Archive for: ‘Februar 2023’

Unpacking the Future: 2023 Predictions for eCommerce

10. Februar 2023 Posted by Pete Wharton

2023 Predictions for eCommerce

The commerce world held its collective breath as Forrester prepared its annual predictions for the 2023 market — and with good reason. 2022 brought new levels of market volatility, and the new year seems to promise more of the same, with shortages and supply-chain complications still topping the list of concerns.

The sub-title of Forrester’s future-facing report for commerce predictions 2023 is blunt: “Commerce Operations Will Take Center Stage as Digital Businesses Dial Back Their Promises” — and its findings set the tone for the new year with a predicted shift in the way companies do business.

Forrester expects companies to “prioritize commerce moments they can prove work” and to “rethink technology investments to optimize experiences as well as inventory and fulfillment” in protecting their bottom lines in the new year.

Buyer’s remorse (executive remix)

Forrester’s take on the factors behind this rethinking is instructive­­. In Forrester’s succinct estimation, “One-third of digital businesses will regret playing ‘software company’” in 2023.

This may sound like snark, but it’s deadly accurate. Businesses survived the pandemic by investing in technologies that addressed the crisis of the moment, with system sustainability a distant second on the list of careabouts. Now that the sky has cleared, those urgent-care remedies may no longer be an ideal fit — and over time, the high initial cost may go even higher.

As a result, “nearly half (44%) of software decision-makers whose organization has or plans to adopt B2C commerce solutions tell [Forrester] they are evaluating or plan to replace their commerce platforms.” In 2023, Forrester adds, “a third of digital businesses will abandon or restructure midstream projects that prove too complex to execute or maintain.” So, if you’re a decision-maker who is now rethinking your B2B and B2C solutions, welcome to the club.

The fact is that many businesses can no longer afford to staff up an entire IT department to churn out code, customize platforms, deploy hot fixes, and generally act as an independent software company to keep customers happy in real-time. Resources are scarce, monolithic platform solutions are on life support, and finding IT hires to maintain pieced-together solutions is a never-ending challenge. The hour of reckoning has come, and decision-makers are looking for a new path that solves the business problems of today without the costs and concerns of pandemic-era approaches.

Refocusing on business fundamentals

So, what’s the solution?

As Forrester points out, swinging between extremes can be a massively costly mistake. “Some digital businesses are overcorrecting as they abandon proprietary and legacy tech to embrace the most custom and flexible — but massively complex — commerce tech ecosystems,” the report notes. “From custom user interfaces (UIs) to innumerable integrations, these systems require firms to orchestrate — and maintain — every aspect of their tech ecosystem.”

That sort of overreach will have painful consequences, Forrester predicts — consequences that could prove business-critical for many organizations: “In their second and third years, new implementations will fail, and custom UIs will crumble from post-launch neglect.” Not a pretty picture, to say the least.

In a word, implies Forrester, the key is balance. According to the Forrester report, “digital businesses will pivot to reengage with commerce solutions that balance ecosystem management, business user experiences, and Function-First Tech Buying enablement.”

In HCL’s opinion, this sort of balanced approach — one that accounts for customers who expect one-touch digital simplicity as well as key business drivers like system sustainability, data security, and ROI — enables organizations to refocus on the core capabilities and assets that make them profitable. Adopting such an approach means moving past the crisis-driven “just get it done” model of years past and looking forward to a new emphasis on business fundamentals.

Businesses need the tools and resources to get the job done right and meet their customers where they are — sustainably, securely, and profitably. With e-commerce logistics setting a new tone, HCLSoftware can help you make the shift to a custom-fit tech solution that works for you — and make 2023 a wonderful new year.

Find out more about HCL Commerce here.

ChatGPT kann KI-Chatbots für den Unternehmenseinsatz nicht ersetzen

9. Februar 2023 Posted by Maverick

Ist ChatGPT den großen Hype wert und löst zukünftig Chatbots ab, wie wir sie bisher kannten?

ChatGPT: Sind herkömmliche Chatbots nun abgelöst?

9. Februar 2023 Posted by Maverick

Ist ChatGPT den großen Hype wert und löst zukünftig Chatbots ab, wie wir sie bisher kannten?

Announcing the HCL Ambassador Class of 2023

8. Februar 2023 Posted by Maria Nordin

HCL Ambassador Class of 2023

HCL Digital Solutions is proud to highlight recipients of the much-anticipated HCL Ambassador Class of 2023 award! Congratulations!

This list is indicative of some of our most valued ambassadors who work hard to spread the word about HCL’s Digital Solutions portfolio. Each year, we feature individuals from companies of all sizes—in every industry—who go above and beyond in their commitment to using, advocating for, and sharing knowledge of HCL Digital Solutions products.

HCL Ambassadors gain recognition by engaging in some of these HCL-sponsored activities:

  • Conducting community calls to action
  • Featuring HCL’s DS portfolio on social networking forums
  • Participating in our HCLSoftware bi-annual calls with senior executives
  • Hosting HCL DS events, campaigns, and more…

Just for being such valued customers, there are many exclusive club benefits for making the HCL Ambassadors list! As HCL DS brand ambassadors, our winners are given:

  • Access to exclusive “invite-only” beta programs and events
  • Priority escalation of support tickets to subject matter expert engineers
  • Free-of-charge licenses to use HCLSoftware products
  • Enhanced exposure of published content through syndication into the HCL Ambassadors blog
  • HCL Ambassadors-branded merchandise

If you’re not on this year’s list, but would like to be, don’t worry! There are plenty of opportunities to make the HCL Ambassadors list for next year! Access to the program is decided annually following a nomination and judging process. These typically take place in October and November, with the announcement of the next year’s HCL Ambassadors in December. The HCL Ambassadors Class of 2023 term runs from January 2023 through to December 2023.

Hoping to see your name on the HCL Ambassadors Class of 2024 list? More details can be found on the HCL Ambassadors hub.

Congratulations to everyone who has been recognized this year! We truly appreciate your support, from the bottom of our hearts. Thank you for honoring us, as we honor you!

The Benefits of Headless Commerce: The Era of Selling Online

7. Februar 2023 Posted by Brian Rossi

Benefits of Headless Commerce

Traditional e-commerce platforms revolutionized the way companies sold products and services a few decades ago. Businesses may expect that headless commerce will carry that tradition by providing organizations with new and creative front-end sales strategies. It is critical to understand how headless commerce differs from traditional e-commerce architecture before learning about the benefits of headless (or head-optional) commerce.

Businesses desired a single platform that could support online sales from beginning to end when e-commerce began to take off. This covered front-end activities like pre-built website plugins, phone and chat integrations, and backend tasks like digitizing backend procedures, such as: customer login and registration record keeping, product and order management, payment processing, and shipping charges.

Many web developers discovered there needed to be more pre-packaged front-end solutions as e-commerce developed. Additionally, because the front-end and backend processes were linked, it was impossible to incorporate new, original, and customizable approaches to draw in and keep customers. Instead, organizations can connect custom-built front-end processes to the backend using an API built into a headless commerce platform.

Benefits of headless (or head-optional) commerce

Businesses should regard headless digital commerce as a development of conventional e-commerce. Even though early e-commerce platforms provided front-end capabilities that enabled quick deployments for firms with minimal prior experience in online sales, many organizations now employ highly skilled software developers who want to do away with the front-end learning curve.

Critical benefits of headless commerce, which hold over legacy e-commerce platforms:

Limitless Integrations

Headless solutions offer effortless integrations with the ability to link several tools via an API. APIs facilitate seamless data connections and transfers while making it simple for software systems to communicate with one another. The possibilities for how you can use the data are increased by this adaptability, which also removes limitations. The backend architecture is where most e-commerce functionality is found; however, if you want to enhance the user experience, you can use an API to fix such issues. This separates the user experience from the backend.

True omnichannel experience

Authentic omnichannel experience: Whether a customer buys on a computer, a mobile device, a chatbot, or another digital platform, omnichannel sales are possible. Although many traditional e-commerce sites make this promise, it is only sometimes valid. A company is out of luck if it wishes to establish a new digital sales channel but their legacy e-commerce platform can’t support it.

With a headless e-commerce system, a company’s in-house developers can quickly and conveniently create a front-end for a new digital sales channel. The potential to incorporate new digital channels into the overall e-commerce experience can be effective given the development of intelligent displays, interactive digital signage, and other kinds of IoT focused on business.

Complete front-end customization.

Within the limitations of front-end tools, traditional e-commerce systems allow for limited customization. Headless products provide endless front-end opportunities. This includes IoT-enabled tools ready for rapid integration into the headless CX platform. Examples include IoT-based loyalty programs, intelligent cross-selling, and proximity marketing.

Personalized customer experience

Customers prefer personalized shopping experiences that meet their requirements and preferences. Organizations can adjust front-end promotions to reflect customer tastes and preferences using a headless e-commerce platform. Personalize the product and content experiences for businesses searching for methods to stand out from the competition. This entails introducing individualized recommendations, custom purchasing preferences, and promotions targeted at the user based on previous purchase history. It strengthens the relationship between the customer and the business and is known to increase customer lifetime value.

Increased conversion rates

Creating engagement around the products or services it sells, an e-commerce platform can lower the percentage of website bounces or shopping cart abandonment rates. The whole point of headless commerce is being capable of delegating personalization, adaptability, and creativity to business partners or in-house programmers. This can contribute to creating that excitement in different ways, like offering customized promotions, creating interactive customer experiences that result in discounts—like participating in a quiz or game on the website to receive discounts—and out-of-the-box suggestions. Conversion rates across all channels are frequently increased due to this interactivity.

Long-term cost savings

It is true that to construct new and distinctive digital sales channels, front-end development expenses will rise. Still, one must also consider the strength of this approach in terms of customer acquisition and customer retention. Developers will spend less on sales and marketing efforts if they add more chances for customization to the front end of e-commerce platforms.

Conclusion

Headless commerce helps you provide a genuine omnichannel, personalized experience, resulting in a more vital competitive advantage, higher conversions, and more satisfied customers. It empowers you to make changes on the front end and respond swiftly to customers’ changing needs providing an improved customer experience.

The Biggest B2B eCommerce Trends Emerging in 2023

7. Februar 2023 Posted by Brian Rossi

Biggest B2B eCommerce Trends Emerging in 2023

The B2B industry is seeing more digitalization, which means companies are using the online medium to improve revenues. It started before the pandemic, and revenues have gradually gained momentum over time. It is predicted that the global B2B e-commerce market could reach US $18.57 trillion by 2026. (Source: Global News Wire)

Several brands have found e-commerce an essential medium to meet their business objectives faster. It started with several brands revamping their websites to garner more attention. However, they gradually saw the online medium as a great way to increase revenues. The top B2B e-commerce trends are all about website optimization to enhance user experience, which results in better performance.

Additional investments in technology

Advanced technologies are becoming the fulcrum of e-commerce businesses. Digitization can modernize processes and provide more robust capabilities. Continuous enhancement of workflows helps easier integration with other systems. More B2B platforms opt for headless commerce for personalized online shopping experiences.

One of the critical trends in B2B e-commerce is the increased use of artificial intelligence (AI) across e-commerce platforms. It can help analyze customer preferences and help us come up with personalized offers. Predictive analytics is helping B2B platforms anticipate future trends and enhance operational speeds. However, businesses must research properly to know the technologies they can adopt for their platform.

Upgrading legacy systems

One of the significant challenges of any online platform is to keep its systems updated. Elect to receive notifications to inform you when updates are available and upgrade at the earliest. It helps to have upgrades in place, as you can leverage the benefits of added features. It can plug vulnerabilities, if any.

If you upgrade at a later stage, you may find it difficult to find support for earlier versions of the platform as they may no longer be available. Integrating with the new version can be challenging, so your B2B platform may be liable to cyberattacks.

Personalizing the online experience

Studies show that customers prefer a personalized experience when making their buying decisions. There is a need to move beyond the basic levels of customization to bring more revenue. Customers now need real-time inventory information, which includes a high level of integration across multiple workflows.

Advanced software can help B2B e-commerce businesses provide real-time order simulation to guarantee repeat customers by learning buying habits and proposing customized offers. Real-time customer-specific algorithms enhance personalized pricing capabilities. The intuitive offers personalized for the customer increase their likeliness to spend more and to make return purchases.

Move towards social commerce

B2C businesses have utilized the social commerce scenario to the fullest. Gradually, B2B businesses began using the platform to enhance their outreach also. Social commerce is among the new B2B e-commerce trends. This requires targeted campaigns to reach out to this audience in a timely manner.

Several prospects are using social media to learn details about various solutions. Studies show that at least 46% of B2B businesses refer to social media channels when starting their buying journey. (Source: Gartner) You can select platforms based on your portfolio and use different forms of content to bring more users to your social media channel.

Deliver customer orders faster

Order fulfillment is among the critical emerging trends in B2B e-commerce for 2023. Delivery speed helps in deciding customer loyalty and future purchases. And efficient fulfillment processes help companies stand apart from their peers. Digitized processes can make the order-to-cash cycle less cumbersome.

Advanced order management software can help B2B companies manage orders faster by handling multiple orders simultaneously. Another way would be the ability to centralize inventory information and mitigate complexities across the supply chain.

The business is becoming portal-centric

With the need to target B2B customers online, there is an increased focus on the customer portal. It provides customers access to view their history with the business. It starts with having the product catalog in order. Moreover, you can use critical features to track customer orders, view invoices, and make payments online.

You must integrate your portal with a robust ERP solution that is scalable based on your business growth. More businesses are coming up with portals with advanced self-service features. Salespersons can also use it to up-sell or cross-sell products to customers. By putting the experience in the customer’s hands, it improves the customer-business relationship.

Data-driven decision-making is the norm

All businesses have a goal: to increase revenues. The advent of next-gen Big Data and analytics solutions can help B2B e-commerce companies make informed decisions. More and more often, companies use analytics to understand customer behavior and develop targeted strategies to spur growth. It helps unlock the full potential of data and helps create customized bundles.

The use of data helps to outpace changes and react faster to the business environment. It can also help you stay ahead of peers and create strategies on-the-fly to have a competitive edge. B2B online companies use AI/ML modeling techniques to use intelligent operations and enhance their capability to service customers.

More instances of using augmented reality

There are various ways to use innovative technologies to attract visitors. One of the new B2B e-commerce trends is utilizing augmented reality (AR) features. It can help increase conversions progressively and ensure better customer experiences. Studies show that B2B buyers consider their experience a critical factor in purchasing decisions.

Using augmented reality can help customers save precious time in their buying decisions. People can have varying perceptions of a product. Augmented reality can enhance buyer confidence and create value for the customer. Visitors can interact with the features virtually and assess the product’s capabilities in real-time.

Incorporating UI/UX best practices

Google introduced Core Web Vitals as a parameter to rank websites. B2B companies are also optimizing their e-commerce platform to enhance their digital presence. With increased mobile use and traffic, businesses are making their websites mobile-friendly to cater to smartphones accessing B2B portals for an improved customer experience.

They also use the services of UI/UX experts to ensure smooth navigation for users. They consider the customer journey in detail and devise suitable ways to increase conversions. Adequate CTAs are placed in proper places to help visitors across the buyer’s journey ultimately aiding in their purchasing decisions.

Addressing next-gen B2B e-commerce trends with HCL Commerce

Businesses must have a content management solution to ensure efficient market time. Several enterprises entrust HCL Commerce to manage their e-commerce platform for B2B. A Headless Commerce module uses REST APIs to enhance customer experience. It can efficiently help companies manage a cross-channel strategy while providing a powerful omnichannel platform.

HCL Commerce manages product information using a flexible catalog management module. Most contemporary B2B platforms have a powerful search engine on the e-commerce platform and data insights for better customization. It is built using open standards and uses cloud technologies to ease deployment, making operations more straightforward.

Conclusion

B2B online businesses are continuously trying to optimize their online platform to stay ahead of their peers. As buyer expectations change, companies must sync with the changing behavior and quickly make changes to the platform. There are several such factors, and you must consider them to ensure you achieve your objectives faster.

There are several ways to optimize the B2B platform, but businesses must incorporate a few critical trends. Utilize the services of HCL Commerce to ensure increased revenue potential by taking advantage of the right optimization tools.

References:

Neuer eLearning Kurs: HCL Domino Certificates Key Rollover

7. Februar 2023 Posted by Manfred Dillmann

Mein neuer eLearning-Kurs HCL Domino Certificates Key Rollover ist ab sofort verfügbar.

News + Notes Praxis: Notes/Domino Spezialist acceptIT unterstützt Bildungswerk der Baden-Württembergischen Wirtschaft

7. Februar 2023 Posted by Martina Rottschäfer

Das Bildungswerk der Baden-Württembergischen Wirtschaft e. V. ist ein Bildungs- und Personaldienstleister mit mehr als 700 Mitarbeitern. Die Anforderungen an die Dokumentation und die Abrechnung der Bildungsangebote steigt stetig. Um dies systemtechnisch zuverlässig und schnell abzubilden, setzt das Bildungswerk auf die Notes/Domino Dienstleistungen der acceptIT.

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Was ist ChatGPT? Wie nutze ich es?

7. Februar 2023 Posted by Steven Lecinni

ChatGPT ist ein KI-ChatBot, welcher derzeit für Aufregung sorgt. Wie kann er eingesetzt werden und was sollte über ihn bekannt sein? Das Wichtigste in Kürze:Es handelt sich um den aktuellsten chatbot der Stiftung OpenAI, welche von Microsoft und Elon Musk finanziert wird. Die Öffentlichkeit kann seit November 2022 eine Version kostenfrei testen.Es kann unter anderem […]

Der Beitrag Was ist ChatGPT? Wie nutze ich es? erschien zuerst auf n-komm.

Schwachstelle in VMware ESXi weltweit massiv ausgenutzt

6. Februar 2023 Posted by Alexander Kühn

Der BSI informiert: Bei einem weltweit breit gestreuten Angriff wurden laut Medienberichten tausende Server, auf denen VMwares Virtualisierungslösung ESXi zum Einsatz kommt, mit Ransomware infiziert und verschlüsselt. Die regionalen Schwerpunkte der Angriffe lagen dabei auf Frankreich, den USA, Deutschland und Kanada - auch weitere Länder sind betroffen.  Die Täter machten sich eine länger bekannte Schwachstelle im OpenSLP Service der […]

Der Beitrag Schwachstelle in VMware ESXi weltweit massiv ausgenutzt erschien zuerst auf n-komm.

IT-Trends 2023

2. Februar 2023 Posted by Steven Lecinni

Jedes Unternehmen, aber auch Freelancer oder Privatpersonen, sind gut beraten, die IT-Trends der nahen Zukunft gut zu kennen, um sich rechtzeitig auf profitable Neuerungen einstellen zu können. Firmen, die zum Beispiel Kosten sparen müssen, um die Gewinnspanne zu erhöhen oder Mittel für ein besseres Wachstum reinvestieren wollen, kommen zuweilen an den Punkt, wo das Geschäftsmodell […]

Der Beitrag IT-Trends 2023 erschien zuerst auf n-komm.

Chatbots und KI: #32 – Erfolgsgeschichte: Nordi, der KI-Chatbot der Stadt Norderstedt mit Norbert Weißenfels

2. Februar 2023 Posted by Johannes

In der heutigen Folge von „Chatbots und KI“ spricht Thomas Bahn mit Norbert Weißenfels über den KI-Chatbot der Stadt Norderstedt.