WHY CHOOSE E-COMMERCE?
With the comfort our mobile phones and devices present, the world is beginning to enjoy doing everything from the comfort these devices present. E-Commerce is a huge platform that is growing at an unprecedented rate all over the world. People from every age whether they are children, millennials, or old love to shop from different e-stores. Online shopping provides more happiness as compared to physical shopping stores.
E-commerce has improved the efficiency of businesses over time as it streamlines the process between purchase and delivery. It has also helped to save time, increase revenue, and improved customer service.
Currently, there is a wild outbreak of online stores online as people are beginning to understand that eCommerce is the future. The rate of online shopping is increasing beyond measure rate and this is driving e-commerce owners crazy to keep their solid place in the online race. As per an authenticate survey retail e-commerce sales ratio from 2014 to 2020 will be a hike of around 200%.
At this point owning an online store is no longer a debate rather it’s a necessity. Have you been thinking of reasons why you should own one? Here are 7 reasons to clear your doubt about why you should get an online store.
1. The Ecommerce market is projected to increase:
As of December 2017, Nigeria had a population of 195.88 million people, of which 98.39 million were Internet users, placing the penetration rate at 50.2 %, according to Internet Live Stats. The Nigerian e-commerce sector was estimated to be worth US$13 billion in 2018, experts in the Nigerian financial service sector have also estimated that Nigeria’s e-commerce market value could rise to $50 billion (N19.38trillion) over the next 10 years.
The United Nations Conference on Trade and Development (UNCTAD) reported that the number of online shoppers in Africa surged annually by 18% since 2014. ... Statistics portal Statista reported that the total value of e-commerce in Africa reached $16.5 billion in 2017 and is expected to reach $29 billion by 2022.
In 2019, retail e-commerce sales worldwide amounted to 3.53 trillion US dollars and e-retail revenues are projected to grow to 6.54 trillion US dollars in 2022. Online shopping is one of the most popular online activities worldwide.
The e-commerce market has been projected to get bigger, so getting on this trend as early as possible would be very vital. If you want to get into eCommerce, there has scarcely been a better time. The opportunities are growing by the day.
2. Make money any time of the day:
Store timings are now 24-7-365. E-commerce websites can run all the time. From the merchant’s point of view, an always-open store is more convenient.
E-commerce avails the opportunity to make sales and earn while sleeping. As compared to physical shops which location and available manpower is its primary importance and a huge determinant on how many sales a retailer can make.
In eCommerce, you can set up a storefront with your own domain name and sell your products globally. You don't need multiple storefronts to be seen across the entire world.
3. Reach potential customers:
The availability of your products online creates the opportunity to meet customers from around the world. Here, you can make sales from all around the world.
Results from a ‘search engines’ of a product by a potential customer, where you sell the product in question, can make your online store available to customers you put in no effort to win over.
4. Easily monitor customers’ habit:
Customers change in taste and style can be influenced by a number of things, as a business owner, it is your responsibility to adjust to the market as the taste of customers’ changes.
Doing this in a physical market could be more tasking and very prone to error, while it’s easier and more realistic with e-commerce.
Keeping an eye on consumers' buying habits and interest tailors their offer to suit consumers’ requirements. By satisfying their needs constantly, you can improve your ongoing relationship with them and build long-lasting relationships.
5. Breaching geographical barrier:
It goes without saying that brick-and-mortar setups are bound by location and depending on your product or services, this could be key to your revenue.
An online store will have a relatively larger market as it is not limited by geographical location.
Compare the number of people you can reach through a website to the amount you can reach through a high street store or local advertising, there’s no reason you shouldn’t look at taking your business online if you’re looking to improve your reach.
6. Easily expand your niche:
When a retailer wants to introduce a new product, a lot of things are taken into consideration. But with an online store, things are very different as you can always and easily expand your range and be very versatile.
Since you are not dealing with a confined number of people in a particular location but rather the whole world, you can introduce new products and expand your market easily.
7. Lower operation cost:
One of the most tangible positives of e-commerce is the lowered cost. When you’re first starting, eCommerce allows you to avoid many of the large, upfront investments that traditional retail can incur – like a physical storefront, inventory, or payroll. With an online store, you can sequentially build out your business as your sales grow.
The cost of management and maintenance is relatively low and this is a very good opportunity for young entrepreneurs with little capital.
