E-commerce is the process of buying and selling goods and services over the Internet. E-commerce customers can make purchases from their computers as well as other touch points, including smartphones, smartwatches, and digital assistants, such as Amazon Echo devices.
E-commerce is booming in both business-to-consumer (B2C) and business-to-business (B2B) sectors. In the business-to-consumer e-commerce model, a retailer or other business sells directly to end customers. In B2B e-commerce, one business sells to another. In both sectors, the goal of most companies is to enable customers to buy anything they want, anytime, anywhere, using any digital device.
Simply put, big data are larger and more complex data sets, especially from new data sources. These data sets are so huge that traditional data processing software can't manage them. But these massive amounts of data can be used to tackle business problems that you couldn't handle before.
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The value of e-commerce for business
The growth rate of e-commerce sales is expected to be a staggering 265%. In 2017, worldwide retail e-commerce sales amounted to $2.3 trillion, and by 2021 - just four years later - revenue is expected to reach $4.88 trillion.1
The explosive growth of e-commerce makes it an increasingly valuable and essential tool that enables businesses to do the following:
Distinguish from its competitors
Reaching more customers in more regions of the world
Reduce costs by selling directly to customers and maintaining fewer traditional stores
Enabling customers to buy anytime, anywhere, using their favorite devices - a necessary capability for millennials and other digital natives
Capture valuable customer data through online metrics
Market testing new products, services, brands and companies with minimal upfront investment
Provide self-service options to customers, allowing small sales staff to sell to more customers
Expand quickly and at low cost
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The value of e-commerce for business |
How e-commerce changes the shopping experience
To keep up with customers' growing demands for more choice, easier access, and faster delivery, companies are integrating their in-store and e-commerce offerings to create seamless multi-channel shopping experiences in which customers can
Research and explore online products and services before making a purchase, whether online or in-store
Try items in-store through interactive kiosks, personal concierge and other offerings before making a purchase either online or in-store
Use any device - computer, smartphone, smartwatch, digital assistant, and more - to shop when and where they want.
Receive recommendations, coupons, and other online offers tailored based on information collected online or in store
Ship items wherever they want (to their home or to their local store), often in just a day or two
Ordering items online from within a brick-and-mortar store, when that physical store lacks preferred inventory (style, size, color, etc.)
Examples of e-commerce companies
E-commerce became a mainstream phenomenon at the beginning of the 1990s. Amazon.com - now the world's largest e-commerce platform - debuted in 1995, and other large e-commerce companies such as Alibaba, PayPal and eBay soon followed. By the early 2000s, companies of all sizes were offering e-commerce experiences.
Some B2B and B2B and B2B companies, such as Amazon, are emerging as e-commerce companies without traditional retail outlets. Typically, these mono-entrepreneurs identify a gap in the traditional retail market that can only be bridged by an e-commerce solution.
Warby Parker is an example of a company that understood that consumers wanted to experience eyewear in the comfort of their own home. The company was founded in 2010 as an online-only eyeglasses retailer, and by 2015 was valued at more than $1 billion. Today, Warby Parker operates a limited number of brick-and-mortar stores to complete e-commerce sales. (Single-line businesses that add physical locations later are called physical and online retail businesses.)
Casper mattresses also started as an e-commerce-only retailer. Founded in 2014, Casper has been valued at more than 1.1 billion US dollars by 2019, and annual sales continue to grow. Casper sells mattresses and related items online as well as through a limited number of showrooms and partnerships with companies like Target.
The Blonde Salad is another e-commerce success story, started by Chiara Ferragni in 2009. Using influencers on social media platforms and targeting millennial shoppers, The Blonde Salad has rapidly grown from a fashion blog to an online magazine and rapidly expanded into an e-commerce business that Sells clothes and accessories.
Other companies have a long history as traditional retailers and have integrated e-commerce with their traditional sales offerings. For example, John Lewis Store in London & Partners opened the first John Lewis store in 1864 and now maintain over 50 traditional stores across Great Britain. At the same time, the company has integrated cutting-edge e-commerce offerings, allowing customers to shop online from a variety of devices and purchase items for home delivery or in-store pickup.
Louis Vuitton (founded in 1854), Things Remembered (founded as Can Do in 1967), and the TJX companies (founded as Zayre Corp in 1956) are additional examples of traditional retailers that have successfully integrated electronic commerce. All maintain traditional stores where customers can still try on items, interact with salespeople, and actually touch and try products. At the same time, their e-commerce channels enable customers around the world to search for and order products using their favorite devices whenever they want, for delivery whenever and wherever they want.
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| Examples of e-commerce companies |
The main elements of e-commerce platforms
Whether providing business-to-business (B2B) or business-to-consumer (B2C) e-commerce - or both - companies need a robust, flexible and scalable e-commerce platform that meets the needs of customers today and in the future. The best e-commerce platforms are characterized by the following
Flexibility
The platform should support B2B and B2C selling in a single platform that can be deployed using a hybrid cloud environment or other models.
affordable
Software-as-a-Service (SaaS) subscription models are usually more affordable than on-premises platforms, which require high and ongoing investments in infrastructure.
Ease of use
E-commerce should be easy for customers to navigate on the front end, and easy for businesses to manage on the back end. User interfaces should be clear and simple so that non-technical workers can add pages and features without difficulty.
Easy to integrate
It is preferred that it is easier for companies to integrate their legacy technologies into the platform to reduce costs and benefit from existing investments.
Customizability
Companies need to be able to customize the front-end customer experience as necessary to support their brand.
the speed
Businesses need e-commerce platforms that are easy to implement with self-service architecture and standards-based frameworks that simplify deployment, and make it easy to add apps and features as needed.
Simplicity
Ecommerce platforms should be easy to maintain and monitor, with automatic updates, instant access to the latest features, and real-time visibility into business-level performance metrics.
Insurance
E-commerce platforms must provide the latest comprehensive security measures while also ensuring compliance with the Payment Card Industry Data Security Standard (PCI DSS), General Data Protection Regulation (GDPR) and other regulations.
Scalable
Whether it's a Friday market or a launch day for a brand-new brand, the platform must be able to scale quickly to offer an exceptional experience to customers all over the world every day, all year round
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| The main elements of e-commerce platforms |
The future of e-commerce
E-commerce is growing rapidly, as customer demands continue to grow and technological innovations in artificial intelligence, machine learning, and the Internet of Things (IoT) are further enabling businesses to meet these demands in new ways.
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The future of e-commerce |
It is among the e-commerce trends to watch
Expanding into more markets
E-commerce is developing all over the world and seeks to compete with companies to win millions of new customers in emerging and existing markets.
larger allocation
Customers want personalized e-commerce experiences, such as discounts and sales suggestions based on purchase history. E-commerce platforms that leverage AI for more accurate predictions and recommendations will gain and retain more customers.
Faster deliveries
Same-day, same-hour deliveries via drones and other means will become increasingly common, forcing all companies to streamline their supply chains and speed up delivery to stay competitive.
Subscription-based buying Subscription sales of lifestyle products and other merchandise are likely to increase, providing curated products to discerning customers.
More points of contact
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The future of e-commerce |
Customers will shop more using their phones, PDAs and other digital devices, driving e-commerce to provide seamless service across more touch points.
Better chatbots
Digital assistants and other chatbots will become progressively more sophisticated, allowing customers to interact by voice, and using artificial intelligence to provide more conversational assistance.
experimental stores
Traditional retailers will move towards more experiential and effective offerings, engaging customers through digital kiosks, touchscreen-enhanced mirrors, in-store classrooms, virtual reality features, in-store cafés, and other interactive displays and experiences.
Enhanced Visualization E-commerce retailers will benefit from virtual reality, 3D imaging, augmented reality, and other technologies to simulate hands-on experiences that were previously only available in physical stores.
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