INTERVIEW 社員インタビュー

Why I'm at Commerce Media

Nice to meet you, I'm Park from the EC Operations Team at Commerce Media. I've been working in the EC industry for over seven years and have had many hardships. I'd like to talk frankly about why I continue to work in the EC industry and what I think about this company, Commerce Media.

What I learned from my experience working in the hardest-working e-commerce environment

I started working in the EC industry from my previous job, where I was in charge of orders and customer support for the supplement EC business for six and a half years. I had planned to work there longer, but unfortunately I had to resign due to the worsening business situation, and my boss at the time introduced me to Rakuten's ECC, who introduced me to my previous job.

However, immediately after joining the company, I was asked to launch an e-commerce site for miscellaneous goods, and I quickly had to handle operational tasks other than orders and customer service, such as opening stores.

Everyone had a lot of work, and even if we worked late every day, we couldn't get the job done, so naturally people started quitting one after another. I worked hard for a year because I had been referred to them, but the number of tasks outside of my area of ​​responsibility kept increasing , and I thought I would ruin my health if I continued like this, so I decided to quit.

It was very busy and difficult, but by being in charge of e-commerce management at this company, I realized how interesting it can be, so looking back, it may have been a good experience.

Recruitment and flexibility unique to startups

I was looking for more work in e-commerce management, so I applied to a company that does e-commerce management. I found Commerce Media through Rakuten Job Introduction, went to check out their corporate website, and found that the employment conditions and types of positions were clearly written and easy to understand, so I applied.

I had applied to several other companies, but I contacted them late on a Friday night, scheduled an interview for the following Monday, and received a job offer on Wednesday. I didn't have any savings so I accepted the offer right away and was hired (laughs).

I started working in early March 2020, but the COVID-19 pandemic caused a shift to remote work at the end of March, which was a little worrying, but we were able to get things running smoothly. Currently, I work in the office once a week to communicate with the company, and work remotely on other days, which is helping to further increase stability. This is very helpful as my home is far from Tokyo.

Also, during the interview I honestly said, "I would like to be more involved in management and would like to do everything if possible. But I can't use Photoshop." They said they would help me if that was the case and created a benefits package that allowed me to receive up to 10,000 yen a month for studying, and I was able to use that budget to take a Photoshop course.

Many job advertisements often say that the workplace is "open." However, the criteria are vague, and it is often difficult to know what constitutes an "open workplace." However, I think this company is truly an "open workplace." Even if they are not sure if something will work, they try to improve things and give it a try, so I feel that my requests are being conveyed, and it is easy to ask for advice, so I think the workplace is open.

What I felt at work

Based on my experience in my previous job, I was worried about the EC management agency business. In EC management agencies, you receive work from clients, so a power relationship is inevitably created, and it is common for tasks that were completed during the day to be dropped on the same day, and I thought that this was just how it was with management agencies.

However, at Commerce Media, even if we receive a request to do something by today, the management will judge whether it will be an unreasonable working style, and if it is not safe, the manager will tell us that they cannot accept the work and cut us off.

Most companies find it difficult to make such decisions because they think that if they are not flexible, the contract will be terminated, but Commerce Media considers its affiliated companies and parties involved to be equal partners, so I think that is why it responds in this way. Of course, it would take the same stance even if Commerce Media were the one paying the fees.

Also, I think a big difference is that Commerce Media handles almost all of the EC business on your behalf and has a complete view of the business. Because we can see the complete picture, we can take preemptive action to avoid last-minute work and reduce the burden on the operations side. In the first place, clients also want to operate in an organized manner, so they should cooperate if we provide solid direction.

Difference between in-house EC business and operation agency

At Commerce Media, we are currently recruiting mid-career employees who can contribute immediately. In addition, as a selfish opinion of myself, not being a manager or a recruiter, I don't think you need that much skill because you can just give a lecture if you don't understand something.

Rather than that, we would prefer someone who understands that our main business is not our own e-commerce but an operational agent, and who can respond by listening to the client's requests and not just relying on their own judgement. Someone who can understand and follow the intent of the operational rules that each client has.

What's not good is when someone with experience in running their own EC site doesn't understand the management agency business. When running your own EC site, even if a mistake in customer service leads to a major complaint, you only lose one customer. However, when using a management agency, you lose not only the customer but also the trust of the client, and in the worst case scenario, the contract may be terminated.

I've used a rather extreme example, but such possibilities are close at hand in the field of management agency. Of course, we build trust on a regular basis and strengthen the checking system in important situations, but if we are not aware of these prerequisites, we will end up working half-heartedly in some areas. For this reason, I place importance on the level of understanding of the management agency business.

I know I’ve made it a bit complicated, but what I want to say is that if there is someone who loves e-commerce and cares about their client’s e-commerce business more than they care about themselves, I would love to work with them (laughs).