Having been suddenly thrown into a digital-only operational reality by the 2020 global pandemic, along with the current 2021 rebound, merchants realized how critical their choice of an e-commerce platform really is. They needed one that allows them to transact, generate revenue, maximize their presence, and evolve their brand image in order to engage customers quickly and effectively. At the same time, the platform must easily integrate with existing solutions in their technology stack while allowing merchants to quickly extend to support new business realities and grow with them as their needs evolve.
We explore the five keys to generating success using a Rapid Deployment Package (RDP) for Magento Commerce:
“When developing our Kemana Accelerator strategy it was critical that we selected the most robust and flexible platform for it and then structured it around the Rapid Deployment Packages laid out by Adobe. This led us to groupings of clearly defined scopes of work that fit perfectly with the Magento Commerce framework. Now every client’s digital commerce roadmap begins by leveraging our RDP package for Magento Commerce projects hosted in the cloud in conjunction with the Kemana Accelerator as the foundation.”
– Christopher Benz, CEO, Kemana.com
1. Scope. Controlling scope and the dangers of “scope creep” is prolific. It adds time and budget to what started as clearly defined goals. All merchants change, pivot, evolve their online presence, so there is nothing more important than keeping your project in a box of “Nesting Dolls”. Magento Partner Rapid Deployment Packages (RDPs) provide the Scope Control…you provide the Willpower.
2. MVP = Minimally Viable Product or “Bite small, chew fast.” Many merchants have a beautifully broad vision for what the user experience will be for their website. Regardless of the RDP you select, (STARTER, EXPRESS, ACCELERATOR) each covers the basics of displaying products, creating orders, and accepting payments and each offers a unique perspective on the MVP approach. A launch can either be sustainable for the long term or create the foundation for additional business releases. Business releases, like nesting dolls, emerge from the previous instance with increased focus and improvement. Regardless of your path, an RDP ensures that you launch a revenue-generating website. There is no need to drown in the ocean of trying to do everything, for everyone, all at once.
“Using the Express RDP for Magento Commerce from SHERO Commerce allowed us to streamline our implementation and get our websites up fast. Not only did we launch quickly, it was with the most mature and flexible platform in the market that will grow with us. The additional benefit of starting with Shero’s Express RDP is that we kept scope creep in check. Start simple, then expand and grow your online store in a phased approach. Use the data you collect and customer feedback to inform the investments you make in the right areas of your website.”
– Kristi Williamson, VP of Business Development & Marketing, US Water Systems, Fleck Systems and Stenner Pumps & Parts
3. Perfection is the enemy of good. Striving for perfection is a great, albeit elusive, goal. Understand the aspects of your project that require “deeper” discovery and analysis to solve. Perhaps you can think of a single complex order type. Do not let this order type hinder the launch goal. Launch and continue to process this order type the way you always have and make solving this order type the goal of a future business release. Perfection takes time, not launching costs money.
4. Funding. Keep your costs down. There are two strategies (usable in parallel). RDPs take advantage of an agency’s best practices to create “economies of scale”. Agencies leverage known, proven capabilities to minimize costs and timelines while incorporating maximum capabilities into their versions of RDPs.
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Strategy 1. Know your company’s “budgetary tolerance” so you can select an RDP that keeps the project within your budget and use the well-defined scope and timeline of RDPs to support your vision.
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Strategy 2. A fast and affordable launch creates the opportunity to negotiate a percentage of revenue resulting from eCommerce channels to be kept in “savings” for your E-commerce project’s future business releases. Money siphoned away is less painful than budget approval. If budget is required, you can ask for less knowing you may subsidize costs through your “savings account.”
5. Gaining Agreement & Maintaining Focus. Take advantage of RDP guidance from the partner who developed it over many merchant launches and from the expertise on your team. Work with your solution partner to align your project vision of an MVP approach to the RDP that fits your budget, timeline, and requirements. Beware of asking for items “beyond the scope” of the RDP. A tug-of-war here might mean that one party has an unrealistic expectation for the relationship and the project.
Rave Digital recently utilized the strengths of one of their three RDPs at Echo Engineering to get Magento up and running fast. Todd J. Darland, Vice President, Marketing, Echo Engineering had this to say: “Magento is the future of our website and how we are going to capture a much higher market share. We’re beginning to have orders flow way more smoothly than we’ve ever had before. As more and more customers are adopting online ordering, we’re seeing much faster processing times and less manual work being made. There’s also a lot less stress on Marketing right now as we have much more control to make any necessary changes when needed.”
Regardless of the RDP for Magento Commerce a merchant chooses – Starter, Express, or Accelerator – Adobe is committed to customer and partner success.
Learn more about Kemana.com here.
Learn more about Shero Commerce here.
Learn more about Rave Digital here.
Learn how to navigate the Rapid Deployment Page by taking the five-minute tour here.
