Buying and shopping have changed drastically in the last few years. This has happened majorly due to the constantly growing world of eCommerce. Ecommerce has transformed the ways of running a business and also impacted the shopping behavior of consumers.
6 Useful Factors That Helps Ecommerce And Local Stores Coexist
Since eCommerce has made shopping from the comfort of one’s house possible, the question arises if it is the end of brick and mortar stores. The simple answer is yes, they can and do coexist.
The following factors make it possible for them to run side by side:
Delivery Time
While it might feel like online shopping is exactly the same as in-store shopping, it is not. There are major differences in both. One of these differences is that it takes time for a product to reach the customer when ordered online. A lot of the times people do not want to wait to receive the product they want and therefore prefer going to a local store instead of ordering online.
Extra Charges
Not only does the delivery time deter people from shopping online but also the extra charges that they have to pay. These include charges like those levied for delivery, cash on delivery, etc. when shopping at the local store, people pay just for the product.
No Minimum Order
Talking about extra charges, many eCommerce sites charge extra if the customer doesn’t place an order of a minimum amount they have set. So people feel pressured to either get products they do not need or end up paying extra just because they didn’t meet the minimum order criteria. When they walk into a store they could buy even a single product without having to pay extra.
The Ability To See The Product
One of the biggest limitations of eCommerce is that you cannot see the product while shopping. All you have to rely on is the images and descriptions that are provided by the seller. In this case, in-store shopping becomes more trustworthy. People who want to avoid the hassle of returning and exchanging still prefer brick and mortar stores over online shopping.
Safety Concerns
Online shopping often requires you to pay online. This means you would have to enter your card details on the eCommerce website which isn’t always a hundred percent safe. There have been cases of cyber frauds and data breaches that make people hesitant of paying online and that is the reason they end up making the purchase in a brick and mortar store.
Ecommerce, Brick & Mortar Are Supplementary
The shopping behavior of consumers has changed. Many people now prefer to rely on online stores as a catalog to go through the products and shop at their nearest store. This saves them the time they earlier spent on looking for a product while providing them with all the benefits of going to a physical outlet. In short, it gives them the best of both worlds and is a win-win situation for them.
Ecommerce has definitely been growing rapidly but it cannot be seen replacing the brick and mortar stores that continue to exist and grow. This is because both online and offline shopping has their own advantages and disadvantages. For instance, the delivery charges and the time taken to deliver a product when ordered online is a limitation of online shopping that attracts people to local stores.
However, the ability to go through multiple different stores and products online from the comfort of your home is something that physical stores do not offer. It can be said that people do not prefer one over the other. Instead, they have been increasingly preferring the coexistence of both so they could benefit the most.
