Managing and running a successful online store requires maximum time and effort than the conventional brick-and-mortar shop. While you cannot achieve maximum attention outsourcing, some of the business activities bring it closer. A Deloitte survey of 2016 indicated that more than fifty-five percent of businesses outsource some activities and divert most attention to core business. Outsourcing for an online business has more advantages than disadvantages, but the main question remains which business activities should you outsource? The answers lie in business and resources that are readily available. The top three activities a retailer needs to prioritize when outsourcing include:
Content Creation
In today’s business world, one of the most critical business tools is content. Business website content has a direct effect on SEO rankings. Quality business content gives your business a distinct competitive advantage. However, regular and consistent content creation requires a lot of time, research, wide knowledge of e-commerce, fundamental writing skills, market analysis, etc., which you may not possess. Outsourced professional bloggers are an all-around business asset with the skills required to produce consistent website content and attract the target audience.
Customer Service
Exceptional customer service is an ingredient for a successful business. One of the major challenges for an online retailer is customer service. Statistics show that poor customer service causes more than fifty percent customer loss. Experts’ advice remains that the business owner should not conduct customer service. You save a lot of time by outsourcing customer service as most comments, inquiries, and complaints are basic such that an external agent can answer them. Businesses with enough resources to invest in chatbot software save on operational costs and deliver a 24/7 enhanced customer experience.
Inventory Management
At the start of your business, inventory will be manageable; however, your business will grow with time and consistent marketing. Growth means complicated inventory management as well as supply and delivery logistics. Many growing companies will turn to third-party logistics services to outsource the increasingly complicated and time-consuming task. Online retailing poses two major inventory challenges; lack of storage space and historical data to baseline for inventory projections. Lack of storage space needs you to spend an extra dime on renting and additional space while relying on guesses for a new business is also costly. The best solution is outsourcing the inventory management to a drop shipping supplier tasked with handling the entire process of shipping and inventory. You will eliminate common errors in ordering and inventory costs. Reports indicate that outsourcing inventory management increases your profit margin by up to nearly twenty percent.
Other online business activities where outsourcing proves the best option include data entry, accounting, order fulfillment and processing, website development, design, maintenance, etc. The conventional theory is that the success of an online retailer business lies in its owner sacrificing to wear many hats. Multi-tasking is, however, hurting business. A helping hand in the name of outsourcing is the savior to every online retailer. You will save immensely on business resources, time and create time to focus on core business.