The State of Ecommerce 2017
In 2017, more consumers will head online to shop for goods than ever before. They're browsing for products on smartphones and tablets, before committing to checking out, most often from their desktop. Double-digit growth of ecommerce sales is expected through 2020, when sales will exceed $4 trillion.
Opening up an online store can be just as complicated as debuting a brick-and-mortar. Here's what your business needs to know about ecommerce.
Omnichannel Rules
More people purchase on desktops than they do on mobile — desktop takes 62% of revenue and mobile takes 38%. But, a high percentage of mobile traffic positively correlates with high website conversion rates. Shoppers are likely to research on mobile, and then make the actual purchase on desktop. Mobile devices drive 56% of traffic to top sites, which makes it vital that retailers ensure their ecommerce sites work flawlessly on mobile.
Encryption and Tokenization Protect Customers
In 2016, ecommerce fraud increased to 33%. Every $1 of fraud costs a merchant $2.40. Secure ecommerce stores are ones that don't store cardholder data and that safeguard customer information during the purchase. They use encryption and tokenization security methods to protect data during a transaction.
Cloud Migration Increases
IT leaders love the cloud; 70% think it increases the ability to be agile in a business. Preferred ecommerce platforms today are cloud-based, which allow businesses to handle surges in traffic because the daily technical operations are monitored by a third party with extensive security and data storage capabilities. This lessens the burden on a retailer's IT department and allows for easy scaling up through a secure server.
Uptime Is Prioritized
The average cost of a data center outage increased from more than $505,000 in 2010 to more than $740,000 in 2016. Using a reliably secure ecommerce platform whose networks are constantly monitored to ward off threats helps protect retailers by improving business uptime. In addition to revenue benefits, uptime helps retailers maintain customer trust.
Data in Ecommerce Is a Must
Retailers who use data effectively can improve operating margins by more than 62%. Smart retailers invest in ecommerce platforms that deliver rich analytics for powerful insights, ranging from time of day shoppers are most likely to purchase, to the pages featuring images and copy that drive shopping trends. Ecommerce data may also be used to drive in-store initiatives, and vice-versa.
Retailers Seek an All-in-1 Solution
Brick-and-mortar retailers with ecommerce needs are turning to solutions that are operable across physical point-of-sale devices and virtual interfaces. Benefits include a streamlined host for transactions, lower setup and transaction fees, recurring payment enablement, easier training, and more.
PCI Compliance Gets Software Boost
Retailers who process, transmit, or store credit card information must maintain a secure environment that follows requirements set forth in the Payment Card Industry Data Security Standard (PCI DSS). With updates and revisions to the PCI DSS Self-Assessment Questionnaires taking place in January 2017, retailers are relying on software that automatically incorporates mandated updates into its ecommerce stores.
Ready to Enter Ecommerce?
If you are a retailer who is interested in expanding into ecommerce, or you want to improve what you are currently working with, North can help. Our PCI-compliant ecommerce solutions include a free virtual terminal, a cloud-based retail environment, top data security and monitoring, encryption, tokenization, full customization options, interoperability with physical systems, 24/7 live customer support, and more.
Visit us here to learn about ecommerce for business, or call us at 877-840-1952.
