6 tips for successful operation of the online store in the conditions of demand fluctuation

Tagged as: online sale, online store.

The secret of a successful e-commerce business lies in the effective management of supply and demand. There are “hot” periods throughout the year, during which demand traditionally rises sharply, for example, during the 11.11 mega sales, Black Friday, on the eve of the holidays, etc. However, there are situations when the demand arises unexpectedly.

Starting a trend, or mentioning a brand by a celebrity or influencer can all lead online shoppers to actively visit your site looking for a similar product. In this article, we asked Sales and Marketing, to share his top tips for running an online store successfully in the face of fluctuating demand.

Keep in constant contact with suppliers

Close cooperation with suppliers plays an important role in times of unstable demand. It is important that you can rely on them. This may require a lot of time from you, but the result will pay off all the efforts for many years to come.

Keep in constant contact with your suppliers to understand the capabilities of your partners in advance during a period of high demand. For example, the supplier's production capacity may be overloaded, which will not allow him to increase the output of the products you need in a short time. Take this into account when preparing.

As a backup plan, you can partner with local suppliers or consider leasing additional storage space in advance to build up a stock of your most popular products to meet a surge in demand in the future.

Efficiently manage inventory

During peak periods, it is important to constantly monitor inventory. This is not easy, especially if you use an omnichannel sales model (for example, you sell through both an online store and marketplaces ), so we recommend using an inventory management system (WMS). It allows you to automatically track inventory in real-time. This way, you'll always know which items need to be reordered before they sell out.

Adhere to the elastic logistics model

E-commerce is characterized by a rapid pace of development, high competition, and increased attention to customers. All this can lead to unpredictable changes in demand. The golden rule in e-commerce is adaptability. The elastic logistics model allows flexible scaling to quickly expand or contract business activities depending on fluctuations in demand.

Elastic logistics requires automation of the main stages of the supply chain. For example, by integrating your inventory management system (WMS), you can improve operational efficiency during peak seasons while minimizing losses and costs during off-peak periods. Automating the assembly, packaging, and movement of goods around the warehouse will help reduce the processing time of the order and send it to the recipient faster.

Look at every step in your business's supply chain from order management to fulfillment and ask yourself, "What technologies can help automate existing processes and increase efficiency?"

Remember the Importance of Delivery

Buyers order online largely because of the opportunity to save time and receive their goods in a convenient place for them. According to the Study, 92% of consumers research available shipping options before placing an order. If the proposed conditions do not suit them, the probability of refusal to purchase increases greatly. 45% refuse to checkout and leave the site due to the limited choice of delivery options.

Reliable delivery is also important for retaining customers and increasing their loyalty. The same study shows that the likelihood of a repeat purchase in an online store after a positive delivery experience is 2 times higher.

Therefore, an online store needs to find a logistics operator that can consistently deliver goods even in the face of current logistics difficulties. A surge in demand can happen unpredictably, but in terms of delivery, the needs of online shoppers remain the same - it is important to deliver the order on time.

Make the purchase path as convenient and transparent as possible for the customer

In a highly competitive market during the peak season, it is important to offer customers additional options that will help them make their shopping more comfortable.

For example, this applies to payment for goods, especially from abroad. The integration of multiple digital wallets will help customers place an order with minimal effort. Online shoppers are 70% more likely to complete a purchase if their preferred payment method is displayed as an option at checkout.

If we talk about buyers from abroad, the financial services industry is quickly adapting to the withdrawal of large payment systems from the market. There are already alternative solutions to help you accept payments from abroad.

You can learn more about the capabilities of payment systems and the characteristics of popular services both in the CIS and on the international market from our article.

Don't forget about customer service. Having uninterrupted chat support, collecting and analyzing feedback from customers, and informing customers about changes in a timely manner, for example, about new delivery dates during a period of high demand - all this will allow you to win the loyalty of your customers.

Buyer Orientation

Fluctuations in demand are sometimes impossible to predict, but with well-established business processes and timely preparation for possible force majeure, you can get the most out of it.

One thing will remain unchanged - customer orientation. It is important to always meet his expectations, and maintain a high level of support and product quality.