In our last blog, we highlighted the fact that e-commerce has long been and will continue to be extremely popular. Even with COVID-19 restrictions being lifted, many consumers remain avid online shoppers instead of visiting stores in person. On March 20th, spring will officially commence. On March 21st, mask mandates will be lifted in Ontario. While many business owners expect an increase in foot traffic, they shouldn’t take their feet of the e-commerce pedals.
There are many reasons consumers will want to visit your online store this spring. Here are three:
1. E-commerce makes life easy.
For many of today’s consumers, online shopping is the way to go because it is so easy. Not every shopper actually enjoys shopping. There are many who just love the convenience of clicking a few buttons in order to have products delivered to their doorsteps. It’s important to ensure that your e-commerce site is as user-friendly as possible. Often, it’s the ease of the experience that makes consumers want to keep coming back.
“Effortless online browsing is also a wake-up call for e-commerce companies hoping to capitalize on the new wave of post-pandemic shoppers,” says Summa Linguae Technologies, “Often, these customers are not going online to switch loyalty to a particular e-commerce store. They are going online because they are scouring the Internet in search of the most inviting proposition.”
2. Online shopping improves the customer experience.
Pandemic or no pandemic, consumers love the ease and convenience that comes with making online purchases. One of the top reasons for that is the fact that online stores are open all around the clock. Work schedules often make it difficult for people to visit stores in person. With e-commerce, a hard-working professional can grab his/her smartphone at midnight before getting into bed to make a purchase.
“Your site will provide customers with the convenience of 24/7 shopping from anywhere,” reminds the Business Development Bank of Canada,, “You can make the experience even better with apps that allow customers to examine your merchandise up close and chat with your staff.”
3. Many people use their smartphones to shop.
Make no mistake about it. The majority of online shoppers use their smartphones to complete their purchases. Could it get any easier than to pull out your pocket-sized mobile device to go shopping? Smartphones enable people to make purchases at any time and from anywhere. It’s vital that your e-commerce site is mobile-friendly to accommodate this growing trend of phone shopping.
On Obero.ca, Ying Lin reports that “more than half (55.4 percent) of internet users use their mobile phones to purchase products online and seven in ten (69.4 percent) say they use shopping apps on their mobile devices – be it a phone or a tablet.” The numbers come courtesy of a 2021 DataReportal study.
Do you need some help with setting up an e-commerce site?
Syncing your payment processing with your online shopping cart is now easier than ever with Unity Payments’ e-commerce payment solutions. We provide a direct connection to our powerful and reliable processing network, which can help eliminate the costs and complexities of dealing with a third-party gateway provider. To learn more, call us at 1-800-661-3761 or email us at info@unitypayments.ca.
