The eCommerce Consulting Process

Evolving from an eCommerce laggard to leader requires a consulting process designed to activate the correct type of change.

"Forensics" describes a proven scientific methodology for solving crimes and accounting negligence. The eCommerce consulting process, seen below, is a proven forensic approach to solving poor-performing eCommerce websites.

Greg has perfected this process by working with hundreds of eCommerce websites, making changes and analysing the data, which gives him a powerful knowledge base of what works and what does not.

Below is a high-level summary of this process, which consistently produces client success.

Step 1: Let's Get Strategic

Greg first engages with the C-Suite to understand the business-wide growth plan.

Research proves when an eCommerce website aligns with business-wide strategy, it drives overall growth.

This strategic context sets the tone, defines what the business needs from the eCommerce channel, and influences decision-making.

Click here to learn more about the eCommerce Strategic Planning services.

Step 2: Customer-centric Data Analysis and defining the Gap

Considering the strategic context, Greg understands how the eCommerce channel must look and behave to support growth. The next challenge is defining how close (or how far) the current state of the eCommerce website is from business needs.

This step analyses customer-centric data to define the website's current state and compares it to the desired future state, illustrating the gap.

Customer-centric data enables the customer voice to be heard, illustrates customer behaviours, and explains the pain they are experiencing when trying to engage with you.

Step 3: Auditing the current eCommerce website

Once Greg understands the customer pain points, an audit is carried out on the website. This step finds and defines the website's performance blockers.

From this website audit, two things are documented...

The issues or performance blockers
The solutions to remove and resolve all issues

This ability to illustrate the solutions helps the business understand what the future state of the eCommerce website must look and behave like to drive a new level of online (and in-store) sales.

Finally, all short-term priorities are highlighted to create a highly impactful Phase 1 change project.

It is this project that moves a business from eCommerce laggard to leader.

Step 4: User Experience Design - the "Secret Sauce"

While every step of this process is "secret saucy," this step is the sauciest. Greg constructs the new UX Design plan, comprising wireframes and a commentary explaining new page layouts and eCommerce journeys. This is the new roadmap.

Finding the issues and defining the future state is one challenge. If this change is not documented and planned correctly, no value will be seen for the business.

The UX Design plan becomes the "Change Bible" for a Phase 1 change project.

Step 5: Phase 1 Change - Plan Execution

Greg is heavily involved in bringing the UX Design plan to life. Why? Because he knows...

The business strategy
The customer pain points
The UX Design plan

Greg is the most qualified to lead the execution of this change. Because this project manipulates eCommerce technology to engage with humans, this change process requires numerous ad hoc micro-adjustments.

There is a high degree of scrutiny and micro-management required to ensure project success, and this is where Greg closely collaborates with eCommerce Agencies.

Step 6: Monitoring NEW customer-centric data

Once the project is completed and the changes are live, a new "digital salesperson" is born.

New journeys and experiences bring new engagement behaviours and critical new data requiring monitoring and defining.

Monitoring data is necessary for the following reasons...

It confirms ROI is being achieved.
The business sees the impact of the "Process" in driving revenue increases.
This new data informs decision-making for future changes and enhancements. This is how a Phase 2 project is formed.

If you want to learn more about how the above process can impact your business, contact Greg on mobile 0477 723 474 or email greg@commaconsulting.com.au.