Why Michigan is the place to be for growing eCommerce businesses
Thursday, February 16, 2017Lauren Macdonald
Michigan may seem like a bit of an underdog in the United States eCommerce industry when compared to the ‘giants’ like California, New York, Florida, etc. But make no mistake, this State is quickly becoming one of the fastest growing eCommerce hubs in North America.
In fact, Traverse City, Michigan ranked in 4
th place for
US cities with the fastest growing year-over-year growth in small business eCommerce.
And, many start-up eCommerce businesses have made the move to Detroit, MI in order to maximize sales and grow their businesses.
MyLocker.net is one example. According to Robert Hake, founder and CEO of MyLocker.net, it was because of the bright minds of ‘America’s comeback city’ (Detroit) that his eCommerce business was able to transform into one of the leading custom apparel companies in the United States. “We have a thriving eCommerce business that has experienced upwards of 100% year-over-year growth, and we’re confident that Detroit is the ideal environment to continue this growth,” he said.
Read more about his eCommerce success in Michigan,
here.
Even one of the biggest retail companies in the world, Walmart, is recognizing the success of online businesses coming out of Michigan.
Just a few days ago,
Walmart purchased Michigan-based retailer Moosejaw.com and are now hoping to leverage Moosejaw’s online sales knowledge and marketing. For the past year, Walmart has been heavily focused on growing online sales, which has included a buying spree of online outlets to boost its eCommerce portfolio and compete with online marketplaces such as Amazon.
Based on all of the good things we’ve been hearing about eCommerce in Michigan, it’s no surprise to us that Walmart is looking in this area for successful companies such as Moosejaw.com to help them achieve their eCommerce goals.
Sharing their wisdom…
So, what tips do MyLocker.net and Moosejaw.com have for other Michigan-based eCommerce companies that are trying to take off?
“Appeal to young, bright minds” – MyLocker.net
- Millennials are technologically savvy and don’t settle for the status quo. Make sure your eCommerce website is “with the times” and appeals to the up and coming generations who are shopping online the most.
Get ahead with your social marketing – Moosejaw.com
- According to a Southfield consulting firm, Moosejaw is considered to be a pioneer and early adaptor of social marketing. They’re taking a cultural approach to social commerce, and they’re doing it really well.
And hey, while we have you… we have some wisdom of our own:
After 25 years in the integration industry, we have some tips to share with growing eCommerce businesses as well. We even have lots of Michigan-based clients of our own, including Eastman Outdoors, Smart Step, Dennen Steel, Noble Company, Professional Apparel, and more.
So here’s our advice:
- If you want to grow your eCommerce business, automate your orders, inventory, shipping/tracking information, customer data, and more.
- Figure out what data is most important to your business, and use an integration solution provider like eBridge Connections to make sure that data is automatically transferred back and forth between your accounting package and eCommerce store, fast and accurately. It will save you time and reduce the likelihood of errors.
- Sell in more places and don’t limit yourself to one online store. Sell on multiple eCommerce platforms, or marketplaces, such as Amazon, eBay, Shopify, Magento, BigCommerce, Miva, etc., and be confident that you can keep up with orders and inventory levels on ALL of them with an integration solution that works.
- Think beyond eCommerce. Use an EDI integration solution to do business with big-box retailers like Target or Home Depot. These retail giants have strict requirements for EDI document exchange and a company like eBridge Connections can help you achieve them.
- Use a CRM system like Salesforce or MS Dynamics CRM to keep track of your customers, prospects, partners, etc. It’ll keep you organized. And, eBridge Connections can bridge the gap between your CRM application and your accounting package as well. That’s right—between eCommerce, EDI, and CRM, we can make sure you are fully automated.
Have any questions for us? Reach out anytime.