11 September 2018
The 3 areas every successful online Retailer needs to get right
2018 E-COMMERCE GLOBAL SPENT HITS AN IMPRESSIVE 3.8T NZD, A JAW DROPPING RESULT, but IT still ONLY MAKES FOR 12% OF THE OVERALL RETAIL SPEND.
While the final number is dwarfed by the comparison with the total retail spend, it must be noted that global online purchases have doubled compared to 5 years ago. Another crucial figure sees the traditional 'brick and mortar' retail sales growing a mere 1% compared to 2017 - a single piece of data that makes the whole difference.
This clearly positions e-commerce in a place of great unexploited potential: the growth rate isn't going to slow down anytime soon, and it's where future retail opportunities are.
Ultimately, if you're a retailer, the time has come to obtain some serious online presence. Not even joking, as you will be entering an already complex and competitive market. The lucky retailers - lucky or business savvy? - who joined the online community years ago had plenty of time to adjust, create their presence, and slowly grow their audience at a pace almost unthinkable now: they had the chance to focus on one thing at time - sales - and jump into the still raw and forming world of online shopping before it became hectic.
Does it mean that it's too late?
Absolutely not. Ya'll just have to trust the experts (like us) if you have the budget for it, or have very high discipline and patience while you understand the requirements, what needs to be done urgently, and what can be pushed into a 'stage 2' of your digital transformation.
You are no longer competing with your next door neighbours now, you're in with the titans. If you, however, look at it from the opposite perspective you will see that it's the world that's opening up to you. You just have to get it right, and it's not as daunting as it may sound.
Here's 3 crucial areas you will absolutely need to get right from day one, when you create your online store:
1. SHIPPING
it doesn't matter whether you offer a flat rate, free shipping over a certain amount of $$ spent, or you have commissioned a complex plugin that estimates in real time for your customers as long as it's clear and upfront.
2. DELIVERY TIMEFRAME
again, whether you promise a 24 hours delivery or a more relaxed 5-10 business days, make sure you communicate it clearly with your custmers. We recommend putting this information in more than one area of your e-commerce website.
3. RETURNS / REFUNDS
nothing screams dodgy and untrustworthy more than hazy guidelines on how to return a product and when they're entitled in a refund. Set clear T&Cs, make it easy to apply for either of them, and follow through.
It doesn't seem like a lot but believe us, once you've got these three areas really polished, you're halfway towards your online success.
As always, we're here to enable your online journey and to support you all the way. Get in touch if you have anything in mind you'd like to discuss with us.
Serena Cappellini