Systemic Requirements for Amberssen’s Online Retail Launch
The Amberssen Specialty Company is a chain of 12 retail stores that sell a variety of imported gift items, gourmet chocolates, cheeses, and wines in the Toronto area. Amberssen has an IS staff of three people who have created a simple, yet effective IS of networked point-of-sale registers at the stores, and a centralized accounting system at the company headquarters. Harry Hilman, the head of Amberssen’s IS group, has just received the following memo from Bill Amberssen, Sales Director (and son of Amberssen’s founder):
Harry—It’s time Amberssen Specialty launched itself on the Internet. Many of our competitors are already there, selling to customers without the expense of a retail storefront, and we should be there, too. I project that we could double or triple our annual revenues by selling our products on the Internet. I’d like to have this ready by Thanksgiving, in time for the prime holiday gift-shopping season. -Bill
After pondering this memo for several days, Harry scheduled a meeting with Bill so that he could clarify Bill’s vision for this venture. Prepare a list of questions that Harry needs to have answered about the project and Bill’s requirements for the system before he can write a more formal systems proposal. In addition, explain the importance of each question as it pertains to the project.
Your project will need the following elements:
Title page
The list of questions and an explanation of the importance of each to the project
A conclusion
Systemic Requirements for Amberssen’s Online Retail Launch
Online retail has gained more recognition as more companies are shifting to form online platforms to market their products to increases customer’s convenience. However, for companies that have been involved in brick and mortar retail stores, a shift to online retail requires that they adhere to the system requirements for online retail (Bernon, 2016). Amberson Specialty Company has arrays of retails stores that deal with the sale of cheese, wines, imported goods, and gourmet chocolates in Toronto.
The company is interested in launching an online retail platform to remain competitive in the highly volatile market. Harry, the head of Amberssen information systems at the company. In response to Bill’s memo, herein are some of the questions Harry has to brief Bill on the company’s launch on online retail.
How much is needed to launch the company online?
First, it is imperative to consider the cost required to launch the company only. Having an estimate of how much it will cost to launch initially. Through this, there can be budgetary allocations to over budgetary constraints.
What is the estimated online market reach?
This company can evaluate the online market reach potential compared to its already established retail stores online and evaluate its success to ensure that the launch is an ideal decision.
What products are going to be listed on the online platform?
Harry briefs Bill on the priority products that will grow its customer bases and increase its online visits. Additionally, the company gets to determine the delivery distance range for each of its products. Furthermore, this establishes the products that are eligible for online retail and those that are not.
Which list of an advertising agency to the company is going to use?
To gain popularity enough to attract a following that will translate to sales, Amberssen needs to invest in advertising. With the increase in the number of online social media platforms, the company needs to identify an ideal platform to advertise its entry into the digital realm to attract a customer base.
What is the company’s return policy?
The online market has its advantages; however, there are drawbacks. For instance, customers could be displeased with the product they received through the online purchase. Therefore, to maintain customer relations, the company should have a return policy to allow the customers to return the products if they are not content. The return policy will indicate the list of items eligible for return policy and those that are not (Sahney, 2015).
What is the company’s payment plan?
The company decides if they will offer payment on purchase or payment on delivery on their products. Additionally, it will establish a payment mode that that is convenient to its customers.
What are the purchase and procedure?
The company plans on the information and opinions on how well to use the platform, website, or application to purchase a step by step illustration to make it easy for customers to navigate. Through this, the company can provide customer service blogs to obtain customer feedback to improve and, in turn, curb competition (Sahney, 2015).
What services does Harry intend to provide to facilitate the completion of the online Market launch?
Being the company’s head of information services, Harry is obligated to enlighten Bill on the online marketing pros and cons and offer training to its staff about internet marketing. Finally, Bill, the company sales director, urges Harry to seeks support and corporation from the staff to ensure the transition process is smooth.
Conclusion
The online retail launch requires that the company does in-depth research to avoid making mistakes that could be avoided before launch. Therefore, researching the system requirements for online retail is an imperative step for any company intending to venture into online retail. Like any other retail company, Amberson Specialty Company will have to undergo the proves with the help of its able information systems department to make the process of transition to online retail effective.
References
Bernon, M., Cullen, J., & Gorst, J. (2016). Online retail returns management. International Journal of Physical Distribution & Logistics Management.
Sahney, S. (2015). Critical success factors in online retail–an application of quality function deployment and interpretive structural modeling. International Journal of Business and Information, 3(1).
