Also, a report by the Indian Brand Equity Foundation (IBEF) states that the number of online shoppers in India is expected to reach 220 million by 2025, up from 140 million in 2018.
These stats reflect that the Indian E-commerce industry is proliferating, and Indians are inclining more toward online shopping than offline.
But here’s the thing— it’s still difficult for local retailers to start their E-commerce store. The reason behind this is a lack of experience and resources, which makes them take the easy route.
As a result, they end up selling only on known E-commerce platforms, also known as marketplaces.
But these platforms aren’t Enablers. There’s a fine line between a marketplace and an E-commerce Enabler.
And we will discuss everything about E-commerce Enablers.
Starting with the basic definition.
An E-commerce Enabler is a company that provides comprehensive solutions to brands to operate their online stores. These solutions include website hosting & optimization, digital marketing, customer service, warehouse & inventory management, and logistic support.
It is important to note that E-commerce Enablers are different from E-commerce platforms like Flipkart, Myntra, Snapdeal, and Amazon, which only provide a platform for businesses to sell their products, and for consumers to shop online.
On the other hand, an E-commerce Enabler can assist a brand from start to finish. By offering a solid digital strategy, E-commerce Enablers can help businesses successfully run their E-commerce operations. Retail companies can also opt for full or partial solutions from E-commerce Enablers keeping the cost in control. Also, brands can focus on expanding their business by delegating non-core business operations to outside parties.
Here are some of the basic offerings of an E-commerce Enabler-
In order to ensure that your online store is operating efficiently and generating sales, there are several tedious tasks that need to be executed well. These tasks include setting up the online store, managing product listings, running promotional campaigns, managing orders across multiple marketplaces, as well as gathering and reporting insights such as customer feedback.
These tasks are the core focus of E-commerce Enablers, who deal with them on a daily basis and help you manage storefronts on marketplaces, social media platforms, and your own website and mobile application.
Below are some examples of services provided by E-commerce Enablers like ANS Commerce:
Every E-commerce store needs to leverage digital marketing to build brand awareness and reach potential customers. There helps an E-commerce Enabler. With digital marketing experts on their team, E-commerce Enablers can help you plan exhaustive marketing strategies for various channels, including ads, content creation, social media, and more.
With an E-commerce Enabler by your side, you can reach your potential customer effectively, resulting in increased traffic, higher conversion rates, and better sales.
Managing the E-commerce supply chain is challenging, as it involves several stages, such as inbound logistics, warehousing & inventory management, and outbound logistics. These processes require considerable investment and expertise to manage effectively.
Businesses can rely on the competence of E-commerce Enablers to handle E-commerce logistics. These service providers, often in partnership with third parties, offer a range of services such as inventory management, order fulfillment, and return processing to streamline the E-commerce supply chain process.
Delivering an exceptional customer experience is a crucial factor in converting store visitors and prospective customers into actual purchasers, as well as retaining them and ultimately turning them into loyal customers. As the traffic and demand on a brand’s online store increases, it becomes challenging to respond to every inquiry or feedback promptly without dedicated resources.
This is where E-commerce Enablers come in. With their experienced customer service teams, E-commerce Enablers offer the perfect solution to this challenge. They can support your business by responding to all your customer inquiries in a timely manner and maintaining a great customer relationship experience.
E-commerce Enablers understand the need for a robust brand-hosting platform in this technology-driven world, and so offer a brand store tech platform to help you deliver an exceptional E-commerce experience. These platforms typically provide various tools and features that enable businesses to design and customize their online stores to reflect their brand identity and manage all aspects of their store’s operation, including product listings, inventory management, order processing, and customer engagement.
Brand store tech platforms may also offer analytics and reporting tools to help businesses track their store’s performance and make data-driven decisions to improve sales and customer satisfaction.
Our brand tech store, Kartify, has helped over 100 D2C brands improve their digital footprints and grow sales. Here are some benefits of hosting your E-commerce store with Kartify:
Seamless Integration: With Kartify, you can integrate with more than 50 third-party tools and systems, which makes it easier to manage all aspects of your E-commerce business, including payment gateways, marketing automation tools, SMS & email providers, and order management systems.
Managed Support: Kartify offers comprehensive support throughout the migration process and beyond. The dedicated account team, in-house dev-ops, and design experts make it a hassle-free migration.
Highly Customizable: Kartify is a highly customizable, fully mobile responsive platform. You have complete control over the look and feel of your store, including user flows, layouts, menu, and filter options.
Data Security: Kartify takes comprehensive measures to keep your store and customer data secure by adhering to ISO/IEC 27001:2013 security standards, performing regular security audits with vulnerability assessments and penetration testing, and encrypting all data on the platform with access control.
Made for India: Kartify has been designed to the tastes of the Indian audience and offers many India-specific features like login with OTP, automatic pincode & city detection, GST invoicing, and more.
Omnifriendly: Kartify enables the fulfillment of online orders from offline shops, providing a unified and convenient experience for customers. You can also conduct offline surveys and offer cash returns, further enhancing the customer experience and building loyalty.
A marketplace is an online platform that enables businesses to sell their products or services to customers. Examples of marketplaces include Flipkart, Amazon, Myntra, etc.
While marketplaces offer a new channel for businesses to sell their products and facilitate transactions online, they function merely as intermediaries connecting suppliers to buyers. They do not provide end-to-end support for businesses like E-commerce Enablers, who can manage a business’s operations from start to finish.
Shopify, Magento, WooCommerce, and Shopline are examples of E-commerce platforms that furnish the necessary digital infrastructure to establish an online store, BUT THEY ARE NOT E-com Enablers However, although these platforms are useful in launching your online business, they typically do not offer ongoing operational assistance that is provided by E-commerce Enablers.
An online payment gateway serves as a digital substitute for a physical credit or debit card reader and is responsible for handling customer payments when integrated into your online store. Numerous payment gateways are available for digital vendors, including well-known options like PayPal, Stripe, and Square.
However, it is important to note that payment gateways primarily address your payment processing requirements and differ significantly from E-commerce Enablers.
Third-party logistics (3PL) providers offer a range of services related to E-commerce logistics and order fulfillment, which typically encompass warehousing, product picking and packing, and return processing.
E-commerce Enablers offer comprehensive services throughout an online business’s value chain. However, it’s worth noting that 3PL companies mainly handle inbound and outbound logistics aspects, and do not typically address operations, marketing, or other related services. After all, they are third-party logistics companies.
Numerous marketing platforms are available to help you streamline and analyze data, as well as automate marketing tasks. For instance, you might utilize MailChimp to send electronic direct mails (EDMs), SEMrush to build your SEO strategy, or HubSpot to manage sales, customer relationships, and other business-related aspects.
However, it’s important to recognize that these are merely tools and software that enable your marketer to perform more efficiently. They automate repetitive tasks and provide data analytics for additional insights, but they do not replace the marketer’s role.
Partnering with an E-commerce Enabler offers numerous benefits for businesses that operate in the online space. Here are some reasons why you should consider partnering with an E-commerce Enabler:
Partnering with an E-commerce Enabler gives businesses access to a team of E-commerce experts, including tech, marketplace, and digital marketing specialists. These experts can help businesses set up and optimize their online stores, connect them with various online marketplaces, and develop and execute effective digital marketing strategies. By leveraging the expertise of an E-commerce Enabler, businesses can improve their online presence, increase sales and revenue, and stay ahead of their competition.
Additionally, E-commerce Enablers provide comprehensive services, that are
The best part is they come with a panel of experts with years of experience to guide you in each step. This makes it easier for businesses to focus on growing their operations, as E-commerce Enablers can provide support across the entire value chain of an online business. Overall, partnering with an E-commerce Enabler is a smart choice for brands that want to succeed in the online space and achieve their goals efficiently and effectively.
E-commerce Enabler companies offer powerful toolkits for online businesses to accelerate their growth. These tools and software are easy to use but are expensive and challenging to develop. E-commerce Enablers have invested years of experience to build these technologies. Working with an E-commerce Enabler gives online businesses access to these valuable resources that they may not be able to develop internally.
E-commerce Enablers offer comprehensive support to help online businesses grow, scale, and succeed in the E-commerce industry. They assist with various aspects of business operations, develop an integrated digital strategy for the brand, and provide tool sets for automation and analytics.
Partnering with an E-commerce Enabler is like having a flexible growth partner that can share the load of your online business operations. By outsourcing your E-commerce value chain to an Enabler, you can save valuable company resources and focus on core activities that drive results. This approach enables online businesses to focus on their strengths and create a streamlined, efficient operation that maximizes growth potential.
Ultimately, partnering with an E-commerce Enabler can help businesses stay competitive, adapt to market changes, and achieve long-term success in the ever-evolving E-commerce landscape.
Choosing the right E-commerce Enabler for your brand is an important decision that can impact your business growth and success. Here are some key factors to consider when identifying the perfect E-commerce Enabler for your brand:
Services and capabilities: Consider the services and capabilities the E-commerce Enabler offers. Do they align with your business needs? Do they have the expertise and experience in the areas where you need support?
Industry experience: Look for an E-commerce Enabler with experience in your specific industry. This can provide valuable insights and help you stay ahead of the competition.
Technology and tools: Evaluate the technology and tools that the E-commerce Enabler provides. Do they offer the features and functionality that your business requires? Are the tools user-friendly and easy to integrate with your existing systems?
Customer support: Consider the level of customer support the E-commerce Enabler offers. Will they be available to assist you when you need help?
Third-party partnership: Third-party providers can offer comprehensive support for various processes such as logistics, supply chain management, and more.
Cost and flexibility: Finally, consider the cost and flexibility of the E-commerce Enabler. Is the pricing structure transparent and reasonable? Are there flexible options that can grow your business?
By carefully evaluating these factors, you can identify the perfect E-commerce Enabler for your brand that can provide the necessary support and tools to help your business grow and succeed in the E-commerce landscape.
ANS Commerce is a one-stop E-commerce service provider that can help you manage everything to run an E-commerce store. Here are some of the services we offer at ANS Commerce:
Kartify Brandstore: A proprietary platform that is fully customizable and integration-ready to support your brand’s online store.
Performance Marketing: Experienced team to lead performance marketing efforts on platforms such as Google Ads, Facebook, and marketplaces, striking a balance between sales and return on ad spend (ROAS).
Marketplace Management: Skillful planning and execution of sales strategies on more than 10 marketplaces, including Amazon and Flipkart.
Warehousing and Fulfillment: Nationwide warehousing and fulfillment infrastructure with 3PL support tailored to your specific logistics requirements.
If you need help in setting up your online store or scaling your business in Indian markets. Book a free consultation with our E-commerce expert today!
