Business

An ecommerce site is a business. Our Management & Finance category addresses online payments, funding needs, employee issues, merchant profiles, key metrics, multichannel and omnichannel strategies, cross-border analyses, inventory management, accounting topics, sales taxes, and much more.

Business
Use CAC and CLV to Monitor Ecommerce Growth, Profit

June 14, 2019 • Armando Roggio

Ecommerce owners and managers have so much data available and so many key performance indicators, it can be difficult to know where to focus. But businesses aimed at long-term, stable growth may do well to focus on two: customer lifetime value (CLV) and customer acquisition cost (CAC).
Shipping & Fulfillment
The Growing Problem of Customer Returns

June 13, 2019 • Marcia Kaplan

The rate of customer returns for goods bought online is swelling to a worrisome level as more consumers switch from physical stores to online. Ecommerce returns average about 15 percent, with apparel returns closer to 30 percent. The cost to online retailers is substantial.
Business
Will Facebook’s GlobalCoin Impact Ecommerce?

June 12, 2019 • Brandon Bidlack

Facebook is rolling out a digital payments system next year that will allow Facebook users (as well as WhatsApp and Instagram users) to pay for goods and services using Facebook’s own cryptocurrency, dubbed “GlobalCoin.”
Inventory
How to Calculate ‘Available to Sell’ Inventory

June 11, 2019 • Anna Kayfitz

"Quantity on hand" is physically available inventory. It's a simple number, but it does not include unfulfilled sales and outstanding purchase orders where the inventory has not arrived. All those scenarios can be addressed in an "available to sell" calculation.
Business > Merchant Voice
The risk of vanity metrics (and copying others)

June 10, 2019 • Peter Keller

I see a lot of startup entrepreneurs copying successful businesses. The entrepreneurs observe what those businesses do and assume it would work for them. Or they attribute the success of ...
Business
Building an Ecommerce Business, Part 18: Selling the Company

June 6, 2019 • Eric Bandholz

Launching and then growing an ecommerce business can be both exciting and stressful. The reward for many entrepreneurs is to sell their companies someday. For this installment in my series on building an ecommerce business, I spoke with Michael Jackness, the owner of a multi-brand ecommerce company. We discussed the process of selling an ecommerce business, which he has done multiple times.
Business > Merchant Voice
Temporary setbacks have helped my business

June 5, 2019 • Elizabeth Hollingsworth

Every online merchant dreads a phone call or email from an unhappy customer or supplier. But as unpleasant as they are, those calls and emails often present opportunities to improve. Here are examples from my business.
Local Business
3 Lessons from Running Pop-up Stores

June 4, 2019 • Charles Nicholls

Pop-up stores are a familiar sight in malls and events, but adding a digital component is relatively new. I've just completed a series of pop-up experiences for my company and for merchant brands. In this post, I'll share my lessons and observations.
Amazon & Marketplaces
Create a Branded Amazon Store in 6 Steps

June 3, 2019 • Phil Masiello

Selling on Amazon is an excellent opportunity for brands to gain visibility and sales. One of the tools is an Amazon Store, a mini-website for brands on the Amazon Marketplace. In this post, I will explain the steps in setting up and building an Amazon Store for your brand.
Business
May 2019 Top 10: Our Most Popular Posts

May 31, 2019 • PEC Staff

The mission of Practical Ecommerce is to publish independent content — articles, podcasts, seminars — that helps ecommerce merchants. What follows are the most popular articles that we published in May 2019, recognizing that posts published earlier in the month are more likely to make the list than later ones.
Business
Direct-to-consumer Brands Gaining Customers and Clout

May 30, 2019 • Marcia Kaplan

Watch out traditional retailers. Digitally native direct-to-consumer brands are stealing your thunder, and more of them are popping up. DTC companies manufacture and ship their products directly to customers, retaining ...
B2B
Live Chat Is Critical for B2B Ecommerce

May 22, 2019 • Shawn Arnold

Live chat is arguably more important for B2B sites than for B2C. The B2B purchasing process is typically complex. Buyers frequently have questions. Increasingly, they expect a live-chat function for real-time conversations. In this article, I will review the basics of building a successful live chat program.
Business
4 Steps to Discover an Ecommerce Product Niche

May 21, 2019 • Armando Roggio

Amazon sells everything, seemingly, as does Walmart. And they do it well. But for most ecommerce businesses, attempting to sell everything to everyone can lead to failure. A niche with fewer competitors can have a better chance at success.
Local Business
Physical Stores Can Bolster Online Sales, for a Price

May 21, 2019 • Alex Berg

Opening a physical store was an anathema for early-day, pure-play ecommerce merchants. Why take on the financial burden of leases, construction costs, and staff? But the ecommerce landscape has changed.
Business
Building an Ecommerce Business, Part 17: Growing a Community

May 20, 2019 • Eric Bandholz

An engaged, passionate community around an ecommerce business can drive referrals, loyalty, and repeat sales. But developing that community is not always easy. This is episode 17 in my series on building an ecommerce business from the ground up. For this installment, I spoke with Andrew Youderian, the founder of EcommerceFuel, a popular community of ecommerce merchants.
Business
Use Pre-orders to Gauge Demand, Generate Cash

May 17, 2019 • Armando Roggio

Pre-orders have dual advantages for product makers and for retailers selling online or in a brick-and-mortar store. First, pre-orders can be a good indicator of demand. Second, pre-orders can generate cash ahead of a product's release.
Business
3 Immediate Blockchain Uses for Ecommerce Companies

May 14, 2019 • Brandon Bidlack

Blockchain technology offers much potential for ecommerce businesses. Payments, supply chain, and decentralized marketplaces are the three main uses, currently. But many more applications are in the works.
B2B
Common B2B Mistakes, Part 3: Shopping Carts, Order Management

May 14, 2019 • Gagan Mehra

This post is the third in a series in which I address common mistakes of B2B ecommerce merchants. For this installment, I’ll discuss mistakes related to shopping carts, checkout, and order management.
Amazon & Marketplaces > Merchant Voice
A seller is never bulletproof on Amazon

May 10, 2019 • Richard Stubbings

Relying on one or two platforms for ecommerce revenue is risky. It is relatively easy to build a business on Amazon and eBay. Both marketplaces can present your merchandise to millions of potential customers. But the tradeoff is becoming vulnerable to their foibles.
Finance
Direct Public Offerings: Unconventional but Gaining Traction

May 9, 2019 • Marcia Kaplan

The initial public offering has a challenger. Known as a direct public offering or direct listing, this technique avoids involvement from investment bank underwriters that buy shares at a set price in an IPO and then sell them to their clients. In a DPO, a private company lists itself on a stock exchange but does not raise money.
Business > Merchant Voice
What it takes to stay in business for 500 years

May 7, 2019 • Elizabeth Hollingsworth

Recently I read an article in “This England,” a history-focused magazine, about the oldest, continuously running family business in Britain. R. J. Balson & Sons was founded in September 1515
Business > Merchant Voice
Turns out, I’m a micromanager

May 2, 2019 • Peter Keller

I've been struggling with getting out of the way of my team and letting them do what they're best at. In other words, instead of micromanaging and being involved in everything for my team, I should create the accountability and the structure for them to create excellence…
Business
April 2019 Top 10: Our Most Popular Posts

April 30, 2019 • PEC Staff

What follows are the most popular articles that we published in April 2019, recognizing that posts published earlier in the month are more likely to make the list than later ones.
Cross-border Selling > Merchant Voice
My plan for surviving a trade war

April 28, 2019 • Richard Stubbings

For most businesses, daily operations do not change based on who is in political power. Companies are primarily affected by their own decisions, not by the government. However, occasionally there are exceptions. Trade policies are an example.
Local Business
Is Experiential Retail Working?

April 25, 2019 • Marcia Kaplan

Looking to rejuvenate their stores and slow the wave of closings, many retailers and mall operators have embraced experiential retailing — shifting from selling products to providing an “experience” that sometimes does not include selling anything.
Business
How to Respond to a Copyright Infringement Notice

April 25, 2019 • Armando Roggio

Copyright infringement is a serious issue that could cost a business as much as $150,000 per instance. If your business receives an infringement notice, take it seriously. Aim to settle if, in fact, infringement occurred.
Local Business
The Keys to ‘Buy Online, Pick Up In-Store’

April 24, 2019 • Alex Berg

The emergence of buying online and picking up in store, as well as in-store returns for online purchases, is driving consumer shopping expectations. But less than half of physical retailers offer these capabilities. What follows are key factors in implementing BOPIS.
Business
Building an Ecommerce Business, Part 14: Using Kickstarter

April 16, 2019 • Eric Bandholz

A successful campaign on Kickstarter, the crowdfunding platform, can help validate a business and a product. Cathryn Lavery, the founder of BestSelf, a producer of productivity journals and tools, used Kickstarter in 2015 to launch the company. What follows is my entire audio conversation with Lavery, and a transcript, edited for length and clarity.
Business
Ecommerce Briefs: Amazon Shipping, Kohl’s Collaboration, Teen Shopping

April 12, 2019 • Marcia Kaplan

In “Ecommerce Briefs,” I address news and developments that impact online merchants. In this installment, I’ll report on Amazon's expansion into shipping and logistics; the success of the returns partnership between Amazon and Kohl's; and where teenagers like to shop.
B2B
Common B2B Mistakes, Part 2: User Management, Customer Service

April 10, 2019 • Gagan Mehra

This post is the second in a series in which I address common mistakes of B2B ecommerce merchants. The first post addressed B2B mistakes in catalog management and pricing. For this installment, I’ll review mistakes related to user management and customer service.