Cloud computing transforms warehouses and inventory management

Cloud Computing fuels the massive success of e-commerce and helps companies to expand their horizons in various geographical boundaries, to provide services in multiple languages and devices. Cloud technology in e-commerce is a match made in heaven, which offers a win-win situation to enterprises as well as consumers. Leading eCommerce platforms like Shopify, Prestashop, and Demandware have adopted cloud at scale to augment their operations and provide simplicity in their solutions.

Enterprises using cloud computing have the advantage of managing their infrastructure according to demand and website traffic. Companies need not worry about running maintenance breaks and downtime on their platforms. Companies and customers both require flexibility and control mechanisms on the shop fronts to provide a seamless experience to the users.

Performance Matters

The most significant reason for eCommerce companies to adopt the cloud is the performance factor. Companies need not invest on large scale on-premise infrastructure and still achieve faster page load time, enhance customer experience, and deliver security at par. One of the most critical reasons for degraded performance is bloated images, content, and third-party plugins on the eCommerce website. This leads to network latency and directs to higher usage of computing power. No eCommerce company wants to lose website traffic as the market is already very competitive, and every user is essential for the enterprise. Providing a fantastic user experience to eCommerce users has become mandatory. It requires robust development, agile methodology, and quick releases which help eCommerce companies to stay ahead of the competition. With the requirement of continuous improvement, cloud infrastructure becomes mandatory compared to traditional on-premise server hosting.

Enhanced Business Strategy

An everchanging business environment requires adaptive business strategies to win the long race and sustain in the market longer. Many players come and go, but enterprises that have a long-term strategy can beat competition even in tougher times. A robust strategy can help businesses to deliver revenue growth, improve customer experience, and ensure cost-effectiveness. Customer-centric business models can help companies to be recession-proof and reduce the risk of disruption. Amazon.com is one such example that primarily focuses on customer demands and has become the number one eCommerce company in the world. Amazon.com has also forayed into Amazon Web Services (AWS), which helps other companies to create cloud infrastructure on the go.

With cloud platforms like Amazon Web Services, Google Cloud Platform, and Microsoft Azure, eCommerce companies can significantly lower the startup capital cost in IT infrastructure. Modern businesses don’t require immense capital to start a business but require great ideas, timely execution, and intellectual properties to win the market. Cloud computing also helps enterprises to migrate easily without losing any data, generate backups on time, and provide a 24/7 uptime to the consumer. With the influx of Augmented and Virtual Reality in eCommerce and retail stores, businesses will require a significant amount of data centers to deliver immersive experiences on the go.

With the immense demand for cloud computing, Google is also adding an ample amount of resources and applications for eCommerce cloud by creating Data Analytics, Machine Learning, Artificial Intelligence, and Blockchain services to its ecosystem. Cloud has a major impact on the digital economy and is also the catalyst for smart computing and digital content streaming. The core pillars of eCommerce include product management, logistics, delivery, store operations, omnichannel experience, customer acquisition and retention, brand management, merchandising, assortment, and product lifecycle management, which are now getting transformed by cloud.

AutoML Tables

AutoML tables can help retailers to predict customer demands by building and deploying state of the art machine learning models on neural networks and provide sellers with the insights to fill gaps in their portfolios, create better products, optimize product distribution, pricing, promotions, and recommendations by leaps and bounds.

Visual Product Search

With millions of products on eCommerce platforms, it sometimes becomes very difficult for consumers to find what they are looking for. In such a case, visual product search is one such feature where users can scan the product around them and use the reverse image search functionality. With trillions of photos hosted on the cloud, the reverse search engine can search for products in real-time and provide consumers with relevant products.

Recommendations

Artificial intelligence in cloud computing help enterprises to create smart product recommendations according to the user’s search history, website traffic, geographical location, and customer taste and preferences across various touchpoints.

Real-Time Inventory Management

Cloud computing transforms warehouses and inventory management by managing SKUs and implement robots in warehouses to reduce manual labor work for extensive facilities. With computers doing the manual work of humans, automation can accelerate the growth for companies, minimize costs, and have increase efficiency for workers.

While digital tools and software help the retail businesses to pivot to eCommerce, the cloud can help businesses to enhance their processes, reduce time-consuming tasks, and ensure efficiency and productivity to all employees. Cloud computing is one such technology that can help eCommerce companies to take on retail giants and completely transform the physical shopping journey by virtual stores around the globe.