E-commerce has been the most sought-after and preferred mode for business and commerce in the current times. From buying a toothbrush to a new Armani watch, everything and anything is available online. E-commerce platforms are highly competitive and positively impact brand value. Virtual assistant services or staffing companies can help increase the efficiency and increase the market share of such e-commerce businesses.
Given the versatility and capabilities of a virtual staff or a virtual assistant, the question arises that how exactly a business process outsourcing company will assist the e-commerce business.
Let us browse through the question by evaluating the operationality of e-commerce. For that, we can categorize them into the 4 P’s:
- Product
- Platform
- Process
- People
Product
Primarily, this comprises of the offerings given by the e-commerce company to its customers. Virtual staff can work on completing End to End Product Management. If one must define, end-to-product management, then it will certainly include product listing to specializing in product sourcing and product description writing. Big players on the internet which are giant marketplaces, showcase various product options and those products are available with a tap on your screen; with a such multitude of offerings and accessibility, the competitive edge can only be achieved when an e-commerce company creates a unique brand value. So, how would that be achieved?
The simple answer is working on multiple layers: product availability, product sourcing, and product marketing. This is where a virtual assistant can be brought since they are skilled in product management. You can ask them to order products and manage inventory while simultaneously working on maintaining the traction on the website.
Platform
There is no denial in saying that the website of the company is their operational business. Customers, retailers, marketers, and competitors will access the proficiency of the business through its website. Hence, it is imperative to say that the primary focus should be to continuously design and develop the ‘Platform’.
Not every business has the capacity to have a humongous team on the likes of Amazon and eBay and to sustain in the cutthroat environment many small to mid-size businesses rely on a stable business process outsourcing partner. The outsourced project can range from web designing or development to working on specialized link builders with Google. Most outsourced tasks include logo and graphic designing, videography, content writing, Ad campaign management, email marketing and specialized PPC, reputation management and mostly, maintaining the look and feel of your online shop.
Process & People
These two terminologies go hand-in-hand for e-commerce businesses. Right from landing on the website page of the company to delivering the product at the door of the customer; a virtual staff can assist in several activities.
The brand value will be created when the shopping experience of the customer is fully accessible from product range, availability to the payment process. Virtual staff can provide 24*7 voice and chat support, work in database management and provide exceptional service in payment gateways. These are guaranteed process for customer retention and invoice generation. However, product satisfaction is still never guaranteed, hence in that case, a virtual staff will also operate in refund management and customer support.
The competence of the virtual staff is the essential factor and several BPOs have specialized in tools such as Zendesk, Freshdesk, and Intercom to maximize your ROI through technology.
To summarize, a virtual assistant can perform several tasks for an e-commerce business. Many BPOs continuously invest in the learning and development of their staff, so that, even if an e-commerce client expects serviceability of a specific niche, the BPO partner will perform. The key is to look for the right BPO partner, the one who engages in shared learning and is willing to outperform themselves with an intention to grow with the client.
If you need any consultation on how you can utilize a virtual assistant for your online shop or e-commerce business, please do let us know.
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Happy exploring!
