TechTarget is an organization focused on highlighting key technologies and solutions providers. In their blog, TechTarget offers news, guidelines and resources to aid technology buyers in the process of selecting a technology vendor to serve their business.
A recent article, called “Best Practices for Buying an Order Management System” featured OrderDynamics® client, Airsoft Megastore. Mike Zhang, President and COO at Airsoft Megastore, discussed the process the retailer underwent when deciding to re-platform their site and selecting a vendor to do so with. Mr. Zhang stated the importance of basing vendor selections on current businesses objectives, and what you need from a technology provider in order to meet them. For Airsoft Megastore it was critical they partner with a hosted software vendor that had reliable and robust infrastructure and could accommodate large volumes of orders without downtime. He also stressed that OrderDynamics’ eCommerce and order management solutions allowed them to leverage software that could conform to the way their company worked, not the reverse, and that post-implementation training was the key to succeeding with a new vendor.
The article also included insights from Tyler Wilson of Panorama Consulting Solutions, and Gene Alvarez of Gartner Inc. Mr. Wilson shared his views on using an all-encompassing solution, such as OrderDynamics, to minimize redundancies and errors that can occur when having information feed through several systems, and that the capabilities of the solution should not only match current business processes, but also enable and facilitate future company goals. Mr. Alvarez spoke toward the need for a distributed order management system which enables faster order fulfillment and provides the ability to route orders through numerous distribution centers or warehouses. The nod towards distributed order management systems is also a reflection of the changing ecommerce landscape which has seen a growing demand for retail-oriented order management systems.
To read the full article, click here.
Showing posts with label eCommerce SaaS. Show all posts
Showing posts with label eCommerce SaaS. Show all posts
2012 Shop.org Annual Summit - Recap of the Show!
Earlier this week the National Retail Federation hosted the 2012 Shop.org Annual Summit in Denver, Colorado. OrderDynamics would like to thank everyone who stopped by our booth and met with our team, and of course, the NRF for putting together such a great three-day event. (We’re still processing much of the data and thought leadership generated from the Conference!)
The Conference, the biggest in its history with more than 4,400 attendees, signaled two things. First and foremost, Shop.org was the final U.S. Conference OrderDyanmics will exhibit at this year, and more importantly, that the first wave of eCommerce is completely over.
The biggest theme of this years’ Shop.org was the integration of online commerce with traditional retail channels. Terms like “Omni-Commerce”, “Agile Commerce”, or our very own “Connected Commerce” were everywhere from the exhibition hall to the keynote presentations. Nearly every retailer we spoke to was focused on bridging channels and centralizing retail operations around web initiatives. To us, this really speaks to the evolution happening within eCommerce. The first wave of eCommerce was about figuring out how to sell online (technologies, staff/talent, strategies, partners, etc…) and how to be profitable doing so. The next wave of eCommerce will be about creating best-in-class online and offline experiences by offering the same merchandise, products, promotions, prices and experiences across all channels. It goes without saying that this wave is already well underway.
For many, including us, one of the highlights of the Shop.org was seeing Jamie Nordstrom’s keynote presentation. His honest and insightful recount of Nordstrom’s approach made it clear that innovation in customer service is the key to their continued growth and dominance. In fact, according to Mr. Nordstrom, they’ll be irrelevant if they don’t continue to innovate how they approach customer service. Their commitment to testing new ways to engage and satisfy their customers is impressive and refreshing. Mr. Nordstrom and his team have fostered an environment that “celebrates mistakes” and spends an incredible amount of time understanding reasons why ideas and tactics didn’t work. According to Mr. Nordstrom, the most difficult part of becoming a true multi-channel retailer was merging their retail store and catalog (online) teams. He did suggest technology integrations were costly investments, but emphasized properly aligning the organization was where the “heavy lifting” occurred. There’s so much that could be said about Mr. Nordstrom’s keynote and the insight he offered (and we could go on and on), but one particular quote still stands out as a key message to his presentation: “Nordstrom can't focus on making decisions that benefit one store and not another. In the end, all stores are part of the same company and the customer doesn’t care about which store gets the credit for a sale”.
Another big theme from Shop.org was order management, and the movement to having it integrated within an eCommerce platform. In some cases order management might have been a longer term priority for retailers, while for others, it’s a tool they didn’t need before but now require due to significant growth. While the notion of an end-to-end platform is hardly new, it’s clear enabling improved customer experiences and faster fulfillment will be significantly easier using an eCommerce platform that features an integrated order management system. For retailers who are re-platforming or soon plan to, selecting an eCommerce platform with built-in order management would be a highly strategic investment and would provide a significant advantage over competitors.
One final thought about Shop.org: The Conference was a clear reminder how far the eCommerce industry has come, and yet, how much work lies ahead for retailers (and vendors) in order to catch up with consumers and their expectations. As Chris Ladd from The Finish Line said during an Omni-Channel roundtable session on day three of Shop.org, “It’s up to the digital guys to bridge online and offline channels”. One sentiment that echoed to us throughout the Conference was how the control has shifted from retailers to consumers. Retail was once about what merchants offered consumers, and subsequently what consumers chose to purchase from those offerings. Now retail has evolved to merchants reacting to consumers and their needs and wants, and adapting to new technologies which can be used to improve and connected consumer experiences across multiple channels.
Now that Shop.org has ended, we will be reaching out to all interested parties in the coming few weeks. You may also contact us directly: solutions@orderdynamics.com.
In the meantime, we invite you to visit our website at www.orderdynamics.com to learn more about our On-Demand Commerce Platform.
Sincerely,
The OrderDynamics Team
1 (866) 559-8123
The Conference, the biggest in its history with more than 4,400 attendees, signaled two things. First and foremost, Shop.org was the final U.S. Conference OrderDyanmics will exhibit at this year, and more importantly, that the first wave of eCommerce is completely over.
The biggest theme of this years’ Shop.org was the integration of online commerce with traditional retail channels. Terms like “Omni-Commerce”, “Agile Commerce”, or our very own “Connected Commerce” were everywhere from the exhibition hall to the keynote presentations. Nearly every retailer we spoke to was focused on bridging channels and centralizing retail operations around web initiatives. To us, this really speaks to the evolution happening within eCommerce. The first wave of eCommerce was about figuring out how to sell online (technologies, staff/talent, strategies, partners, etc…) and how to be profitable doing so. The next wave of eCommerce will be about creating best-in-class online and offline experiences by offering the same merchandise, products, promotions, prices and experiences across all channels. It goes without saying that this wave is already well underway.
For many, including us, one of the highlights of the Shop.org was seeing Jamie Nordstrom’s keynote presentation. His honest and insightful recount of Nordstrom’s approach made it clear that innovation in customer service is the key to their continued growth and dominance. In fact, according to Mr. Nordstrom, they’ll be irrelevant if they don’t continue to innovate how they approach customer service. Their commitment to testing new ways to engage and satisfy their customers is impressive and refreshing. Mr. Nordstrom and his team have fostered an environment that “celebrates mistakes” and spends an incredible amount of time understanding reasons why ideas and tactics didn’t work. According to Mr. Nordstrom, the most difficult part of becoming a true multi-channel retailer was merging their retail store and catalog (online) teams. He did suggest technology integrations were costly investments, but emphasized properly aligning the organization was where the “heavy lifting” occurred. There’s so much that could be said about Mr. Nordstrom’s keynote and the insight he offered (and we could go on and on), but one particular quote still stands out as a key message to his presentation: “Nordstrom can't focus on making decisions that benefit one store and not another. In the end, all stores are part of the same company and the customer doesn’t care about which store gets the credit for a sale”.
Another big theme from Shop.org was order management, and the movement to having it integrated within an eCommerce platform. In some cases order management might have been a longer term priority for retailers, while for others, it’s a tool they didn’t need before but now require due to significant growth. While the notion of an end-to-end platform is hardly new, it’s clear enabling improved customer experiences and faster fulfillment will be significantly easier using an eCommerce platform that features an integrated order management system. For retailers who are re-platforming or soon plan to, selecting an eCommerce platform with built-in order management would be a highly strategic investment and would provide a significant advantage over competitors.
One final thought about Shop.org: The Conference was a clear reminder how far the eCommerce industry has come, and yet, how much work lies ahead for retailers (and vendors) in order to catch up with consumers and their expectations. As Chris Ladd from The Finish Line said during an Omni-Channel roundtable session on day three of Shop.org, “It’s up to the digital guys to bridge online and offline channels”. One sentiment that echoed to us throughout the Conference was how the control has shifted from retailers to consumers. Retail was once about what merchants offered consumers, and subsequently what consumers chose to purchase from those offerings. Now retail has evolved to merchants reacting to consumers and their needs and wants, and adapting to new technologies which can be used to improve and connected consumer experiences across multiple channels.
Now that Shop.org has ended, we will be reaching out to all interested parties in the coming few weeks. You may also contact us directly: solutions@orderdynamics.com.
In the meantime, we invite you to visit our website at www.orderdynamics.com to learn more about our On-Demand Commerce Platform.
Sincerely,
The OrderDynamics Team
1 (866) 559-8123
OrderDynamics & Avalara present: Simplified eCommerce Sales Tax Strategies Webinar
Navigating the challenges of sales tax compliance in online retailing can be tricky. Keeping up to date on changes and new regulations can be time consuming and could potentially affect you and your organization's ability to drive revenue.
But thanks to sales tax automation solutions from leading vendors like Avalara, retailers can put compliance and regulation worries to rest. Last December, OrderDynamics was thrilled to announce our partnership with Avalara and integration into our H.I.V.E. Ecosystem.
And now we're even more excited to present a co-hosted webinar featuring best of breed eCommerce sales tax strategies on Thursday March 15th at 1pm EST/10am PST.
Join OrderDynamics President Michael Turcsanyi and Avalara Senior Director of National Sales Matthew Grattan to learn how to:
- Understand and prepare for state requirements for sales tax compliance
- Accurately and effectively manage sales tax within your custom-built application
- Protect your business from negative audits and save time and money on tax administration
Space is limited, so register now.
OrderDynamics featured IR: SaaS – The fast track to the latest technology
We recently participated in the November 2010 Issue of Internet Retailer Magazine discussing On-Demand eCommerce Platforms. Here is an excerpt: "Accessing software as a service lets an online retailer get up and running quickly and benefit from vendors' ongoing enhancements. And, because they're not paid a lump sum up front, on-demand vendors have a strong incentive to keep clients happy."
Internet Retailer November 2010: SaaS – The fast track to the latest technology
Internet Retailer November 2010: SaaS – The fast track to the latest technology
Digital Magazine to this Artcile here
The Moran Group Presents OrderDynamics, eCommerce SaaS Provider at Boston Trade Show
The Moran Group is the parent company to TMG Exhibits. At every tradeshow at the Boston Convention Center we showcase the best of the Exhibits and give them a spot to pitch their products well after the show has ended. We hope you find their products or services as helpful and unique as we did.
The team put together a brief video interview of OrderDynamics at Internet Retailer Conference and Exhibition in June, 2009.
The team put together a brief video interview of OrderDynamics at Internet Retailer Conference and Exhibition in June, 2009.
eCommerce SaaS Platforms, 10 Provider Truths
A recent Internet Retailer Survey showed over 33% of online retailers are focusing their 2010 technology spending on their eCommerce platform. With over 47% deciding against in-house or internally hosted options, retailers need a way to evaluate hosted vs. Software-as-a-Service (SaaS) eCommerce solutions.This article provides a checklist for retailers who are evaluating SaaS based eCommerce solutions as part of their re-platforming project. These are the characteristics of a true software-as-a-service (SaaS) eCommerce provider.
The platform decision is arguably the most important, complex, and costly part of a retailers 3-5 year investment cycle. It is a decision that is often put off or easily put on hold due to other priorities or the risks involved. And it is a decision that very few online retailers are qualified to make on their own since it has such broad implications across technology, marketing, operations, and sales.
What is SaaS?
A logical place to start. Software-as-a-Service (SaaS) is a delivery model alternative for software companies to license their software "on-demand", typically delivered over the Internet using standard web protocols. In most cases, the SaaS provider has software running their own servers in a data center they manage, along with all aspects of the application. This is opposed to licensing software "off-the-shelf".
eCommerce SaaS Providers are companies that deliver their eCommerce software platform on their proprietary infrastructure. True SaaS eCommerce providers can offer a much higher level of service overall to retailers over in-house or third party hosted models.
The "Service" in SaaS
Beyond the software delivery side of SaaS, and more important for retailers to understand, is the provider's ability to actually provide an ongoing service. The SaaS provider is not coming in, building out a website, charging licensing fees and leaving. A SaaS provider makes their money over a 3-5 year period and is accountable for keeping the website online and fast every second of every minute. A tall order for just plain old software companies and is the fundamental difference with SaaS providers over custom eCommerce solutions or third party hosted systems.
1. Redundant Server Infrastructure
True eCommerce SaaS providers have redundant server farms with no single points of failure. The SaaS platform will offer load balancing, clustering, and automatic fail over for all server tiers. In all likelihood the SaaS platform will house more than one website and Client (called a multi-tenant architecture) - this is not a problem providing they can guarantee performance, security, and availability in a Service Level Agreement.
Beware: We often hear of eCommerce Systems Integrators proposing one or two servers as "ongoing hosting" instead of proposing robust, high-availability architectures.
2. New Features and Upgrades Included
We are not talking about "18% per year maintenance". True eCommerce SaaS providers will deliver several releases per year of new platform features requested by their Clients. These features will be rolled into the software code base and seamlessly released to all Clients avoiding costly "customization fees".
Beware: Software License Maintenance is often used as a placeholder during the sales process for new features, support, service, or other.
3. Service Level Agreement (SLA) Included
True eCommerce SaaS providers have a "service culture". They are used to earning their money over a 3-5 year period of time vs. one-time upfront fees. As a result, they will guarantee Uptime, Performance, Transaction Integrity, and the Support Process in an SLA with the retailer. These SLAs should provide clear monthly reports on the status and a penalty structure for not meeting the targets.
Beware: Companies may try to use the 3rd party hosting company's SLA in place of an agreement with the solution provider.
4. PCI Security
Payment Card Industry compliance is something that all online retailers must understand and be able to demonstrate. True eCommerce SaaS providers will maintain PCI-DSS compliance and provide controls within their platforms to make compliance easier for the merchant.
Beware: Providers should guarantee they will maintain PCI compliance in their Master Services Agreement.
5. eCommerce Account Management
Outside of 24x7 support, true eCommerce SaaS providers will offer a dedicated account management resource to their Clients. This person is named on their account and is available as a single point of contact and is accountable for customer satisfaction at no extra cost.
Beware: It is important the person assigned to your account is not motivated by selling more services.
6. Platform Configuration
True eCommerce SaaS platforms offer rich features that can be turned on or off (configurable) as part of the implementation and by the merchant on-demand. This includes the ability for complex merchandising, search, promotions, shipping, checkout, payment, and other tools to be available to the Client as needed at no extra charge.
Beware: Many eCommerce providers will build a custom platform and website that offers limited configurable parameters after it's delivered.
7. Rapid Deployment
Since a true eCommerce SaaS provider already has existing infrastructure and software running live, this drastically reduces project times and allows the retailer (and the provider) to focus on the most strategic parts of a project (User Experience and Integration).
Beware: To reduce project risk, retailers must provide more time for testing (technology, procedures, etc.) for in-house or third party hosted solutions than with SaaS solutions.
8. NOC Monitoring and Performance
True eCommerce SaaS platforms have a software and hardware architecture that is scalable, allowing for quick provisioning of additional capacity to handle peak demands. To stay on top of capacity, SaaS providers are continuously monitoring eCommerce websites using global availability and performance monitoring tools (Gomez, Keynote, Uptrends) and have a Network Operations Center (NOC) that can proactively stay ahead of load issues.
Beware: Many IT departments are just not staffed to handle 24x7x365 monitoring or have the resources to properly architect a scalable solution.
9. Rental License vs. One-Time Lump Sum
Since SaaS providers license their eCommerce platforms "on-demand" vs. lump sum licensing, most provide a monthly based fee to "rent" the license. SaaS licensing models vary, some which are based on transactions, commissions, users, products, bandwidth or flat monthly fees. In almost every case, the ongoing monthly fees with a SaaS provider will be higher but the one-time fees will be significantly lower (than a licensed / hosted or custom build hosted). Typically the monthly fee is a blend of License and Delivery of the service.
Beware: The monthly fee for SaaS providers is not "hosting", it is a mix of licensing and service delivery (as defined in the plan and SLA). Go back to checklist #1, the managed hosting fees alone for a redundant setup will make the SaaS fees very reasonable.
10. Disaster Recovery - Business Continuity
As a provider of business critical services to online retailers, true eCommerce SaaS providers will maintain a full disaster recovery (DR) and business continuity plan (BCP). This will protect the merchant by reducing possible downtime and data loss caused by a disaster in the data center.
Beware: Backups can be part of a DR strategy, but are not the plan alone. It is critical that the platform provider has a replicated environment to recover service if needed.
For more information contact: Michael Turcsanyi
An Integrated Order Management System (OMS) Key to Avoiding Lost Revenue When Payment Brands Go Down (Paypal, Authorize.NET recently)
With 2 major payment providers having issues in the past 4 weeks to the day (Authorize.NET July 3rd 2009 and PayPal August 3rd 2009), many online retailers and merchants that rely on these systems were effectively out of business, unable to take orders, and losing revenue.
Although failures like this are considered unacceptable to businesses and executives, there are ways retailers can avoid being impacted by these types of failures. The solution rests in the capabilities of the eCommerce platform and its Order Management System (OMS).
Order Management Systems (OMS) provide software to facilitate the capturing and processing of eCommerce orders. When this system is part of your overall eCommerce platform (same eCommerce vendor platform driving the frontend presentation and backend OMS) you get a very robust and flexible foundation to power almost all online retailing needs. For example, eMail Marketing, Customer Relationship Management (CRM), Fulfillment and Inventory Control, and Advanced Merchandising Rules. This type of "end-to-end" solution helps retailers drive more value from their eCommerce investment by reducing complexities, manual tasks, and less systems / vendors to manage. Obviously, we believe an on-demand or SaaS eCommerce platform is the way of the future for most retailers vs. purchasing and customizing software.
In addition, most platform providers (with an integrated backend OMS) will automatically capture order information prior to posting to the payment provider. This allows for steps to occur before fulfillment like address validation and correction, fraud detection, pre-authorization, etc. This also takes care of two critical problems if payment providers fail. 1. The user is oblivious and can place their order on your website 2. Retailers can quickly and easily resume order processing once the gateway has returned to normal.
As is the case with PayPal and Google Checkout, the shopper has to leave the merchant's website in order to complete their purchase - something not required for other alternative payment brands or traditional gateways like Authorize.NET. However, the eCommerce platform should fully capture the order first and provide logic that informs the user of a payment gateway problem then invite them to use an alternative method or be notified once the gateway has returned.
OrderDynamics takes this a step further and automatically creates a Customer Service Case (ticket) for all abandoned PayPal or Google Checkout orders so retailers can proactively follow-up with these shoppers and convert the sale. This process can be tailored to include an email back to the shopper after X hours inviting them to come back and complete their purchase with a coupon or other incentives.
So when you're evaluating a new eCommerce platform provider it is important to look deeper than the frontend design or "flashy websites" and get into the details of how the platform technology itself will enable a robust, scalable, and cost effective environment for years to come.
See related post: Authorize.NET Outage Does Gateway Downtime Equal eCommerce Disaster?
Learn more about: OrderDynamics On-Demand eCommerce Platform
Although failures like this are considered unacceptable to businesses and executives, there are ways retailers can avoid being impacted by these types of failures. The solution rests in the capabilities of the eCommerce platform and its Order Management System (OMS).
Order Management Systems (OMS) provide software to facilitate the capturing and processing of eCommerce orders. When this system is part of your overall eCommerce platform (same eCommerce vendor platform driving the frontend presentation and backend OMS) you get a very robust and flexible foundation to power almost all online retailing needs. For example, eMail Marketing, Customer Relationship Management (CRM), Fulfillment and Inventory Control, and Advanced Merchandising Rules. This type of "end-to-end" solution helps retailers drive more value from their eCommerce investment by reducing complexities, manual tasks, and less systems / vendors to manage. Obviously, we believe an on-demand or SaaS eCommerce platform is the way of the future for most retailers vs. purchasing and customizing software.
In addition, most platform providers (with an integrated backend OMS) will automatically capture order information prior to posting to the payment provider. This allows for steps to occur before fulfillment like address validation and correction, fraud detection, pre-authorization, etc. This also takes care of two critical problems if payment providers fail. 1. The user is oblivious and can place their order on your website 2. Retailers can quickly and easily resume order processing once the gateway has returned to normal.
As is the case with PayPal and Google Checkout, the shopper has to leave the merchant's website in order to complete their purchase - something not required for other alternative payment brands or traditional gateways like Authorize.NET. However, the eCommerce platform should fully capture the order first and provide logic that informs the user of a payment gateway problem then invite them to use an alternative method or be notified once the gateway has returned.
OrderDynamics takes this a step further and automatically creates a Customer Service Case (ticket) for all abandoned PayPal or Google Checkout orders so retailers can proactively follow-up with these shoppers and convert the sale. This process can be tailored to include an email back to the shopper after X hours inviting them to come back and complete their purchase with a coupon or other incentives.
So when you're evaluating a new eCommerce platform provider it is important to look deeper than the frontend design or "flashy websites" and get into the details of how the platform technology itself will enable a robust, scalable, and cost effective environment for years to come.
See related post: Authorize.NET Outage Does Gateway Downtime Equal eCommerce Disaster?
Learn more about: OrderDynamics On-Demand eCommerce Platform
Authorize.NET Outage | Does Gateway Downtime Equal eCommerce Disaster? Not for OrderDynamics
If you're one of the many online retailers that rely on Authorize.NET as their payment gateway - today may have been a very painful day. I say maybe because if you're one of the websites that cannot take new orders because of this outage - you may want to look into a new eCommerce platform. Some, more sophisticated eCommerce platforms, allow for orders to continue even if the payment gateway is totally down. OrderDynamics retailers have been able to accept orders on their websites even if Authorize.NET is their only payment gateway.
What appears to be the result of a datacenter fire in their Seattle facility (located at Fisher Plaza), Authorize.NET has been down for over 5 hours already on July 3rd 2009. Many are hoping the sales volumes will be lower due to the statutory holiday for tomorrow's July 4th celebration of Independence Day happening today, Friday.
With regular updates coming from their recent twitter account, Authorize.NET is taking responsibility and also claiming their backup datacenter also failed. *At time of writing, Authorize.NET's website was also down - most likely hosted in the same facility. Details are spare as the company is focusing on bringing up their systems.
"An event like today underscores the need for online retailers need to think about their Business Continuity and Disaster Recovery Plans and ensure their eCommerce platform provider can meet these requirements." Says Steven Berkovitz, On-Demand Platform Architect.
An important feature of the OrderDynamics on-demand eCommerce solution is its ability to still capture orders during a gateway failure, making them available for later processing. This allows shoppers to keep buying as normal. "Orders are still captured, shoppers get an order number and confirmation email, then when the gateway is alive, the system will process them automatically." explains Steven. "The last thing you want is to loose the order - this is the equivalent of closing your physical location instead of taking a credit card manually or cash."
"Another feature of our platform is the ability for OrderDynamics to dynamically route orders to different gateways or completely fail-over payment gateways if needed." Continues Steven. "Our platform is integrated with every major payment gateway and over 20 alternative payment brands; allowing for ultimate flexibility and reliability."
OrderDynamics also has redundant datacenters as part of its On-Demand eCommerce SaaS Platform and enhanced service plans that provide up to 99.9% service availability through a fully replicated Disaster Recovery plan to its secondary facility over 75kms away.
Be sure to follow the twitter feed for updates and if you'd like to learn more about how Payment Gateways are used, see this Informed Merchant Article.
On-Demand eCommerce Software Solutions By OrderDynamics Slash Project Lengths In Half
Leading on-demand eCommerce software provider delivers rapid eStore deployments thanks to SaaS platform and eCommerce web site design separation.
Toronto, ON May 15, 2009 -- OrderDynamics Corporation has observed that many online merchants are struggling with short eCommerce software replatforming timelines as peak shopping periods approach rapidly. Contributing to the tight timelines are delayed budget decisions and managers expecting more from their marketing team with a lot less.
OrderDynamics has designed its new eStore implementation process to reduce time to launch a new Client and is averaging a 15 week schedule from signature to soft launch.
"There are two factors at work here that allow us to roll out so quickly; eCommerce Web Site Design Flexibility and our SaaS Platform"
Explains Michael Benadiba, CEO OrderDynamics Corporation. OrderDynamics entirely separates the eCommerce web site design process from its on-demand platform, allowing this process to start in parallel and be delivered by a third party creative agency or internally.
OrderDynamics makes the eCommerce web site design come to life through a library of web 2.0 and 3.0 front-end web controls such as floating shopping carts, personalization controls, search merchandising, product reviews, and other pre-built controls which focus on enabling an fast, fun, and easy shopping experience. "The design and ease of use of an eStore must match the brand experience you're trying to create and the shopping expectations of your customers" continues Benadiba.
"By removing this hard linkage to the eCommerce platform, our Clients can accelerate design decisions and quickly implement future changes".
The other important time saver is the OrderDynamics eCommerce SaaS platform. eCommerce software as a service (or SaaS), means the software application is already developed and available almost immediately after signing a contract. It also means the SaaS provider takes care of maintaining the software and hosting it as part of a Service Level Agreement (SLA). "Our platform is fully redundant and is engineered for Availability, Performance, and Transaction Integrity - all things we guarantee in our SLA " adds Steve Berkovitz, On-Demand Platform Architect.
The Benefits of eCommerce SaaS: an OrderDynamics comment
I thought this blog post The Benefits of Software-as-a-Service was a great way to introduce the concept of Software-as-a-Service (or SaaS) and how it is superior over an on-prem solution for many online merchants today and into the future.
In addition to these points, a SaaS or an On-Demand eCommerce solution typically have (or should) a much higher level of security, capacity, and availability capabilities than otherwise possible at the same budget as other implementations. SaaS eCommerce providers generally have highly available server configurations (clustering & redundancies) located in state-of-the-art datacenter facilities. In addition, the software implementation on the servers is highly optimized and controlled by the specialist team that developed it - which yeilds a much higher quality of service over having to manage 3rd party applications and hosting services with in-house resources or a webdesign company.
Lastly, online merchants typically have superior control over their brand and design features in a on-demand / SaaS eCommerce environment. This is because the underlying software that makes up the shopping cart, inventory control, shipping integration, and other management modules are not being coded with the website - they’re already there. This allows merchants to chop and change their eStore or marketing firms as needed without having to rip out the eCommerce solution.
In addition to these points, a SaaS or an On-Demand eCommerce solution typically have (or should) a much higher level of security, capacity, and availability capabilities than otherwise possible at the same budget as other implementations. SaaS eCommerce providers generally have highly available server configurations (clustering & redundancies) located in state-of-the-art datacenter facilities. In addition, the software implementation on the servers is highly optimized and controlled by the specialist team that developed it - which yeilds a much higher quality of service over having to manage 3rd party applications and hosting services with in-house resources or a webdesign company.
Lastly, online merchants typically have superior control over their brand and design features in a on-demand / SaaS eCommerce environment. This is because the underlying software that makes up the shopping cart, inventory control, shipping integration, and other management modules are not being coded with the website - they’re already there. This allows merchants to chop and change their eStore or marketing firms as needed without having to rip out the eCommerce solution.
Is eCommerce GREEN? OrderDynamics joins Think Green Alliance
OrderDynamics has recently joined The Think Green Alliance (TGA)(http://www.thinkgreenalliance.com/), an organization with a mission to promote and showcase green products and services in an effort to develop a green business community. As the 43rd member of the Toronto based TGA, OrderDynamics will actively participate several green initiatives with our member companies over the coming months.
Is SaaS GREEN in nature? Not necessarily, however if the software is engineered correctly, Software-as-a-Service (SaaS) providers can leverage key datacenter assets and manage energy-hungry server resources far more efficiently than in-house IT departments or hosting companies.
OrderDynamics is delivered over the Internet via its on-demand eCommerce SaaS platform, and is focused on delivering value by simplifying the business of eCommerce. Through its single code base and scalable architecture, OrderDynamics is able to leverage economies of scale and deliver maximum efficiencies out of its datacenter resources. Furthermore, by automating key eCommerce business processes (Dynamic Merchandising), our software streamlines time and resource intensive activities for online merchants and consumers. As a result, our Customers spend less energy on order processing, shipping, fulfillment, manual data entry, and managing their business overall.
OrderDynamics sees GREEN technologies and efficient operations as a way towards a cleaner and brighter future.
