Assume you are the E-commerce Manager for a company that wants to start selling its products online. The business has a current product inventory of approximately 1,500 SKUs (SKU = stock keeping unit) and expects online sales (in the U.S. and internationally) to be around $150,000 in the first year. The company is experiencing rapid growth and anticipates that its inventory will grow to approximately 10,000 SKUs in the next 4 years and forecasts online sales to reach over $1 million in 4 years.
The company CIO wants you to select a modern, secure, fully-functional, and scalable e-commerce Shopping Cart solution that will efficiently and quickly allow it to start selling its products online. The solution you select must accommodate the current and future inventory and sales volumes, and allow for further grown beyond year 4. Additionally, the cart must also meet the list of requirements listed below.
Shopping Cart Key Requirements:
- mobile-friendly / responsive (allow ordering via smartphones or tablets)
- product reviews and ratings
- custom shipping options and/or integration with third-party carriers (UPS, FedEx, USPS)
- coupon and/or discounts codes
- payment processing and integration with third party payment gateways or processing
- comprehensive reporting tools
- competent and reliable technical support
- POS (Point of Sale) capability
Please review various e-commerce Shopping Carts currently available on the market. Then select three (3) Shopping Cart solutions that come the closest in meeting the current and future specific inventory and sales volume needs of the company (listed above). Include at least one (1) Self-hosted Shopping Cart and one (1) Hosted Shopping Cart solution. Summarize key functionality and features of each of the three (3) Shopping Cart options making sure you include the key requirements listed above, at a minimum. Also review the advantages and disadvantages (actual or potential) of each Shopping Cart solution individually. Then compare and contrast various functionality, features, plans, and pricing across the three (3) Shopping Cart solutions (make sure you cover all the key requirements listed above). You must also identify and explain which specific plans/pricing options can handle the current and future SKUs and sales volumes, and review all corresponding costs and processing fees.
Finally decide which is the best Shopping Cart option for your company and explain why it was selected. If you recommend a Hosted solution, please identify which specific plan(s) and pricing option(s) is/are required to handle current and future inventory and sales volumes. Present your findings to the CIO via a professional, substantive, and visually rich PowerPoint Presentation that meets all of the presentation guidelines listed below.