The information gathered on Amazon recently is really showing why it is bad for many other small eCommerce sites, and why retailers should be cautious of it.
The Amazon Effect
Many years ago, people used to deal with some weeks long, or even months long type of delivery if they want to purchase a product entirely online. Now when the eCommerce growth has taken over everything,
ecommerce websites people can literally order anything on the internet and have it delivered to their doorstep in just a few days or less with just a button click on the website called Amazon. This is known as the Amazon effect, a global phenomenon that changes both customers and retailers’ concept of online shopping. It also has a massive impact on the evolution of the eCommerce market, for better or for worse.
Currently, Amazon has completely taken over and dominated the online shopping market. The Amazon Effect not only resulted in an incredible eCommerce growth - proven by millions of square meters of vacant retail spaces globally - but also created a massive shift in customer standards. Naturally, something as big as Amazon and its potential will produce many problems for many other eCommerce retailers that simply do not have as much resources, but must try to compete anyway. Nowadays customers’ expectations include real-time tracking of products, always-available inventory, efficient customer support, etc.. to make sure their online shopping experience is a smooth and pleasant one. These expectations far surpass the capabilities of traditional retailers, leading to a market where they are struggling to catch up.
Inventory
Everything you need in order to make a purchase on Amazon is a credit card and an Internet connection. People can usually find exactly what they’re looking for purchase whatever item they want, have it delivered to their place without having to check if their product is still in stock, which otherwise is a common occurrence in traditional retailers where customers have to wait for their product to restock.
Customer approach
The current business market in the modern days prefer taking a customer-centric approach and searching for new methods to make the shopping experience as smooth and convenient as possible. Strategies like personalization are extremely important and can establish the relationship with your customers successfully. According to a study, remembering customers by their name and giving them recommendations based on their purchase history will surely make them to come back for more - that’s why many retailers are following Amazon’s suit and focus on customer service.
Delivery
The improvement in deliveries in the past few years has a lot to do with technological advancements. All eCommerce businesses must deliver their products as quickly and efficiently as possible if they want to survive the competition and avoid falling behind like the traditional businesses. Amazon deals with their orders by implementing a vast network of freelance couriers to carry out the last miles delivery. This way Amazon is able to pull off quick turnarounds, save costs and make sure the delivery is flexible, scalable and overall the most efficient service you can have.
Whether you like them or not, Amazon will stay for a long while, as the eCommerce market becomes more streamlined and customer-centric. Because of that, new and old businesses must prepare themselves and try their best to keep up and adapt to the changes in the market, or they simply can not survive Amazon’s total eCommerce domination.
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