According to recent statistics, nearly 80% of the United States purchased something online in the past year. That's nearly 263 million people regularly making purchases using eCommerce solutions instead of brick-and-mortar shops to purchase products, and that number is expected to continue to climb throughout the 2020s. In addition to single purchases, though, a 2022 study has identified that the percentage of Americans who prefer online shopping over an in-person alternative is now 56.6%, about a 10% increase over 2020's numbers.
To follow this market trend and attempt to future-proof their businesses, many companies are augmenting their websites with an eCommerce solution to allow for online purchases.
How eCommerce Works
While most of us are familiar with the way massive online retailers like Amazon work, the process of setting up an in-house eCommerce program may be unclear. From the perspective of your customers, your digital storefront will work similarly to those of Amazon or other retailers: they will have the ability to peruse your products, add them to a shopping cart, and purchase them for shipping to their home or place of business. If they like or dislike a product, they can add a review. If they have issues with their purchase, they can email you about the order.From the perspective of the retailer, a shop owner can add products, photos and descriptions, manage inventory, and more. Once a customer places an order, the shop owner receives an email with the shipping information and information on the products purchased so that they can box up and ship the order to the customer.
The Benefits of Embracing eCommerce
In addition to adding convenience to your existing customer base, providing online shopping experiences allows your customer base to grow exponentially. With a carefully configured shipping program attached to your eCommerce platform, you can easily sell to people across the country, or even internationally, with the same amount of effort it takes to ship something to the next town over. Instead of relying on a local customer base to keep sales up, you can now market your product to the farthest reaches of the globe, leading to massive opportunities for growth for your business.
How to Get Started
If you're looking to add eCommerce to your business, the best foundation to have is a strong, accessible website. Be sure that everything is running up-to-date software and that you have an SSL certificate. TechnicalRS's custom and template websites are hosted on TechnicalRS-managed servers which feature regular backups, SSL certificates, and constant uptime monitoring. And once you're ready to go live, we can help you get the word out on the digital marketplace with a strong launch strategy! If you'd like to learn more about kickstarting your digital marketplace, contact us today.