In the last few years there has been a massive increase in the demand for online sales. Statistics show that during the holidays, shopping is always in full swing and the online purchase increases up to about 59%. This is indeed a very hopeful percentage for the retailers who have newly ventured into the business. Since this is still considered to be a new medium of investment people tend to make mistakes which may lead to heavy losses in the long run.
It is always necessary for you, as a retailer, to have a look at your website from the point of view of a customer. It is only then that you will be able to make out what its flaws are and fix them. Out-of-the box solutions are always preferred but never try to experiment on something you are not confident about. However, here are some tips that can help you to create a niche as an effective online retailer.
Feature excellent shipping offers: This is a tempting offer for customers. It won’t take much to pack and ship items to different destinations. But if you charge a lesser price for shipping items purchased in bulk, then it can help attract more customers. This would also make them buy more since the concept of lesser shipping costs could mean some form of saving to them. In turn you can increase your profit margin by encouraging customers to order more. Free shipping services can also be an excellent offer to start with.
Do not include hidden prices: Be straight forward about the cost of the product and also the other charges associated with it. Hidden costs would create a negative impression for your business.
A user-friendly ecommerce site: Your site should be comprehensible and easily accessible. Remember that not all users are technically qualified and they also have low patience level. If your site is slow and not easy to understand, people will not take the time to scroll through as there are many other competitive and easy-to-navigate sites waiting for them.
Adequate product information with photos: Provide as much information as you can generate about the product on your site. If the description is accompanied by a photograph it becomes easier for the customers to study the product. Since they cannot physically feel the product, they should be given an adequate description of it for better understanding and comparison.
Adequate payment facilities: Your website should include adequate payment facilities for the benefit of the customers such as credit cards and debit cards, payment gateways etc to enable your customers to pay easily and quickly without any hassles. But security of the site is critical. Proper encryption facilities would help develop the customers’ faith in your website and hence encourage them to visit again.
E-commerce is short for electronic commerce which is the buying and selling of products or services over electronic systems such as the internet and other computer networks, according to Wikipedia. Most of the e-commerce business is done virtually online through either a website or email or some other form of electronic means. But even though most of the transactions are done online, e-commerce does involve some sort of physical transportation. When you purchase an item or items from a large online retailer, you place your order online and the items are shipped directly to you through some means of freight transportation such as UPS or FEDEX.
Business to business is a large part of e-commerce since a big part of transactions conducted online is for virtual items. Business to business is referred to the business that is conducted between businesses and consumers. The history of e-commerce has been dramatically changed over the last 30 years. In the beginning, it was done using technology like EDI which is also known as electronic data exchange and EFT which stands for electronic funds transfer. As the market continued to grow in the 1980’s with the introduction of credit cards and ATM machines, so did the e-commerce market.
It seems one of the best examples of e-commerce as far as physical good trading was the Boston Computer Exchange which was a marketplace for computers that came about in 1982. However, the first online information marketplace that was introduced online was the American Information Exchange which came into play in 1991. With the introduction of the internet in 1994, e-commerce took a whole new turn because it was now available worldwide through the internet.
Some electronic activities are regulated in the United State by the Federal Trade Commission also known as the FTC. This includes things like commercial emails and online advertising. This is done to ensure the privacy and safety of all internet users. Basically what this means is that all emails sent through the Worlds Wide Web cannot be deceitful or conning. This is not always the case as many emails get through that con many people out of money and other worldly goods.
There are many forms of e-commerce but the most popular ones are known as digital content such as individuals going online to purchase books or clothing. Anything imaginable can be purchase through the internet. Everything from cars to groceries to CD’s to clothing. Other things that can be done online are things like online banking, online bill payments, buying stocks, completing wire transfers and transferring funds from bank to bank and account to account. Large companies also do the same transactions but in larger forms. It is just amazing how the e-commerce industry has grown since the 1970’s.