Utilizing Real-Time Information from your Order Management Software to Increase Customer Sales, Satisfaction, and Retention on the Web.
The 2013 holiday season has wrapped up and ecommerce sales have broken records along the way. According to IBM’s 2013 Holiday Benchmark Reports, this year’s Cyber Monday had a 20.6% increase in online sales over 2012 making it the biggest online shopping day in history.
Many stores take advantage of this time to bring in new shoppers and convert them to repeat customers, so a seamless customer experience is more critical than ever. But, without real-time integration of your company storefronts with your ERP system, this great customer acquisition opportunity could turn into your company’s worst nightmare by turning customers away.
Do not give shoppers any disappointing surprises: telling them after placing an order that an item is unavailable, or backordered; sending a customer the wrong item, or sending the order to the wrong address because the back office staff incorrectly keyed in the order. Surprises like these lead to lost sales and unsatisfied consumers. These problems result in cancelled orders and non-repeat customers.
Web Services Deliver Real-Time Integration
If your storefronts do not have real-time integration, you need Web Services. They give companies the ability to link their applications so changes made in one area automatically affect data throughout the enterprise. Web Services also link these applications with corporate partners and suppliers so companies can use their partners’ information and functionality as if it were their own.
A few examples of the advantages of Web Services:
- When a customer purchases a product from an ecommerce site, the item is instantly removed from the inventory levels and is accurately portrayed as out of stock if the product runs out.
- Purchasing can keep product in stock by running a reorder report any time instead of waiting for that moment when all of the web orders are downloaded each day.
- When a customer wants to track their package, they can click a tracking number link on the website and see where the package is in transit.
- Customers can check their account history online. It includes all purchases, whether made via phone, in-store, catalog, or online.
- Customers can update their account online or through a customer service representative. The updated information will be reflected throughout the store’s entire system.
Simplify Order Revisions
Bruce Green, Vice-President at Lady Grace Stores (www.ladygrace.com), an online intimate apparel shop, uses Web Services through his order management software MACH Software.
“Mach has successfully helped us implement a number of utilities to help expand our business and I believe that the web services utility is as valuable as any of them,” Green says, “From an efficiency standpoint alone, we are much better off having website orders instantaneously transmitted to our Mach fulfillment software as opposed to regularly importing these orders on our own.
It is not uncommon at all for customers to call us shortly after placing a web order to request some type of revision. Before web services, we would have to awkwardly inform such customers that we will have to call them back after the orders are manually imported. Now, we’re providing much better service with the ability to immediately access the order and make the necessary change.”
Web Services give companies the ability to deliver a positive shopping experience. By keeping your shoppers happy, they can become trusting long-term repeat customers who make purchases year-round.
MACH Multi-channel Order Management Software
If you have any questions about Web Services or how MACH Software will create a consistent customer experience across multiple channels, please contact us today! You can request a Free Demo of MACH Multi-Channel Order Management Software by calling us at 1-800-660-1275.
