In many companies, well-trained employees are busy performing repetitive tasks. This would not have to be the case, because with today's automation capabilities, unnecessary interfaces can be skipped. The digital transformation of repetitive business processes will allow your employees to focus on activities such as quality management or strategic planning. Investing in an online platform therefore means more than just sales activity. Rather, it enables you to shorten predictable business processes and thereby optimize the overall flow of an order. The following six processes of a classic order show you the positive impact the development of an online platform can have on your business processes.
Digital transformation of customer acquisition
This area is considered the closest form of use of an online platform. Many questions that customers have can be answered themselves with suitable software. This saves a large number of consultations or shortens them because the customer enters your store already informed.
For example, a supplier of bathroom furniture and sanitary ceramics can provide a 3D online planner for bathrooms, which allows customers to try out which furniture matches each other in terms of dimensions. An example of this is the bathroom planner from Villeroy Boch.
Similar assistance for customers is conceivable in various forms within the framework of an online platform. Typical customer self-services that have been accepted for some time are online banking and the creation of contact data in the user account of an online store. For customers, the focus is on advantages such as constant availability and independence; for the company, there are also savings in processing costs and data integration.
Saving time when preparing offers
The digital transformation of this business process can save telephone calls or even on-site appointments. Interested customers can enter their own data in an online configurator and experiment with locations and products, for example. If the customer likes the solution calculated by the software, required products, dimensions, assembly instructions and the like are summarized. All important information is then sent electronically to the company's experts. Their employees can then review the proposal and finalize an individual offer. The customer gains more time and another opportunity to be certain of his wishes and options. For example, he can include family members in the planning process without having to drive them to a retail store. Since automation saves your company resources for complicated quoting, the actual delivery and installation can take place sooner.
Interfaceless order processing and production
A good online platform is useful in our connected world even after the job has been set. For example, it helps send the data to production. Online printers use this option and explicitly inform customers that their order will go into production without any additional interface or manual verification. So the data upload and selection of the desired print option are handled by the customer. The digital transformation of verification processes makes sense here. For example, the software should test whether the uploaded data meets the quality requirements of the desired print product. Electronic order processing therefore makes repetitive processes in the service department faster and can be carried out more efficiently. Your employees gain more time for special orders or complaints.
Digital transformation of invoicing
Receiving the invoice directly when making a purchase or shortly afterwards is a service that many customers are now used to and expect. In most cases, an email is sent with the invoice as a PDF attachment. This allows the customer to pay directly, if this has not already been done through an instant payment option. A good online platform directly generates the delivery bill and the analog invoice. The automation of this business process naturally also includes prompt forwarding to the company's internal accounting department.
Customer service on the online platform
Many tasks that people used to do at counters or desks can now be done from home thanks to digital transformation. For customers, this offers the time-saving advantage of having fewer trips and being able to better schedule their tasks, as they are independent of opening hours. One popular automation is the ticketing system, which is also known as an issue tracking system or help desk system. Customer inquiries are assigned a ticket, which makes it easier to assign concerns and people. In this way, the customer can be helped quickly, even if a clerk falls ill or similar. The digital transformation also brings with it customer portals and self-service areas in which, among other things, contact data can be updated, subscription models changed and delivery days managed.
Automation enables real-time reporting
Those who have an integrated online platform can design and implement a cross-process concept. How well this works can be observed transparently at any time, as the digital transformation of business processes makes it easier to keep statistics. Real-time reporting enables management to intervene more quickly and thus control the company's success. Finally, an online platform is not a rigid construct, but a software that can be changed as needed.
Digital transformation of purchasing and logistics
As orders are placed and production materials are used, the warehouse and raw material stock empties. If you rely on automation here as well, you will need fewer employee hours for inventories and other work in the warehouse. In addition, using an online platform leads to greater security, as your employees will know in real time which products are in demand or still available and to what extent. Thus, automation facilitates even the area of picking.
There are numerous possibilities to optimize your business processes sustainably. We will be happy to advise you on the technical possibilities of online platforms. Please contact us for a consultation .
cloudtec - Your specialist for online platforms
However, the planning of a new website should be well thought out. You can find out what you should definitely consider when developing an online platform here Tips for creating a platform.