(ThyBlackMan.com) Starting an online store using an enterprise ecommerce platform isn’t too difficult; but keeping that online store active and stocked can be a different story. While every ecommerce vendor faces challenges in the beginning, it is sometimes more difficult to keep a store profitable and effective over time.
Below are a few of the obstacles digital entrepreneurs face as their stores grow to accommodate new shoppers. Here are some long-term things to think about to keep your store forceful and efficient in the years to come.
Can You Handle the Storage Wars?
Finding adequate storage for your products can be a headache. While novice vendors sometimes keep boxes of goods in their homes and offices, popular merchandise will quickly outgrow such a small space. Similarly, storage facilities have an unavoidable capacity and add an extra operating expense. Do your best to think ahead to determine how much space you need.
Depending on what your store sells, you may find it beneficial to use drop shippers. Drop shipping removes the store owner from the process by directing consumer orders to the manufacturer who then packages and sends out the product. This isn’t a perfect solution for everyone, but it can ease storage 
woes for some.
Is Your Site Ready to Scale?
A flourishing customer base is a good problem to have, but it’s still a problem nonetheless. Increased web traffic can slow down your website which can, in turn, lead to frustrated customers and diminished sales. Traffic problems flair especially around the holidays.
If you are a high-volume, fast-growing ecommerce site, you may want to improve your site to better manage the influx of new shoppers. Enterprise ecommerce platforms, like Shopify Plus, make it easy for online vendors to boost their capabilities without breaking the bank.
Are You Staffing Your Business?
How many employees do you have on staff? Many smaller ecommerce sites are run by a single entrepreneur, which is great. But as your store evolves to tackle new challenges, you may need to think about how you are staffing your business.
Are you hiring outside help? Who is managing your social media pages? Who is catering to customer service requests? There is no perfect solution here, just be sure to hire enough people (internally or externally) to handle the inflow of new shoppers.
Are You Aware of Cybersecurity Concerns?
It never nice to hear, but ecommerce stores are a prime target for cybercriminals since these sites house personal and financial information. Not to mention that hackers can repeatedly buy goods from your site using a stolen card and mail boxes to a pickup location in what is known as a ‘rinse and repeat’ attack.
Make sure your enterprise ecommerce platform provider offers robust cybersecurity measures to safeguard your business and your customers from digital incursion. Additionally, you may want to hire an outside cybersecurity firm to keep a close eye on your operations for any fishy activity.
Do You Have the Right Balance of Inexpensive and Big-Ticket Items?
When you are a larger ecommerce site, its sometimes not enough to just make sales. Here’s an example: If your store sells low-priced jeans and T-shirts, it might take a hundred sales to turn a profit, whereas an online furniture vendor might only need to sell a few dressers to make the same amount of money. Of course, shoppers are less inclined to buy big-ticket items online.
Get the best of both worlds by reimagining your sales strategy. By selling some cheap items and some pricey items, you can alleviate the pressure on your business.
Follow these tips and you’ll be sure to see your business blossom for years to come without having to worry about outgrowing your capabilities. Best of luck!
Staff Writer; Harry Jackson
