What Is the Best Ecommerce Team Structure for the Holiday Season?

Speed is an essential factor in driving holiday sales. Why? Every single moment during the holiday shopping season is a potential sales opportunity.

With the sheer volume of product page updates that happen during this period, brands must have a clear strategy — and an effective and efficient ecommerce team structure to execute this strategy.

The Best Ecommerce Team Structure for the Holiday Season

Creating the best ecommerce team structure is crucial for managing the fast-paced demands of the holiday season. An optimized team ensures every edit and update is executed smoothly, maximizing sales opportunities and maintaining seamless operations.

Ecommerce Team Leader

An ecommerce team leader coordinates efforts across stakeholders and disciplines. When an edit or refresh is needed, it’s first brought to their attention so they can verify the information is accurate and complete and then direct it to the appropriate ecommerce team member.

An ecommerce team leader typically comes from the ecommerce or marketing team. This team member oversees decision-making and is also trained in all ecommerce team areas so they can assist as needed.

Customer Service Expert

A customer service expert is always available, scouring platforms for issues and conversations relating to product page information and product concerns.

This team member collects relevant consumer feedback from social media, product reviews, and manufacturer questions and communicates them to the ecommerce team leader. After the update, in-store associates and other need-to-know staffers will be informed.

Product Development Manager

A product development manager creates product specifications and must maintain the home base of these vital details — especially as these details change when products are updated and consumer questions are answered.

This team member manages the updates and answers, ensuring they are dispatched without delay so the rest of the ecommerce team can complete their tasks with the most current information.

Marketing Copywriter

A marketing copywriter must write, rewrite, and copy edit product messaging and other content for product pages. This team member has full creative approval authority without the need for bottleneck oversight., so they must be punctual, error-proof, and know the brand inside and out.

IT Professionals

An IT professional oversees technical processes, systems, and data standards, solving issues, malfunctions, or concerns. This team member should have easy access to product data.

Sales and Merchandising Specialist

A sales and merchandising specialist oversees retailer relationships. They are comfortable acting as a go-between between retailers and your brand to ensure seamless and efficient communication.

Fulfillment and Logistics Expert

A fulfillment and logistics expert oversees product availability, which must be current and up-to-date at all times — especially during this fast-moving time of year.

With constantly shifting inventory, any near-depletions must be remedied, and this team member should have access to all knowledge, systems, and authority to make in-the-moment adjustments to shipping methods and restocks. They should also have a solid relationship with the in-store contacts.

Legal and Compliance Advisor

If the holidays unfold without issue, a legal and compliance advisor has done their job. However, they should continue to watch for regulatory and compliance breaches with each refresh. (To save time, stay out of the way unless dire.)

Top 4 Tips for Building the Best Ecommerce Team Structure

1. Centralize information: Store all information needed for online sales and operations in one centralized place.
2. Ensure comprehensive edits: Address edits on both consumer-facing platforms and the home base. Consider implementing a product experience management (PXM) platform to ensure consistent edits across all channels.
3. Define roles clearly: Avoid involving executive-level executives in day-to-day operations like content edits and push notification wording. Assign specific roles to team members to prevent confusion, mistrust, and duplicated efforts.
4. Maintain a small, agile team: Keep the strike team small, tight, and on-call, with trained understudies ready to step in as needed. Ensure the team meets frequently and maintains constant communication.

Win Big This Holiday Season

Having the best ecommerce team structure in place is essential for navigating the demands of the holiday season.

By ensuring that each ecommerce team member understands their role and works efficiently, brands can maximize sales opportunities and maintain seamless operations during this critical period.