ATTENTION: For all of those who’ve been exposed to the thought that an online store is “unnecessary” or “too much work,” we’re here to show you exactly what, and how much, you’re actually missing out on.

According to a recent survey conducted by eMarketer, 64% of Americans prefer to shop online—a figure that jumps to 67% for millennial’s and 56% for gen Xers. In line with predictions from Forrester and eMarketer, online spending in the US is expected to reach $385-$440.4 billion in 2017 and rise up to 523$ billion by 2020—leaving it a pretty penny to be missing out on.

As these figures suggest, businesses should strongly consider the benefits granted by eCommerce to plan for brand longevity and grow their presence in the digital realm.

That said, here are 4 important ways eCommerce can benefit your business:

Comparison Shopping
The Levi’s or the Wranglers from Macy’s? The $15 Panasonic headphones or the $20 Sony ones from Best Buy? With today’s shoppers more informed than ever before, comparing, contrasting and conducting further research online occur all at the click of a button, and all while the consumer is still in the store.

With 81 % of product research occurring first online, not having an online business presence can greatly jeopardize the exposure your shop will get amongst the general consumer-search thought process.

A study by eMarketer found that 90% of consumers do competitive research online while present in stores—meaning that establishing a compelling cross-channel presence will assist you in beating the competition by remaing panoramically present for your consumer.

Increase Your Footprint
With a physical store, you are limited with the geographical area you can service. By making a quick switch and translating your platform online, the whole world becomes your eCommerce playground. In addition, with the advent of mCommerce (eCommerce on mobile devices) every remaining geographical limitation dissolves—meaning localizing your product for purchase will be as simple as it was to convince yourself that today is your cheat day.

Personalized Experience
Unlike a physical store, eCommerce platforms provide a level of personalization that has proven to help increase sales. Product show rooms and messaging can immediately be custom tailored based on the audience or what site they just came from.

Product recommendations based on factors such as geographic location, market trends, demographic groups, past purchases etc. can all be changed depending on who is viewing the site.

Customization and understanding how to position your products in a smarter fashion will only yield higher sales numbers—hard to change your physical displays every time a customer walks in the door.

Targeted Communication
You know those annoying little information forms you’re asked to fill out when you sign up for an account or make a purchase online? Ya well, also known as the gold mine of targeted messaging, an eCommerce merchant can immediately access targeted information about their consumer upon form completion.

In addition, by using analytics on elements such as consumer purchase history, feedback questionnaires and actions such as past product reviews etc., your business can develop a more in-depth profile of who your target audience really is.

This information can later assist in understanding the concerns of your target and aid in tailoring and presenting your business to make your shop more attractive to future like-minded consumers—a lesson brick and mortar stores unfortunatley don’t teach so easily.
______________________________________________________________________________________________________
Oh and best of all, did we mention that an eCommerce store costs you much less to maintain than your local concrete shop? No property taxes to pay, no employee pay-checks to write and especially no wetzle-pretzle taunting you next door.

With 67% of America present as consumers of a 428.6$ billion industry, translating your business to the eCommerce realm will allow you to expand your business presence, gain enhanced insight on the make-up of your target and will immediately throw you into the purchase-consideration cycle from the get-go. What does that all equate to you ask? Simple: higer sales and a greater ROI.