India is on the threshold of uplifting its economy and take big leaps when it comes to utilizing the digital platform.
This can be done utilizing all channels that will lead participation of retailers, wholesalers and according Statistica, digital commerce is a global $4.9 trillion business and accounts for 24.5% of worldwide retail sales.
Digital commerce is key aspect when it comes to modernizing many aspects of modern business. This includes holistic data management and getting insights from data and utilizing the information to capture a whole lot of buyers’ mood, preferences and choices.
This also includes querying and analysis, content management, user experience and customer engagement and retention. Digital commerce thus paves way for harnessing the required functionality and deploys them where client is based.
Digital transformation initiative bringing in cultural change in retail shopping
There are many such organization who are carrying out digitization or digital transformation initiatives for smoother and finer retail experiences and improving the operations.
Operations that refine the digital retail as consumers increasingly use the Internet and mobile devices, and expect maximum convenience when shopping online via any device.
This is part of a massive cultural change impacting consumers and businesses worldwide. Wholesalers are also gearing up and participating in this to ensure profit maximization and channelization of their good is happening over a medium that is consumer facing and what can be a better medium then digital channels. Earlier wholesalers had few medium to bulk purchase and wait long period of gestation when their good’s will land up on the floor shop for consumers and retail buyers, suppliers.
Change that came with Digital commerce
First of all it improved agility and gave organizations the ability to flexibly adapt how they do business and this include digital mode of payment methods, providing various ways to purchase via digital devices, and strategies for engaging and re-engaging customers online.
Second it improved competitiveness in the way business is done. Nowadays a business that does not have a robust digital presence does not exist and nobody knows about its presence no matter how quality goods or services that business offers.
This offers retail business to grow its presences by adopting digital commerce and protect their market share, customer base and create new growth opportunities.
Competition is the crux in business and how one handles by applying digital initiatives and meet customers growing expectations is the key to survival strategy.
Third is improving customer experience in order to get more positive retail experience it is important to execute digital planning and initiatives enabling a more positive retail experience with digital commerce.
Customers want flexibility both in placing order to buying and delivery. Digital commerce processes ensure that a business connects with customers via the channels they use the most and build positive relationships. In way a brand also gets highlighted at every stage of the buying lifecycle to customer retention.
ONDC in Digital commerce:
ONDC is a non-profit organisation whose network allows product and services from all participating e-commerce platforms to be displayed in search results across all network apps.
This kind of imitative is a positive development when both retailers and wholesalers are involved .The objective is clear in this platform regarding the journey in digital commerce.
ONDC was being established with the following objectives in mind:
- Be a facilitator with minimal public digital.
- Build with scale efficiency and adoption.
- Encourage interoperability to build an open, inclusive, and competitive marketplace.
- Open the door to innovation for reinventing digital commerce.
- Guarantee rapid digitization of MSMEs and consumers.
- Make online shopping convenient for small businesses.
Significance of ODNC largely grew when it was established that efforts the retail-commerce sector has been trying to figure out how to compete successfully with the burgeoning e-commerce giants for almost a decade.
Many local retailers, offline vendors, and Small to Medium Sized Businesses (SMBs) are struggling to gain access in the basket where few e-retailers have already established as a brand.
For retailers uncertainty becomes more challenging to operate and stay on and here comes the role of ONDC whose presence is going forward in placing local vendors at the disposal of this duopoly that is governed by a small number of powerful companies.
Network Digital Commerce (ONDC) and other new tech-led solutions are expected to play an increasingly significant role in the future years.
The ONDC platform is based on three foundational pillars:
- Open Network
Scaling and developing open protocols that have already undergone testing and achieved proofs of concept accelerating community-based participation through open-source APIs will lead to accelerated innovation and adoption. A novel, decentralised design that promotes collaboration and interoperability.
- Public Digital Infrastructure
Low-cost digital infrastructure that can scale to billions of users as is intended to be shared by both buyers and sellers and used for digital commerce transactions.
- Open Ecosystem
An integrated group of innovators who collaborate to develop new tools and possibilities for voluntary adoption and community-led development facilitated by ONDC.
Growing opportunity for Key Stakeholders in ONDC
Both for sellers, buyers certain benefit and value proposition for various stakeholders in the digital commerce platform creates value chain.
For Sellers it gives access to additional consumers, which increases growth potential. In the long term it is much easier and cheaper ways to find businesses and their products. There is flexibility in terms of choosing and get visibility online and reducing business expenses. Retailers find better prices for services and margins they receive long term and facilitate corporate extension by creating an extended value chain.
For Buyers the platform gives availability of more sellers, leading to greater options with improved pricing patterns.
Improving higher service standards and quicker deliveries as a result of hyper-local shops’ accessibility and ultimate customer satisfaction one of the mission of ONDC.
The digital commerce platform offers to improved client experience and expand opportunity for innovation.
ONDC being a technology platform helping out users on buyer and sellers applications thriving in the era of digital commerce. Simplified time to scale and time to market an important component. Concentrate on the specialised area customer or seller acquisition—while your network partners concentrate on various facets. New possibilities for start-ups to promote innovation along the value chain of commerce.
(Image courtesy: www.cloudways.com)