5 emerging ecommerce trends to follow in 2019

Business Innovations

17 May 2019

5 emerging ecommerce trends to follow in 2019

  • Posted by Awfis Editorial

The world of ecommerce is an exciting place to be in. It is seeing rapid growth with many shopaholics preferring to shop online over visiting a mall. The woes of traffic, challenges of parking and spending hours trying to find the perfect attire or accessories create a nightmarish scenario. Compare that to sitting comfortably in an air-conditioned environment, scanning thousands of options that can be bought with the click of a button. Then there is free home delivery, no-questions asked returns and exchanges. Stepping out to shop is so passé.

For businesses too, ecommerce is a great low-cost alternative to offer more variety to customers. They can also do away with expensive overheads and pass on the advantage to customers. Is it any surprise then that the ecommerce industry has been experiencing steady growth over the past few years?

Studies predict that global retail ecommerce revenue will amount to $4.88 trillion by 2021, with millennials making more than 50% of their purchases online.

This scenario, while exciting, does present a few challenges. Ecommerce businesses need a few tricks of the trade to keep up with this continuous growth and the competition that this brings to the marketplace.

Here are the top 5 emerging ecommerce trends that e-businesses can capitalise on.

Dropshipping

Dropshipping or Drop Shipping is an ideal business model for those ecommerce businesses that are just starting off and don’t have much capital. It means acting as the middleman between the manufacturer or supplier of the goods and the customer.

The customer views the products on your portal, you process the purchase, but it gets shipped directly from the manufacturer without you even seeing the actual physical product.

Why is this getting so popular?

  • You’re buy the product only after a customer places an order
  • There is no inventory
  • Your overhead costs drop drastically

Dropshipping is great for businesses that deal in bulky items that eat up warehouse space. Of course, there are also some challenges with dropshipping:

  • You have no control over the shipping duration
  • Unprofessional or unethical sellers could negatively affect the customer experience. It is important to whet your sellers, and establish shipping and service rules.

Multi-channel Selling

There are numerous avenues for your customer to make a purchase. While brick-and-mortar stores are still an alternative, even within the online channels there are options like Amazon, branded stores online, eBay, Facebook and even Instagram now.

As a merchant, you need to have a presence on multiple channels to cater to the needs of the omni-channel shopper. Besides your own website, create a strong ecommerce presence on social media sites as well as other online stores.

No one says it will be easy; you will need to set up a team to manage all these diverse channels. You can also use the services of ecommerce platforms like BigCommerce that help streamline online sales across multiple channels.

Smarter Payment Processing

Did you know that nearly 79% of customers abandon their online shopping cart at the payment gateway if the checkout process isn’t effortless and smooth? Even after researching and considering several products thoroughly, customers are willing to leave it all if the final step isn’t quick and easy.

To stay ahead, you need to relook your payment gateway this year. If your business is global do you offer a local payment option? Can you accept payments in other currencies? Or are you expecting international customers to click again for the ‘other country’ selection?

Look at ways to consolidate all your payment options in a single gateway. Yes, compliance might make it difficult to manage all currencies on one platform. This is where you can consider a third party service provider like Payoneer.

Omni-Channel Personalisation

We bring up omni-channel selling again to highlight another important facet. It’s not enough to just be available on multiple channels; you need to also offer an inclusive brand experience by recognising the customer as the same person irrespective of which channel she is on. Else you might end up offering an irrelevant experience which can be quite irritating and intrusive.

A great personalised experience can make the difference between a one-time customer and a repeated shopper. Apply AI-driven targeting to identify customers and match the right experience across multiple channels.

Custom Packaging

Packaging still matters. Studies have shown that customers perceive packaging as part of the product, and 68% of the shoppers in the study believed that a brand becomes more upscale simply by its packaging. And the more unique the packaging, the greater the customer’s engagement with your product.

Take the time and effort to design customized packaging for your product. This should help set you apart in the marketplace and make your brand more recognisable.

Conclusion

The ecommerce industry is on a roll, growing, changing dynamically with each passing day. And the advent of AI is taking it to unheard of realms, creating new experiences for consumers. By combining omni-channel marketing and consolidating payment options, ecommerce businesses can manage operations more effectively.

5 Apps to Increase Productivity at Work

Business Innovations

25 August 2021

5 Apps to Increase Productivity at Work

  • Posted by awfis

Life has become much easier with the advent of technology. With access to latest technology, work has become less strenuous. The biggest contribution to technology has been the invention of smartphones. They have not only made communication easy, but also play core to organize our lives. The hundreds of ‘add on apps’ have made life stress-free and have definitely helped increase productivity, in every possible way.

App

Here are some applications that we feel will help you outperform at work.

  1. WandurList:

As the name suggests WandurList is an app that helps you in maintaining a number of lists. It is a clean application which enables you to make multiple lists under various folders. It is available for Android, iOS and web users, but what makes it stand out is that WandurList enables you to access the lists from anywhere and from any device. The lists that you make are saved in the cloud, thus letting you share the lists with the other users. So the next time you are out of your office and need to assign work or access previous work, WandurList will be your go to app.
wunderlist.com

  1. Shoeboxed:

Tired of keeping track of your expense receipts before submitting for tax reduction every month? We have a perfect solution for you. Use shoebox and say goodbye to the strenuous process of filling out forms. Shoeboxed is perfect for people who are up and about in the name of the business. Shoebox can access either via android, iOS mobiles or also via the web. Scan the bills and Shoebox sorts out and collates the receipts for you and also generates an expense report.  By the end of the month all you will have to do is send it out to your accounts team.
shoeboxed.com

  1. Speek:

Conference calling is an important aspect of how work happens in the business world. With growing business environment one needs to connect to people from various parts of the world and that’s where Speek steps in. It is an application that enables you to have a con-call by eliminating the process of dialling the numbers and the pin codes. Speek gives you a personal link which has to be shared with the people you want to have the conference call with and all they have to do is click the link to join in via their laptop, smartphone or the computer. So want to make a conference call? It’s just a link away now!
speek.com

  1. Keeper:

Have a lot of passwords of various platforms to keep track of? Tired of sending email to the IT to retrieve your passwords? This application takes that burden of remembering passwords off your shoulders. You have one master password that has all the passwords stored in it. If any hack is attempted all the passwords are automatically erased to maintain secrecy. This application can be accessed via a phone, laptop or a computer with the android, IOS software or by using the web.
keepersecurity.com

  1. Prezi:

Need to make flawless presentations that capture your client’s attention? We have a unique cloud based presentation application – Prezi. This app lets you put down all the information on one canvas and mark it out instead of making separate slides. It uses Adobe Flash Technology to animate the presentation. The application is easy to use and is also compatible for Windows, chrome, iOS and the Web.
prezi.com

Try the apps out and see the increased productivity that these applications bring about in your work life!

Join our business centre in Bengaluru, or our co-working space in Delhi.

Freelancers Work Better in Office Spaces than Coffee Shops

Business Innovations

25 August 2021

Freelancers Work Better in Office Spaces than Coffee Shops

  • Posted by awfis

You would have seen freelancers and solopreneurs working intensely at coffee shops, buying a cup of coffee accompanied with something to bite on now and then, more to keep the table occupied rather than ordering by choice! But working out of a coffee shop comes with a set of challenges. Being in such a relaxed, casual ambience for work, you are not really motivated enough and you can only rely on self-motivation to keep you going.

Thankfully, this is something that can be resolved by working at collaborative office spaces. Leased workspaces and desks that you can find on a reliable collaborative working website like https://www.awfis.com/inspiration/wp-content/uploads/2016/06/shutterstock_3835072871.jpg.com will also give you access to all amenities that you need when you work in an office, like free Wi-Fi and unlimited tea and coffee to keep you fueled up.

Freelancers in office spaces

Freelancers are looking for offices spaces with a positive atmosphere to conduct their work. More often than not, freelancers have a lonely job. They are at their laptops doing their work. However, at home, they have several distractions to keep them away from their desk. Coffee shops do not make the best talking environments for productive business meetings as a plethora of distractions come your way. No such worries exist in a collaborative working space where you are paying rent to be at your desk for work.

Let’s talk about the motivation factor now. Because you are in a roomful of people working on their desks, you are motivated to be a part of that workforce. You can make some great professional friends. As a freelancer, you cannot deny that working alongside others is a much better feeling that being a lone wolf, especially on days when things are a bit rusty. The general working ambience keeps you afloat, something that you find in plenty of plug & play rented office spaces.

If you have not considered working in a collaborative working environment, now is a good time to do that. All your criteria will be met and your business will commence in a cheerful and inspiring environment. After all, your venture deserves only the best.

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For Young Entrepreneurs in India, Awfis is the New Office

Business Innovations

25 August 2021

For Young Entrepreneurs in India, Awfis is the New Office

  • Posted by awfis

As they say, all you need to succeed is a big idea!
However, in the fiercely competitive world, you have to be careful about how you use that big idea. When you start off, you have multiple challenges on your side, including the really daunting one of arranging for start-up capital. You will be surprised to know the number of Unicorns which started off on a shoestring budget.

Things have changed since. You no longer need to set up a big office space and buy all the furniture necessary to set off your own company. Welcome to a new way of working out of an office: Awfis! At Awfis, you will get exactly what you need for your start-up or your work as an entrepreneur: a highly productive space to conduct your business.

Awfis is your new Office

Collaborative working has been around for a while now, but it is only now that it is starting to catch up here in India. At the forefront of this change is Awfis. We have Pro-Working centres where you can work in your own leased offices, along with your own team of professionals. For those who are playing it out as a lone wolf now, this is a better opportunity to make your mark!

There are many reasons why Awfis is the new office today. For example, the meeting rooms which we have in the leading cities of the country are all located in premium destinations. The centrality of the location makes it easier for you to commute and network with people for meetings and discussions. Clients and customers will not shy away from visiting your office premises because it is far away. Your business is in a better position, location wise.

Additionally, you are working alongside professionals who can turn out to be excellent future business contacts for you. Who knows, you may get the next big project from the person seated right next to you in the collaborative working ambiance! Also you may not have to hunt around for a professional in a desired field because the person may be working in the next cabin. Collaborative pro-working spaces are an excellent choice for business networking.

Awfis ensures that you get the best technological and infrastructural support when you work in our Co-Working centres. You will appreciate the environment and that will certainly inspire you to work even harder, the wind beneath the sails that you need when you are starting off.