Integration | Digital Vantage Point Blog

Top 10 E-Commerce Concerns

by DVP on October 30, 2018 0 Comments

10 key concerns about e-Commerce – Are they holding you back?

E-Commerce is a very broad industry, touted as the future of retail. There are lots of benefits to e-Commerce; you expand your sales channel, you increase customers and therefore your sales, you are capable of business 24/7, there are lots of automated processes saving you time and money, and the list goes on. Yes, there are many benefits to incorporate e-commerce platforms as a part of your business systems, but that’s not to say it doesn’t come with some concerns. These are valid concerns and are not meant to discourage you. This is just a way to cover all your bases because venturing into e-Commerce requires you to do your research.

The solution to ease these pain points is in the e-Commerce platform. Make sure it solves your problems and eases your stress instead of adding to it. Read More

Amazon Might be Goliath, But Your Online Business Can Be David

by DVP on October 18, 2018 0 Comments

Malcolm Gladwell’s newest book, David and Goliath: Underdogs, Misfits, and the Art of Battling Giants is a fascinating look at how the underdog can win in business. Gladwell challenges us to think of different ways to battle the Giant.

The story of David and Goliath is an example of fighting your opponent in a different way than they are expecting. For example, Goliath is a 6 foot nine warrior covered in heavy armor that he expects will protect him in close combat. David, on the other hand, is not playing by Goliath’s rules. He dresses lightly for agility, is small of stature, and notices that there is one vulnerable spot on Goliath’s forehead not covered by armor.

David’s prior experience as a Shepherd helped him hone skills in slinging stones to protect his sheep from fierce predators like lions and bears. Gladwell states, “David and Goliath is a book about what happens when ordinary people confront giants.”
Courageous David slings his stones straight at Goliath’s one vulnerability, his forehead, and slays the Giant because Goliath didn’t expect it.

The book is packed with stories of people who faced huge challenges and were forced to respond. Their stories are similar to the fierce challenges that online retailers face when competing with Amazon.

PIVOT – E-Commerce Lessons from a ‘Friends Episode’

by DVP on July 23, 2018 0 Comments

Starting an e-Commerce business can be very satisfying and financially enriching. It’s certainly a worthwhile project for many reasons, but it can be a long and hard process. It starts with lots of planning, shopping around, and involves the input from executives, IT, marketing, retail, finance, etc. It’s a huge decision that affects people across the business. You have to define requirements, design the process and experience, think about the technology involved, logistics, marketing, and sales. There needs to be a change in mindset to succeed in the e-Commerce space.

The right solution may have been found; it’s the “dream website”. But then there’s the investment of actually implementing such a solution with all the customizations you want and having it integrated with the ERP system. You’re investing in new technologies and people to provide the services to maintain it. Read More

So you run your business on MS Dynamics NAV?

by DVP on May 2, 2018 0 Comments

Your ERP system is more than just an accounting app. It’s where you look for sales history and item information. It’s where you find order trends and build purchasing efficiencies. It’s host to much of the most vital data that your company has. When you leverage what NAV has to offer, you commit serious resources to its accuracy, performance, and stability.

Since you invest in backup systems and redundancy as well as higher-end hardware to host it, why would you even consider managing your business data anywhere else?

Companies want to connect visitors to their business, while leveraging NAV as single source of truth.

It’s time to go All-In with All-In-NAV e-Commerce!

But what does “all-in-NAV” mean exactly? Just how much of your e-Commerce business is managed in NAV? Join our latest webinar to find out!

WEBINAR: All-in-NAV e-Commerce Solutions | THU, 2:00pm (EST) CLICK HERE TO REGISTER

In this session, we will:

See how marketing and ecommerce manager friendly built-in features in web sales, customer service, product management, and more are presented in the front-end and managed in NAV
Highlight the improved experience both for your business and your customers
Learn about the benefits of true integration into NAV and real-time synchronization
Answer questions regarding your e-Commerce concerns

CLICK HERE TO REGISTER

If you are unable to attend, fear not. We’ve got you covered with personalized demos. REQUEST A DEMO

4 Minute Demo video | Video Bites | Nav-to-Net™ e-Commerce Suite

Why You Should Embrace Minimalism in Your eCommerce Business

by DVP on April 15, 2018 0 Comments

“Less is more” is one of the mantras for minimalism, a trend that’s being currently being embraced by many. Being minimal doesn’t mean having the bare bones, however; it’s about having the right amount, whatever that amount is – it’s dependent on the person, or in this case, business!

So much of achieving e-Commerce success relies on the right message about the right product delivered at the right time to the right customer. When talking about e-Commerce solutions and minimalism, it’s really about a streamlined approach to business and making use of what you have. Elegant is a word that is used with minimalism because it’s simple but not bare or basic. It’s not clunky. In e-Commerce, it can mean an all-in-one integrated approach to the solution and in-NAV management of all website components. The result is a fresh feel and improved business agility that flows while providing an engaging experience for customers. For a business, it leaves more time and a better foundation for growing the business.

Here are some ways your business can achieve and benefit from a minimalistic approach to e-Commerce:

This or That? – Product Comparison in e-Commerce

by DVP on January 8, 2018 0 Comments

Customers want to be sure they’re getting the right item, the best deal. How do they achieve this? By comparing their options! Part of a good shopping experience is aiding the decision making process for customers. Great content, enticing coupons, and user ratings and reviews can influence a customer to buy. But if they have to only choose one instead of the many you offer, we need to continue the efforts of improving the decision making process. Read More

Managing Look and Feel with Configurator

by DVP on March 2, 2017 0 Comments

There is huge value to adding an integrated product configurator to your webshop. From guiding customers to informed decisions, streamlining complex “build your own” type products, and incorporating upsell and cross sell seamlessly, Configurator has features that mesh this unique selling process with the rest of your website. This includes integration with your NAV items and attributes and showing the details of the configured item in the shopping cart. But what how does it fit with your design? Branding is important in creating recognition and cohesiveness with your company’s values. In Nav-to-Net™, this can be done with design customizations or even customer-managed stylesheets. With our Configurator add-on, there are different ways of customizing look and feel to create just the right look and feel. Read More

e-Commerce Solutions for the Food and Beverage Industry

by DVP on September 9, 2016 0 Comments

There are many challenges unique to the food and beverage industry. In addition to managing supply chains, customer demands, and ever-changing technology, we need to properly streamline processes and adhere to industry-specific guidelines. Food and beverage items come with their own time-sensitive rules and specific guidelines and regulations about storage for cleanliness and health reasons. An integrated e-Commerce solution can be key to helping you tackle this: Read More

See Configurator in Action

by DVP on July 27, 2016 0 Comments

The customer journey on an e-Commerce website, from awareness to purchase, can be complex. There are several key moments and interactions that can influence a shopper to buy. Sometimes when there is too much information available, it is easy to lose focus which may result in a diminished shopping experience and loss of sale.

A product configurator can greatly improve the buying experience, whether in B2B (manufacturing and engineering for example) or B2C (like a customized fashion piece). Configurators are useful in streamlining the buying process, from individual personalization of items to tailoring to unique business needs. Product configurators also seek to educate and inform buyers through a series of steps and questions; it presents relevant product information, upsells, and through the use of exclusions, helps show customers what is available or not depending on their previous selections. Read More

Multi-Dimensional Product Variants in e-Commerce

by DVP on June 6, 2016 0 Comments

Effective organization and proper product presentation in e-Commerce yields many benefits for your business and customers. Imagine you are looking for a particular shirt in a very messy room with clothes littered everywhere; clothes are hiding in drawers, hanging in closets, strewn haphazardly across the floor. There is no discernible organizational scheme. You would have to look in every spot and check to see if it is the item you want; that takes times and effort just to find the one item.

Excessive clicking makes for a poor e-Commerce experience with many clicks back and forth to find something. To help alleviate this annoyance for your customers, your webshop needs organization through effective categorization, powerful search functions, and clear presentation of your items. This is especially true when your products have multiple variants and they are displayed on separate item pages. Multi-dimensional product variant item pages are a way to mitigate this and help you create cohesive and easy to use pages. Read More

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