As the entire world begins to slowly but surely adopt e-commerce as a preferred method of shopping, more and more businesses are being faced with the challenge of either increasing their online reputations or retaining interest in physical outlets. Depending on the country, product and demographic, it becomes easy to tell whether the primary focus should be on brick and mortar sales or e-commerce. Nevertheless, the lines continue to be blurred thanks to technology, which is making the physical world of shopping more reliant upon e-commerce and vice versa. Today, we’ll talk about several important shifts in the relationship between how shoppers use both e-commerce and traditional commerce to make a variety of decisions regarding their purchases.

Physical Purchase Decisions Made Online

When shoppers in developed nations want to make purchases at a local store, some believe that there is no back story to the process. However, an increasing number of shoppers now find themselves in a unique position when making purchasing decisions. For instance, shoppers who plan on making a purchase at a physical location first want to know that the item in question is in stock. As such, many physical retailers have made it possible to check live inventories from the comfort of home. Some brands have gone even further, making it possible to reserve or purchase outright items from the web and pick them up in stores. This synergy between e-commerce and commerce is indicative of where brick and mortar businesses will be heading in the years to come.

Most Developed Nations Love E-Commerce

While developing nations continue to grow with respect to mobile devices, in-home computing and other elements necessary for e-commerce, it is developed nations that have truly leveraged these concepts into a love for e-commerce. Pinging users with advertisements for products and services, online retailers have learned that the double-digit growth rate in developed nations for e-commerce will continue to grow for quite some time. With anywhere from 15 to 20 percent annual growth in this area, most businesses realize that a future online is necessary for a future at all. In the developed world, nearly two-thirds of all shoppers report making purchases online on a regular basis.

Research and Flexibility Are Important

There are many different ways in which to shop for products today, but most shoppers enjoy the ability to choose between different venues and formats. Businesses that use an omni-channel approach can benefit in multiple ways, but the broader narrative is one that ensures shoppers can either learn more about a product online and purchase it in stores, or evaluate a product in stores and then purchase it online. With a variety of different needs in terms of time and payment methods, shoppers love being able to select when they’ll receive a product and how they can pay for it. Having traditional commerce and e-commerce methods available to consumers will ensure that your brand is pinging users with as much information and as many opportunities as possible. For brick and mortar businesses to survive in the new world of e-commerce domination, it is necessary to have not only a strong e-commerce profile, but to maintain a strong physical presence whenever possible.