When you first started your e-commerce business, you likely had zero employees and little overhead. As your company grew, you may have taken on additional responsibilities you aren’t quite sure how to juggle from month to month.
Even if things are going along smoothly, restructuring your business to handle growth is a smart move that can help you scale up more easily in the future. This is an excellent time to restructure while the world is on the cusp of new technologies and a changing retail landscape.
What Is the Future for E-Commerce Businesses?
According to Statista, the global e-commerce market is worth around $5.5 trillion, with a projection to grow to $7.4 trillion by 2025. The good news is that more people are shopping online than ever before. The bad news is that there is a lot of fierce competition out there.
Changing technology and people getting more comfortable with online shopping will slowly change your online store’s model over time. It’s smart to look ahead and figure out what you’ll need to scale up in the near future.
Here are the best things to focus on when restructuring your company.
1. Conduct an Audit
Before you can restructure your current e-commerce business model, you have to know your current strengths and weaknesses. Take time to look at what’s working to help grow your business and what isn’t.
Replace anything negative with something new or things that are already working well. One area to look at in particular is your marketing department. What campaigns went well for your brand? How can you do something similar and scale up even more rapidly this coming year?
2. Consider the Environment
More people than ever before care about the impact of a company on the environment. Some won’t buy from a brand that isn’t eco-friendly.
One survey showed millennials, in particular, award the brands aligning with their concerns for the earth. Around 75% of those polled agreed eco-friendly lifestyles result in better health. They may look at the packaging your product comes in and how you work to keep the neighbourhoods around you clean and sustainable.
Restructure your business model to run a greener, more sustainable company.
3. Overcome Staffing Shortages
Many employers are currently facing severe staffing shortages. Finding a top quality candidate may even result in a bidding war that requires higher salaries than you expected to pay. Workers can demand great benefits and plenty of paid time off, and get it.
How can you restructure your e-commerce business to handle lack of employees? First, pay them what they’re worth so you can attract top candidates. Add perks the bigger brands don’t offer.
You also can automate some things. Look at the repetitive tasks in your business. For example, there are robotic inventory machines where you can store your inventory and simply click a computer button to have the robot retrieve the correct item to fill an order.
4. Utilise the IoT
Experts predict there will be 152,200 new devices connecting to the internet daily by the end of 2025. The convenience of having all that data at your fingertips at all times is hard to overlook. If your e-commerce store isn’t already tapping into the power of the internet of things (IoT), then now is the time to revamp your efforts.
Add an app for your users that connects into the IoT and lets them know when a new product they might be interested in drops. Store customer information on the cloud and utilize customer relationship management software to run reports and see how best to meet your clients’ needs.
Seek Partnerships
The world is more connected than at any other time in history. A company executive can meet with an expert across the world via video conferencing, for example. Seek out partnerships that make sense for driving your business’s growth.
For example, can you find a like-minded company that isn’t competition but offers a complementary product or service. If the two of you promote one another to each other’s mailing lists, you can expand your customer base instantly.
Look for ways to expand what you already do without completely restructuring. A partial change can be almost as effective as a more significant one.
Author Bio
Eleanor Hecks is editor-in-chief at Designerly Magazine. Eleanor was the creative director and occasional blog writer at a prominent digital marketing agency before becoming her own boss in 2018. She lives in Philadelphia with her husband and dog, Bear.
