Running a virtual storefront requires the execution of hundreds of little, seemingly unimportant tasks every day. While these small processes might not look as much individually, they form a coherent workflow that keeps the eCommerce boat afloat and cutting waves. The problem is that they can often pile up and may even wreak havoc on productivity and business growth if they are not optimized.
This is where automation comes in. But what is eCommerce automation, and how can it stop things from going haywire? Can it perhaps even open new horizons for online retailers? Put simply, eCommerce automation software can improve several areas of an eCommerce business, from better inventory management to making more precise, data-driven decisions.
Let’s take a closer look.
Table of Contents
What Is eCommerce Automation?
An eCommerce automation workflow simply refers to using software and tech to automate and streamline several processes and tasks on an online retail platform. Automation may pertain to customer support, inventory management, payment and order processing, marketing, and data-driven decision-making for more growth opportunities.
As you scale your operations, the number of repetitive tasks can add up, along with demands, which also adds complexity. This may result in some of the systems or workflows that have done the job before becoming inefficient or even obsolete. In such cases, the worst thing online retailers can do is address each task manually, losing precious time or turning to workarounds instead of focusing on what’s important.
While eCommerce automation software is, in a sense, a workaround, there are many types, and, when used optimally, can truly solve potential problems, along with eliminating the possibilities of human error and providing better overall online security.
Benefits of eCommerce Automation
1. Decreased Number of Errors
We can’t stress this enough — repetitive, high-volume tasks in your eCommerce management workflow not only hamper efficiency but also heighten the possibility of making mistakes. Automation can take this out of the equation, as there’s no strained concentration or fatigue. Automated processes don’t have bad days or get tired.
2. Scale Your Business With The Talent You Already Have
With eCommerce automation software, you can optimize most of your workflows and processes, enabling your business to scale and grow without having to expand your team too much. In turn, this allows you to operate with a leaner budget, as you won’t have to pay for staff. Then, you can then reallocate those savings back into your business, allowing you to stay afloat even during labor shortages.
3. Reduce Costs, Increase Revenue
Speaking of revenue, automation can significantly positively affect the bottom line as it helps retailers become more efficient while keeping costs low. Additionally, it can help drive more sales with retargeting and cart abandonment workflows. Fufillment automation ensures that stocks are always monitored, reducing shortages, keeping cusotmers happy.
Delivery tracking and sending out notificiations for buyers can also play a crucial role in customer retention and better overall customer support and care.
4. Improve Employee Happiness and Value
According to a Zapier report, 94% of workers perform repetitive tasks every day. In an eCommerce setting, this might mean checking inventory, sending out countless out-of-stock notifications, and churning out shipping labels one after another.
When these tasks are automated, you can improve employee work efficiency and give them the opportunity to focus on more meaningful tasks that require critical thinking. This way, they feel that their work is more valued and has more impact.
5. Happier Customers
Reports have already stated that customer support automation raises customer satisfaction scores by 10 to 20% on average. It’s not just about the fast and more accurate responses; it’s also about the shipping notices, order confirmations, fulfillment notifications, or even regular relevant update emails they receive.
Types of eCommerce Automation
Here are some of the processes you can streamline with eCommerce automation software.
1. Inventory Management
One of the most common use cases of eCommerce automation is inventory management. For example, automation can help you hide your out-of-stock goods until they become available again. Several tools will monitor your retail network and inventory levels. In most cases, you can also set up automated alerts to signal when you might need to restock.
2. Fraud Management
There are specific tools that will automatically scan and identify possible high-risk orders, pausing them in the process and signaling your teams to investigate them further.
The process works with the help of machin learning models and sophisticated algorithms that look for anomalies and loik for unusual patterns in large datasets. As the algorithms continiusly learn and evolve, the software becomes more accurate over time, minimizing the chances of fraud even further.
3. Marketing Automation Software
Automated marketing workflows can help send targeted emails, apply discounts, and even publish new content. Crucially, though, they can also help with cart abandonment.
Statistically speaking, around seven out of ten people will abandon their cart and leave websites without a purchase, which translates into a loss of $18 billion in sales yearly, according to a Forrester report. In this regard, setting up an automated cart abandonment workflow can have a meaningful impact on your marketing strategies as well as your bottom line.
4. Customer Support
In 2020, over 65% of all customer support tasks 93% of customer support teams use task automation for increased efficiency and for a reason. These pieces of software can efficiently manage incoming complaints and questions, and some can even create a priority list of tickets, automatically suggesting possible FAQ responses.
There are also chatbots that can also cover several areas of operation. They are becoming a major player in the world of automation. Experts forecast that retail spend over the technology will reach $72 billion by 2028, presenting a 470%-increase between 2023 and 2028.
5. Fulfillment
Much in the same way as automating customer support and marketing, you can also automate order fulfillment responses. These automated eCommerce workflows send out trigger texts and emails to inform your customers that their order has left the warehouse or that your product is back in stock.
These trigger texts and emails are standard practice in eCommerce because they provide customers with timely updates on their orders, enhancing transparency and customer satisfaction. By keeping customers informed about order status and product availability, businesses demonstrate reliability and foster trust, ultimately leading to repeat purchases and positive brand reputation.
Other fulfillment software may also streamline and simplify supply chain processes, meaning picking up an order and shipping it will take much less time.
6. Accounting
Accounting processes like reconciliation and invoicing can also be automated if you set up your platform with the right tools. You can also go one step further and automate expense monitoring if you integrate this automation with your shipping and inventory software.
7. Personalization of the Customer Journey
As we’ve established, automation helps retailers keep up with modern demands, and this extends to personalization of the customer journey. The average US household typically has 22 connected devices on average, with several users logging in and out with different profiles, using different applications. With customer journey automation, you can create a personalized funnel for every user, targeting them with offers or ads from different channels.
By segmenting your target audience and creating relevant messaging with eCommerce automation software, you’ll be able to increase conversions. It’s also possible to categorize buyers based on different conditions like region, products, or spent budget. To capitalize on this categorization, employ automated retention, emails, or cross-merchandising strategies.
8. Advertising
Talking about ads, businesses of every size can leverage the benefits of automated advertising, enabling them to create optimized ad campaigns. These tools can help monitor ad spend, ad placement , and also generate regular reports on other important data such as cost-per-click, click-through-rate, calls, leads, and sales.
Ad management tools can also automatically adjust bids based on keyword performance, or even create several ad copy examples based on already existing ads.
4 Best eCommerce Automation Software
Mailchimp
Mailchimp offers an all-in-one approach for retailers and marketers. Offering automation features such as customer journey builders, retargeting options, and automatic email personalization, it allows you to automate the aspects of your business that help you increase your ROI. It also covers marketing essentials (A/B testing, campaign management), content creation, audience management, and analytics.
Pros:
- A free basic plan under 500 subscribers/1000 emails
- Comprehensive reporting
- Great Integrations/wide scope of features
Cons:
- Email scheduling is not included with the free plan
- Extra charges for inactive unsubscribers
- More elaborate plans are high-cost
Pricing
Free under 500 subscribers to $300 for 30,000.
Seon
Seon is a comprehensive fraud prevention system that automatically identifies high-risk orders. The tool examines digital footprint data and social signals to prevent potentially fraudulent transactions. Using machine learning and AI, Seon can adapt to any business to evaluate risks while running in the background.
Pros:
- Flexible, pay-as-you-go pricing options
- 30-day free trial
- Intuitive UI
Cons:
- Unclear documentation
- The Base package comes with limited help
Pricing
The base package for Seon is free, the starter pack costs $599/month, and the company also offers custom plans with flexible pricing.
ChannelApe
ChannelApe automates both shipping needs and warehouse management in one system. The software is highly customizable and comes with features like carrier rate shopping, order tagging, distributed order management, and more. It’s a complete fulfillment software that allows you to scale your operations locally and worldwide.
Pros:
- Completely automates inventory
- Minimal user input is required
- Create business rules easily
Cons:
- UI can get confusing
- Requires a steeper learning curve
- Limited reporting features
Pricing
The basic plan starts at $450 per month.
Shopify Flow
A dedicated add-on for Shopify, Shopify Flow enables business owners to automate different workflows through a single interface. The automated features include automated email campaigns, customer tracking and tagging, order cancelations, review requests, inventory management, gift and discount incorporation, and more.
Pros:
- Available for basic plan users as well
- Easy drag-and-drop editor
- Offer pre-built eCommerce templates
Cons:
- Limited integration
- English version only
- Can be laggy
Pricing
Free to use for all Shopify users.
Conclusion
ECommerce automation has many benefits, and these workflows can take over mundane, repetitive tasks, reduce costs, and allow you to scale. They enable both business owners and their staff to focus on more consequential problems, which truly helps a business grow.
Finding the right tools might be time-consuming and require thorough research, but after identifying your main pain points and goals, opting for the right application becomes much easier. Hopefully, this guide has helped you identify the areas where you would benefit from eCommerce automation. If you need more help, check out the top marketing automation consultants.
FAQ
What is Online Business Automation?
Automation means using technology to perform repetitive tasks and processes automatically, thus improving efficiency, keeping costs lower, and enabling employees to prioritize more important tasks.
Automation Automation can help in various ways, but most importantly the can help increase the number of leads and may boost conversion rates.
Can You Automate Everything on an eCommerce Store?
No, you can’t automate every aspect of your online store, but it’s slowly becoming a reality. Almost every aspect of an online business can be automated, from logistics and marketing to customer service and support.
Do You Lose Control After Automation?
No. After automating certain processes, the site owner may gain more precise insight into how their workflows operate and detect possible weaknesses before they become major issues.
Also, most strategic aspects will still require human intervention, meaning that automation is merely a complementary aid that enables retailers to make smarter business decisions to improve customer satisfaction and their marketing efforts.
