The Importance of Automation in E-Commerce
When most people think of automation, the first thing that comes to mind is the image of a machine working in a factory. Or a robot making coffee. Brings To Mind the truth is, automation has permeated almost every aspect of our lives and businesses. Automation in e-commerce can be as simple as scheduling posts on Instagram or setting up an automatic response for when your customers message you with questions about a new launch.
It could also be as complex as building out a full-fledged AI chatbot or building an app that helps automate everything from product updates to dropshipping logistics. The important thing to remember about automation in e-commerce is that there is no one-size-fits-all solution. Sort of.
Automation gives you the time and space to do more high-value tasks like building customer relationships, creating content, and strategising business growth. It is particularly useful for small businesses that do not have the resources to hire a large team but would still like to enjoy the benefits of having more hands-on-deck. More or less. But as with most things in e-commerce, it’s important to acknowledge that not all automation tools are built equally, nor are they all necessary for your business.
Finding the ones that work best for you will help streamline your processes and free up time for you (and your team) to focus on the things that matter most for your business at this stage.
Tool #1: Inventory Management Solutions
A big misconception about automating your store is that everything has to become some impersonal machine overnight. That’s not how it works, and honestly, who would want that. There are tools you can use to automate your store’s tasks and still keep its personality.
Your store can still be a place where you interact with people, make small talk, and have fun while providing great service. An inventory management tool is a must-have if you want to automate some aspects of your store. The way I see it, it helps you keep track of your inventory so you know when something is running low and needs to be restocked. When you have a good inventory management system in place, the process of restocking becomes much less of a hassle than it would be otherwise.
More or less. You don’t have to go around checking every single item in your store manually when something has been flagged as needing a refill. There are many different kinds of inventory management tools out there, but the key thing is to find one that works for you. Some stores may only need a simple spreadsheet while others may want something with more features and automation built in.
If you’re not sure what kind of tool will work best for your business, it may help to talk with someone who has experience managing stores before making any decisions. In summary: don’t try automating everything at once. Start small by picking just one or two tasks that could benefit from automation (like checking inventory levels) before moving on up through more complex processes such as handling customer service requests or scheduling appointments online.
More or less.
Tool #2: Customer Relationship Management (CRM) Software
People often think CRMs are only about those “buy now” or “subscribe to the newsletter” pop-ups. You know the ones - they show up way too early on websites and annoy everyone, from repeat customers to potential shoppers. But I’ve learnt that a decent CRM is typically a much more sophisticated, connected relationship builder. The best examples allow you to track and store customer information, reach out for feedback and reviews, increase new sales, and reward loyalty.
And often, there’s more value in the second sale than the first one. Unlike stand-alone email marketing software, CRMs include payment gateways and social media messaging features. When set up properly, your CRM can send targeted emails based on everything from birthdays to abandoned checkouts to requests for after-sales service.
While it isn’t easy to pick the right platform and some research is a bit always required (especially if some of your sales come from face-to-face or phone interactions), CRMs have fast become a non-negotiable across retail businesses of all sizes because of their ability to facilitate meaningful human connections at scale. And while some tools can be fairly “plug-and-play”, tailoring them takes time and effort that newer business owners are better off outsourcing. The way I see it, after all this is said though, having the right data is as useful as using it - so consider integrations with other platforms you use before going all in on a system.
It might get expensive otherwise.
Tool #3: Automated Marketing Platforms
The idea that marketing can be totally hands-off is a bit of a myth, I think. A lot of people want to believe that an automated marketing platform will become your robot sidekick - sort of acting like your own in-store salesperson who offers personalised suggestions to each customer and follows up with tailored emails for you. And while you can do all that, I haven’t met a marketing platform that could read my mind quite yet.
I’d say using an automated marketing platform is more about finding the perfect balance between what you want, what your customers want and what the platform can do. More or less. They can learn customer behaviour and send out emails or texts based on preset triggers but the human touch makes a world of difference.
If you have a large loyal customer base and send out a ton of new collections regularly, setting up recurring emails and scheduled campaigns could be useful. But maybe try sending out these emails to yourself first to see if it’s what you would like as a consumer. You could schedule these promotional emails every month, or even every week but ask yourself if that would feel right for your customers - do they need the same information once every week. The way I see it, there are other marketing functions they can help with too such as sms, whatsapp and push notification automation which is great for retargeting.
But only if they’re timed well. Using automated platforms might feel like leaving your most valuable asset at the mercy of an algorithm. So much could go wrong. Sort of.
But try keeping some core campaigns automated, set triggers such as abandoned carts or promotions on products that haven’t done well and leave the ones you feel passionate about for manual action. This way you could focus on scaling and growth while keeping things personal.
Tool #4: Order Fulfillment and Shipping Tools
I find people usually tend to think that order fulfillment and shipping is as simple as just sticking a label on a box and dropping it off at the post office. Turns out, there’s a lot more to it. And when you have an order fulfillment and shipping tool in your arsenal, you no longer have to deal with any of the nitty-gritty details that would typically make your head hurt.
In the world of e-commerce, a fulfillment and shipping tool is sort of like a personal assistant who takes care of everything you might need to get your product from the shelf to your customer. It tells you what’s out of stock, takes care of packaging, gives you options for which courier to go with, prints out a label, tracks where the product is, provides insurance in case the product is lost or damaged, notifies your customer if there are any delays, and handles returns if needed. I know it can seem a bit overwhelming at first.
With so many options and tools available on the market today, it can be difficult to choose which one’s best for your store - especially because everyone likes to claim they’re the best in the market. I’d say spend some time getting clear on what it is that you need first - do you want same-day deliveries or can you compromise on that for better tracking features. Once you’ve figured that out and picked the right tool for yourself, you’ll realise order fulfillment and shipping doesn’t have to be as difficult as everyone makes it out to be.
Because all the things you used to do manually. Now happen automatically without taking up too much of your time and energy - meaning more space for things that actually move the needle in your business.
Tool #5: Analytics and Reporting Tools
People tend to think that analytics is hardly ever just about the numbers. That it's a maths class. That the goal is to get some kind of A+ in sales.
More or less. But I say it's not that clear cut. Numbers don't tell the whole story of how your business works.
Data doesn't tell you if you are happy in what you do, or if people like your product. Of course analytics is a bit important - but it's not the only thing to consider when you run your business. It can be useful to use analytics tools, but what do those numbers mean.
For me, it used to be that learning how to read and understand those numbers was the main thing I worried about. Because once you know where you're at, it's easier to work out where you want to be. The thing is - not all businesses should aim for growth at all costs. Sometimes it's useful to look at other metrics apart from sales and customers.
Like customer satisfaction, or customer retention, or even new visitors each month. So yes, as much as having tools for reports and data analysis can help make your workload much lighter, it's also important to remember what the numbers are telling you and why they're important for your particular business goals.