For eCommerce businesses, efficiency is everything. Companies spend thousands of dollars every month just trying to streamline operations, adopt new tools and technologies, and optimize their workflows. Yet there are a lot of eCommerce companies that still struggle daily with disconnected systems, requiring humans to bridge the gap and do the work that computers should be capable of handling automatically. This manual labor leads to significant wastage of time. It also introduces errors and cuts down the revenue generation rate.

According to Business Foundations, in an era where 69% of consumers are less likely to shop again if their order is late, every delay matters. So, here we are going to talk about some of the costs associated with disconnected eCommerce systems. We will also tell you how you can make use of APPSeCONNECT’s advanced eCommerce Operations Integration in order to connect the various systems in your business environment.

The Real Cost of Disconnected eCommerce Operations and Its Impact on Profitability:

Working with disconnected eCommerce systems can indeed be a very costly affair for businesses out there. It can lead to significant drainage of resources and manual labour. It can also harm your company’s ability to generate revenue.

As per McKinsey & Co., 2023, businesses without automated discount tracking lose 5-10% of revenue due to pricing errors.

So, here we are going to take a look at some of the disconnected eCommerce operations costs associated with disconnected eCommerce systems in your business environment:

Higher Labor Costs:

When your team is stuck in spreadsheets, manually entering data, or continuously fixing product data, you are wasting hours of productivity. Every single minute your staff spends reconciling data between the various systems or copy-pasting data manually into reports, you are draining resources. Those salaries are not driving growth. Instead, they are bringing about great loss to your organization. Also, manual labour almost guarantees mistakes. These errors give rise to frustrated customers.

Because of increased manual labour, your team is remaining engaged in admin tasks at all times instead of focusing on growth initiatives like customer engagement, product expansion, marketing campaigns, etc. This can cause an expensive affair for your business. This will not only cause you to unnecessarily allocate staff for manual tasks but can also lead to increased frustration among the staff.

As per McKinsey, with an automated tracking system, eCommerce companies can easily cut sales and order-related enquiries by 30%, freeing up time for more valuable customer interactions.

Delayed Order Processing:

Disconnected eCommerce systems can bring about significant delays in order processing. This can cause significant costs through higher operational expenses, lost revenue, and damage to brand reputation. Delayed orders will automatically increase the cart abandonment rate, especially stock inaccuracies, delays at checkout, etc. These issues will eventually deal a severe blow to the trust of the customers.

To deal with unhappy customers, companies often have to issue discounts, and this can directly impact their revenue generation. Also, when the order processing is done through disconnected systems, employees spend a significant time manually entering data into the various systems in your environment. This can again slow down orders, which equates to higher costs.

Companies with disconnected financial systems take 40% longer to close their books each month (Deloitte, 2023).

Inventory Inaccuracies:

Inventory is the lifeblood of eCommerce. However, when your systems don’t sync in real-time, costly mistakes may occur. Customers order products that you don’t actually have in stock. This leads to multiple cancellations and refunds. Popular items easily vanish from digital shelves because your systems are not updating quickly. This gives rise to poor customer experience.

Once your customers get a poor experience, they might not return to your store, and every disappointed customer represents not just a loss in sales but a loss in lifetime value. Also, stock issues not only harm your business; they can also damage your brand reputation. Gradually, your business will start to crumble.

Data Errors & Duplicates:

When your staff manually re-enter the same information across multiple platforms, the chances for mistakes multiply. A missed digit, an extra zero, or selecting the wrong SKU can disrupt your entire system. This can lead to incorrect customer orders, mismatched stock quantities, wasted time chasing down errors, etc. All these can severely impact your business.

Inconsistent information can also cause loss of trust and repeated mistakes. It leads to negative reviews. You also require a higher support cost to fix the issue. Also, when departments deal with siloed data, leaders are forced to make business decisions with half the picture. This can lead to increased cost. Your business also starts to operate in a chaotic situation, thereby causing significant damage to business growth.

Poor Customer Experience:

Your customers experience the direct results of your operations, whether you like it or not. When your eCommerce systems are not in sync, customers face shipping delays. Suppose your inventory system and website aren’t perfectly synced. Your customer orders an item that shows in stock, but in reality, it is out of stock. Now this can bring down the customer’s confidence.

Also, from the customers’ perspective, returns can be the most anxiety-inducing part of eCommerce. Suppose a customer sends an item back, and if your return system is not integrated with the customer communication system, then the customer might get into the dark. This again leads to unhappy customers.

How Does Integration Solve These Problems?

According to Forrester Reports, businesses that integrate their eCommerce, marketing, and subscription systems see 30% higher efficiency and 20% greater revenue.

So, now, we are going to take you through the various benefits associated with eCommerce Operations Integration in your eCommerce environment:

Automated Data Sync:

This is one of the primary benefits of eCommerce integration. You can achieve 100% automated data sync for eCommerce. There is a continuous flow of data between the systems. This allows all the members of your team to be on the same page at all times. It also ensures that there isn’t any kind of error with data discrepancy.

The automated data sync also paves the way for faster and better decision-making. It ensures that you no longer have to manually enter data into the various systems in your business environment. You are also able to carry out various business transactions in a smooth and effective manner without the slightest hindrance.

As per HubSpot 2023 Reports, companies using real-time marketing automation for eCommerce generate 451% more qualified leads than those relying on manual data transfers.

Streamlined Workflows:

With eCommerce Operations Integration, you get to enjoy streamlined workflows. This ensures bi-directional flow of data between the various systems in your business environment. As a result, data is consistent across the various systems. In this way, workflow integration becomes a significant facilitator of efficiency across the company.

By linking the different applications, systems, and processes, application integration allows for improved coordination and better decision-making throughout the company. The various departments also remain in sync with one another. Streamlined workflows also provide companies with the ability to adapt to evolving needs without having to undergo any major business overhaul. They are able to achieve inventory management integration for eCommerce.

Learn more about Shopify integration!

Lower Operational Costs:

This is yet another benefit of an eCommerce integration solution. Integrating the various systems means that you can automate the manual processes to reduce human errors. You can easily integrate orders, shipping, payment information, etc. You also have complete visibility of your inventories. This reduces information redundancy, human involvement, and errors, which further cuts down on unnecessary costs.

With access to real-time data, you are able to make better business decisions for yourself. This not only helps increase customer trust and credibility but also allows you to further take your business to new heights.

Enhanced Customer Experience:

With all the systems in your environment working in tandem, synchronized internally and externally with shippers, vendors, and other logistics partners, customers reap the benefits of a seamless buying process: browsing items, selecting products, checking out, order tracking, and delivery. This makes for happy, loyal customers, especially when it can all be completed from the same portal.

In this way, eCommerce Operations Integration makes the online shopping experience intuitive rather than visiting a physical shop. It also ensures that the customers have complete visibility into the buying process.

Calculating ROI for eCommerce Integration and Understanding its Value:

ROI on integration should be calculated as:

ROI = (Annual Benefit – Implementation Cost) / Implementation Cost

For integration initiatives, annual benefits include:

Labor savings: Headcount reduction or redeployment of existing staff
Cost reduction: Errors, oversells, inventory holding, expedited fulfillment, etc.
Revenue growth: Improved customer experience driving higher repeat rates
Working capital improvement: Reduced inventory requirements and faster cash cycles

Implementation costs include:

Platform/software: Middleware, integration platform, or custom development
Implementation services: Professional services for setup and configuration
Training and change management: Staff training, process documentation, change management
Ongoing maintenance: Support and monitoring costs

So, before opting for eCommerce integration, it is important that you evaluate your eCommerce ROI with integration.

Use APPSeCONNECT’s ROI Calculator to Calculate Your Business ROI!

Integrating Your eCommerce Environment With APPSeCONNECT:

APPSeCONNECT is a robust AI-powered eCommerce integration platform that allows eCommerce sellers to get rid of manual data entry and automate core eCommerce business processes. With our integration platform, you can easily link your eCommerce store, ERP, CRM, and any other systems in your environment with complete ease.

The prebuilt integration methods, connections, and templates also help in streamlining the installation process. With years of experience in the eCommerce industry, APPSeCONNECT has the required skills and know-how to support the expansion of your business. You can also conduct all your business operations from a unified platform.

DOWNLOAD THE FREE EBOOK -> Inventory Management in Magento 2.0 Guide

What Makes APPSeCONNECT a Better Choice Than Its Competitors?

There are a lot of integration service providers who are ready to offer you eCommerce integration services. So, you must be wondering why exactly you should choose APPSeCONNECT over its competitors.

Here, we have drawn a table of comparison which will allow you to pick the right integration service provider to integrate the various applications in your business environment:

Feature	APPSeCONNECT	MuleSoft	Workato
Ease of Setup	Fastest deployment – Minutes to live	Requires developer expertise	Mid-range – Moderate setup time
No-Code/Low-Code	Fully no-code platform – Business users can integrate	Requires code for complex scenarios	Low-code with some limitations
eCommerce Specialization	Industry-focused – Optimized for retail/eCommerce	General-purpose platform	General automation platform
Implementation Cost	Lower – 50% cost savings vs competitors	Higher implementation overhead	Moderate to high costs
Data Synchronization	Real-time + scheduled – Flexible options	Real-time capability	Real-time capability
Support & Training	Dedicated eCommerce support – Expert teams	Enterprise support available	Standard support tiers
Scalability	Elastic scaling – Handles growth seamlessly	Highly scalable for enterprise	Scalable with cost increases

APPSeCONNECT’s Increased Focus on Security:

When it comes to the eCommerce sector, maintaining data security and compliance is extremely crucial. eCommerce business means you have to deal with large volumes of customer data. You have to ensure that the data remains 100% secure at all times. You also have to deal with compliance requirements that are specific to the eCommerce industry.

APPSeCONNECT’s enhanced compliance and security measures include:

Role-based access
2-Factor authentication
SOC2-level monitoring
Secure authentication
GDPR and CCPA compliance

APPSeCONNECT also provides HIPAA and CLOUD ACT-compliant integration solutions for handling sensitive data.

So, to ensure data security and compliance, you must consider choosing APPSeCONNECT as your integration partner.

Real-World Example of APPSeCONNECT’s Integration Services:

Blue Q, a company that specializes in designing and manufacturing a wide array of quirky, fun, and high-quality products, integrated its eCommerce and ERP operations with APPSeCONNECT’s Shopify and MS Dynamics NAV Integration. By doing so, the company was able to achieve 30% integration in its revenue generation. The company was also able to enjoy 100% data sync between the various systems in its environment.

Click here to read the full case study!

Final Thoughts:

So, as you can see, eCommerce integration is no longer a luxury. It is a necessity for companies that are looking forward to achieving cost efficiency, operational efficiency, and agility in this digital world. By connecting the dots across your processes and systems, your company can easily unlock enterprise-grade benefits and drive long-term growth and innovation. You can also opt for APPSeCONNECT’s integration services to further streamline your integration journey and empower your business from the inside out.

Frequently Asked Questions

How does the lack of eCommerce integration affect inventory management?

Without integration, the inventory levels are not updated in real-time. This leads to frequent stockouts, overselling, and customer dissatisfaction.

Can a lack of integration harm customer experience?

Absolutely. Without integrated systems, customers receive inaccurate shipping data, delayed confirmation, and contradictory details. This harms your business reputation.

How can APPSeCONNECT solve the problems with disintegrated systems?

APPSeCONNECT’s integration platform automatically connects all your eCommerce applications. This allows real-time data flow, eliminates manual entry, and reduces errors.

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