E-commerce is first defined as purchasing any available goods and services through the internet using secure connections and electronic payment services. This is still true up to this date but for now, e-commerce is mainly commercial transactions over the internet.
The growth of e-commerce has been rapidly expanding and in fact, 25% of the population worldwide is already shopping for things online. It’s even expected that 2.14 billion more people will be bound to purchase anything online in 2021.
What really makes e-commerce thrive is how it has made shopping easy for its consumers. It was in 1979 when the first ever online shopping system was created, and since then, as the technology continuously evolves, the e-commerce industry seems to have started taking over retail so it’s no wonder that so many entrepreneurs want to start an e-commerce site.
Why are E-Commerce Businesses Becoming Popular?
The internet has made this industry so powerful and capable of expanding all throughout the world. Businesses that used to only target their locals can now reach any locality all over the world, and with this, business growth becomes very promising.
Nowadays, a lot of businesses don’t wait for the perfect time to build a website to expand. Businesses usually now start with a website to sell what they have available for the consumers. This help because even small businesses can now reach anybody in the world.
What entrepreneurs love about setting up a business online is how they could save a lot of money to run it. An actual shop will require business owners to pay for rent, electricity, labor, and security system, which could equate to thousands of dollars each month.
Meanwhile, running a business online can cause way less as they only need the internet and their managing skills to let their business thrive. Doing business online also makes it easier for them to track their shop’s transactions.
Why do People Love to Shop Online?
Definitely, any online business won’t thrive without consumers. With the growth of the e-commerce industry and technology, more and more people are finding it easier to find everything that they need online.
Almost gone are the days when people have to travel to get anything that they need. Gadgets could easily be ordered on websites like Amazon or Ebay. Mercato.com allows their customers to purchase grocery items in the comfort of their homes, and these are just a few popular sites that customers check.
Online shoppers may have different reasons as to why they prefer shopping for anything online, but what’s sure is that convenience plays an important role here. However, in a survey conducted by CivicScience, it is found that ease of use also plays a critical part of why people are shopping online.
Just think of how you’ve heard of a new online shopping app. You download it but don’t really have any plans of getting anything. You just want to check what this new online shop has, but because of how this app or website made it easy for you to navigate your way through their catalogs, you just end up buying anyway.
There could be something psychological about the satisfaction and excitement that purchasing online can give a customer, but it is more likely that customers enjoy buying stuff online for other reasons too. We’re talking about obvious reasons like having better options and finding good deals.
Trends in the E-Commerce Industry
With the rapid growth of this industry also comes tight competitions. More and more business owners are becoming aware of how this industry is booming and this means that more and more alike businesses are coming up of their own strategies to outshine each other.
Promoting their website or app is the best that they could do to make sure that people are still ordering from them. It’s one thing to advertise their businesses traditionally, but it’s another thing to get creative about it.
Advertising nowadays doesn’t just stop with blasting radio or TV Ads, which by the way could be really expensive. Businesses now found ways to advertise their products without spending much for air time. Of course, the internet is still their solution to advertise.
Indeed, paying to be able to advertise on social media and other platforms on the internet is cheaper than the traditional way of promoting products. More than 3.2 billion people are on the internet and Facebook alone has 1 billion registered people as of 2019.
Just imagine how one platform can let a business reach a billion of potential costumers online. With this, different social media and online messaging platforms are now also made to advertise for businesses and to cater to what the customers need.
