Oct 29, 2021 | Business
We lived the evolution from eCommerce to marketplace, passing through voice assistants, to new strategies to prioritize customer retention, after the arrival of Covid-19 companies were required to continue to maintain an accelerated pace of digital maturation.
To know the eCommerce 2022 trends, we must go back to the phenomenon of 2020, it was a decisive year for the change in eCommerce, people were forced to have to buy their supplies through the Internet and companies, also forced by the context of the pandemic, had to adapt to continue offering their products or services on online platforms. Aaron Rodriguez, a specialist in the subject with years of experience, offers relevant information about the trends that can be expected in eCommerce next year.
The world, by emergency and necessity, moved from physical to virtual shopping, all markets and sectors that were lagging behind had to make the leap to digital transformation and those who could not do it ran the risk of disappearing. Investment in technology was decisive in order to get ahead during 2020 and 2021.
We lived the evolution from eCommerce to marketplace, passing through voice assistants, to new strategies to prioritize customer retention, after the arrival of Covid-19 companies were required to continue to maintain an accelerated pace of digital maturation, says Rodriguez. As we knew it, traditional commerce could no longer function, so adapting to automation was for some companies the only way to survive. Websites stopped being primarily about reporting company values, and became the storefront, waiting room, fitting room and shopping site.
From the acquisition of food, toiletries, clothing, footwear, pet food, the necessary had to be moved to automation. A challenge for companies and website design agencies that have had to adapt to the new way brands must connect with audiences in a digital world, also understanding that not all websites are built equally.
Ecommerce operations that will take the next leap in strategy will generally look in the direction of a marketplace. A marketplace is a website or application where you can find different brands and people functioning as sellers and sharing the same online commerce platform.
Rodriguez points out another important eCommerce trend, perhaps central, since technology is fundamental in this evolution, the development processes and scalability of eCommerce platforms require code writing and a strict system of requirements, on the other hand, the so-called low code development offers easy to use platforms that allow implementing functionalities and features quickly without major code adjustments. It is about reducing the involvement of traditional code writing and replacing it with other intuitive processes (such as content management).
And as one more trend, augmented reality, we talk about a major game-changer for online shopping. With this type of technology, users can live a shopping experience close to the face-to-face, since they can better visualize the object they want to buy, Rodriguez explains. Industries such as furniture production and home décor are an example of the sectors benefiting from this technology”
Amazon remains the eCommerce leader, with an estimated 2.73 billion monthly visitors. eBay, on the other hand, dominates categories including electronics, cars, apparel, collectibles and more, through auctions, directly from brands, or through verified sellers, with free shipping on many items. And then theres Walmart, with an estimated 468.96 million monthly visitors in the US, even offering a Walmart-branded credit card for customers to save even more on their purchases.
In 2022, the trend in eCommerce will definitely be to live an experience that is responsive, transcends borders, and is diverse, attractively priced and trustworthy.
About Aaron Rodriguez
Aaron Rodriguez is an expert eCommerce consultant in Latin America. He helps businesses throughout the region optimize all of their eCommerce operations to increase sales and retain customers, and also has extensive experience in the development of strategic and external alliances to promote departmental and organizational objectives. He has traveled extensively throughout Latin America to assist a number of companies and, when hes not traveling, he dedicates all of his available time to his wife and children.
Oct 24, 2021 | Business
Integration between old and new systems is more cost-effective than replacing with a new system. In addition, it avoids the downtime that replacement used to require and the familiarization period for employees after replacement. Integration saves costs, allows us to take advantage of the existing infrastructure and add functionality little by little.
A large number of the IT applications used by companies today come from different vendors and have been built with different standards and technologies. This means that access to information is time-consuming, as each department has to use its own specific access. Massive volumes of data, instead of flowing, block and slow down work performance. With service integration, data is integrated and the systems that contain it are allowed to communicate with each other so that unified solutions are found. With integration, the difference between cost and gain is efficiency. Aaron Rodriguez, an expert in business optimization, provides several reasons why service integration is an essential resource for companies.
First of all, it is important to understand that this action optimizes business processes and reduces costs. Integration helps to eliminate bottlenecks. Organizations are able to generate a central software architecture that is connected and transparently transfers data between systems and software. Data transmission and conversion are streamlined and the inefficiencies of dealing with multiple software solutions are reduced. In essence, the enterprise runs faster and more efficiently.
It also integrates rather than replaces legacy systems. Integration between old and new systems is more cost-effective than replacing with a new system. In addition, it avoids the downtime that replacement used to require and the familiarization period for employees after replacement. Integration saves costs, allows us to take advantage of the existing infrastructure and add functionality little by little, Rodriguez explains.
It enables the generation of competitive advantages. Another reason for systems integration is that it enables the creation of new products and services, some of them internal. The cost of the transaction between two business units is thus drastically reduced. In addition, integration, therefore, provides a competitive advantage over other companies when carrying out operations that have to be repeated many times or are complex. For example, with an integrated inventory management system, an automated ordering service can be implemented.
Take advantage of the cloud. Companies can now handle large volumes of information and have permanent access to them without being limited by the complexity of access they would have if they were hosted internally, Rodriguez points out. With integration, existing systems and processes are connected to cloud services. This limits the need for companies to hire and develop software.
It connects the enterprise and moves it forward. One of the reasons for integration is that it generates the complementary effect of making an organization a connected enterprise, where many parties (partners, employees, customers, etc.) can make their contributions. Any change, new software or employee is included in a more agile way than in other situations.
And finally, it favors a joint vision of the entire company. With integration, decisions within the company can be made with a much richer, panoramic view, as it establishes the technical basis for a level of analysis based on informed decisions to be put in place. Each set of data going from one system to another is more visible to all departments, resulting in better measurements and, in short, better revenue and reduced costs.
About Aaron Rodriguez
Aaron Rodriguez is an expert eCommerce consultant in Latin America. He helps businesses throughout the region optimize all of their eCommerce operations to increase sales and retain customers, and also has extensive experience in the development of strategic and external alliances to promote departmental and organizational objectives. He has traveled extensively throughout Latin America to assist a number of companies and, when hes not traveling, he dedicates all of his available time to his wife and children.
Jul 12, 2021 | Business
This is definitely an important and valuable step forward for the Colon Free Zone and Panama. Im thrilled that I have been able to be a part of it and humbled by the opportunities provided.
Economic recovery across Latin America continues following the impact caused by COVID-19. In all areas, countries are mounting new offensives to improve their stability, as well as proactively building on existing projects to extend their reach. An initiative to bring new life to the Colon Free Zone has just been completed. Business process and management expert Aaron Rodriguez was directly involved in ensuring its successful launch.
Panama continues to develop initiatives for economic reactivation, as established by the work agenda of the countrys government. To that end, the manager of the Colon Free Zone, Giovanni Ferrari, announced the initial phase of what will be a marketplace in the region. It comes about through a cooperation agreement signed with Golden Atlantic Group (GAG), with Rodriguez overseeing the transaction. Aaron Rodriguez, the signatory on behalf of the company GAG, expressed his excitement about this agreement because it is a synergy between a need that, at this moment, the world demands in order for Panama to be competitive. He stated, This is definitely an important and valuable step forward for the Colon Free Zone and Panama. Im thrilled that I have been able to be a part of it and humbled by the opportunities provided.
The Colon Free Zone develops these types of initiatives, coupled with technological knowledge and human resources, helping Panama rise to the level of international markets. The people benefit, merchants of the area benefit and even the province of Colon benefits. For the Free Zone as a special entity, which is an area of wholesale trade, but now we are also going to do it in this retail modality. The world of commerce is taking us to new avenues to look for that trade, that activity for which the Colon Free Zone was born 73 years ago and that still remains our guide. Above all, it leads to the creation of jobs and the contribution to the national economy, explained Ferrari during the signing ceremony of this agreement.
Ferrari expressed great pleasure in that this agreement was signed with a user company, which marks another milestone because, through the years and in recent times, the administration has made transactions and agreements with technology companies. However, on this occasion, it is covered by the peculiarity that it is a user company that takes this space. Added Ferrari to Rodriguez and GAG, My wish is that this agreement is that threshold, a new step for sales growth, in this case, electronic. Thank you for getting to the point we got today. Were sure well do something thats going to be of great benefit”
