Application Maintenance and AMS: A Growth Driver for Your eCommerce Platform?

Understanding Application Maintenance Services (AMS)

Relying on external partners for application maintenance is now standard practice in the eCommerce industry. These services, grouped under the term Application Management Services (AMS), are crucial for performance, scalability, and customer satisfaction.

Here are the main categories of AMS:

Corrective Maintenance

Fixes bugs, resolves incidents, and ensures stable operation. It often includes monitoring the software vendor’s roadmap.

Evolutive Maintenance

Typical enhancements include:

• Integration of third-party tools or new features

• Implementation of logistics platforms (e.g., OMS)

• Regulatory compliance (e.g., Omnibus Directive on pricing transparency)

Monitoring & Performance

Website speed directly impacts SEO, conversions, and customer experience. Some brands dedicate significant resources to ensure optimal responsiveness and availability.

Functional Support

Experienced consultants in eCommerce, UX/UI, or business analysis can assist internal teams. For example, an international retailer benefited from AI-powered size guide recommendations, reducing product returns.

They can also provide quality assurance (QA) for clients lacking in-house testers.

Why Choose an External AMS Partner?

Companies increasingly seek more than just technical execution. They expect strategic input, technology scouting, and operational support.

AMS providers offer:

• A cross-functional, data-driven perspective

• Support for key projects like page redesigns, checkout improvements, or payment solution integrations

• Expertise across domains (ERP, POS, eCommerce, supply chain)

• Access to highly specialized profiles (e.g., 3D configurators for Salesforce Commerce Cloud)

Additional services may include:

• Ticketing platforms

• Vendor and product updates (e.g., Salesforce AI/Data Cloud)

• Security monitoring

• Version control and documentation tools

Choosing the Right Setup

Common collaboration models:

• Reinforcement of internal teams

• Shared services across multiple clients

• Fully managed service model led by the provider

Teams typically include developers, testers, architects, business analysts, and project managers.

In shared service configurations, a dedicated team (5–20 people) operates via a unified ticketing process—for example, managing updates for a point-of-sale solution provider.

3 Key Questions to Prioritize

1. What’s your roadmap and the expected business impact (revenue, brand, customer loyalty)?

2. What budget is available?

3. What is your internal capacity (team size, skill sets, bandwidth)?

It’s essential to assess what you can handle internally and what should be outsourced. For instance, if you’re using Global-e for U.S. expansion, do you have the expertise to maintain that integration?

Also, don’t overlook cross-functional roles like project leadership. These positions help ease the workload on eCommerce managers, who often manage maintenance on top of their core responsibilities.

Engaging a specialized AMS partner often has a positive impact on internal teams and performance.

AMS as a Growth Catalyst

Application maintenance isn’t just technical support—it’s a strategic enabler. It contributes to customer satisfaction, higher conversion rates, and better SEO.

When well-scoped and executed, AMS helps reduce technical debt, strengthen security, and increase agility. Bringing in outside experts enables you to scale effectively while empowering your teams to focus on innovation and business value.