Get your share of E-Commerce Growth
Are you getting your share of the retail pie? The latest e-commerce figures from U.S. Department of Commerce continue to prove the increasing influence of e-commerce on total retail sales.
Not every retail business is suited to online transactions however it is obvious that e-commerce continues to “eat in” to the nations total retail spend.
E-commerce* was 5.1% ($54.8 billion) of total retail sales of £1.077 Trillion. At 5.1% that of course leaves 94.9% that is not considered to be e-commerce however the fact is that the value of total retail sales actually declined from Q1 to Q2 whils the value of the e-commerce portion increased.
E-Commerce Competition
Accessing leading edge e-commerce technology is easier than ever and suppliers like Izzonet focus on exceptional customer experience. Keep a close eye on your competitors’ e-commerce efforts and don’t forget the marketing basics – i.e. the attractiveness of your product, it’s price, your people, placement (distribution) and promotion.
Maybe we need to consider the last 3 of these in particular when we consider e-commerce. The ability to put your product in the right place (where your target audience spends their online time) needs a clear digital strategy – you need the right people to make it happen – and you need effective promotion (helpful information, clear calls to action, intuitive and efficient shopping cart etc)
The graphic clearly shows the growing influence of e-commerce in the way that we choose to buy – no matter what you retail – don’t let others take a bite from your share of the retail pie.
*E-commerce sales are sales of goods and services where an order is placed by the buyer or price and terms of sale are negotiated over an Internet,extranet, Electronic Data Interchange (EDI) network, electronic mail, or other online system. Payment may or may not be made online.
(source: Census Bureau U.S Department of Commerce http://www.census.gov/retail/mrts/www/data/pdf/ec_current.pdf )
Estimated Quarterly U.S. Retail E-commerce Sales as a Percent of Total Quarterly Retail Sales: 1st Quarter 2003 – 2nd Quarter 2012
Guest post provided by Izzonet ecommerce website, leading ecommerce platform provider
