Entrepreneurs are Determined to Succeed with a Shift to Technology
In 2020 there has been a tremendous increase in e-commerce with more people being forced to shop online due to the pandemic.
While many online marketplaces had to face a decline during that period even while there was a general increase in online shopping. Small businesses that adapted quickly to the situation and extended their market to online platforms were able to cash from this transformation in the basic shopping habit of people. Many companies resorted to long-tail growth strategy during this period which seems to have succeeded.
A long-tail growth strategy is when a company decides to sell a low volume of items to many customers rather than selling a large volume of selected products to a few customers. Walmart changing its rules to include sellers from any part of the world is a long-tail growth strategy used to attract smaller brands and compete in a better way with the retailers. FedEx partnered with BigCommerce in April 2020 to provide a helping hand to small and medium businesses. The administrators of the UPC barcode system, GS1 US, set up a new method to help the small brands to get legitimate product identification, identification necessary for the success of the brand, more easily and efficiently.
With the pandemic, many have started to enter the field of business and small brands have started making use of the e-commerce platforms. More products and brands are marking their presence on the online platform. Amazon has currently almost 3 billion products listed in it and Shopify have seen more stores included in it. In addition to this, small business owners are also planning to spend more on technology in 2021.
Entrepreneurs have started to think of more diverse and efficient ways of working right now. There are virtual burger joints and restaurants like MrBeast Burger which utilises the existing restaurant kitchens. This allows the restaurant to add to their revenue at the same time selling the branded products. This method of forming alliances with small businesses have enables some brands to reach out to areas that were never thought of before. The entrepreneurs, who mediate between the brand and the small businesses have the responsibility for making the customer experience – starting from ordering to delivery- smooth.
Higher shipping charges and a longer time is taken for delivery makes the shoppers stay away from online shopping. Unlike larger companies like Amazon, small businesses find it difficult to charge less for shipping. This situation is also changing with the partnerships like that of FedEx and BigCommerce. They offer small businesses an opportunity to provide better shipping charges and larger pick-up options. This will enable them to compete more efficiently.
Standardised Product Identification is a feature that would make the identification of the product more consistent and accurate. It helps to standardise the product identity and enhances the chances of being accepted by many retailers and logistics companies.
Making returns easy is another area that needs focus to enhance the business. For small retailers, it would be difficult to meet the cost of returns. Teaming with service providers like Narvar to provide order tracking and return facilities helps small retailers to offer better management of products. This is especially a good option for retailers who don’t have enough funds to allocate to returns.
Though returns are an essential feature in the retail business, reducing the return rates by providing all possible information about the product to the customers through the website would enhance the positive review of the company. High-quality images in all angles, accurate and detailed product description, specific weight and dimensions will reduce the product return rate to an extent.
With the pandemic causing a shift in the nature shopping and outlook of people, businesses that are not reluctant to adopt technology, high standards of performance and data quality would ensure their success in the future.