Digitally empowered consumers are causing a massive channel shift for manufacturers, leading to digital quickly becoming a strategic priority for channel managers. However, there is still a lack of data-driven decisions to make the most of this opportunity.
Data and analytics have delivered clear actionable opportunities to help enable growth. Here are three actionable insights from a digital landscape analysis across e-Commerce channels:
1. Rise of counterfeits
Counterfeits are a nuisance for manufacturers. They can lead to poor customer experience, harm brand reputation and cause loss of sale. The problem is that counterfeits are widespread online. But detecting and eradicating them is a must.
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Detecting counterfeits can be challenging especially within the immense and dynamic online marketplace. Manual scanning of product pages can be tedious, time-consuming and ineffective. But there are a whole host of signals out there in the form of customer reviews, ratings, social media, etc. By being able to effectively mine all this data using Machine Learning algorithms, channel managers can detect counterfeits and take action.
2. Know thy seller
It’s important for channel managers to be aware of who is selling their products. There are authorized and unauthorized sellers on marketplaces. Channel managers need to keep a check on these sellers to understand from where the sales are originating, how their products are priced, how they are represented, from where the sellers are sourcing the products, etc.
More often than not, manufacturers are unaware of who is selling their products online. If customers are buying more products from unauthorized sellers, the manufacturer may suffer a loss of sales. Data and analytics can help flag offenders, at scale, so that managers can act swiftly.
3. Pricing and content are critical
Being unaware of sellers is one thing, while a lack of support given to authorized sellers is quite a different story. Manufacturers often fail to support sellers with compelling and standard product content and pricing guidelines. While gaps in product content can affect traffic and conversion, improper pricing can affect sales. Overpricing, underpricing, charging excess on delivery, illogical combo-pricing, etc. are all factors that may impact overall digital performance.
Thanks to the consumer, the future of commerce is digital. Channel managers can now effectively and successfully rely on data and analytics for digital acceleration.
Mihir Kittur is co-founder and chief commercial officer at Ugam, a global leader in managed analytics. He is responsible for developing new engines of growth and fostering a culture of innovation within the company, and is actively involved in strategy formulation and business development. Prior to Ugam, Kittur served as management consultant at Avalon Consulting, working on performance improvement and e-Commerce initiatives. He has also served as a start-up team member at Shree Renuka Sugars. Kittur holds a bachelor’s degree in Electronics and Telecommunications Engineering and a Master’s degree in Business Management.
