Designing an efficient and repeatable e-commerce strategy is crucial in helping you leverage successful practices across multiple customer accounts. While your own experience offers a valuable resource for developing a solid strategy, you can also learn from other sellers' mistakes. Below are the first three of nine common e-commerce pitfalls to avoid along with tips on what you should do instead. To check out the full list, please subscribe today to Supply Lines, our quarterly online newsletter at http://www.ariba.com/network/supplylines/subscribe.cfm

E-commerce mistake #1: Focusing on e-commerce technology rather than underlying business needs. While developing the right technology is key in developing your e-commerce capabilities, it's crucial to consider your and your customer's business goals and needs first. Once those have been clearly defined, you'll be far better equipped to move to the next step of choosing both the appropriate technology tools and the human resources required to ensure you can provide the best solution.

E-commerce mistake #2: Being reactive rather than proactive. It's all too easy to fall into a mode of simply responding to customer requests when it comes to e-commerce—for example, complying with a buyer's request to begin sending invoices electronically without considering the possible need to repeat the process with other customers down the road. Instead, you can explore new e-commerce technologies and proficiencies that provide value—such as Ariba PunchOut™, online ordering, early payment discounts, and more—and proactively offer them to your customers. Doing so increases your credibility as a well-informed, technologically savvy seller who can be trusted to keep customers ahead of the curve in using the best e-commerce resources available. It also helps maximize your own e-commerce ROI.

E-commerce mistake #3: Not developing a clearly defined set of practices, organizational infrastructure, and budget for e-commerce integrations. If your e-commerce experience is still limited, developing a concrete approach to implementations may seem a bit premature. However, nothing could be further from the truth. By establishing a clear set of technical parameters along with operational and change management strategies from the very beginning, you'll be in a much better position to obtain the results you want. In addition to clearly defining processes and procedures, your plan should encompass specifics about the required personnel, training, and resources you'll need to ensure seamless implementations as well as how you'll support customers after go-live and beyond. You can use this as a solid foundation from which to approach customers who may be interested in integrating with you, then discuss your preferred practices and explain what they can expect as the implementation moves forward. It also provides a clear framework from which you and your customers can successfully collaborate while saving time and money.

Find Out More

If you'd like additional information on mistakes to avoid and best practices to follow, check out Ariba's e-commerce webinars. These free educational demonstrations offer detailed tips on using Ariba PunchOut, cXML, Ariba Discovery, and more. To sign up or see the complete list of current presentations, go to http://www.ariba.com/supplier/suppliernetwork/?demodropdown.

Are you still thinking about attending Ariba LIVE 2012 in Las Vegas?  Here is some information about our upcoming Ariba LIVE event. 

• Over 2,000 attendees expected, including representatives from Global 2000 companies
• An encore of our very successful buyer-seller discovery and matching networking activity, as well as variety of one-on-one networking, social media marketing, and in-person meeting opportunities
• More than 60 role- and industry-based breakout sessions covering topics such as: extending your business commerce strategies, developing your online  brand, migrating to online/PunchOut catalogs,  and enhancing your existing customer relationships
• Stellar key note speakers, including Vivek Kundra, former United States CIO.
• Broader array of booth and marketing sponsorship packages designed to help you meet, network, and socialize with leading companies

I hope this helps give you the information you’ll need to join us at Ariba LIVE 2012. To get full event details, including the agenda and registration, please visit us online at www.aribalive.com. And remember, if you want information about discount rates for sellers, please contact us at programs_info@ariba.com.

For further information, please do not hesitate to contact us at programs_info@ariba.com. We welcome the opportunity to speak with you and help you make of Ariba LIVE 2012 the best networking and educational experience ever.