The internet has long been a popular way to conduct business, but with the ever-increasing popularity of eCommerce websites such as eBay and Amazon, it’s now more than just an option – it’s essentially mandatory for any serious player in the market.
It goes without saying that even the most successful clothing-and- antisocialsocialclubshop stores must have some sort of online presence, and if they don’t it wouldn’t be too surprising for them to close up shop within a year or two. But what does this mean for traditional retail storefronts? What are the future of shopping malls and strip malls?
The way we buy goods is changing rapidly. According to a study by Forrester Research, eCommerce will account for 10% of all retail sales by 2018. That’s roughly $225 billion in sales, and that number is expected to continue growing rapidly.
Already it accounts for 6% of total retail sales, worth about $180 billion. Forrester also expects online sales will grow 9% next year, while sales in traditional stores are expected to remain flat or decrease.
During the recession, many shoppers seemed to return to offline shopping in droves after experimenting with eCommerce websites like Amazon. But now that things have returned to normal they seem happy enough with the convenience of buying their goods online instead of braving the crowds at a local mall or driving from store-to-store finding what they want.
Meanwhile, companies are embracing eCommerce more than ever before. Amazon reported a 24% increase in revenue from last year. While they aren’t necessarily building fewer brick-and-mortar stores, their number of online orders jumped 32%.
Of course, the main problem with eCommerce is that it requires a reliable internet connection. That seemed to be less of an issue in the past when going online required a dial-up modem and lots of patience before you could see anything at all. Now, most people have a high-speed internet connection at home and very few work environments restrict access to websites like Facebook or Twitter through corporate firewalls.
The growth of smartphones has also made shopping while on the go much easier than ever before, encouraging more people to buy things online rather than finding what they want locally then driving back to the store.
It’s also easier to find what you want online, where sellers can offer a wider selection of prices and shipping options. There are no sales tax obligations, either, encouraging shoppers from states with high taxes to take their business elsewhere.
A recent survey by retail analysts at Deloitte found that 37% of consumers bought an item online even though they could have bought it locally, while 35% said that they had shopped for something online instead of going to a store because they didn’t know if it was in stock or not. Perhaps most importantly for local businesses is the fact that 68% of respondents said shopping online led them to spend more money than they’d intended to spend all together. Clearly, eCommerce sites have a lot to offer today’s shoppers.
The future of comme de garcons shopping is definitely online, but it makes sense to keep some form of the physical store too. Many customers prefer to see an item up close before they buy it, while others like the social aspect of visiting a store where they can get advice from other customers or even shop assistants. As long as retailers aren’t totally reliant on their website for sales, there doesn’t seem to be much danger in combining brick-and-mortar locations with eCommerce websites.
However, if traditional stores continue to compete solely by offering offline products at lower prices than online sellers without anything else to set them apart, it seems likely that eventually, they will go out of business en masse.
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The internet has completely changed the way we shop. As a result, eCommerce stores have to be more innovative and creative to stay competitive. Digital marketing is an important tool for businesses looking to take advantage of this new era of shopping. If you’re interested in learning about how digital marketing can help your business grow, get in touch with us at [email protected]. We can work together on creating a strategy that will increase traffic to your site while also making sure it stands out from other competitors! Did any of these changes affect you? Let us know below!