The e-commerce landscape is increasing, creating room for aspiring entrepreneurs to set up thriving businesses. Insider Intelligence predicts that e-commerce will account for 24.5% of all global retail sales by 2025, up from 19.6% in 2021, according to Fit Small Business. If you’ve already launched an online business or plan to do so in the future, you must think of ways to scale it to its full potential.
But before you can scale your business, it’s essential to understand how scaling differs from growing. Growing a business online or offline translates to increased revenue after investing more resources, such as employees, increasing product line, and capital investment. This means the business grows in size but doesn’t make a profit. Scaling means increasing without incurring high operational costs. Here’s how to build and scale an online enterprise.
Invest in Automation
Scaling an online business requires a lot of effort. You may spend more time on tasks that aren’t important and neglect others. Consider automation to ensure you spend time on valuable activities that help you scale. Automating workflow helps you reduce hours spent on mundane tasks. This means you can optimize resources and free up time to have essential activities like creating effective marketing campaigns and generating leads, thus increasing chances to sell more.
The benefits of workflow automation in e-commerce include enhanced communication, increased efficiency, cost savings, and improved accountability. Ideally, workflow automation tools help you assign tasks and manage projects easily, thus boosting efficiency. Because automation software enables you to specify each employee’s role, teams work effectively and become accountable for their assignment.
Leverage Cloud Computing
When used correctly, cloud computing can help businesses scale efficiently and at a lower cost. The cloud also helps reduce risks entrepreneurs encounter when scaling their businesses. With the help of cloud solutions, you can manage logistics and engagements with prospects. You can also expand your website’s storage capacity without spending a vast sum of money on infrastructure or the maintenance of servers.
Using the AWS cloud platform or Amazon Website Services, for instance, you can scale your WordPress site to ensure it maintains speed and performance as traffic and workloads increase. All you have to do is learn how to scale your WordPress site on AWS vertically and horizontally to enhance the user experience as customers navigate your online store. Using cloud computing in your business also fosters collaboration among staff and enables you to back up data safely.
Provide Excellent Customer Support
Today’s customers expect all brands to provide satisfactory customer support, and this expectation is rising. By providing high-quality customer services, you’ll meet their expectations, which goes a long way in gaining their attention. Other benefits of providing excellent customer support include improved customer satisfaction, seamless experience, and high levels of productivity among employees. You can improve customer support in several ways, like automating services using chatbots to answer simple and frequently asked questions. It’s also essential to leverage live chats and phone calls for customers who require in-depth assistance and human touch.
Implementing the right strategies to scale businesses can transform your small online store into a famous brand. To ensure your online enterprise operates to its full potential, consider automating workflows, so you can focus on essential business processes that increase sales. Also, provide excellent customer support and leverage cloud computing solutions to expand your website, secure data, and enhance collaboration.
