Five Myths of Ecommerce
4th Mar 2009 @ 10:55
The amount of businesses selling their products online has exploded in recent times and is continuing to rise steadily. If you're having doubts about taking the leap into ecommerce, allow us to put your mind at rest.
Firstly, congratulations for considering the use of ecommerce to further your business. The online market is absolutely huge; even a small slice of the proverbial cake can represent a substantial increase to your profits. In short, there is a lot of money out there just waiting to be spent.
What is Ecommerce?
An ecommerce website is simply a shop hosted online. It works much like a regular shop: customers enter your store, browse your products, choose what they like, pay for them and take them home. The only difference is that your shop is open 24/7, the customers can browse from anywhere in the world and the shop requires minimal staff.
Many people and businesses shy away from selling their products online because they are worried about security or think it's going to be too much hassle. Not so! Don't believe us? Have a look at our Top Five Myths of Ecommerce.
The Myths & The Facts
Myth #1: Payments online aren't secure
Fact #1: This myth is just plain wrong. If you take advantage of a reputable online payment processor such as PayPal then all payments handled on your website will be secure, quick and - in many cases - insured.
Myth #2: Ecommerce shops take a lot of time and money to set up
Fact #2: How long does it take to get a shop set up in the offline world? A few weeks? A couple of months? The majorty of ecommerce sites we create are ready to "go live" within a week or so. As for the money? Most of our ecommerce websites manage to pay for themselves within two months.
Myth #3: There is more hassle involved with ecommerce
Fact #3: Our ecommerce solutions are designed to work with minimum effort from the operators. All payments are handled automatically and you will receive instant notification of all orders. All that remains for you to do is dispatch the order knowing that the customer has already paid. Simple!
Myth #4: People wont trust my shop if it's online
Fact #4: Whilst it's true that without a well-known brand people may not offer you complete trust, it's easy to reassure the wide majority of your customers by stating the simple facts. UK Consumer Law grants online shoppers the same protection they would get at their local supermarket, so there is minimal risk to them.
Myth #5: People don't shop online as much as the big retailers tell us they do
Fact #5: Between 2004 and 2005, online shopping in the UK rose by an incredible 56%[1]. Not only is this a massive increase, but due to the low set up and running costs of an online shop, it does not take many sales at all to turn a profit. Combine this with effective SEO and your online shop could quickly represent a significant portion of your profits.
Summary
As you can see, an online shop can be an effective supplement to your profits, but above all it is a safe and secure option. Now that you know this, how can your business continue to ignore ecommerce?
Notes & References
1 - Source: National Statistics
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