B2C ECOMMERCE: THE INS AND OUTS

As an ecommerce entrepreneur, you need to know those ecommerce statistics that directly impact your sales over the internet. Knowing and effectively using internet sales statistics helps online merchants maximize profits today. Historically, scattered early computer users frequented the few elite internet sales then online, usually only highly educated “nerdy” males, otherwise known as “techies.” Now, on the new ”commerce internet,” we can go from internet auto sales to internet alcohol sales, from internet book sales to internet boat sales, ad infinitum. Since online shopping has become the main “stay at home” avenue of shopping in the U.S., the customer base for any ecommerce store has changed. Now, because nearly everyone who owns a computer has made at least one online purchase, the information about that internet sale is valuable.

B2C Ecommerce: Vital Statistics
With more and more people shopping online there had to be a way to track the trends of the online service sector, so that retailers engaged in online commerce can tailor their internet storefront to provide the consumer with constant improvements. That’s where b2c ecommerce comes into play. The analysts of such organizations as the MIT Internet Commerce Group track the latest trends of the online shopping and post this information about internet marketing sales trends on their website for the retailers.

Through these b2c ecommerce reports, ecommerce stores make their improvements in service. With these improvements, new technologies and more powerful ecommerce software, online merchants can not only provide the shopper more tools to evaluate whatever they are shopping for but also can customize their offerings as part of the internet sales experience.

Faster ecommerce servers, easier ecommerce shopping carts, and more comprehensive ecommerce programs are only a small portion of the improvements that online retailers have made to their services over the years. Customers can now more easily return items to internet merchants if they are not satisfied and some internet sellers even offer the option of picking up their purchases or having them delivered. Also, customers are now safer using their credit cards online thanks to newer and better ecommerce security technology.

The Answers You Need From B2C Ecommerce

• How fast will sales grow?
• Which parts of the US are showing the largest growth of ecommerce?
• What do shoppers think is the greatest advantage using an internet seller vs. conventional shopping?
• What are the greatest risks in using internet merchants?

Market Size and Growth
The US Department of Commerce (DOC) estimated that US ecommerce stores had retail sales ending in 2003 of over $56 billion, compared to a little over $44 billion in 2002. The largest quantity of the 2003 online sales came in the 4 th quarter during the holiday season, always a peak period for internet sales growth.

B2c ecommerce has reported that there is a lot of room for factors that can increase internet sales, considering they have only accounted for 1.5% of total internet ecommerce retail sales in ’03.