4 Reasons You Need to Have an Ecommerce Store by 2017

Posted on Jul 25 2016 - 10:59am by Matt Holtzen

Many small-business owners are content with a static website that directs customers to their brick-and-mortar locations; however, more customers than ever are turning to the internet before picking up the phone or driving to a physical store. Even if you think your business is too small for an ecommerce site or your services don’t match an ecommerce model, there’s still opportunity to generate a profit from going digital. Here are a few reasons why all companies need an ecommerce site by 2017.

widgets

Widgets Make it Easy to Set Up

WordPress offers multiple widgets for building an ecommerce element into your static website, which means you could be taking orders from across the country in only a few days. The hard part isn’t setting up an ecommerce site; it’s making sure you have processes in place to process orders and ship your items. Once you have a plan of action for delivery, the ecommerce business should run smoothly.

Online Orders Boost Revenue

If you’re a brick-and-mortar store that sells handmade items or physical products, you could be missing out on revenue if you’re not selling online. Your regular customers could buy your products as gifts, or visitors to the area would know they could keep buying from you as soon as they return home. An ecommerce store opens up your potential customers from everyone in a 20-mile radius of your store to everyone in the United States. This is a great way to increase your revenue in the short term, especially if you’re planning to expand your brick-and-mortar locations.

Your Competition Already Has One

Check out your competitors and see who is already taking online orders. If they do, then you’re losing business because they have a leg up. If they don’t take online orders yet, this is your chance to get a competitive edge.

You don’t have to offer physical products to have an ecommerce business. Hair salons and spas can let customers book appointments and pay for treatments online. This allows them to find the perfect time while you get their contact information for other marketing materials. Even bakeries or restaurants can set up catering stores online for customers to come in-store for pickup.

Online Data is More Secure than Ever

One of the main reasons companies provide for not having an ecommerce store is security. They don’t want to risk hackers stealing customer information and credit cards numbers, leaving them liable for negligence. Fortunately, cloud security systems make it possible to encrypt and store customer data, reducing the risk to small businesses. With the right security system and employee training, you won’t have to worry about data hacks striking your business.

More companies than ever are moving online to accept orders, from Starbucks to Taco Bell. If these chains with an average ticket of $5 can accept online orders, so can you. The key to a successful ecommerce site is a strong fulfillment process and clean usability on the customer side. If you have both of those, then you should be fine.