Why the global South remains optimistic about tech, while pessimism grips the rest of the world
November 15, 2024
The world of e-commerce has experienced a humongous boost in the last decade.
So much so that within the first quarter of 2018, a 9% increase in e-commerce sales was seen. A recent report conducted on e-retail outlets in the United States showed that the e-commerce industry there stands at a net worth of $123.7 billion. The total sales worth for 2018 stood at a whopping $1.3 trillion.
Generally, people think that B2C transactions are the basis for e-commerce. The most popular B2C transaction is purchasing and selling of goods on the web.
Today, almost every business has a digital storefront that is equal to its retail outlets. Some businesses even do not have a physical store location! Buyers browse and buy products from them with the help of a few clicks.
At the very core, e-commerce means the purchase and sale of goods or services through electronic channels. E-commerce got introduced in the year 1960 via the EDI or the Electronic Data Interchange on VANs (value-added networks). This medium started to grow with the increased accessibility of the internet. Moreover, the emergence of online sellers during the 1990s and early 2000s also probed the growth of e-commerce.
Amazon is not the pioneer of virtual shopping, yet it stands as the most favoured online shopping destination for millennials. It began its operations first as a book shipping business in 1995 back at Jeff Bezo’s garage. eBay is a leading e-commerce platform which helps customers to sell products to each other and has familiarized online auctions in the year 1995. It soon expanded with 1997 Beanie Babies Frenzy.
The arena of e-commerce like another digital technology has evolved with time ever since its inception. As mobile device started to become a household name, mobile commerce integrated with it. Additionally, when in 2014, Facebook, the social media giant, actually drove about 85% of sales on e-commerce platforms like Shopify; the boom in this world received a robust boost.
At present, the changing market portrays a huge opportunity for business organisations. They can enhance their market relevance in the virtual world.
Experts predict that this world of e-commerce shall be about 17% of the United States retail sales by the year 2022. It is said that the U.S. shall spend a grand amount of $460 billion online in the coming years. The numbers will continue to grow as more and more mobile apps get integrated into our daily lives.
Personalization:
E-commerce platforms make it a point to offer customised products to their customers. Personalization is a process that tracks what the website visitors are looking at. This helps them get a clear understanding of the customer’s choices.
Once the marketer knows his preferences, he can use cookies to provide every customer with a personalised experience designed particularly for the later. One way of doing so is by curating a customised website content that lets a marketer build an interactive relationship with his website’s repeat visitors. Customers are sent the right message at the right time.
Product Recommendations:
These have the potential to show customers that the e-commerce marketer pays attention to their individual needs and wants. It lets them gain a bigger picture of the platform’s inventory. A marketer can also highlight user recommendations where the items can be put on wish list. The ‘word of mouth’ is a viable part of product recommendations.
This e-commerce type encompasses every electronic transaction of merchandise conducted between businesses. Here, companies sell their products online to other business houses. These organisations are, however, not engaged in sales with the public consumers.
In this kind of e-commerce business, the companies sell their products and services to consumers, the end users. The B2C e-commerce shops come with open access for every visitor and user.
The C2C or consumer to consumer type of e-commerce business model includes all electronic transactions of goods/services that are conducted between consumers. These transactions usually take place through third parties such as the online platform where the dealings get carried out. For example, eBay is the most popular platform that lets consumers sell to others.
In this C2B model, there lies a complete reversal of the conventional sense of goods exchange. The consumers offer their products online, and the companies post their bids. The consumers check these bids and select the companies which meet their desired price range. One ecommerce sector that has become quite common in this aspect is the market which sells royalty-free images and design elements.
Here, e-commerce includes all online transactions between a company and a public administration. This involves a large amount and a general variety of services, especially in areas like fiscal, employment, legal documents and registers. These services are increasing day by day in recent years owing to the investments made by e-government.
This C2A e-commerce model comprises electronic transactions that are made within public administration and individuals. A few examples of these business models are education, social security and taxes.
The e-commerce model types are currently thriving. Sales from the online stores are rising and shall grow by 78% by the year 2020.
The rapid adaptation of mobile devices and access to the internet have offered emerging market customers to become an integral part of online activities such as retail, gaming, sports, etc.
Today, online retail has transpired as e-commerce and market reports state that online spending of USD 1.29 trillion across world economies will increase to USD 2.7 trillion in the coming years.
Here are the reasons for which this sector is booming so much
The growth in the sector of e-commerce across the world is unstoppable. Technical advancements are the primary causes of its rise.
Customer journeys are now merging online and in-store. The notion of e-commerce being a distinctive store is disappearing.
In 2019, it is said the AI shall invade the e-commerce space even more. Chatbots and AI have been designed to make a customer’s shopping experience enhanced overall. AI assistants are able to handle a variety of tasks that have been assigned to human-like handling inquiries and inventory management. Such digital assistants shall carry out several procedures, thus, freeing up time for one to focus on other aspects of running a business. Chatbots on e-commerce platforms fulfil a lot of customer services, starting from answering their queries to discussing a complaint.
B2B companies are now leveraging the upcoming trends in e-commerce. It has been projected that e-commerce sales shall grow across the world hugely by 2020. A survey conducted with 500 B2b business houses showed that about 80% of them accepted orders and payments through their website.
E-commerce is engulfing the millennials’ lives making their purchasing patterns consistent. Currently, it is their rapid evolvement in the digital world that has made them such an enticing arena.