Feliana Citradewi founded FC IMD, ShopMate, LiVert apps, and Plug-in. In this article, she discusses the impact of API in e-commerce.
As we all know, APIs can create a better customer experience, help grow your business, and encourage more sustainable behavior. I believe that we can make online shopping a catalyst for positive change. I created LiVert, an API solution for online shopping where people can get free and greener shipping.
When I went to my local trash can, I found many boxes, plastic, and waste, most of which were from online shopping. To tackle this problem, I created my startup, LiVert. My goal was to reduce the environmental footprint and abandoned cart problem by 40%.
API is a mechanism that allows the interaction between various applications, sharing data, etc. In e-commerce, APIs allow a company to transform a static website into an intelligent, interactive website, seamlessly integrating real-time data. An e-commerce store relies on several moving parts: the platform, inventory management, order management, etc. This is why you need APIs.
So, if you are starting an e-commerce business, you must adopt an API-first approach. This will help your customer’s shopping journey and increase your income. API will help you personalize shopping experiences. It will also help you improve the scalability of your service because it allows your service to be more agile, innovative, and efficient. This led to the API economy.
API economy refers to how an API builds a business model to provide value and profitability for your business. For the e-commerce store, in particular, the effect of the API economy can be seen directly in the impact on the customer experience. An online shopper wants to use multiple devices, like a laptop, desktop, mobile, tables, etc. E-commerce needs to evolve to cater to changing technology.
Every business needs to integrate AI like Chatbots for customer service, etc.
Advantages of using API-first approach
Connect all systems in your tech stack and share data between them. This will help customers get a seamless shopping experience.
- Better Security – Your store’s front and back end can be separated and can communicate using API. This will reduce the possibility of malicious attacks because the front-end and back-end are separated.
- Reduced costs and increased efficiency—APIs enable reusability, so integration is easy when you add new tools to the platform. This reduces costs and increases efficiency.
- Ease in scaling a business – Extensibility provided by APIs makes it easier to scale a business.
- Partnership – Having APIs makes it easier to integrate multiple partner applications to create an e-commerce ecosystem.
E-commerce APIs allow you to break elements of e-commerce functionality into smaller pieces. APIs lead to higher conversion rates, customer retention, and an increase in turnover. And the number is really impressive. On average, eCommerce platforms use around 25 to 50 APIs. 60% of e-commerce revenue is generated through API usage. In the travel and online aggregator industry, it is around 90%. Originally, the API market started around $2.8 billion in 2021 and almost doubled to $5.2 billion in 2022. By 2023, it is expected to hit $41.5 billion.
Case Study – API usage at LiVert
LiVert is an API solution that we integrate directly into a client inventory system with real-time shipping logistics. It can also reduce abandoned charts, shipping costs, and carbon footprint.
According to data, more than 50% of the carts are abandoned due to high shipping costs. 40% of the items come with oversized packaging. 25% of the carbon dioxide emitted is caused by merchandise shipping.
LiVert APIs provides a solution by grouping online shoppers who want to buy from the same website and live in the same neighborhood. We group their shopping and pass the minimum required by the website for free shipping. This helps us combine multiple packages. Not only does it reduce shopping costs, but it also helps us reduce our environmental footprint. This also helps eCommerce sites comply with ESG compliance and reporting. Last-mile delivery costs are reduced. So, it’s a win-win for all.
To conclude, we are in the era of the intersection between innovation and responsibility. So, let’s reimagine e-commerce not only as a marketplace but also as a platform for sustainable change.
