We live in the age of the internet. Almost every aspect of our lives has moved online. From paying our bills to learning new skills to keeping in touch with friends and family living hundreds of miles apart, we rely on the internet for almost every facet of our lives.
Much like everything else businesses have also gone through a radical shift in the age of the internet. Gone are the days of visiting markets, superstores, and shopping malls. These days if you want to buy anything you can do so from the comfort of your couch with the help of the internet-enabled smartphone in the palm of your hand.
In simple terms, commerce has given way to e-commerce, m-commerce, and s-commerce. This year alone the online commerce industry is slated to rake in well over 6 Trillion USD in revenues worldwide. And while e-commerce is booming everywhere around the globe, U.S. consumers are at the forefront of this boom. This year alone U.S based clients are expected to spend over 1 Trillion Dollars on online purchases, which is one-sixth of all money being spent online.
So, what is behind this explosive interest in online shopping? In addition to the sheer ease that online shopping offers, consumers are attracted by the vast variety of options available to them in a single space. Online shoppers can access goods and services from sellers around the world, this greatly enhances the number of options available to them.
Studies have shown that over 57 percent of all online shoppers have shopped internationally at least once in the last year.
The accelerating interest in e-commerce is also closely linked to increased smartphone usage around the world. So, while merely a decade ago, online shoppers had to go through the hassle of setting up their bulky computers before ordering stuff from eBay, modern consumers can just download an app and shop on the go. Today. Mobile e-commerce accounts for over $360 Billion in revenues and these amounts are looking to increase by many folds shortly.
So, if you are a small business owner operating out of the U.S. it is about time you jumped on the bandwagon, otherwise, you risk going bankrupt.
And if you do not know where to begin, don’t worry, this write-up is aimed at making the process easier for you.
But before we start discussing two of the best e-commerce sites for small businesses in the U.S., there is one important thing that must be pointed out.
You cannot hope to run an online business if you are still using a DSL connection. This dinosaur-era tech will end up exhausting you and your clients. So, before you even start thinking about creating an online store, make sure that you upgrade your internet connection.
Reliable internet service providers (ISPs) like Spectrum utilize coaxial cable and fiber optic technologies to provide their consumers with speeds ranging up to hundreds of Mega Bites per second. These services are ideal for people looking to use their broadband connections for carrying out professional activities like running an e-commerce business.
In the end, let’s take a look at two of the best e-commerce sites that small businesses can utilize to make an easy shift to e-commerce.
Amazon
Even if you do not know anything at all about e-commerce, chances are that you have already heard of Amazon. Amazon is the biggest e-commerce platform in the world and accounts for the majority of commerce taking place online.
The platform is extremely easy to use. Just log on to the site, enter some basic information about yourself and your legitimate businesses, make a list of the products you want to sell, customize your layout if you want and you are good to go.
The best thing about Amazon is the automated user experience. The platform takes care of everything from marketing to shipping so that vendors have the time to focus on the inventory.
Consumers can log on to the platform, enter the name of the item they want to purchase and a whole list of reviewed products will pop up, it’s that simple.
The downside is that Amazon charges a hefty amount of cash for offering these services. You will have to pay a commission on every sale you make, monthly fees, marketing costs, and some hidden charges.
But if you are a newcomer to the industry, paying Amazon to deal with all these mundane management is worth every Dollar they snatch from you.
EBay
In many ways, eBay is the exact opposite of Amazon. While the former is more consumer-centric, EBAY is tilted more in favor of the seller. Unlike Amazon where buyers can just pick and choose the products they need, EBAY shoppers have to take part in a competitive bidding process if they want to purchase through the platform.
This bidding process benefits the sellers who have the upper hand, especially if their product is in demand.
EBAY fees are much lower as compared to Amazon but consequently, EBAY provides much fewer services as compared to its biggest competitor.
Wrapping Up
In our view, both eBay and Amazon have their unique advantages and disadvantages. And newcomers to the e-commerce industry do not necessarily have to choose between the two. It requires almost no investment to set up accounts on both these platforms so vendors should try to establish a presence on both and then start focusing on the one where their product gets the most traction.