Identifying and correcting failures in the logistics process of product delivery, while maintaining the satisfaction levels of their customers, who demand facilities to buy online, is the main challenge facing companies in the new commercial "normality".
Tuesday, May 26, 2020
The outbreak of covid-19 in Central America and the severe home quarantines decreed by the governments, caused the market to undergo deep changes and to be deeply and rapidly transformed, to the point of establishing a new commercial reality.
Prior to the health crisis, the digital channel had been growing moderately in most markets in the region. However, in this context of social isolation, online sales increased exponentially. This exposed the limitations of most digital platforms and product delivery processes.
Martesfinanciero.com reports complaints about the service provided by companies that make "... supermarket purchases, since it takes them several days to make deliveries, which in theory is senseless given that in the supermarket and especially these days they ask for food and hygiene products, that is, basic necessities," which are required immediately. In these cases, companies have difficulty identifying the root of their problems.
Demosthenes Perez, a supply chain strategist, explained that the problem of late deliveries is largely due to the "... constant refusal to modernize and digitize the internal processes of companies, as well as its consequences. In addition, it is thought that selling online consists of building a nice website and doing digital marketing as much as possible. Ignoring that it is the logistic processes that really make the difference."
According to the interactive system that monitors in real time the changes in the interests and preferences of consumers in Central American countries, developed by the Trade Intelligence Area of CentralAmericaData, during the year the interest in e-commerce services in the region reported a clear increase, with Guatemala, El Salvador and Panama being the countries that registered the greatest increases in interactions associated with the subject.
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Accurately calculating freight costs and delivery times to make online sales profitable for companies are, in this context of the e-commerce rise, some of the most important challenges for the retail sector.
The changes in consumer habits reported in the context of the new commercial reality, which arose quickly as a result of the Covid-19 outbreak and the restrictions imposed on mobility, have forced companies to transform the way they operate.
Maintaining proper inventories to meet demand, having a robust logistics system and an electronic sales channel that protects your customers when they make a purchase, are part of the challenges that businesses face in this new reality.
With "Black Friday" and Christmas approaching, commercial establishments in the region are beginning to apply their sales and promotion strategies, with which they will try to recover part of their income.
In the new normal, interest in e-commerce in the region's markets continues to rise, with Guatemala, Costa Rica and Panama being the countries that recorded the greatest increases in interactions associated with the topic.
Through a system that monitors in real time changes in consumer interests and preferences in Central American countries, developed by CentralAmericaData, it is possible to project short and long term demand trends for the different products, sectors and markets operating in the region.
Restrictions on the movement of people test the ability of companies to survive, since in the new business reality it is not enough to have a website to market products, as customers demand effective sales and delivery systems.
In early April, when Guatemala was just beginning its quarantine due to the covid-19 outbreak and the government began banning the movement of people after 4 p.m., some customers reported that the online sales systems of the country's large fast food restaurant chains collapsed in the face of increased demand.
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