The increasing penetration of Smartphones, easier access to broadband, impressive growth of internet users and the growing trajectory of mobile E-commerce stores, indicate a paradigm shift in buying preferences. The advent of the Internet has radically transformed the world of communications, information exchange and business. India has the third largest Internet user base in the world, opening up the doors for young entrepreneurs to leverage their business using e-commerce solutions.
Let us see how young entrepreneurs can use their e-commerce to their advantage but first we need to examine why the problems of startups and why young entrepreneurs find it difficult to start and stay afloat in a business.
Limited Resources
Knowledge, expertise and experience in their specific domain are the strengths of young entrepreneurs and they start their business ventures from a basic idea. They are full of energy and dedication towards the project but soon realize that ideas and knowledge of a specific domain are not the only ingredients to relish the taste of a successful business. A key part of the business is to supervise, multitask and manage various departments efficiently but it has to be done with limited or minimum resources available.
Faced with limited budget, time, resource and manpower, young entrepreneurs eventually get lost in the system, and the focus shifts from building the core strengths of the business to managing resources. One of the most common reasons for start-ups to fail is because it’s started by a sole founder. Having a trustworthy partner is a must-have initially. This way the resources, knowledge and experience can be shared, and effectively utilized.
Skilled or unskilled human resources?
Another dilemma which young entrepreneurs face is choosing either the skilled human resources (that might be expensive for a startup to afford) or less comparatively lower skilled human resources (which will be cost effective) for the business but the quality of productivity might be compromised. At the same time, the quality of productivity can be taken care of by proper training and development but this will also incur a certain cost to the company. Training and development of the required skills in a start-up company is a big factor for the young entrepreneur.
Another option that entrepreneurs have is to outsource the non-core parts viz. transportation, logistics, administration, human resource, finance, etc. to specialized teams while they can focus on the core competencies of the business and develop them further. This will also cost the company but not as much as hiring, training and developing employees in their own company.
Finances and resources are always a major concern for young entrepreneurs and deploying funds for getting the right skills to the company is an additional burden on the newly started enterprises.
The E-commerce Advantage
Today’s generation of young entrepreneurs are looking for easy and quick solutions. And the most efficient and cost effective solution for entrepreneurs to overcome difficulties is by choosing the online route for their business. Young entrepreneurs are technology savvy, and most of them can efficiently leverage the use of technology in order to give them a head start in the industry.
An online business offers many advantages. The young entrepreneurs can save on the costs of running a traditional brick-and-mortar store, accept online payments, ship products with logistics support, reach customers all over the globe, open their store round-the-clock and provide customer support. The cost of setting up a website is low, but it establishes a strong foothold in the industry and also stimulates public interest by the way of social media, e-mailers, videos, online advertisements, etc.
Young Entrepreneurs understand the importance of putting their products and services online in order to reach out to a wider global audience without investing heavily in the physical infrastructure required to go the traditional way. It also enables them to handle their business remotely from any location.
E-commerce solutions provide a ready platform for these young enterprises to portray themselves for their potential customers. These startups now have many options to exhibit their products/ services through online E-commerce solutions which offer them various features to customize the presentation of their online stores. Payment gateways and other integrated features help them easy connection from various social sites where they promote their online businesses.
SAAS as a popular delivery model
Another way out is to use SAAS (Software as a Service) also known as “On-Demand Software” is a software delivery model where applications are hosted by a vendor or a service provider and made available to the customers over a network, usually using the internet. In simpler words, it is a storage model where a business or organization rents or leases storage space to a third-party provider.
SAAS is becoming an increasingly prevalent delivery model as technologies that support web services and service-oriented architecture mature and new developmental approaches become popular. SAAS has now become a common delivery model for many business applications including office and messaging. Software as a Service allows organizations to access business functionality at a cost comparatively lower than buying a licensed application. Also, because the software is hosted remotely, users are able to save the additional hardware costs associated.
The benefits of SAAS model include easier administration, automatic updates and patch management, compatibility: all users will have the same version of the software, easier collaboration and global accessibility. The SAAS (Software as a Service) model has witnessed a rapid acceptance among young entrepreneurs. Giant companies in the industry like Microsoft and Adobe have acknowledged the fact and are thus providing products aligned under the SAAS model.
Correct application of these interesting E-commerce solutions are sure shot hit among the young entrepreneurs who envision the growth of their startups using tech savvy alternatives. These easy solutions, foresight, strategic planning and use of online resources will enable the young entrepreneurs to optimize the utilization of resources. Those adapting new ways for widening their businesses are sure to pave the way for a brighter future.
Read more at: http://computer.financialexpress.com/columns/cost-no-more-a-barrier-for-entrepreneurs-to-leverage-e-commerce-solutions/7231/#sthash.BhDxFV9K.dpuf
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