This whitepaper will describe how to setup your own ecommerce venture.

1. A Keyline Technical White Paper
February 2013
E‐Commerce Consul ng: What It Entails
and How to Benefit From It

2. E‐Commerce Consul ng: What It Entails and How to Benefit From It
Introduc on.......................................................................................................................
What is E‐commerce?........................................................................................................
Core Idea of E‐commerce...................................................................................................
Current and Future Scenario of E‐Commerce in India.......................................................
Divisions of E‐Commerce...................................................................................................
Elements of an E‐Commerce Website................................................................................
Mobile E‐commerce...........................................................................................................
Key Considera ons for Making Mobile Apps for an E‐Commerce Store............................
E‐commerce Consul ng.....................................................................................................
The Job of E‐commerce Consultants..................................................................................
Keyline's Role in E‐Commerce Consul ng..........................................................................
Keyline's E‐Commerce Consul ng Plans............................................................................
Conclusion..........................................................................................................................
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3. E‐Commerce Consul ng: What It Entails and How to Benefit From It
Introduc on
Is e‐commerce only about having an easy to use website where people can find and buy products of their
choice? Of course not! It involves an extensive array of aspects that e‐business owners and would‐be
e‐business owners need to pay great a en on to. The need of the hour is also to have a strong presence in
the mobile commerce. To ensure long term growth for your online business, you must implement a proac ve
methodologywhichshouldincludee‐commerceconsul ngservicesbyanexperiencedandtrustedprovider.
WhatisE‐commerce?
E‐commerce or electronic commerce, refers to business transac ons that take place over the Internet. The
transac onsincludepurchasingandsellingofproductsorservicesviatheweb.Insimplerwords,itisbasically
business taking place online, involving transfer of informa on. Various types of businesses are in the e‐
commerce sphere, ranging from consumer‐oriented online retail stores to auc on websites to business
exchangeswherecorpora onsengageintradingofgoodsandservices.
Usually, the sales aspect of a web‐based business is called e‐commerce but it also comprises data exchange
forfacilita onofotherfacetsofcommercialtransac onssuchasfinanceandpayment.
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4. DivisionsofE‐Commerce
E‐commercecouldbedividedintothefollowing:
∙ Onlinestores–whicharebasicallywebsiteswithvirtualcatalogsofproducts/services
∙ Demographicdatacollec onthroughsocialnetworksandonlineconnec ons
∙ Useofthatdata
∙ EDI orElectronicDataInterchangeandB2Bexchangeofthesame
∙ Useofemailandfaxasmediatoreachpoten alaswellasexis ngcustomers
∙ B2Bpurchaseandsale
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E‐Commerce Consul ng: What It Entails and How to Benefit From It
CurrentandFutureScenarioofE‐CommerceinIndia
India is likely to witness a golden era of ecommerce during the period 2013‐2018. Opportuni es for
enormous growth are looming in the horizon along with secular development adop on for ecommerce,
social media, online content, Internet adver sing, search and other services related to E‐Commerce and
Internetadver sing.
SomeNoteworthyFacts:
 Around150millionpeopleinIndiausetheInternetregularly
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 Itmakesusthe3 largestInternetpopula onintheplanet
 PercentageofInternetusersinIndiawillincreasefrom12%in2012to15%in2013
 Indians' me spent online will increase and will be similar to that of users in China and the US with a
growthfrom13hoursweeklyto16hoursweekly
 Numberofmobilewebuserswillgrowfrom50millionto100million
 NumberoffemaleInternetuserswillincrease,withmorewomenaccessingthewebfromhome
 Developing ci es will contribute the lion's share in e‐commerce website users, where at present, 45%
to65%ofsalescomefromthemajor8metroci esinIndia
 These developing ci es are not among the major 40 ci es in India right now
CoreIdeaofE‐commerce
The core idea of e‐commerce is that consumers can exchange products and/or services with neither distance
nor me as a barrier. Over the last few years, e‐commerce has seen its share of rapid expansion and is
considered to grow with the same swi ness or even at a swi er pace. Now it has drawn on different
technologies like supply chain management, mobile commerce, automated data collec on system, online
transac onprocessing,Internetmarke ngandelectronicdatainterchangeor EDI.
During the span of electronic transac ons, the Internet is used for at least once. However, a wide range of
technologies and pla orms are used in the life‐cycle of the transac ons. This includes social media, mobile
devices and even telephones. In a not‐so‐distant future, the conven onal paradigm of commerce will shi
towardse‐commerce.

5. E‐Commerce Consul ng: What It Entails and How to Benefit From It
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MobileE‐Commerce
People are spending more me than ever with their mobile devices. More than an hour is spent on mobile
apps every day by the average user. Highly popular apps such Facebook have triggered the heavy use of
mobile applica ons among smartphone and tablet users. Apps can use hardware be er, leading to an overall
improveduserexperience.
Retailers need to keep in mind these facts and also the fact that use of mobile applica ons is increasing
witheverypassingday.So,advantagesofhavingamobileappinclude:
 Exposure to a wider range of customers
 Exposure to customers with considerable earnings
 Always be easily accessible to customers, thus building trust and giving them the opportunity to do a lot on the go
Mobile ecommerce app users can do a lot while on the move such as:
ElementsofanE‐CommerceWebsite
An ecommerce website should:
∙ Put forth an impression of effervescence, efficiency and appear to be compe ve to every visitor.
Inordertomeetthisobjec ve,astrongwebsitebuildingtoolneedstobeused.
∙ Have fully op mized pages with the right keywords, metadata etc. This would help the site gain a good
rankingon SERPs(searchengineresultpages).
∙ Be payment gateway integrated. Payment Gateway integra on in the website would be effec ve as it
wouldpromoteinstantprocessingofcardinforma onofcustomers.
∙ContainenoughspacetomakeroomforcatalogscreatedbasedonaSpreadsheetformat.
Checking out prices
of products
Compare products
Reading other
customers’ reviews
Exploring product
features

6. E‐Commerce Consul ng: What It Entails and How to Benefit From It
E-commerce Consulting
Ecommerce Consul ng is a process where the exis ng e‐commerce strategy of a company is assessed along
with the ini a ves taken by the company and both online as well as offline opportuni es it has got. The
consul ng may also involve where the company is planning to get in to ecommerce business and want to
adoptaneffec vestrategy.
In Ecommerce consul ng, a robust and extensive por olio is implemented and monitored. This por olio
contains several marke ng campaigns and channels targeted towards mee ng specified objec ves in terms
ofcustomeracquisi on,returnoninvestmentandtotalsales.
The sphere of e‐commerce consul ng is quite large. It involves everything from planning to execu on to
monitoring.Otherthingsthatareapartofthisconsul nginclude:
∙ Extensiveresearch
∙ Designingandcrea ngeffec veB2CandB2Be‐Commercesolu ons
∙ Op mizingandfine‐tuningthesolu onstowardssteadyprofitgenera on
∙ Implemen ngrobustprocessmanagementand IT systems
∙ Paymentgatewaysolu onsthatleavenoroomforerrors
∙ Devisingsimplem‐commercesolu onsthataremeantformobiledevices
∙ Adviceonadjus ngthebusinessprocessmanagementtoimprovetheopera onalefficiencyingeneral
∙ Bestprac cesof CRM (customerrela onshipmanagement)andaccounts
∙ MakingthemostofpowerfulsocialnetworkslikeFacebooktomarketandexpandthebusiness
∙ Research,planningandimplementa onofpowerfulInternetmarke ngstrategies
∙ Op mizingthesite'sperformancesoastoensureloyaltyofthecustomers
∙ Developingaffiliates,re‐sellers,franchisesandseveralchannelstoboostgrowth
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Key Considera ons for Making Mobile Apps for an
E‐CommerceStore
∙ Contextinwhichanuserentersanonlinestoreviaamobileapp
∙ Waystoinfluenceuserbehaviora ertheyhaveenteredthestore
∙ Offering deals and discount vouchers a er analyzing the demographic, requirements, context,
preferencesanddesiresofeveryuser
∙ Increasingrelevanceofproductsbasedoncustomers'recentbehavior
∙ Customizingcheck‐insforindividualshoppers
These considera ons will boost customer loyalty, promote product value and cement the pla orm for the
growthofthebrand.Somefunc onali esalsoseekthea en onofthee‐commercebusinessownersuchas:
Full func onal shopping cart Wish list management
Account management Mul ple payment op ons

7. E‐Commerce Consul ng: What It Entails and How to Benefit From It
TheJobofE‐commerceConsultants
Customershaveneverbeforehadtheopportunitytobrowsesomanyproductsandservicesfromthecomfort
of their homes as they have now. This accessibility and convenience has opened the doors to various
opportuni es as well as challenges to merchants. Today's online store owners must have a strategy in place
that'sadap veandtargetedtowardsthesegoals:
Not all e‐businesses are alike, neither are their needs. One‐stop solu ons can never work for all of them.
Customized solu ons need to be worked out in order to meet the specific objec ves of every different e‐
businessmodel.
Coupons and loyalty cards are offered to promote
customer loyalty, site popularity, boost sales and
revenues
Evalua on is done of the following – number of
mes the landing page has been downloaded,
customer checkout process, the site's browser
compa bilityandsecurityofcustomerdata
The website's organic and paid traffic and search
engine visibility are also evaluated along with
effec venessofthecontent.
These aspects are evaluated as well: user
experience, payment gateway, scalability,
conversion rate, look and feel, customer reten on
rate, call‐to‐ac on, cash‐on‐delivery feature and
naviga on
Changes in these aspects are administered if
needed
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Increased conversion
Increased sales
Growing number of organic visitors
Increased rate of returns on marke ng, promo onal and opera onal efforts
Improved knowledge of visitor tendencies and customer behavior
Launch the e‐commerce website with a concrete
ecommerce marke ng strategy and industry best
prac cesgearedtowardsgainingpresence,publicity
andprofits
∙Opportuni es for addi onal revenue genera on
are created by focusing simultaneously on various
parallelsaleschannels
∙Determinetheobjec vesofanecommercewebsite
∙Formulate strategies and success metrics to meet
thoseobjec ves
∙Devise a business plan focusing on these facets –
recruitment, procurement, logis cs, warehouse, IT
andmarke ng
∙Improve the back‐end func onality of the site
basedonthesaidobjec ves
∙Structure the website in an effec ve manner,
outlining func onal, technical, crea ve and search
engineop miza on‐orientedrequirements
∙Design and develop the website with process flows,
sitemapandinforma onarchitecturewireframes
∙Guide the client throughout the process of design
anddevelopment
Post Sale Consul ngPre Sale Consul ng

8. E‐Commerce Consul ng: What It Entails and How to Benefit From It
Keyline'sRoleinE‐CommerceConsul ng
Keyline, a company that has been providing IT solu ons since 2002, has stepped into the arena of e‐commerce
consul ng.Ourconsulta onserviceshallincludeeverythingfromse ngupane‐commercebusinesstoanalyzing
and improving the website's func onality (both front end and back end), user‐experience, scalability, payment
gateway, cash‐on‐delivery; guidance on how to set up a warehouse, how to procure products, from where to
procureproductsetc.
Theconsulta onwillbeprovidedin4formsnamely:
Design Portal ‐ As the name suggests, the first form will focus en rely on the designing and development of the
client'sonlinebusinessportal.
Business Plan ‐ The business plan will concentrate on these facets: recruitment, procurement, logis cs,
warehousing, informa on technology and marke ng. Clients, who opt for this form of e‐commerce consul ng,
havetotellusabouttheirbusinessgoalsforthenext1year.Thatinforma oniscrucialfordevisingtheplan.
Report‐Thereportwillbeacomprehensiveguidebookorcontainingtheplansfor1businessyear.
Marke ng – This will include iden fying target audiences, formula ng e‐commerce marke ng strategies,
redesigning and restructuring the ecommerce store in order to improve search engine rankings, blog integra on
into the site, promo ng the site and its products on social media and thereby crea ng mul ‐channel outlets for
thesameproducts.
Ourmarke ngeffortswillalsoinclude:
∙ Shoppingfeedmanagement
∙ Searchmarke ngtac cstogetourclients'productsno ced
∙ SearchEngineOp miza on(SEO)
∙ Social Media Marke ng (SMM) for e‐Commerce: crea ng user engagement campaigns, running ads, and
buildingFacebookapps
∙ Onlineadver sing
∙ Ge ngourclients'productsonpricecomparisonengines
∙ Content wri ng and development for eCommerce – crea ng blogs, ad copies, press releases and
infographics
∙ Emailmarke ng
∙ MerchandisingforeCommerce
∙ Crea ngandimplemen ngdaily,weeklyandperiodicalreports
∙ Pu nginplaceaneffec ve PIM ‐productinforma onmanagement
∙ Implemen ngdigitalassetmanagement
∙ Improvingstockmanagementandpromo onmanagementtechniques
∙ Emphasizingoncustomer‐orientedvalues
∙ Sugges onsformarke nginotherchannelslikeprint,television,outdooradver sing,eventsetc.
Ourmerchandisingcampaignwillaimatcrea ngtherightproductmixandahighlyeffec vemessagetoincreasethe
conversion rate of customers and boost traffic to our client's ecommerce website. We will help our clients reduce
theirstockandmarkdownandincreasetheirsalesandrevenues.
We will be paying the utmost a en on to customers' convenience so that your store makes life easier for your
customersandsothattheywanttoshopfromyourstorerepeatedly.
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Design portal Business Plan Report Marke ng

9. Conclusion
The field of e‐commerce is going through rapid changes. Every day, more players are joining the game. The
points discussed in this white paper can help you bring about measureable growth in your e‐business.
Having the right professional taking care of your ecommerce site effec vely is an important step towards
making it big. There are many key considera ons that should be evaluated before contac ng a
professional for ecommerce consul ng and offerings of the professional e‐commerce consultant must be
assessed before hiring them.
Keyline IT Solu ons is a company with over 10 years of industry presence,
1 successful e‐commerce venture h p://bidnemo.com
, For more information please visit http://www.keylineit.com
or contact Keyline at:
Vishnu Chambers, 4th floor, Plot J4
Block ‐ GP, Sector ‐ V,
Salt lake, Kolkata ‐ 700091
Phone: +91 33 40031259/60
Email: marke ng@keylines.in
E‐Commerce Consul ng: What It Entails and How to Benefit From It
Keyline'sE‐CommerceConsul ngPlans
Keylinewilloffertheecommerceconsul ngserviceinthefollowingplans/packages:
I. Onlyportal
II. Businessplan+portal
III.Se ngupanonlinestoreforanexis ngsitewith“openastore”op on
Clients, who opt for the 'only portal' op on, shall have a fully func onal e‐commerce store designed for their
products/services. Clients business plan will be integrated in the portal along with our inputs inspired from
ourdomainknowledgeinEcommercebusiness.
Those who choose the business plan+portal op on, will benefit from an
effec ve business plan, devised according to their business niche, target
audience, business goals, product range etc. along with a fully func onal
portal showcasing their products and being easily navigable for customers
to enjoy shopping. We will also deliver a comprehensive report/guidebook
tohelpyoutorunthebusinessfor1year.
The third plan will help those clients who already have a website. The op on named “open a store” would
simplyopenanonlinestoreforthemwithintheexis ngwebsite.
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10. E‐Commerce Consul ng: What It Entails and How to Benefit From It
Copyright © 2011, Keyline IT Solu ons and/or its affiliates. All rights reserved. This
document is provided for informa on purposes only and the contents hereof are subject to
change without no ce. This document is not warranted to be error‐free, nor subject to any
other warran es or condi ons, whether expressed orally or implied in law, including implied
warran es and condi ons of merchantability or fitness for a par cular purpose. We
specifically disclaim any liability with respect to this document and no contractual
obliga ons are formed either directly or indirectly bythis document. This document may not
be reproduced or transmi ed in any form or by any means, electronic or mechanical, for any
purpose,withoutourpriorwri enpermission.
Vishnu Chambers, 4th floor,
Plot J4, Block GP, Sector‐V
Salt lake, Kolkata‐700091
Phone: +91 33 40031260 e‐
mail: marketing@keylines.in
Web: www.keylineit.com
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