While majority of business sectors around the world are reeling from the economic crisis caused by the new coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19) pandemic, there is one sector that seems to be entirely resilient against the economic downturn happening all over the globe – the e-commerce industry. According to research done by Ipsos, consumer behavior have changed and many are now purchasing online instead of in-store.
What This Means to Businesses
The mandatory closure of stores and the stay-at-home orders of many countries due to the COVID-19 pandemic has radically changed the purchasing behavior of many consumers. Pre-COVID, many consumers preferred to go shopping in brick-and-mortar stores to personally see and touch the products they wanted to purchase. COVID-19 has changed all these – many consumers are now downloading grocery apps and ordering items online. Businesses and consumers are now interacting more online and e-commerce has boomed even more at an unprecedented pace. Buy Online Pick-up In-Store (BOPIS) is also fast becoming the norm. This acceleration of consumers’ structural shift towards e-commerce and online interaction means that brands and businesses, particularly those who have not been using the power of e-commerce pre-COVID, should now change their means of doing business. They should now start adopting and using technology to meet their customers’ needs.
How You Can Use E-Commerce to Leverage Your Business During the COVID-19 Pandemic
Getting into e-commerce is one of the best business strategies to implement these days for business owners and first time entrepreneurs. E-commerce makes it possible for brands to stay current and accessible despite the economic downturn. With e-commerce, you as a business owner can still connect with consumers even if they are quarantined at the safety of their homes.
What is E-Commerce?
If you are planning to get your business online and join the e-commerce bandwagon, you should first know the fundamentals and understand how e-commerce works. Basically, e-commerce or electronic commerce is the process of buying or selling of goods, products, and services online. In this type of business, all types of transactions, including the selling and purchasing of goods or services, monetary payments, and even transfer of data are done through the Internet.
What E-Commerce Model Will Work Best for You During and After the COVID-19 Crisis?
There are several different types of e-commerce. These include Business to Business (B2B), Business to Consumer (B2C), Customer to Business (C2B), and Customer to Customer (C2C). The terms themselves are explanatory, so I will not delve deep into the explanations of these different types. I will however, be publishing separate blogs for each type soon.
The COVID-19 pandemic has paved the way for new brands and products to successfully make it into the online market. The crisis has led to the closure of many brick-and-mortar stores and it has hindered many well-known brands to continually produce their products. As a result, many consumers have turned to new and upcoming brands. According to Ipsos, 38% of consumers who have switched brands during the pandemic are likely to use the same brands after the crisis ends.
What does this mean for you and your business? It means that whatever e-commerce model you choose for your business, you have to make sure that your products, your brand, or your services should be something that consumers really need whether there is a crisis or not. You do not have to stick to selling well-known brands online to be successful in e-commerce. You only need to find the right product that people will certainly want to purchase during and after the crisis is over.
