Why e-Commerce is essential for Small Businesses

01-02-2018 14:33:56

“According to research by Google, about 50% of consumers visit a local store after finding it in an online local search.”


When most small businesses think of e-Commerce, what comes to mind is large businesses that have already dominated the online scene and are not looking to back down at any point in time. However, this is quite a wrong approach, as small businesses can also participate in the online sphere and expose their products to the millions of people the internet provides. If you are undecided about whether or not you should start an e-Commerce store for your small business, the following should convince you:

Visitor tracking: With an e-Commerce store, you get to easily determine which of your products sell fast through real time visitor tracking. For an offline business, the only time you will be able to do this is when you are taking stock of inventory and you notice that a particular product has been bought enthusiastically by customers.

Search Engine traffic: Search engines are the mechanisms upon which the internet run. By utilizing search engine optimization and getting to the first page of Google, you get a ton of traffic. Not only do you get traffic to your site, rather you get qualified traffic of people who are interested in your product or what you have to offer.

Cheaper Costs: It is quite cheaper to maintain an online store than to maintain an offline one. The major costs associated with setting up an e-Commerce store include web design, getting paid plugins, and other website settings. In the initial stages, your expenses would just be about $500. For a brick and mortar businesses, you need thousands of dollars just to get started.

Written reviews: With an offline store, people who have enjoyed your goods/services can only tell their friends, families, and co-workers. In essence, the quality experience they enjoyed is just limited to who their word of mouth reaches. This is different with an online store where you can place a review on your website and it serves as a testimony for the thousands of people that end up visiting your site.


If the above advantages have not convinced you of the power of e-Commerce, these examples of successful utilization of e-Commerce
should easily convince you:

  • A local car dealership generates sales by using online comparison sites to connect potential buyers with car dealerships close to them.
  • A salon owner fills up the appointment book through text or email. By utilizing this e-Commerce option, salon owners get to save a lot of their time. Time they can reinvest back into the success of their business.
  • A local baking business generates a following on social media by sharing photos of freshly baked cupcakes. It then redirects users from social media to its online ordering page, making some sales in the process.
  • A surf shop educates users by uploading videos of how to catch a wave with the latest surfing techniques. With the surf shop offering this value to users for free, they are going to develop trust in the brand, and the surf shop can easily pitch their surf boards and other products to these prospects.



However, it is not all about deciding to open an online store and getting it done. You need to make sure you know what you are doing and are using the right tools. If you don’t you are sure to get off thinking that e-Commerce is a giant waste of time. With the right tools, you will be able to utilize the full power of what the internet has to offer.

So, you should always make sure that you don’t just jump into setting up your e-Commerce business. Rather, make sure you get professional help, and use the right tools to manage your e-Commerce store.

The importance of having an e-Commerce store in this day and age is something that cannot be overlooked. According to research by Google, about 50% of consumers visit a local store after finding it in an online local search. Stats from Google also state that 1 in 5 local searches are followed purchases at the offline store within one day.

All this once again goes to show that not getting an online store for your business is as good as shooting yourself in the foot. The internet gives businesses the opportunity to reach millions of

people all over the world. You shouldn’t pass on this opportunity by refusing to have a footprint on the World Wide Web.

Fortunately, you don’t have to fire a shot in the dark. You can utilize the power of Shoppi to streamline the sales funnel for your online store.

Shoppi goes beyond being a payment platform. It easily connects with social media accounts and lets you run campaigns that are integrated in your sales process.

You also get advanced visual analytics that ensures you get the right metrics to move your online store in the right direction.



Tags: ecommerce,small business,news,business