May 10
2
What E Commerce can do for your Business
E COMMERCE definition:
Electronic Commerce or EC is the buying and selling of goods and services on the internet.
Most people nowadays like to do their shopping on the internet. It is comfortable and the choice is much wider. If you own a business and you trade from the High Street, you would no doubt have noticed a drop in customers over the years. The trend is for online shopping to take over eventually. Is your business prepared for this?
E COMMERCE AND BUSINESS
A recent report “UK Supermarket Analysis (2007-2010)” by RNCOS has found that online sales in UK are anticipated to account for more than 19% of the combined retail sales by 2012 and are projected to exceed £62 Billion.
Way back in January 2006 the BBC reported that “Internet shopping among UK consumers soared almost 50% in the 10 weeks before Christmas, a report has found. Shoppers spent £4.98bn online during the period, compared with £3.3bn for the same time a year earlier, according to e-commerce trade body IMRG. ”
The Telegraph on April 1st 2010 says “New research from IGD, the food industry’s trade body, forecasts that UK consumers will spend £7.2bn on food and grocery shopping online by 2014 – nearly double the figure for 2009. ”
BUSINESS E COMMERCE
Even if your business is doing well offline (albeit the ongoing recession) you would definitely profit by having an e commerce website. Think of all the ways in which you can expand your market. With a physical shop you’re limited to its location. There are no such limits on the internet. You can sell your goods and services all over the world if you wish. You can also geo-target to a specific country or area too.
An E COMMERCE ONLINE SHOP does not only give you the possibility to expand your customer base, it can also save you time. You can have pages dedicated to frequently asked questions about your products and services and when your customers have queries you can direct them to your website. You can also gather vital information and feedback from your clients to help with your marketing strategies. You can use this information to send email reminders to your customers whom you have not seen for sometime.
An online shop can be a daunting task if you are not tech-savvy, but these days with systems like CMS (Content Management Systems) or CRM (Customer Resource Management) the process is made easier. Your web designer/developer should provide you with all the ongoing technical support that you need to make your E Commerce Experience a positive one.
