The E-Commerce Gold Rush: Is Your Business Ready?
The need for companies to embrace digital has accelerated in the past decade and we are now living in a world of digital transformation. E-commerce is a huge aspect of this, and it is simply defined as ‘commercial transactions conducted electronically on the internet’.
The biggest e-commerce site in the world is Amazon, closely followed by eBay, but not all e-commerce sites are just for huge corporations!
The impact of E-Commerce during the pandemic…
Even before the pandemic, online retailing was rapidly increasing, with 16% of retail sales being purchased online in 2019. But since the pandemics inception, the demand for online shopping has increased in all aspects such as groceries, over-the-counter pharmaceuticals, and clothing (Forbes). Consumers have also changed their purchasing habits, which has spearheaded growth in online sales. For example, 46% of UK consumers purchased a product online that they previously would have bought in store.
While many industries and sectors have struggled throughout 2020, it’s not surprising that the shutdown of physical stores has massively accelerated the growth of e-commerce.
In fact, the global e-commerce market has grown 6.7% since the beginning of the pandemic. January 2021 saw a further 74% online retail sales growth, which was the largest growth rate since the first lockdown in 2020 (IMRG Capgemini). This is in stark contrast to previous years where online sales are usually low during January due to November and December’s flurry of Christmas shopping.
E-Commerce for SME’s
SME’s can take advantage of digital transformation by considering selling through digital platforms. There’s a lot of choice out there. If you’re just testing the water, Amazon, eBay, and Etsy are excellent to start out on as they have the added benefit of being active marketplaces, meaning millions (if not billions) are browsing the site regularly.
For those looking to develop their website with an e-commerce capability, platforms such as Shopify are making this easy and accessible.
If your business would benefit from adopting E-Commerce, we’re here to help you embrace digital and take your sales to the next level, so get in touch!
