The Australian manufacturing industry isn’t without unfortunate irony. For all the success that technological innovation has brought to it, some organisations are seeing those windows of opportunity shut before they can take advantage.
Ecommerce is an excellent example, allowing small- and medium-sized enterprises to compete with larger businesses on an otherwise uneven playing field. But it’s only a matter of time before the platforms with household names take over, and those that are lacking certain key qualities find themselves at a difficult crossroads.
What the future holds
It’s difficult to predict what the next five years will hold for manufacturing companies in relation to ecommerce, but one way to gauge what’s going on is by looking at the past. Consumers are slowly but surely turning towards online shopping.
This coincides with the rise of Amazon, and many manufacturers are now seeing themselves being pushed out unless they make deals with the company that aren’t necessarily as favourable as they once were, The Economist reported. There is no escaping the shopping platform though, and it’s expected that many companies will adopt a three-part strategy for sales: Amazon, direct-to-store and proprietary ecommerce platforms.
Head and shoulders above the rest
The key to remaining competitive in this new era will be the commitment that organisations give to developing a consumer-friendly ecommerce platform, Sebastien Szczepaniak, head of ecommerce for Nestlé, told The Economist. In short, middle-of-the-road manufacturing firms that rely solely on one outlet won’t be able to sustain growth.
Companies are looking to business management software for ecommerce help.
Building an ecommerce platform is no easy feat; deploying one that’s useful to key departments in the organisation like sales and customer service can be even more challenging. It’s a reason why some companies are looking towards business management software that offers an ecommerce feature as a possible solution.
The Advanced Business Manager ecommerce module, for example, makes it easy to setup a fully functional ecommerce platform. It integrates with other options like the accounting software to allow for a streamlined sales process, as well as the business intelligence solution to provide analytics to the marketing and sales teams.
Of course, its most important feature could be the fact that it makes it easy for any size manufacturing organisation to deploy or improve its own ecommerce store. With the future of shopping looking like it’ll be a digital basket, this is a program that can’t be overlooked. Contact an Advanced Business Manager representative today to learn more.
