Practical advice for ecommerce, logistics, and operational decisions
I provide focused consulting to business owners, executives, and managers working through difficult questions in digital commerce, fulfillment, logistics, advertising, technology, and operations.
My perspective comes from building and operating real businesses. I have worked directly with ecommerce platforms, online advertising, marketplaces, product feeds, inventory systems, warehouses, shipping carriers, fulfillment processes, software integrations, employees, vendors, and customers.
Consulting engagements are billed at $500 per hour, with a one-hour minimum.
Sessions are available by Zoom or Google Meet, or in-person in Traverse City during the spring, summer, and fall, and Fort Myers during the winter.
- $500 per hour
- One-hour minimum
- Zoom, Google Meet, Phone, or In-Person
Where I can help
I am most useful when a business faces a complicated decision, an expensive problem, or a situation in which the usual answers are not producing good results.
That may involve reviewing an existing operation, diagnosing a persistent problem, evaluating competing strategies, helping prepare for growth, or providing an experienced second opinion before a major investment.
My work generally falls into the following areas.
Digital commerce strategy
I advise businesses on the strategic and operational questions involved in selling online.
Topics may include:
- Ecommerce platform selection and migration
- Website structure and merchandising
- Conversion strategy
- Product catalog organization
- Search, shopping, and marketplace advertising
- Analytics and conversion tracking
- Product feeds and marketplace data
- Pricing and promotional strategy
- Customer acquisition and retention
- Agency and vendor evaluation
- Technology-stack decisions
- Growth planning
I can work at the level of an overall digital commerce strategy or focus on a single problem, campaign, platform, or decision.
Logistics and fulfillment
Strong ecommerce operations depend on what happens after an order is placed.
I advise businesses on:
- Warehouse layout and workflow
- Picking and packing processes
- Inventory accuracy
- Order-management systems
- Shipping-cost analysis
- Carrier and service selection
- Packaging decisions
- Fulfillment staffing
- Error reduction
- Returns and replacement processes
- Marketplace fulfillment requirements
- Integration among ecommerce, inventory, shipping, and accounting systems
- Scaling internal fulfillment operations
The goal is not merely to reduce cost. A good logistics system should also improve reliability, speed, employee usability, customer experience, and the quality of management information.
Advertising, analytics, and marketplace operations
Digital advertising and marketplace selling often become difficult because the platforms, data, bidding systems, product structures, and business economics do not line up neatly.
I can assist with:
- Google Ads and Microsoft Advertising
- Search, Shopping, and Performance Max structure
- Campaign segmentation
- Negative-keyword strategy
- Budget allocation
- Bid-strategy evaluation
- Conversion tracking
- Merchant Center and product-feed issues
- Amazon marketplace strategy
- Advertising-account reviews
- Reporting and measurement
- Agency oversight
I do not operate as a full-service advertising agency. My role is to help owners and managers understand what is happening, identify the important decisions that need to be made and actions that need to be taken.
Systems and operational improvement
Many business problems are really systems problems.
I help companies examine how information and work move through the organization, where errors enter the process, and which changes are likely to produce lasting improvement.
This may include:
- Workflow mapping
- Root-cause analysis
- Software evaluation
- Process documentation
- Error and replacement tracking
- Inventory-control procedures
- Staff roles and accountability
- Operational dashboards
- Technology integration
- Vendor selection
- Implementation planning
The aim is to create systems that work in practice, not merely procedures that look good on paper.
Strategic second opinions
Sometimes the most valuable consultation is a careful review before a consequential decision.
I can help evaluate questions such as:
- Should we change ecommerce platforms?
- Should we outsource fulfillment?
- Should we bring fulfillment back in-house?
- Is our advertising structure helping or hurting us?
- Are we paying too much for software or services?
- Is our warehouse ready for growth?
- Should we expand to another marketplace?
- Is a proposed agency or vendor relationship sensible?
- Where is margin being lost?
- Which operational problem should we solve first?
In these situations, the purpose of the session is not to sell a predetermined solution. It is to clarify the problem, identify the tradeoffs, and improve the quality of the decision.
“If you don’t have a competitive advantage, then don’t compete.”
jack Welch
How consulting engagements work
Before the session
When scheduling, you will be asked to provide a brief description of your business, the issue you want to discuss, and the outcome you hope to achieve.
Supporting documents, reports, screenshots, or background information may be provided in advance when they would make the session more productive.
During the session
We will focus on the issue you identified, examine the available evidence, and work toward practical conclusions and next steps.
Sessions can be conversational, analytical, or hands-on. Depending on the engagement, we may review accounts, reports, workflows, software, advertising data, or operational materials together.
After the session
For many consultations, the discussion and agreed next steps will be sufficient.
When appropriate, additional work may include:
- A written summary
- A list of recommendations
- Follow-up analysis
- Review of additional materials
- A second working session
- Ongoing advisory support
Any work outside the scheduled session will be discussed and agreed upon in advance.
Fees
Consulting is billed at:
$500 per hour
There is a one-hour minimum.
Additional time may be booked in 30-minute increments after the first hour.
Payment is due when the session is scheduled unless other arrangements have been made in advance.
For larger projects or ongoing advisory work, I may propose a defined scope, a block of hours, or a recurring arrangement.
Meeting Options
Video/Phone consultation
Sessions are available through:
- Zoom
- Google Meet
- Phone Call
Video meetings are generally the simplest option for account reviews, screen sharing, report analysis, and working sessions.
In-person consultation
In-person meetings may be arranged in:
- Traverse City, Michigan, during the summer
- Fort Myers, Florida, during the winter
Availability for in-person sessions is more limited and may require additional planning.
Travel outside those areas may be considered for larger engagements, with travel time and expenses agreed upon in advance.
“If anything, the magic you’re looking for is in the work that you’re avoiding.”
Dipen Parmar
Who is a good fit
My consulting is best suited to:
- Established ecommerce businesses
- Owners and senior managers
- Retailers, wholesalers, and marketplace sellers
- Companies with meaningful operational complexity
- Businesses making important platform, advertising, logistics, or systems decisions
- Teams that want candid analysis rather than a sales presentation
- Organizations prepared to share relevant information and act on recommendations
I am especially well suited to situations where digital commerce and physical operations intersect.
Who may not be a good fit
This service may not be the best fit for:
- Very early-stage businesses seeking a complete startup plan
- People looking for basic introductory ecommerce instruction
- Businesses seeking free agency pitches or vendor comparisons
- Companies wanting day-to-day account management
- Organizations looking for guaranteed results
- Projects requiring legal, tax, accounting, or regulated professional advice
Where a different kind of specialist is needed, I will say so directly.
A focused hour can be valuable
Not every business problem requires a long engagement.
A well-prepared hour can often clarify a decision, identify a hidden problem, test a proposed strategy, or prevent an expensive mistake.
The most productive sessions begin with a specific question and enough background information to examine it seriously.
You may also contact me before scheduling if you are uncertain whether your issue is a good fit.