Let me present a typical scenario for you – A corporate Ecommerce department needs to redevelop their web site for both aesthetic and functional reasons, and ultimately to increase sales.  The Marketing department wants to insure branding guidelines are followed, and create a “brand experience.”  IT wants to recommend the systems that will be used, manage vendors, and has ongoing security concerns for both the corporation and its online clients.

The Ecommerce team needs to SELL, though now they potentially have a major obstacle with the Marketing department’s branding requirements . . .

The Marketing department understands that the Ecommerce division is sales-focused, but with many eyeballs on the site, Marketing is focused on a “brand experience”  – not direct sales.

The IT department understands the need for a new online sales platform, and doesn’t have much of a concern for Marketing’s needs.  However, since IT will ultimately select the Ecommerce platform, the team actually utilizing these new tools will need to adjust to using what they’re given, not necessarily what they desired.

Can you relate to the scenario above?  Let’s explore a few angles that need to be looked at when companies begin the process of creating a new Ecommerce web site . . .

1.  In the vendor / platform selection, it is imperative that IT not only review technologies from an integration and stability perspective, but from a user perspective as well.  So often, the “greatest” Ecommerce packages have wonderful functionality, but horrible interfaces for merchandising product, and site administration in general.  If IT does not explore the best solutions for an intuitive and user-managed interface for updating the site, they will potentially need to increase staff to assist the Ecommerce team with all publishing needs.  The question remains – if the Ecommerce platform is well integrated into back-end systems and everything is secure, shouldn’t IT’s only role be to maintain said systems themselves?

2.  Many of today’s corporate Marketing departments still don’t “get” the Internet.  What they know is brand, collateral, marketing messages, and a vision for imagery.  As the Ecommerce team is responsible for direct sales, and yet also introducing many visitors to the site and brand itself for the first time, there is a careful balance between branding and direct sales that must be watched VERY carefully.  Too much branding and needless lifestyle imagery can (and potentially will) lead to lower sales as the site has been optimized for Marketing purposes, not Ecommerce functionality.  Marketing and Ecommerce must work together to find the balance between branding and sales, and backup plans to adjust the presentation layer to meet stated sales goals and KPIs (such as store locator usage, email acquisition, phone sales, etc).

3.  The Ecommerce team is generally stuck between a rock and a hard place (i.e. IT and Marketing).  It is imperative that Ecommerce departments take the time to educate all project stakeholders on changes in the online sales landscape, as well as potential future scenarios.  Upper management be educated on the processes between Ecommerce / Marketing / IT, and how each can potentially adversely affect the other.  This step cannot be missed.  I’ve been through many Ecommerce implementations, large and small, and have found that the more planning done up front leads to increasing the chances of success with the new site.  I know that this idea sounds like common sense, but you may be surprised to find out MANY companies do not do this.

4.  Discovery processes are not to be underestimated whatsoever.  The Discovery process facilitates the identification and documentation of current pain points, inefficiencies, and should also include a competitive analysis.  The Discovery document should be a record of not only what the new solution is, but how it addresses pain points identified earlier in the process.  It does no good to create a new Ecommerce instance if it does not do everything you need it to do, with room for growth / expansion in the future.  These are often high-dollar investments, and I’ve seen first-hand what can happen if expectations are not identified and managed from the project inception.

Keep in mind that not all departments will get exactly what they’ve requested due to budget or time constraints, but that does not mean enhancements are out of the question.  The best advice I can possibly give someone when looking towards new Ecommerce solutions is to get all three teams together and work towards a consensus on what you “think” best practices will be – now, and in the future.  Beyond working together, you will benefit greatly be insuring that all three departments understand how their work affects others.  Once a mutual understanding is in place, you might just find that you have more flexibility during development and go-live that you didn’t think was possible.

MarketNet would love to hear about the challenges you encounter, no matter what functional department you happen to work in.  Let us know your thoughts, and share your success tactics with others by leaving a comment in the space provided below.

Matthew Brown
Senior Director of Ecommerce / Interactive Marketing
MarketNet
@MarketNet

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