Top 5 E-commerce Workflow Automation Processes in 2024

What is e-commerce workflow automation?

One area that is seeing enormous growth is e-commerce. As the digital marketplace continues to expand, so does the complexity of managing its various components - from inventory management and order fulfillment to customer service and data security. This is where workflow automation comes into play.

According to Siteefy, 95 percent of customer-retailer interactions will take place on automated systems (such as chatbots) by 2025. E-commerce workflow automation is a game-changer.  It streamlines operations, reduces potential errors, and frees up valuable time for strategic tasks. By automating repetitive tasks, businesses can focus more on core competencies, improving customer experiences, and driving growth.

But embracing this digital transformation isn't just about adopting new technology; it's about fostering a culture of continuous improvement, innovation, and agility. It's about enabling your organization to respond to market changes swiftly and effectively.

This is your opportunity to lead your company into the future, leveraging automation to empower your team, delight your customers, and, ultimately, drive your bottom line. Let's explore how e-commerce workflow automation can redefine the way you do business.

If that’s what you’re faced with, there is a way out with workflow automation.

Automating your backend e-commerce workflows can help decrease workload while increasing efficiency, revenue, and, more importantly, supplier/vendor satisfaction and trust.

Conversely, trying to handle tasks manually may cost you more money, time, and effort. What’s more, there might be delays, setbacks, or even intrinsic inadequacies that can impede your e-commerce operations and squash customer satisfaction.

Top 5 e-commerce automation processes 2023

If you’d like to smarten things up and boost your e-commerce operations, here are the top 5 e-commerce workflow process ideas for greater efficiency and quality:

• Vendor/supplier onboarding processes

• Purchase order approvals

• Item/catalogue listings approval

• Refund claims

• Customer complaints

1. Vendor/supplier onboarding processes

Just about all successful e-commerce companies have solid processes for quickly and accurately onboarding new suppliers and vendors into their systems. Vendor/supplier, onboarding and approval processes are often done using spreadsheets and email, slowing things down and leading to inconsistent data as the spreadsheet flows through the emails.

Workflow automation can expedite and streamline vendor/supplier onboarding processes and can ensure consistency and accuracy in data as well.

2. Purchase order approvals

Using workflow automation technology, you can upgrade your purchase order approvals from an email + spreadsheet combination that hinders decision-making. Say hello to automated routing and approvals based on value, item category, vendor credit rating, etc., resulting in fast, efficient, and accurate purchases.
With the help of automation, purchase order tracking also becomes easy since it eliminates the need of flipping between sheets and emails.

3. Item/catalogue listings approval

The process of listing new items on your e-commerce site often involves multiple internal approvals before they get online. This process is a must-automate to avoid inconsistencies and increase the speed & efficiency of your e-commerce portal.

4. Refund claims

One of the most common sources of dissatisfaction for e-commerce companies is centered around refunds. When customers file claims for refunds, it often ends up as an email in someone’s inbox. Many e-commerce companies, especially the ones that are young and growing, process these manually. That’ll not only waste lots of time and effort but also result in a negative brand image in the minds of your customers as there might be delays and inaccuracies in the refunding process. This process can be easily automated using a workflow system (with a desirable set of features). Ideally, you would want to pick a workflow software that has “Service Level Agreement” (SLA) tracking capability.

5. Customer complaints (non-refund)

While process lapse in refunds can create social media fires and earn you a couple of bad reviews, being lethargic on non-financial complaints and feedback can erode value slowly over time. It is like the parable of the boiled frog. Processing complaints and feedback manually, from desk to desk, is unwieldy and can result in poor handling of such complaints. This makes the processing of customer complaints an ideal candidate for automation, using a ready-to-use SaaS-based workflow automation software.

Workflow automation enhances effective back office process flows for e-commerce companies and makes operations less intricate and much more well-organized.`Manual processes are not just time-consuming but can lead to inaccuracies and delays. For e-commerce businesses looking to enhance efficiency, consider implementing structured processes from the outset. For example, when considering expanding your service offerings, having a well-defined strategy is vital. Here are the steps to launch a subscription box business that detail how automation can streamline operations and ensure consistency right from market research to customer engagement.

It allows employees to concentrate on their strengths, enables quicker decision-making, and provides greater information security. It also ensures process consistency and eliminates errors, inaccuracies, and miscommunications. Workflow automation can enhance your e-commerce operations, leading to more efficient customer service. For further optimization, consider retail consulting services which can tailor solutions to your specific needs.

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The CaratLane success story

CaratLane, India's largest online jewelry retailer, faced challenges with rapid growth and expanding operations. Ajith Singh, Head of Product Management, needed a solution to streamline operations without overburdening the IT team.
The company struggled with a lack of developer support, inefficient post-order processes, and accountability issues. Singh turned to Kissflow, a workflow automation platform, to address these issues. Using its no-code/low-code capabilities, Singh quickly developed applications for warehousing, quality checks, accounting, and customer service.

Kissflow led to increased customer satisfaction, reduced IT dependency, enhanced accountability, and enabled the speedy creation of custom apps. Since 2017, CaratLane has used Kissflow to effectively manage its growth and operations.
With all these benefits in mind, if you’re looking to automate your e-commerce workflows, Try Kissflow.

Kissflow is a great choice for automating workflows. Its easy-to-use platform helps businesses make their processes more efficient. No matter your business size, Kissflow can help cut down on manual tasks, reduce mistakes, and save time. With Kissflow, you're choosing a tool that improves productivity and work quality. Try Kissflow today and see how it can transform your business operations.