It's high time for an online store

Trend of e-commerce growth

The global growth of online sales has been steadily increasing for more than a decade, with consistent double-digit growth rates. Depending on the market and sector, the share of online sales ranges between 15% and 25% of total commerce, while certain services have already begun transitioning—or have fully transitioned—exclusively online.

Research has shown that in 2019, as many as 56% of people in Slovenia aged between 16 and 74 made at least one online purchase. In addition, studies have shown that Slovenians tend to trust domestic retailers the most when shopping online, with 74% of respondents stating they purchased from local online sellers, while 47% shop exclusively in Slovenian online stores.

The data on how many products are actually sold in online stores is not the full story. Research from 2019 showed that as much as 63% of all purchasing processes begin online.
This means that regardless of where the customer ultimately completes the purchase (online or in a physical store), it is very likely that their buying journey started in your online store—even if they later decided to complete the purchase in person at a physical location.
A strong online presence is therefore no longer just a marketing project for companies, but a necessity for survival, as otherwise they are not even part of the competition for 68% of purchases.

New rules, new trends

Since March 16, 2020, when all retail stores (except those providing essential goods) closed their doors, consumers were forced to turn to online shopping.
It was expected that online sales would increase, as it became the only option even for those who were not regular online shoppers and preferred to purchase goods in person. However, what followed exceeded even the boldest expectations.

Large online retailers such as Amazon were simply unable to process and ship orders at the speed new ones were coming in. To address this, Amazon hired 100,000 new employees during this period, yet they were still forced to limit the sale of certain “non-essential” products such as electronics and toys, prioritizing essential goods like food, personal care items, medicines, cleaning and disinfecting products, baby supplies, and pet food.
However, consumers were not discouraged; they simply adapted and shifted their behavior. As a result, they began massively searching for and purchasing products from smaller, more specialized online providers. Some saw their sales increase by more than 400%.

The increase was not limited to essential goods.
The company Profitero, which specializes in e-commerce performance analytics, divided consumer online behavior into three segments, offering valuable insight into how people gradually adapted to self-isolation over the past weeks.

1.    Survival

It started quite predictably. People primarily purchased essential goods such as long-lasting food and paper hygiene products, as well as protective items like disinfectants and protective masks.

2.    Adapting to life at home

Once consumers secured the essentials, they began looking for less critical items to make staying at home more comfortable. Purchases driven by necessity were gradually replaced by those driven by wants and preferences.
There was an increase in purchases of kitchen appliances, especially bread makers, rice cookers, pressure cookers, and pizza ovens. Sales of both board games and video games also rose, along with trampolines, sweatpants, and casual clothing. This was followed by setting up home offices with new monitors, office chairs, headphones, and laptop stands for use in bed.

3.    Make the most of what you have

After the first two weeks, people more or less adapted and came to terms with the situation. Uncertainty and panic began to give way to more innovative thinking about how to best use all the extra time. Products for home renovation and improvement, such as paint, storage boxes, and gardening tools, began flying off online shelves. More and more people also started thinking about their fitness and preparing for the upcoming summer. With gyms and sports facilities closed, this didn’t stop them—they took matters into their own hands and began rapidly purchasing everything from fitness accessories and weights to larger home workout equipment. Sales also increased in hobby-related products such as sewing machines, fabrics, and various crafting materials.

What does the future hold?

From this interesting insight into people’s thinking and behavior during quarantine, it is clear that consumer lifestyle habits in our society are so deeply rooted that even drastic measures like those seen in the past two months could not stop them.

Modern consumers are adaptable and will find ways to meet their needs and habits. The question is which retailers are flexible enough to remain relevant in tomorrow’s constantly evolving market—especially in times of major societal disruptions like the one we are currently experiencing.

It is true that in this situation consumers were, to some extent, forced to change their purchasing behavior and mindset. However, as with all major shifts, things will never fully return to how they were before. New online consumers have emerged from these extraordinary circumstances, having experienced the convenience and variety of online shopping, while existing ones have discovered new online stores and become even more comfortable in the digital marketplace.

Finally, it is also important to highlight how crucial it is to build your online store with a reliable provider and on a stable server.  During this period of system overload, many website visitors experienced failed server connections, error messages, and unsuccessful purchase processes. Do your research—don’t let this happen to your website or online store.