, but can rely on cloud technology to support operations, save money on infrastructure and hardware, and make scaling easy.
Add-on apps
If you are scaling your business operations from a home project to a larger operation with complex logistics, plug-ins are a great solution to scaling. Customers expect timely delivery of orders with low-cost or free shipping included with purchase. They want tracking, easy returns and secure delivery.
For merchants, syncing your Shopify store with an extended network of partners or resellers, and managing product data and inventory numbers are critical. Add-ons using the Shopify platform can make syncing smooth, and help mitigate inventory discrepancies.
Plug-ins include:
- Third-party logistics (3PL)
Fast order fulfilment is a key selling point for online merchants. 3PLs store your inventory information held at multiple warehouse locations and fulfil orders based on the geolocation of the purchase. This means that orders are sent from the closest warehouse, reducing delivery times. The automated process streamlines fulfilment and delivery and outsources your logistics to a professional provider.
- Inventory or order management system
Using an inventory or order management system that syncs with your Shopify account will help you track and manage inventory across multiple partner networks.
If you’re working with multiple fulfilment partners, an integrated system manages your real-time inventory and forecasts demand to ensure that ordering or manufacturing is predictable. Using an inventory or order management system that syncs with your Shopify account will help you track and manage inventory across multiple partner networks.
- Product information management
As you grow your network of partners, affiliates, and resellers, it’s important that your product data is consistent across different platforms, including your sales and marketing materials, inventory, mobile apps, websites, and other properties and partner networks. To do this, a product information management system with integrated product data that automatically updates data across all of the communication channels in use keeps your eCommerce functioning with fluid efficiency.
- Customer relationship management (CRM)
CRM system allows you to deliver personalized service to your loyal customers, using an automated system. A CRM allows you to generate a detailed customer profile for each person who engages with your brand, and that data can be used to build customized marketing and sales campaigns for each one. For example, a customer who has not made a purchase in 6-months might receive a timed promotional email with some recommended product offers based on their past purchases and even a discount code to encourage them to make another purchase.
Protect customers’ security
Cybersecurity is always a priority for eCommerce operators. Your business must use the most up-to-date antivirus scanning software. You should also give employees a VPN if they are logging in remotely to secure their data from outside access. All access should require 2FA, including for employees and even on their personal devices so that unauthorized users can’t gain access in the event of loss or theft.
Your customer data needs to be securely encrypted at every stage of the eCommerce process. This is a compliance requirement and in many jurisdictions, you are unable to obtain access to banking without conforming to AML and KYC standards that include such protections. Shopify Plus merchants get access to an extended verification SSL (EV SSL) certificate, which helps generate consumer trust.
Optimize your returns process
The nature of eCommerce is a high number of returns. As many as 40% of products are returned for exchange or refund. For this reason, having an automated process to manage returns is essential. It helps improve your efficiency, customer satisfaction rates and inventory management.
Loop has an automated returns management solution as a Shopify Plus add-on. You can build a streamlined self-service portal where customers can fill in the details for a return or exchange. The platform will allow them to choose a reason for return, and suggest recommended exchanges directly from your real-time inventory without leaving the platform.
This results in a higher exchange rate, helping you retain up to 40% of customer revenue from your returns.
Loop makes it easier for you to automate exchanges and as you grow, manage returns and exchanges using the system rather than spending valuable employee time on routine tasks. The system is fast, provides higher accuracy and secures customer loyalty.
