Is this the right time to go aggressive with online Retail Sales ?
Economy is still in the midst of a financial credit crisis, consumer spending is slowing and every stock market move up is followed by a corresponding move downwards. Are these tough times really the time to aggressive to go online with Sales? I think so, isnt that what the ERP packages were supposed to be ready to deliver?
Retailers over the last few decades have gained expertise in a variety of store formats, be it wal mart style mega stores or Tesco style express stores. Most of the store operations have been optimized to give the best customer service and in store experience. However, increasingly Retailers are looking to online to give them a boost in their sales. With their existing ERP Package there are lot of benefits to be realized by going online, in fact hybrid models of buy online and pick up at store can also be developed low cost. I think some key aspects of servicing Online sales with a packaged backed operations are
1. With a integrated Product/Item master, it is easier to setup an online item/category listing
2. Multiple Order and pricing formats can be readily offered to the online customers.
3. Most Package ERP products offer integrated Order Management functionality for online customers.
What do you think are some of the readily available features that can be exploited for online sales.
