missing conclusion in overall case study analysis along with the correlation with the text book information in regards to global health issues.
ENHANCEMENT FOR MARKETING SYSTEMS FOR SELLERS AT FLIP KART
Enhancement for Marketing Systems for Sellers at Flip Kart
Week-5 (First Draft)
Submitted to
Dr. Asila Sayedi
Submitted by
Srikanth Darapuneni
Student ID
5153179
California University of Management and Science
Date: November 09, 2016
Table of Contents
A. Background...........................................................................................................................7
B. Mission and Vision Statement……….……………………………………………………..9
C. Problem Statement………………………………………………………...………………10
11 i. Strength
13 iv. Threats
VII. RECOMMENDATIONS AND CONCLUSIONS..........................................................25
A. Introductory Problem Statement and Recommendations....................................................25
25 a. Establishing a way to improve on their shipment and logistics service
25 i. Collecting data as far as courier services are concerned within the villagers and local towns
25 ii. Eliminating the fear factor associated with conducting an online transaction
26 iii. Improving on the online security regarding personal information and data
B. Recommendations and Implementation Plan......................................................................26
26 i. Eliminating the challenge of online security among the local citizens
26 ii. Word of mouth promotions and media advertisements
27 iii. Conducting simulation programs and trainings: Knowledge based Routing
C. Suggestions for Future Improvement..................................................................................27
27 c. Attracting top talent and customers to flip kart
27 i. Acquisition of well-known companies
28 ii. Offering rewards and promotions for high performers and special order exceptions
28 iii. Acknowledging and giving credit to the work of an employee
I. Abstract
Flip Kart online Services is a commerce industry based in India that conducts its operations as an online retailer. Additionally, some of its products include stationery, perfumes, movies, mobiles, cameras, music, healthcare and personal products and home and kitchen appliances. As much as Flip Kart has experience success when it comes to online trading, it is acknowledged that some of the sellers at Flip Kart are incurring challenges when it comes to conduction of business transactions on their Marketing system. Therefore, this project purposes to explore some of the ways in which Flip Kart can enhance its marketing system for sellers. Additionally, through the employment of PESTLE and SWOT Analysis, this report will be able to explore the current situation at Flip Kart While and later make some suggestions on how Flip Kart can improve its Marketing system for sellers.
I. INTRODUCTION
A. Background
Flip Kart is an e-commerce company that engages in online marketing of items such as tablets, USBs, laptop bags among others under its own product range in DigiFlip. IT was founded in the year 2007 by Sachin Bansal and Binny Basal. Additionally, it was registered in Singapore and its company headquarters are based in Bangalore. Moreover, Flip Kart made a profit of 40 Indian Rupees in the financial year 2007-2008 and made an improvement up to 200 million Indian Rupees the following year. Flip Kart has as well made acquisitions of large online companies such as Myntra.com, LetsBuy.com and many others which have
increased its fame in the online marketing business. As at 2016, Flip Kart has its value standing at 11 million dollars. Flipkart aims at becoming the Amazon of India which in this case is the company’s sole Vision and its Mission is “to provide their consumers a memorable online trading experience”
1. Research Topic
The research topic revolves around the enhancement of the online marketing system for sellers. While working at Flip Kart during my job placement opportunity, I realized that there are only a few sellers that possess direct contact for orders and stuffs. In other words, very few of them have fulfilment service with Flip Kart since much of the attention is given to the buyers as opposed to sellers. Despite the fact that Flip Kart alongside other online marketing applications are establishing themselves as a household names because of the confidence they have instilled in their investors, it is important to note that note all sellers remain satisfied when using Flip Kart because it has gained popularity among buyers than sellers.
2. Overall Purpose of the Project
As much as Flip Kart has gained popularity around the globe because of its products and services, it can be argued that it also possesses a number of weaknesses as far as online marketing is concerned.
· Product succumbing in the Flip Kart value chain: Flip Kart is facing a challenge in personalization, delivery, payment issues and cyber security that has made Flip kart’s chain of commanding very challenging.
· Digital literacy and the concept of consumer connect: Based on some statistics, it is acknowledged that the online marketing on Flip Kart is implying some signs of improvement but this is not always the case when it comes to the customer’s level of digital literacy.
· No net revenues in sight because of instability in management: Flip kart has infused immense capita from shareholders and investors and in the process; they are burning the investments with customer acquisition coupled with heavy discounts. In other words, the net revenues that are not in sight may cause a challenge to Flip Kart’s business operations if the break-even point is not realized.
3. An Overview of the Company
Flip Kart online Services is a commerce industry based in India that conducts its operations as an online retailer. Additionally, some of its products include stationery, perfumes, movies, mobiles, cameras, music, healthcare and personal products and home and kitchen appliances. Moreover, it also specializes in the provision of Kids clothes, games, and toys. It started its operations in the year 2007 under the guidance of Binny Bansai and Sachin Bansai. Furthermore, it is registered in Singapore and it is headquartered at Bangalore, Karnataka in India.
4. Recommendations
The current problems that Flip Kart is facing can be improved through the following suggestions:
· Establishing a way to improve on their shipment and logistics service: In this case, as much as a strong and perfect logistics service is one of the primary reasons behind the success of most online marketing systems, it is acknowledged that Flip Kart is lagging behind in this department because of the remoteness of some of the towns in India.
· Creating awareness on the employment of digital marketing apps: Owing to the fact that quite a number of rural Indian citizens are unaware of the Flip Kart application, it is important for Flip Kart to create some learning, training, and development program that will ensure that individuals improves their knowledge as far as the Flip kart app is concerned.
· Establish a way of attracting top talent from India: In this case, because things in India can be less chaotic and less structured, top talent will ensure that the issues revolving around management is dealt with accordingly hence eliminating the challenges associated with the net revenues in sight.
5. Three Step-by-step Implementation Plan
A systematic implementation plan is very crucial to the elimination of the problem facing sellers at Flip Kart. In this case, the step-by-step implementation plan is as follows:
· Improving shipment and logistics services
· Collecting data as far as courier services are concerned within the villagers and local towns
· Eliminating the fear factor associated with conducting an online transaction
· Improving on the online security regarding personal information and data
· Awareness creation
· Conducting simulation programs and trainings
· Word of mouth promotions and media advertisements
· Eliminating the challenge of online security among the local citizens
· Attracting top talent
· Acquisition of well-known companies
· Offering rewards and promotions for high performers
· Acknowledging and giving credit to the work of an employee
6. Projections and Benefits of the Company Based on the Recommendations
The fear of making online transactions has been one of the major challenges that sellers have been facing. In other words, the implementation of the recommendations suggested will ensure that the shipment and logistics services of Flip Kart are based on the tastes and preferences of the sellers hence improving on their service delivery to sellers in the process. Additionally, a top talent attraction will eliminate the issue of poor decision making when it comes to management hence in the process, it will provide profit insights for investors. Furthermore, through trainings and simulation programs, the level of digital literacy of the local Indian citizens will improve hence increasing the number of online transactions for Flip Kart.
B. Mission and Vision Statement
Flipkart aims at becoming the Amazon of India which in this case is the company’s sole Vision and its Mission is “to provide their consumers a memorable online trading experience”. By looking at the company’s mission and visionary statements, it is argued that it is possible to infer that the company mission, vision and goals are in sync with each other. In other words, Flip kart realizes that until they are in connection with their clients, their business may not prosper.
C. Problem Statement
Flip Kart is one of the renowned online trading centres around the globe and its based in India. Additionally, despite the fact that Flip Kart alongside other online marketing applications are establishing themselves as a household names because of the confidence they have instilled in their investors, it is important to note that note all sellers remain satisfied when using Flip Kart because it has gained popularity among buyers than sellers. As a result, some of the customers end up getting less money than what the customers paid for because of the transaction fee and other charges hence in the end, the sellers incur losses. In simple terms, because of this numerous challenges the sellers at flip kart are currently, facing, it is argued that sooner or later, Flip Kart may end up losing some of its potential customers.
II. INDUSTRY ANALYSIS
Introduction
Among many online marketing companies, Flip Kart has had an advantage of achieving steadier growth to become one of the most preferred online sellers (Bhasin, 2016). On contrary, however, Flip Kart has faced several challenges that act as potential obstacles to continued success. Some of the problems include disintegration in the supply chain coordination, digital illiteracy, and poor management (Hollensen, 2015). An existence of such challenges suggests that Flip Kart does not have an all-smooth journey to success as they suggest that the company faces some forces that if unidentified could lead to a big failure of the company. In addition to the down pulling forces, there obviously exists positive forces to which Flip Kart owes its current prosperity. To identify the different forces, however, sufficient analysis is required to establish the negative and positive forces (Hollensen, 2015). Some of the most relevant analysis techniques are the SWOT and PESTLE analyses.
III. SWOT Analysis
A SWOT analysis is a technique for analysis that guides a business organization to identify its favourable and unfavourable aspects both in the organization and out in its surroundings (Bhasin, 2016). Favourable aspects are the strengths while the negative ones are weaknesses. SWOT is an initiation for strengths, weaknesses, opportunities, and threats. Strengths are those aspects of a business that provide it a higher advantage compared to others while weaknesses are the aspects that place it at an increased disadvantage than other businesses (Hollensen, 2015). Opportunities, on the other hand, are those aspects that lie in the business’ environment and which it can exploit to its benefit. Threats, on the other hand, are those aspects that pose as potential causes of trouble for the business and that could result in failure (Yüksel, 2012).
i. Strength
Experience in a given business field acts as a big advantage for the concerned parties. Flip Kart has founders who had been in the e-commerce business before and could, therefore, understand the business better leading to a bigger possibility of success and highly efficient strategies which in turn make the company very competitive (Bhasin, 2016). Acquiring act as a big breakthrough for Flip Kart as well as giving it a big advantage in achieving a large number of customers (Hollensen, 2015). Currently, Flip Kart has more than 75 million users that are quite a sufficient number to guarantee it the success.
Being an online seller as well enables Flip Kart to avoid making unnecessary shipment as they transport those goods that have been ordered which saves time, fuel and financial resources that could have been wasted making trial and error shipments (Hollensen, 2015). Flip Kart offers such a wide range of products that enable it to increase attractiveness to customers as they can shop for a variety of products at Flip Kart.
ii. Weaknesses
Being an e-commerce business operator translates to the fact, that customer’s orders are delivered to their requested destinations that make the responsibility of the item in the hands of Flip Kart. If in any case goods are damaged, the loss goes back to Flip Kart and not the customer.
E-commerce is a very competitive field of business and Flip Kart as part of it has to be a price taker from customers (Hollensen, 2015). Buyers can switch online marketing service providers and therefore have the advantage of setting prices that could at times be unfair in the case of Flip Kart.
High costs of acquiring customers are a great drawback for Flip Kart. Stiff competition in the industry makes the costs of acquiring new customers and partners relatively high.
iii. Opportunities
Flip Kart is one of the most famous e-commerce service providers that gives it an advantage in achieving new customer recruitment (Hollensen, 2015). Advertising activities as well may be done easily because the company is widely known and no deep explanations are required.
Operating in a wide range of products gives Flip Kart a big opportunity to expand its business. A wide range of products provides economies of scale that translate increased returns.
Digital literacy levels are increasing each day giving e-commerce service providers an advantage in making themselves known to people. Flip Kart can use the opportunity of increasing digital literacy to acquire new customers (Bhasin, 2016).
iv. Threats
High-level competition is the biggest threat that Flip Kart faces. Companies like Amazon and eBay pose a stiff competition that greatly threatens the performance of Flip Kart.
As an online service provider, Flip Kart faces the threat of online data breach. Malicious parties might interfere with their customer records and information affecting service provision activities and customer satisfaction levels.
Government restrictions as well act as a threat as they may at times limit the transaction activities that produce the best return levels. Regulation on FDI related issues in multi-branding retail has highly interfered with the success levels of success in the online marketing industry.
|
|
Positive |
Negative |
|
Internal |
Strengths Experience Acquisition of big companies No unnecessary shipments Wide variety of products |
Weaknesses Price taking Transportation risks High costs of customer and partner acquisition |
|
External |
Opportunities Fame Wide product range Increased digital literacy |
Threats High competition levels Online data breach Government regulations |
Figure 1: Swot Analysis Table
IV. PESTEL Analysis
PESTEL analysis is a framework that is used by businesses to analyze macro-environmental aspects that affect them. PESTEL analysis acts as a strategic tool to establish a better understanding business position, market behaviour and offers directions for operations (Bhasin, 2016). PESTEL analysis consists of political, economic, socio-cultural, technical, environmental, and legal aspects surrounding the business (Hollensen, 2015). Flip Kart’s PESTEL analysis would help establish the factors of the environment that highly affect it and guide it on what aspects to concentrate on.
i. Political Factors
Political factors are concerned with government intervention into the business sector through regulation or restriction of activities (Hollensen, 2015). Regulations have greatly affected the growth of Flip Kart like in the case where Flip Kart dropped acquiring Airtel Zero because it was considered not right to have the advantage of having free internet access while others are using it at costs.
ii. Economic Factors
Business factors that affect the way a business operates as well as how it makes its decisions are economic factors. Some economic factors consist of interest rates, exchange rates, inflation rates, profit rates, among others (Hollensen, 2015). In cases where Flip Kart offered large discounts on their Billion-sale day, it experiences large profit margin drop and had to remove customer listings to avoid experiencing loss.
iii. Social Factors
Social factors are those business aspects that incorporate the concerns of the society like health consciousness, cultural aspects, age distribution, etc. social factors that affect Flip Kart may involve the level of digital literacy which in turn influences the level of online purchase embracing, the level of trust held by people for online purchasing etc.
iv. Technological Factors
Technological factors concern with the way a business is able to update the production or service provision methods used as technology advances. Flip Kart has been on its toes to keep pace with advancing technology that saw it update its purchasing application to be able to be used in phones.
v. Environmental Factors
Environmental factors include ecological aspects of nature such as weather, climate change, etc. which tend to affect many industries (Bhasin, 2016). Flip Kart’s nature is not affected much by environmental factors, but they may interfere with the delivery of customer orders.
vi. Legal Factors
Factors that affect the way a business runs, the pricing procedures, product demand, and supply, etc. are legal factors. Legal factors affect Flip Kart in terms of price controls and service charges. Charges that Flip Kart fixes on its products should align with those of other e-commerce companies to avoid unfair competition through low pricing (Bhasin, 2016).
V. LITERATURE REVIEW
The Challenges Associated with a Poor Marketing System-Statement of the Problem
Maintaining strong, perfect, and reliable logistics service is the backbone of success for any online marketing system. Flip Kart however has been witnessed to lag behind in attaining such shipment and logistics services. Attaining a supply chain that is able to perfectly coordinate supply chain activities to and from to best satisfy customer needs. Flip Kart has not achieved a system that gives its customers the privilege to experience such satisfaction. Activities across the supply chain tend to slip out on each other and coordination of the departments involved becomes hard which in turn brings along poor performance of the company. Experiencing slip outs in the supply chain additionally means that customer’s products may sometimes be delivered in bad condition, less quality or sometimes fail to be delivered (Ho & Chang, 2015)
The Concept of Marketing System-Recommendations
Using online purchase systems requires enough skill on using the internet. In the case of Flip Kart, users do not just require to be familiar with the internet but also possess the knowledge to use online marketing and shopping applications. India’s remoteness poses a great challenge for Flip Kart to address as it continues to seek improved new customer recruitment. Flip Kart therefore faces a challenge of finding potential customers who are technologically updated to engage in online purchasing. It is therefore on Flip Kart’s call to make sure they find solutions to the challenge and increase their potential customers across India (Scott, 2012).
Unstable management systems have seen the performance of Flip Kart Inline Commerce System go down. When a company does not enough managerial skill at its disposal, it becomes very easy to lose account of its activities, including financial ones. Flip Kart is revealed to experience shortage of high-skilled personnel in its management team. Management is the key determinant of the overall performance of an investment. Crucial aspects like making decisions, building strategies, etc. are the responsibility of the management department. If individuals in management department lack excellent managerial skills, then they are sure to fail in making the investment fail (Dychtwald, Erickson, & Morison, 2013).
How to Establish an Effective Marketing System
An improvement in the supply chain management is clearly necessary if Flip Kart really aims at providing the best services to its customers. Ensuring delivery of customer orders in the expected time is one of the considerations for possible improvement that Flip Kart should make. Delaying customer orders may inconvenience customers and they may never be interested in ordering for goods from the same investment again. It should be made a priority to monitor all the activities that take place in the product delivery process. Flip Kart should ensure that customer orders are responded to in the right time as well as in the right condition (Dychtwald Erickson & Morison, 2013).
Flip Kart should devote itself towards creating possible customers in the whole of Indian population. Achieving market creation all-over India may require methods of promoting consumer digital literacy. Digital literacy is a key aspect in achieving a desired consumer mobilization level. When people do not know how to use the Flip Kart’s purchasing application it will not in any way be possible for them to make purchases. Potential customer digital illiteracy hinders expansion of market that poses a challenge for Flip Kart to ensure that they enlighten potential customers on digital purchasing to increase the recruitment levels (Baker, 2014).
Management problems and challenges are a great threat to the performance of the marketing system in any commercial investment. An insight of net financial reports should be provided to assist the company to make decisions. When such reports are not available, or are not clearly stated, decisions may not be made appropriately. Flip Kart should take up the responsibility to recruit highly skilled managers to manage their transactions. A keen observation on the customer after-sale services provided should be made to ensure that they are not offered at the expense of the company’s net revenues going dangerously down in ways that threat its achievement of a break-even point (Phillips, 2012).
Improving Shipment and Logistic Services
One way of dealing with a wrecked logistic and shipment system is acquiring adequate information on courier services. Having enough as well as relevant information on courier services within the villages and towns that they operate will assist Flip Kart in establishing the relevant delivery times and places. Courier information should especially be obtained for the remote areas to ensure that they give their customers achievable delivery deadlines and terminals. On acquiring information on the nature of transportation services that are available, the company should then establish a closer relationship with the concerned personnel so that delivery of customer orders is ensured. Having established close enough relationship makes it possible to follow-up the progress of delivery as well as the condition of goods (Taiminen & Karjaluoto, 2015).
Elimination of the fear for conducting online transactions should be done to ensure that customers are confident when making the transactions. Fear of conducting online business transaction is brought about by the existence of marketing sites that are not trustworthy. It does not matter why an individual is scared of making online transactions, devotion to gain their trusts could make them a potential customer. Flip Kart should therefore ensure that it avails its team for demonstration and promotion form time to time. Conducting such events brings the company closer to the people and this works great extends in gaining their trust that in turn increases the number of potential customers. Creation buyer confidence works to the advantage of the company as it increases its market size that is crucial for increased returns (Christopher 2016).
Security of information should be ensured to make sure that personal information and data cannot be accessed by anyone but the relevant parties. Online information in this case is the concern for Flip Kart as their customers transact online. Protection of customer information should be highly preferred to ensure that privacy is maintained. Customer information should be submitted through personal accounts and not to a website to ensure that, an individual’s information is not accessible by anyone but them. Delivery means should also be chosen by the customers to ensure that their preferences are met as long as the choices lie in the ranges provided by the company. The company should additionally encrypt its website using high technology that cannot be cracked to protect customer’s information (Heskett, 2013).
Promoting Digital Literacy
Awareness creation on the existence of online marketing should be undertaken to inform people. Technology has been on the rise and a large part of today’s population can access the relevant mobile phones that allow one to use the marketing applications. A wide availability of these mobile phones makes it easier to create awareness of the existence of marketing applications. Flip Kart on creating awareness of their online marketing system needs to indulge in making people aware that what they do exists and provide a brief on how it is done. Participating in community activities as well could earn the company more popularity that is a way of awareness creation. Appearing in community gathering gives people the chance to know of its existence that marks the start of a process to know what they do (Fahimnia et al.,2015)
Conducting simulation and program trainings could as well assist the company in promoting digital literacy. Digital literacy could be sometimes being hard to learn individually without assistance. Flip Kart should take the opportunity and train peoples especially those in the remote areas and villages on how advantageous it is to be digitally literate. Providing the education as well provides the company to teach the people to use their marketing application, as well as state the possible advantages that come along with using it. Flip kart should seize to assume that everyone is digitally literate and they can do the ordering by themselves. Getting into the villages and remote areas conducting mobilization exercises does a great job creating new customers (Cheng et al 2014).
Massive publication and advertisement could be used to achieve digital literacy and knowledge. Flip Kart could make use of the media inclusive of social media to advertise its operations. Advertising should be undertaken to increase knowledge of the company and increase its publicity coverage. Promotions could as well be used to publicize the company and also its products. In promotions, the company could give out items that have an overview or a brief description of the company. By doing these Flip Kart will achieve a good target of new potential customers. Advertisement and publication could as well offer the company a chance to educate people on the benefits of online purchasing. Creating confidence to use online purchasing services could be done as well by providing the relevant explanation to instil confidence.
Attracting Top Talent
Acquisition of well-known companies in many cases consequently rises to fame the acquiring company. In order to attract top management skill, Flip Kart might have to consider acquiring a well-known company. Individuals, especially those with great work skills tend to believe that they can adequately exploit their skill in the well-known companies. By buying off a famous company or becoming a shareholder of one, Flip Kart would as well get a chance to get close to top skilled individuals. Getting close to such personnel would then give the company personnel a chance to convince a highly skilled manager to join their work force Shankar et al., 2016).
To encourage workers to improve their performance, Flip Kart Company can use the technique of providing rewards and benefits for top performers. In order to get employees to devote themselves towards achieving the company’s best interest, Flip Kart could set a target that if one meets, an award will be presented. In the management department for example, managers could be given the chance to take turns in running the activities of the company. Turns could be taken for a period of three months and rotate for a period of one year. Progress of each manager is well monitored to identify any changes, either positive or negative. At the end of the year, final evaluation is done to determine the lead performing manager. The manager who outdoes his/her colleagues in terms of revenues insight, effectiveness of strategies among others would then be considered the winner and presented the award. In addition to recognition, the top performer could as well be offered a promotion to be the head of the management department. Applying the same in other departments would also work towards improving employee competition, and consequently performance (Lam & Zhang, 2014).
When an individual performs well, they feel motivated when they are shown appreciation. Appreciation of employees could involve acknowledging them and letting them own the credit for their good job. Acknowledging an employee does not only involve telling them that they did well, congratulating them, or telling them to do better. Effective employee motivation requires more than just words. Acknowledgement may involve recognition of a good performer in front of other employees. Being recognized in the presence of others who would otherwise have had the chance to be recognized gives one a perfection feeling which motivates them to do even better. Credit award on the other hand may involve being named employee of the year or being accorded any other heroic title. To attain the title other employees will focus on performing better while at the same time the titleholder will work hard to retain the title.
Benefits of a Good Marketing System
Enhancement of market systems for Flip Kart is an essential element towards achieving excellent overall performance by the company. As an online marketing company, it needs to keenly address the issues stated above to achieve the desired performance. In this review, a methodology towards achieving the desired setting of market systems is provided. Through the statement of recommendations accompanied by their respective implementation procedures the obstacles to achieving a perfect state of a marketing system for Flip Kart are effectively addressed (Lam & Zhang, 2014).
Improved shipment and logistic services have the ability to increase Flip Kart’s market structure perfection by a minimum of 40%. As provided by the nature of their transactions, Flip Kart depends on the satisfaction of its customers to determine their performance. Shipment and logistic services are the main components of the customer service and therefore the main determinants of the overall performance in the service sector. Delivery of customer orders in time and in a good condition is essential for a good customer service provision. Eliminating the fear of using online purchasing services has the ability to increase Flip Kart’s market size by 28%. Creating confidence in people increases their trust hence willingness to use the online purchasing services. Ensuring data and information security increase customer comfort to use online purchasing by over 50%. (Grogger & Hanson 2015)
Absorbing top-talent in the management sector works a great advantage in ensuring that performance of the company is good enough. Acquisition of well-known companies increases top talent attraction by a great percentage as well. Offering rewards to employees who perform exceptionally well motivates them a great deal and in return, they are encouraged to perform even better. Accrediting good performance as well increased employee motivation that as well promotes continued good performance (Ellram La Londe & Weber, 2013.
Awareness creation on the other hand offers, Flip Kirt, to publicize itself and its activities as well. Recruitment of new customers can then be done more easily when they are aware of the existence of the company as well as its activities. A word of mouth promotion as well does the magic in attracting people to hear and understand better what the company has to offer. Simulation programs and training provide a chance for the company to teach people how to use their online purchasing services (Scott, 2012).
VI. RECOMMENDATIONS AND CONCLUSIONS
A. Introductory problem statement and recommendations
Flip Kart online Services is a commerce industry based in India that conducts its operations as an online retailer. Additionally, some of its products include stationery, perfumes, movies, mobiles, cameras, music, healthcare and personal products and home and kitchen appliances. As much as Flip Kart is one of the best online trading companies in India, it can be acknowledged that Flip Kart is struggling when it comes to satisfying the demands of the sellers. In this case, there have been increasing complaints from the sellers that most of them do not have a direct contact with whomever they are transacting business with and in the process, the levied transaction fees coupled with other charges makes the sellers to end up operating at losses. As a result, Flip Kart needs to establish strategies that will enhance the satisfaction of sellers at Flip kart. Some of the ways in which Flip kart can realize this objective is through the following recommendations and implementation plan:
a. Establishing a way to improve on their shipment and logistics service
In this case, as much as a strong and perfect logistics service is one of the primary reasons behind the success of most online marketing systems, it is acknowledged that Flip Kart is lagging behind in this department because of the remoteness of some of the towns in India (Scott, 2012).
i. Collecting data as far as courier services are concerned within the villagers and local towns
The shipment of goods and services is one of the most crucial elements that can enhance the satisfaction of sellers at Flip kart (Ho & Chang, 2015). Additionally, the proliferation of technology in each and every business aspect has made so many customers to prefer new ways of conducting their business transactions. In this case, Flip Kart sellers have to keep up with the pace if they need to acquire new customers a while at the same time retaining their customer loyalty. However, the sellers at Flip kart face the challenge of ensuring that their customers are able to obtain exceptional customer experience (Ross, 2013). Therefore, it is the role of Flip kart to ensure that the satisfaction of sellers at Flip kart has improved by delivering seamless consumer loyalty across a number of organization’s touch points.
ii. Eliminating the fear factor associated with conducting an online transaction
Flip Kart needs to establish their presence on most of the communication channels preferred by their consumers. In essence, with a proper contact centre logistics, Flip Kart can embrace the true Omni-channel experience while simultaneously offering services across a number of channels like email, web, mobile IVT and social media channels.
iii. Improving on the online security regarding personal information and data
With the ever-changing technology advancements and dynamics, consumer demands have changed hence creating a new set of challenges for sellers at Flip kart (Grogger & Hanson, 2015). Establishing a marketing system at FLIP Kart that is more flexible in such a way that it has the freedom to change the order within a particular timeline to suit new requirements of the consumer will be crucial in enhancing the marketing system for sellers at Flip Kart (Baker, 2014). In fact, a more visible and transparent system that encourages a complete disclosure throughout delivery process and order placements in real time will also be vital in enhancement of the sellers demands at Flip Kart (Dychtwald, Erickson, & Morison, 2013).
B. Recommendations and Implementations
b. Awareness creation
i. Eliminating the challenge of online security among the local citizens
It is universally acknowledged that, the demands for goods and services at Flip kart is more likely to increase during the holiday seasons and the sale periods coupled with increasing number of orders. In this case, the technology adopted at Flip Kart should possess the capability of scaling up in an effort to meet the requirements of the demands of business.
ii. Word of mouth promotions and media advertisements
With customers waiting impatiently and eagerly for their services, it is important that an individual maintain a constant touch with them in terms of time of delivery, status of the goods and location of delivery to avoid frustrations from the part of the consumers. In this case, with such communication, other customers may be more than willing to spread good news about the company to other customers (Phillips, 2012).
iii. Conducting simulation programs and trainings: Knowledge based Routing
With the establishment of three skill-based routing at Flip kart, callers can efficiently and quickly be matched with consultants and agents that are able to help them as soon as they need clarifications or inquire about the status of a certain product Cheng et al.,2014). Besides, it also allows the managers and the sellers at Flip kart to gather international visibility by routing the calls made to Flip Kart about a particular product to local offices that offers primary knowledge and personalized services to the consumer in question.
Logistics operators are known to incur difficulties because of lack of departmental integration (Taiminen & Karjaluoto, 2015). However, with contact centre software at Flip Kart, it can be argued that back office data can be incorporated with the customers at Flip Kart to keep each and everyone at Flip kart including sellers informed at every phase of transaction and aspect of service. In fact, all the information that is relevant for customers .In this case, all relevant data on the customers coupled with their demands and cases can be shared easily and in the process, making the marketing system at Flip Kart to be shared easily and in the process, Flip kart marketing system for sellers to function seamlessly with its customers and other business partners (Christopher, 2016).
C. Suggestions for Future Improvement
c. Attracting top talent and customers to flip kart
i. Acquisition of well-known companies
It is accepted that Logistics operators at Flip Kart work together with business partners, retailers, dispatch units among others while raising the complexity level for agents when it comes to dealing with the customers (Shankar et al., 2016). In other words, they are forced to toggle disparate systems to remove relevant data to resolve any customer reviews and queries. In this case therefore, the logistics operators at FLIP Kart require a CTI screen pop technology designed specifically from the ground to the top to offer a multi channel platform capable of arming the government with information regarding the customers, account history, social media interaction and marketing preferences. Therefore, in order to encourage more customers and other top talent individuals
ii. Offering rewards and promotions for high performers and special order exceptions
Some online trading companies offer special or custom order opportunities to consumers as a way of retaining and attracting new customers (Heskett, 2013). In this case, the time frame that the consumers expect a certain product to be available on the market has dropped substantially as the technology advances. In other words, in the highly competitive and fast paced economy, consumers in most cases expect turnaround within days. In this case, through their own marketing system Flip kart can offer flexible delivery to consumers (Lam & Zhang, 2014). For instance, an option that encourages a structured data portfolio where the writers can search they type of products they want coupled with their preferred seller must be included on Flip Karts marketing system to ensure that the sellers are well placed to be accessed by their consumers.
iii. Acknowledging and giving credit to the work of an employee
It is universally accepted that, in order to improve the marketing system for sellers at Flip kart, it is important for Flip Kart to make information about the available sellers at Flip Kart coupled with the products they are selling in order to make it easier for the visitors to find the type of information they need easily. In this case, the modern type of customers finds it easier to find the information they are looking for without going through a difficult spell to locate it. In other words, location of a chat service that is available 24/7 on the Flip kart website will be crucial in enhancing the marketing system for sellers at Flip kart (Fahimnia, et al, 2015).
Many online companies operators state the order fill rate and on-time delivery to validate exceptional consumer services. Others at times insist that the service accorded to customers falls into its own category and in the process; it deserves its own measurement standards. In this case, these standard measurements are accepted universally as the customer’s standards of proof of agent performance. Therefore, the Flip Kart management supervisors and agents can establish ways of generating reports, historical data or real time data reports that implicated strategic decision, coaching, and training and compensation grade for customers and sellers as well at Flip kart (Ellram, La Londe & Weber, 2013)
VII. CONCLUSION
Despite the fact that Flip Kart alongside other online marketing applications are establishing themselves as a household names because of the confidence they have instilled in their investors, it is important to note that note all sellers remain satisfied when using Flip Kart because it has gained popularity among buyers than sellers. Additionally, the fear of making online transactions has been one of the major challenges that sellers have been facing. In other words, the implementation of the recommendations suggested will ensure that the shipment and logistics services of Flip Kart are based on the tastes and preferences of the sellers hence improving on their service delivery to sellers in the process. In other words, Flip Kart should establish its marketing system in a way that it supports both the sellers and the buyers such that the buyers are as well satisfied with their services whenever they sell an item online. The fear of making online transactions has been one of the major challenges that sellers have been facing. In other words, the implementation of the recommendations suggested will ensure that the shipment and logistics services of Flip Kart are based on the tastes and preferences of the sellers hence improving on their service delivery to sellers in the process. In essence, a top talent attraction will eliminate the issue of poor decision making when it comes to management hence in the process, it will provide profit insights for investors. Therefore, through trainings and simulation programs, the level of digital literacy of the local Indian citizens will improve hence increasing the number of online transactions for Flip Kart
Implementation of the recommendations could take the company a long period of time of about six to eight months, the company will highly benefit from these advantages in the long run. Adoption of the recommendations can approximately lead to increase in customer satisfaction level by 65% and raise the level of top talent attraction by more than 70%. Awareness creation in addition will earn the company an increased level of popularity and usage by approximately 40%. Implementation of the recommendations suggested will also ensure that the shipment and logistics services of Flip Kart are based on the tastes and preferences of the sellers hence improving on their service delivery to sellers in the process. In other words, Flip Kart should establish its marketing system in a way that it supports both the sellers and the buyers such that the buyers are as well satisfied with their services whenever they sell an item online.
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