Why Does My Home and Building Supply Business Need to Be Online?

Whether we like to admit it or not, we have become so reliant on the internet that it has become a staple in our daily lives. From connecting with family members, ordering groceries, and paying our bills, the convenience of the internet is undeniable. This consumer demand is driving business change as well. It’s no longer enough for businesses, including home and building suppliers, to sell only through in-store and over-the-phone orders. But building an ecommerce presence can feel daunting and unnecessary, which has steered many businesses away from this valuable channel.

Expanding your business online does not need to be so intimidating. With the right tools that connect with your business management system, you can easily create a professional online storefront with confidence.

Why now?

Research conducted by the Tech Report concluded that ecommerce will account for approximately 21.8 percent of total global retail by 2024. And suppliers in your industry are getting swept up by this wave of digital transformation. Now more than ever, builders and consumers want to research and purchase items at their convenience. Without a robust web presence, suppliers could lose those customers and potential sales to competitors who offer online ordering.

And amid significant supply chain delays that will have ripple effects over the industry for years to come, it’s never been more crucial to have a strong inventory management system in place. Businesses can’t afford to let inventory information fall through the cracks, so it’s vital to have a clear picture of your inventory stored in one easily accessible place.

A problem-solving solution

Building an effective ecommerce-enabled website can feel overwhelming, and for a good reason. The technical overhead required to manually create and manage a site plus implementing the necessary cybersecurity measures makes tackling ecommerce from scratch much more of a frustration and a headache than it is a solution. This frustration is often the case when ecommerce technology fails to connect seamlessly with your business management system and an industry-specific product information management (PIM) system. Since the PIM enables you to provide information for products, use cases, instructions, and reviews, it can be a powerful part of a successful ecommerce presence.

An online presence has become a requirement for businesses of all sizes who aim to stay competitive in today’s environment. Word of mouth and existing customer loyalty can only go so far. In a marketplace dominated by search engine results and frictionless purchasing, convenience becomes the new loyalty. To truly scale and reach target consumers, you need an ecommerce solution to reduce the time and labor costs that manual order taking and tracking require. It will also help you meet customers at the level of ease and convenience they’ve come to expect from online purchasing on any preferred device, whether that’s desktop, mobile, or tablet.

Enter eCommonSense

Home and building suppliers like you need an ecommerce solution with an integrated PIM that seamlessly merges with your business management system, making ECI’s eCommonSense the standout solution in the current marketplace.

A tradesman in the building industry who understood your industry's unique challenges and needs created eCommonSense. By joining forces with ECI Software Solutions, we blended on-the-ground knowledge and industry-leading technology to meet suppliers’ and their customers’ needs along the selling and purchasing journey. From automated inventory management to completing checkout in as few clicks as possible, eCommonSense is the future of lumber and building commerce.