Expectations vs. reality - Complex ecommerce

Ecommerce can sometimes seem straightforward. But let’s be honest – more often than not, it’s tough. 

The good news? You’re not alone. At Columbia Road, we’ve had the privilege of working with a diverse range of clients, and one thing has become abundantly clear: the journey to ecommerce success is often riddled with complexities but filled with opportunities. 

We’re constantly bombarded with dazzling success stories, sleek technologies, and bold claims of skyrocketing sales. Yet, behind the scenes, many merchants face a very different reality, from daily challenges with technologies and data to organisational structures that are far from ideal.

In this blog, we’ll explore some common expectations and how they often clash with reality. Think Instagram vs. reality, but make it ecommerce.

Expectation: Cutting-edge technology is everywhere

Reality: Legacy systems slow down progress

New ecommerce platforms and tool providers promote flexibility through APIs, best-of-breed components, advanced AI, and so on. But for many businesses, the reality is less glamorous. Companies are still working with highly customised legacy systems (mainframes, anyone?) that will stay in their tech stack for several years.

These systems often make it challenging to ensure smooth data flows, integrate new tools, or manage complex omnichannel operations. Replatforming is a big undertaking and calculating the ROI can be daunting with all the dependencies and uncertainties.

Expectation: Ecommerce is like a well-oiled machine

Reality: Operations lack clear ownership

In physical retail, often every store has a manager who takes charge. Ecommerce, however, often exists in limbo. The responsibility might be shared between marketing and IT, leaving no clear manager to take responsibility for the whole digital sales funnel. 

Sometimes an ecommerce owner is nominated, but they have plenty of other responsibility areas as well. Without a clear owner and dedicated resources, decision-making is slow, the ideas are not taken forward, and the everyday operations suffer. The growth improvement tasks are lost amid everything else, and because there is no one to push these forward, the lead times are long.

Expectation: Buy a tool, solve a problem

Reality: Tools need focus and quality data – both are rare

Tools can seem like silver bullets to problems you have. And while sometimes they can be incredibly useful, they are only as good as the data they work with. Often, the product or customer data is not in good enough shape or is too siloed to serve the tool in the best possible way. 

You might also notice that the best-of-breed solutions have more and more features, and the tools end up having overlapping features that you are paying for but not using, resulting in users having to spend time deciding which tool to rely on for which task. 

Expectation: Customers will flock to your site if you tell them to

Reality: Marketing requires constant attention and adjustment

Unlike brand marketing, ecommerce marketing usually has a clear goal: to drive purchases. This requires ongoing optimisation, including A/B testing, performance tracking, and a deep understanding of customer behaviour. Algorithms change, customer preferences shift, and competition is fierce, making it difficult to stand out. Standing out demands more than a one-off campaign – it’s a continuous effort that requires agility and persistence.

Expectation: Personalised content everywhere

Reality: Personalisation is difficult due to low traffic and privacy regulations

Looking from the outside, personalisation seems easy. Grab the data, plan the segments, and implement the messages/recommendations/contents and so on. In reality, especially if the traffic is not high, fine-tuned personalisations can be difficult and might not be the best place to spend your budget. 

Even when the data is available, the privacy regulations limit how you can collect and use it, making the whole personalisation exercise a complex and legally sensitive task. Legal interpretations vary, and some approaches deemed acceptable by competitors might be off-limits for your organisation.

Expectation: Streamlined purchase process and delivery

Reality: Sometimes customers are struggling to purchase, even if they want to

Ecommerce seems simple in theory: attract customers, guide them to products, and lead them to checkout. But the reality? It’s sometimes a challenge even to display products clearly so customers know what they're buying and find what they need. 

Delivery adds another layer of complexity. Slow or expensive shipping can drive customers away, especially when competing with giants like Amazon or Temu.

And can you achieve a clear view of your sales funnel analytics to see where the customers are dropping out? Or do you need to shoot in blind based on your assumptions?

Wrapping it up: turning ecommerce challenges into opportunities

The reality of ecommerce is far more complex than it appears in glossy success stories. In reality, it might be close to impossible to put modern tools in use; it requires perseverance to justify the investment needs, tedious labour to clean the data so it can be used productively and so on. At times, this can feel like struggling in quicksand. 

But if you are looking for a silver lining, it is this: it is hard for your competitors, too. And when everyone is on the same line, even the smallest of improvements can make a big difference in getting ahead.