Ralf Haberich, Webtrekk, on the future of eCommerce

Ralf Haberich, CCO Webtrekk, and author of ” Digital Future Business”, is one of the international e-com specialists to participate as speaker at ExpoConference TeCOMM scheduled for  7-8 May, in Bucharest

Ralf is Chief Commercial Officer at Webtrekk since late 2011 and is in charge with leading an international team and focusing on expanding Webtrekk´s global footprint. A specialist in Analytics, Digital Intelligence and eCommerce, he often gives speeches at different events, as he is also a seasoned lecturer, active blogger and author of the book “Future Digital Business”.

Previously, he worked for Global Group AG, Panasonic and Nedstat (a comScore company), managing for the latest one Marketing, Sales, Support and Consulting activities for German speaking countries, from the position of General Manager.

 

In an interview with the TeCOMM team, Ralf Haberich talked about current trends in the field, but also about how he sees the online trade in Romania:

What do you know about Romanian online sales?

Romania is one of the fastest growing eCommerce and Digital spots in Eastern Europe, we are excited to visit the country and arrange a professional network.

From your point of view, how was 2014 for the online sales în Germany and Europe?

Online Sales is a booming discipline. In various countries we were able to observe more than 100% growth in eCommerce for some of our clients. Due to data knowledge and data-driven decisions, you could really say that the sky is currently the limit. In Germany, we have been seeing a strong growth in the past 5 years, so the acceleration is less powerful compared to countries like Poland, Turkey or The Netherlands.

When an entrepreneur decides to open an online shop, what are the key things that he should take into consideration?

Make sure you act based on data. No data = no decision.

At the conference TeCOMM Bucharest you will speak about the importance of the user, about the fact that he should be in the center of the digital approach. What is the lesson that the people who are in this domain should learn about this fact?

If an eCommerce company or a company of another sector puts the user in the center of its decisions it will definitely create stronger success than other approaches will bring. Everything nowadays is digital. Everything will not only be data-driven but data-dominated in the future. If a company is not prepared to deliver content, service or products via the digital channels it has a weak future ahead. The need to combine data sources from online and offline will also differentiate the quality of a customer service.

How has the online buyer changed during last years?

The experience of the online user has massively increased. The user really knows where to find products. And: the user knows how to create a certain footprint that enables him to achieve discount or additional offers. Still, the competitor is only one click away, so the brand loyalty is a topic which every company – especially in eCommerce – has to put a strong focus on. This is not about the lowest price but the best price performer for the requested product or service.

How should the online buyer be approached?

Use the data you gather about your customer to approach him. And do not listen to wise words from experts who do not know your business. Analyse the behaviour. Collect knowledge. Increase engagement. And you will over-perform.

TeCOMM Bucharest will be taking place on the 7th-8th of May 2015 at Hotel Crowne Plaza. It is the first time when this conference is organized in the capital after four editions that took place in Cluj-Napoca and Iaşi. Up to now 150 speakers and over 1200 people have participated to TeCOMM.

Libero Events is an events agency that has been contributing, for over 5 years, to developing the Romanian business sector by creating an evironment encouraging the professional development, offering also unlimited networking opportunities. The agency has in portfolio TeCOMM, Touristica, The Woman, HR Summit, MarkDay, Software Architecture Day.