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How to effectively develop an e-commerce team?

by | 11 May 2022 | eCommerce management | 0 comments

Based on my experience – as an e-commerce manager both in an e-commerce agency and directly in an online store – I will outline some proven approaches to efficient team-building and selecting the right partners for highly effective ongoing campaigns. E-commerce is booming. A growing number of stores and specialized operators supporting them are popping up on the market. However, changes in legislation, inflation and the ever-increasing cost of business and employment are resulting in shrinking margins and the need to seek more efficient ways of generating profits in organisations.

Often e-store owners and e-commerce managers are considering new methods and tools to boost sales and automate marketing, chatbots, AI, and many other solutions. In doing so, they forget about the basic work, namely building an effective team, selecting the right reliable partners, enhancing efficiency, and effectively changing areas of operation.

 

E-commerce team-building models

 

The most common models for building marketing and development teams include:

 

  • outsourcing companies (marketing agencies, e-commerce agencies, software houses),
  • in-house staffing (engaging specialists with specific competences within an organisation),
  • cooperation with out-house freelancers (outsourcing directly to specialists outside an organisation).

Each cooperation model involves specific costs and specific risks and has its drawbacks.

Medium or high. Dependent on the commitment and experience of the professional.

Agency In-house staff member Out-house staff member
Hourly commitment to the project Low or medium. Dependent on the support purchased. The working time of a professional is split between many of the professional’s clients. High. The staff member is fully committed to his/her entrusted area of responsibility. Medium or high. Dependent on the support purchased.
Maintenance costs – employment costs Moderately effective. The costs are spread over the agency’s business model maintenance. Effective. The time fully allocated to the project. Most effective. In the most common cooperation models, you pay for the design work delivered.
Communication Indirect with a manager or direct with a professional. Indirect. Indirect.
Change implementation rate Slow. In comparison with an in-house professional or a freelancer. Very fast. Fast. Dependent on the number of customers and the cooperation model.
Knowledge of many case studies High. Cooperation with a variety of industry clients. Medium or high. Dependent on the commitment and experience of the professional. Medium or high. Dependent on the freelancer selected.
Tłumaczenie języków (Language translation) Przypisanie języka do konkretnego rynku

 

 

Example

Applying a mixed model to an online store with multi-million sales revenue and a growth rate of 100% year-on-year:

 

marketing department: in-house (PPC and SEO specialists, copywriter, graphic designer),

a partner responsible for the hosting and technological development of a store: out-house (software house), and

complementing competences: freelance (video editor, e-commerce analyst, conversion rate optimization specialist, business consultant).
>If you perceive deficiencies in your organisation and barriers to working with an agency or a freelancer, it may be the right time to hire an employee or change partners. Agencies or software houses failing to deliver on their mandate can also hinder growth.

Hint

From observation and working closely with market leaders, the fastest growth is achieved by those building in-house teams,
filling gaps in competence outside with the support of agencies or freelancers. This is mainly due to the growth dynamics, the need for more regular and faster contact between colleagues and the amount of project work to be done.

An example of how you can build an online store marketing team and allocate tasks to staff is provided below

 

  • CEO or managing partner – an online shop owner or an investor, responsible for setting strategy, enforcing plans and tasks and motivating the team.
  • E-commerce manager – managing an online store, liaising with outsourcers, managing the teamwork, providing conditions and space to work, and enforcing business objectives.
  • Marketing manager – creating marketing campaigns, supervising the publication schedule, preparing marketing materials, coordinating the creative parts, outsourcing graphics.
  • Social media specialist – content creation and social media channel management.
  • Content specialist – content planning, supervising creative photo shoots,
  • PPC specialist – implementing PPC paid campaigns, e.g. Facebook Ads, Instragram Ads, Google Ads, TikTok Ads, LinkenIn Ads.
  • SEO specialist – acquiring organic traffic, developing link-building strategies, SEO optimization, creating guidelines for the copywriter in line with SEO principles.
  • Marketing automation specialist – implementing email and SMS-marketing campaigns, building lead generation strategies, implementing automated scripts, saving abandoned carts.
  • Marketing specialist – offer management on sales platforms.
  • Graphic designer – creating banners, creative posts, identification and graphic materials.
  • Copywriter – creating product descriptions, newsletter content, texts for a store, for campaigns and advertising materials, blog entries.

The role of the eCommerce manager in building an eCommerce team

 

 An important part of online store management is the resource management of an organisation and skilful reallocation of these resources. The manager – responsible for liaising with outsourced agencies, subcontractors and working closely with staff – can be the first to spot significant changes and elements blocking growth. Thus, the manager has the opportunity to select the best cooperation model for a current situation.

 

Examples

Cooperation with a marketing agency responsible for PPC (pay per click) campaigns is failing. Too often there are errors in creatives, there is poor or limited contact with the manager, and the store records increasingly poor sales results. The cost of hiring an in-house specialist is comparable to that of an outsourced agency. This step can be considered in this case. The graphic designer, due to the approaching Christmas season, has an increasing workload and is unable to complete all the tasks assigned to him/her. We know that it will only last for the next three months and then the situation will calm down. It is worth considering hiring a freelancer to help.

Grzegorz Sękowski

Grzegorz Sękowski

eCommerce Manager at Paul Rich – multimillion jewellery premium watch brand. Shopify & Shopify PLUS consultant, blogger and ex-founder of napnell.pl

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ECommerce manager blog, dedicated to store owner’s and eCommerce Specialist. Proven tips how to increase conversion & revenue in on-lie stores.

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