Product Data Management

Diversifying Your Company

Monday, November 9, 2009 by eCommerce Gurus

Now I assume that we all understand in order to start a company the first step would be to find a product and or service to offer consumers to purchase. After all, the main point of running a profitable business is providing a much needed product or service. If your company offers the consumer a product but yet the consumer must buy additional services for that product from another business, your company losses out on the service purchase. This will not allow your company to grow as much as it could by offering both product and service.

To this long drawn out introduction, my point is simple. Companies who offer one single product or service are missing revenue streams from other areas of their business. There must be innovation, creativity, and an expansion of what companies offer. Sigma-Micro understands that business cannot be conducted by just one product. They offer a full range of necessary services to make their customers more profitable with less hassle. From the ecommerce platform and warehouse management to providing customer relationship management and multi channel software, Sigma-Micro pioneers the complete product fulfillment industry.

With Sigma-Micro’s entrepreneurial mind set, they continue to provide both product (retail software solutions) and services (product data management, CRM, catalog fulfillment, etc…) to companies that need and benefit from Sigma-Micro to make their company a success. The first step for diversifying a company is to provide consumers with multiple product and service avenues. The second step is calling Sigma-Micro to help grow your company in every aspect of the ecommerce industry.

Point of Sale Satisfaction

Monday, October 26, 2009 by eCommerce Gurus

In order to have a company collect revenue there must be a simple system that can handle the daily transactions from customer to company. This systems solution will be in charge of handling the customer and product information along with facilitating orders and refunds. Sigma-Micro customizes a specially developed retail software solution that performs all the necessary tasks in transaction purchases.

Sigma's retail software solution provides customer information that collects data on a customer and organizes it so that the retailer can access the information quickly. The customer's last transaction can be quickly located and viewed with the date of that last purchase. This section of the Point of Sale software will record phone numbers and email addresses along with enhancing customer service with insight into the customer's previous purchases and preferences.

The retail software solution also harbors product information that makes product search and view easier and more reliable. The Point of Sale software makes the product data management easier by giving the retailer access to products by item name or identification number and also allows viewing those product details (with product image), number, type, status, price, return policy, and promotional pricing, along with much more.

Sigma-Micro has also devoted part of the retail software solution to the orders and refunds portion of point of sale. In order to keep the customer satisfaction at a constant high and return and ordering errors at a low, Sigma has made it easier on the retailer. The software allows multiple forms of payment, the security of viewing and tracing returns of original purchases and organizes daily transactions in a end of the day summary of those daily transactions.

At Sigma-Micro the main purpose of our software solutions is to make every day tasks easier to handle with the least amount of stress. Sigma-Micro takes the worry away while creating an organized and efficient customer centered Point of Sale retail software solution.

Warehouse Management

Monday, October 19, 2009 by eCommerce Gurus

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Ecommerce Puzzle

Wednesday, October 14, 2009 by eCommerce Gurus

Online retail is on a constant growth spurt in the US. There are many contributing factors to this increase in online activity like continual product update, real time inventory numbers, and ease of researching products. For the retailer themselves, this can be a stressful experience. The online retailer wants an ecommerce platform that will serve every purpose of the company. Many ecommerce companies provide different attributes of an online retail software solution.

Imagine, if you will, that you are an online retailer in need of an ecommerce platform. Your company will need software that handles an order management system, warehouse fulfillment and a product data management system, along with other applications that all perform in sync to facilitate your ecommerce needs. Let’s also pretend that you get your order management system from Company A, warehouse fulfillment from Company B, and all others from Company C. These companies represent different pieces to a puzzle. Remember you are the online retailer and you are trying to make your company run as efficiently as possible. How much of a hassle would it be to understand the different software, much less use the software effectively to accommodate your needs?

Sigmacommerce provides all the necessary tools for a successful ecommerce business. Merchandising, call centers, warehouse fulfillment, marketing, finance, web design, and much more are all offered through one company (Sigma-Micro). We not only provide you with all necessary tools but also help implement it into your company without costly down-time. Sigmacommerce has over 25 years of experience when working with the logistics of a retail company. In order to correctly piece the puzzle together, go with a company that provides all aspects of ecommerce business.

Merchandising

Friday, October 9, 2009 by eCommerce Gurus

Forrester Research has projected that by the year 2012 two thirds of the public will research future purchases through the internet. Consumers will shift focus from in store researching to the internet in order to save time and energy. In order to keep the focus and interest of the consumer on the product, many online retailers have concentrated on merchandising. Sigma-Micro has the retail software solution.

Product Data Management (PDM)

The product data management creates an easy to use Wizard for the online retailer. The PDM enables the business to change and publish photos, pricing, and even use cross-selling tools without paying a Web developer or IT specialist to construct. The PDM also allows the online retailer to bend with the flexibility of customer purchases by allowing the configuration of rules-based pricing engines.

Sigma-Micro specializes in simplicity for the online retailer and proves it with the product data management system. The PDM enables retailers to edit products and images more easily while also publishing the products to the ecommerce site or call center (or both) with just a check of the box. The product data management system stores keywords for easier search options for the consumer and creates better Search Engine Optimization.

Sigma-Micro understands the growing importance of customer awareness of a product and develops software that can handle the changes while helping grow the online retailer as a business. The product data management system provides an easy to use solution to the changing customer focus.

Ecommerce Stocks Reflect Investor Confidence

Wednesday, March 25, 2009 by eCommerce Gurus

No, the stock prices for ecommerce retailers are not insulated from fluctuations in the broader market. In fact, they've been moving consistently in step. However when the market is up, it seems to be way up for online retailers.

Monday saw positive movements in the stock market in reaction to president Obama's latest budget announcements and economic stimulus plans. As tracked by Internet Retailer, a handful of major ecommerce stocks significantly outperformed the rest of the market, with single-day increases between 10.2% and 25.2%. The companies in this top category represent greeting cards, prescription drugs, jewelry, a major discount brand outlet, and the horticulture industry (flower delivery).

I couldn't have chosen a more diverse group myself. So what's the common theme for success?

Convenience. Yes, convenience is a foundational advantage for nearly any ecommerce operation -- also an advantage shared by plenty of companies who didn't enjoy such a massive bump in stock price. But think about the time consuming activities involved with purchasing items in any of these categories in the traditional brick-and-mortar retail world.

Greeting cards: I have to find a store with adequate selection, walk the aisles in search of the appropriate message, pluck, read, and replace card after card while determining which one suits my personality and my recipient. I wait in line at checkout, purchase postage from somewhere else, and wait for the mail man at home. Can you say "hassle"?

Prescription Drugs: My chronic illness affects my mobility, so I'd rather not travel to the nearest pharmacy when I can order online.

Jewelry: Not just any bracelet will do for my wife. I need to peruse the entire universe of styles, colors, shapes, and sizes before I drop hundreds of dollars on that perfect anniversary present. Think I'm excited to visit every jewelry store in town? Me neither.

You get the idea. It's the same with flowers and brand name products at discount prices. These categories are particularly well suited for the convenience of online retail. Just one more affirmation that your online product mix can have a significantly positive impact on the strength of your ecommerce program. Product data management solutions can influence your ability to do this, and it should be considered if you're on the market to improve your position online. Mail order solutions are essentially the more antiquated way of acheiving this end, and continue to prove adventageous for certain product categories as well.

Posted by: Jesse Kurth

Back to Hard Numbers

Wednesday, March 18, 2009 by Corner Office

The story for online retail seems to be consistent across industries as we reflect on 2008 performance. Internet Retailer's recent report shows that Gap Inc.'s ecommerce operation has officially broken the $1 Billion annual revenue landmark. This due in large part to an increasing percentage of total sales taking place via the internet.

This growth wouldn't be quite so remarkable if it mirrored growth company-wide. However, Gap Inc. took last year's holiday retail recession on the chin with total sales down by 7.8%, driven by the 12% decline in comparable-store sales over 2007.

It's a significant enough thing when a business unit posts regular growth numbers like we've seen, but it's even more significant when that growth defies a shrinking economy for companies of every stripe and color.

I heard a funny quote recently:
"People don't buy clothes online. They buy electronics."

Maybe by "clothes" this person meant "frozen quartered beef", and by "electronics" he meant "everything else on planet earth... especially clothes."

I mean... I can only assume.

Based on the fact that Gap Inc., the owner of four clothing and accessories brands and one of the largest retail operations in the United States experienced its only growth through ecommerce, we'd all be wise to see that retail categories of every kind benefit from streamlined ecommerce operations alongside mail order solutions and product data management.

As always, food for thought.

Posted by: Jesse Kurth

HSN Takes a Hit While the Online Channel Grows

Thursday, March 12, 2009 by Corner Office

I usually keep a close eye on updates from Internet Retailer, and it seems that late-February / early-March is the right time for reflecting on retail performance from the previous year. I've been taking notes to share with you, just in case you're not such an avid IR reader.

First on the list: the Home Shopping Network.

As I understand it, HSN is the hallmark direct-response television retailer. Of course, most of my familiarity with the company comes from sleepless nights in front of the tube, when the only viewing options are get-rich-quick infomercials and HSN. There's plenty to be said for this business model; I can't tell you how many items I've been tempted to purchase with judgment impaired by sleep deprivation. But that's a marketing lesson for another time.

According to IR's reports, HSN's direct-response TV business unit held it's own by maintaining sales levels from 2007, which, considering the economic events of 2008, might as well be considered a landmark achievement. However, HSN experienced real growth through HSN.com, it's ecommerce operation, which grew 16% over 2007. This performance is par for the course, as online growth metrics have consistently outperformed traditional channels year-over-year. If you think about it, the online channel is the greatest innovation in "home shopping" since direct response TV anyway. HSN seemed pretty well positioned to take advantage in the first place.

Despite these great numbers, HSN Inc.'s total sales fell 3% in 2008. This is because HSN owns a very separate business unit called Cornerstone Brands, which operates an ecommerce channel, catalog, and retail stores. HSN would have posted considerable growth overall if not for this unit which shrank in every channel. Store and catalog sales hemorrhaged losses of 22% while the web, still the best performer, lost 6.7% of sales over 2007.

This illustrates two important lessons for retailers:

Ecommerce is the indisputable champion for consistent year-over-year growth, or at least, protection from cataclismic losses in retail sales.
Ecommerce is not the magical door to Narnia. Even well managed online divisions cannot push a company with unpopular brands and products into the black.

Mail order solutions and product data management will only get you so far. A good online ordering system with appealing products and (price points) to match will go a long way in hedging your bets for 2009.

Posted by: Jesse Kurth

The Art and Science of E-Commerce

Tuesday, January 20, 2009 by eCommerce Gurus

Part 1: Product Management

There is a lot of hype around how easy it is to start an online venture as a small business. But what if you are a mid to large size, solid and growing business, looking for their first taste of online revenue?

It may be surprising to know that many companies have done just fine without the help of an online experience for their shoppers. Well, they have until now. The retail atmosphere has become so dependent on the digital aspect, that a company must go multi channel in order to stay alive.

The first issue to address is product management. When a retailer hires a product manager, the expectations are still fairly straight forward. The ability to develop brand strategy, manage the product development process, interpret direction, etc. However, in a multi channel retail environment, product management goes beyond that list, and includes a more thorough understanding of the customer, and how they may shop you differently online.

You are using a mix of your knowledge of the product, and your customer’s ability to find it. Optimizing your products for organic search is just as much of an art as it is a science.

The scientific approach includes using the right technology, managing a process for updates, analyzing online trends and so forth. This becomes much easier when your site is tied into your product data management software with a central database. Real time updates to the product set will become more important as your analysis of organic search traffic improves.

The artistic approach requires the product management team to apply their knowledge of the product to not only the sales floor, but the product page. Describing your products, through text blocks and meta descriptions, must be handled in a way cohesive with current online trends, and they may not always jive with the brick and mortar retail store.

As another thought on Ecommerce practices wraps up, it seems we are all starting to see a trend of agility in the most successful of online ventures.

Posted By: Dan Ratliff

Great Website Design Survives the Economic Crisis

Monday, January 19, 2009 by eCommerce Gurus

Internet Retailer has just published the results of it's latest monthly survey, this one all about web design priorities. According to these results, our all-consuming economic crisis hasn't driven website redesign ambitions to a standstill as you might expect.

The survey cites speedier navigation, faster performance, search engine optimization, and engaging features like video and customer reviews as top-line elements of retail web redesign strategy. As far as I can tell, these have been the most desirable elements of effective website design since the web 2.0 revolution anyway.

Question: While the rest of the world is wringing its hands, why are retail website redesign investment intentions still so high?

Answer: Because the most cost-effective business strategies and innovations find their proving-grounds when wallets get squeezed.

Dollar for dollar, investments that drive up customer purchases online are more profitable than for any other sales channel. Every element of improving the shopping experience, from becoming more visible to creating a more engaging shopping atmosphere, is more affordably and profitably achieved online than anywhere else. Just think about how expensive and static those initiatives are in store and in print.

Cost and efficiency rule in a thriving economy. In a struggling economy they rule with an iron fist. From mail order solutions to product data management, retailers will be wise to control cost and maximize efficiency for their most crucial operating tools in 2009. It's time to drive revenue with great website design.

Posted by: Jesse Kurth

Ecommerce should benefit both manufacturers and retailers

Tuesday, December 16, 2008 by Retail Legends

Does having an ecommerce platform compromise customer relationships?

I had a conversation with a manufacturer this week and they told me that they have no plans of ever selling direct to consumer online because their buyers wont like it. They told me that the retailers still feel threatened by this and do not want their suppliers to become competition.

In this tumultuous economy I would think companies are looking to sell goods in all ways possible, but customer loyalty appears to trump opportunity in many situations. While customer relationships should always be top priority both manufacturers and retailers need to understand that an ecommerce platform will not compromise either side of the business. In fact if done correctly both sides will highly benefit from as much online presence as possible.

With an ecommerce solution a manufacturer can utilize product data management tools, content management tools and marketing tools such as SEO to increase brand awareness.

The manufacturer's site can still encourage consumers to visit local retailers however there are myriad situations in which they could capture the sale themselves that does not compete with the retailer. What if the local retailer did not buy all products available? What if the local retailer did not have the right color/size/style?

While I applaud these manufacturers for putting their retail customers first I highly recommend they research the overwhelming benefits before deciding against direct retail operations online.

Posted by: Carol Smith

Product Data Management: The balance between access and clutter

Friday, December 12, 2008 by Retail Legends

Sizing information, care instructions, product manuals, installation guides, feature lists, specifications, videos... the list goes on and on. How do you manage and disseminate such a glut of information? Who needs access to it, and which parts?

The quick, easy, and often sloppy solution is to use your website as the repository for all this information. The idea being that the customer and employee can both go there to get what they need.

I think there’s a better way.

A good multi channel software application allows roles to be defined for access to each piece of information, and links to be created through the appropriate channel. This keeps a retail website clean and focused on customer conversions. It also keeps your customer service department armed with the information necessary to provide timely and professional service. Now that's a combination that provides an excellent shopping experience for customers and success for the retailer.

Posted by: Jeff Long

Ecommerce and Social Media Optimization

Monday, November 24, 2008 by eCommerce Gurus

OK, another acronym is usually grounds for banishment from an ecommerce solution provider, but hear me out.

Social Media Optimization or S.M.O. is a set of processes and standards for driving online awareness, revenue and corporate identity through community websites, social networking and blogging.

Not to be confused with advertising on a social networking site, social media marketing is all about creating value within the communities online. Dumping a bunch of links on message boards is NOT social media marketing. That is spamming.

The goal with social media marketing and optimization is to add value to your products or services. By actually participating in the social sites that your consumers are frequenting, you are engaging your customers in conversational marketing. This, in turn, will help create a personality for your store.

Tried and true ecommerce platforms and social networking platforms, like blogs, My Space and Face Book are great tools to start with. However, truly reaching your audience requires a focused campaign centered around relevant and cohesive content in the social media sphere.

Micro Blogging sites like Twitter, Tumblr and Plurk are gaining popularity and allow you to make quick blasts to large groups of people. This includes posting links when you have new content (but not too much) and posting links to other relevant blogs and articles out on the net. These tools also offer replies and messaging so you can dialogue directly with your audience through multi channel software.

Standard and video blogging using platforms like Blogger, Vlog Central and Word Press allow you to be more detailed when crafting your post. You can type as much as you want, add links, pictures and even videos. Adding tags and recruiting plenty of faithful blog followers are just a couple of the steps you can take to get your blog out in the main stream. Search engines index blogs at a much higher rate than most sites because of all the fresh content. By hosting your own blog and updating it frequently, you can use this as another retail software solution for SEO and SEM.

Many companies have a few pieces of this puzzle in place. Continually upgrading and updating your social media presence allows you to grow your online reputation rapidly. An eclectic mix of ratings, reviews, comments, blogs, micro blogs, new content, and attentive product data management can help your company emerge as one with a fresh new outlook on the customer.

Posted by: Dan Ratliff

Retailers Turn to Efficient Outsourcing

Monday, November 24, 2008 by Retail Legends

This fall our market saw the lowest drops in over 40 years. With every retail-focused trade rag it is unavoidable to see the headline “ACME Retailer’s Sales Decline 30%.” So the question remains: in what ways are retailers keeping their heads above water within these tough times?

One trend, specifically with pure-plays, seems to be turning to outsourced 3PL (Third Party Logistics) firms. With the capital intensive demands of warehouse and call center, this decision makes sense. Many CFO’s have reviewed their order management system and see that the ROI that they once built around their warehouse and call center no longer adds up when compared to the large volumes and experience of a 3PL. Significant cost reductions can be seen when getting their packages out the door and to their client. With the right product data management and online ordering system, some have gone as far as to consider the warehouse as a profit center for their business.

Further, when looking at start-up eCommerce companies' spending you see three primary areas of initial capital needs; hard goods, marketing, and logistics. With a 3PL catalog fulfillment scenario, these companies can significantly reduce one third of the needed capital.

Is outsourcing logistics a scenario that is right for every retailer? Absolutely not. However for those that struggle with shrinkage, the high costs of freight and packaging, and the capital needed to initiate a successful business, outsourcing to a 3PL for logistics and call center can be a great decision.

Posted by: Jeff Long