Digital Strategy, Web Development

5 Reasons Why an eCommerce Site is Important

Reusser Design

eCommerce is here to stay, and whether you're on the fence about it, unsure what system integration to use, or don't think your business qualifies for online shopping, we can help clear up your questions and showcase the many advantages of incorporating eCommerce to your website.

Whether you’re looking to build a new website using the popular Craft Commerce or Shopify platforms, or integrating eCommerce solutions using additional platforms such as WooCommerce, BigCommerce, or Magento, we can help guide your decision based on your website’s unique needs.

Here are 5 reasons you may want to switch to an eCommerce site—don’t worry, we’ll dive into each one later in the article.

Your business stays open 24/7
You can run your business from anywhere
Minimize start-up costs and long-term risks
Rapidly A/B test different marketing messages
Easily re-engage lost customers in the buyer journey

Check out this eCommerce case study for American LandMaster!

eCommerce is here to stay

In 2022, online shopping is at an all time high. From online grocery orders (up 22% in the last four years), to total purchases made online (with a 36.3% boost during the COVID-19 pandemic), dominating the marketplace in your industry is essential.

Many think this surge in digital retail is largely due to the pandemic, when in reality, this trend has been increasing steadily for years. In 2021, Thinkwithgoogle reported that 63% of all shopping occasions begin online. This doesn’t necessarily mean 63% of all shopping occasions end with an online purchase, but more often than not, it’s where research begins, product comparisons are made, and final determinations are set in place.

This begs the question: if the majority of consumers are starting their shopping journey online, why not meet them there to complete the transaction?

Let’s take a look at some of the major benefits of incorporating eCommerce into your website. Whether you’re on the fence about it, unsure what system integration to use, or don’t think your business qualifies for online shopping, we can help clear up some questions and provide the insight you’re looking for.

Advantages to incorporating eCommerce in your website

Stay open 24/7

That’s right—with eCommerce, you never have to flip the “Closed” sign on your business again. This flexibility meets a great need for those who work during your store hours, visit your shop once during vacation but live out-of-state, or want to gift something from your business to a friend and can do so through an online purchase.
Run your business from anywhere

As you may have noticed, being a business owner leaves little room for downtime or family vacations—especially while your business is young. An eCommerce option leaves room for you to travel without feeling the stress of being absent physically for the time being.
Minimize start-up costs and long-term risks

Many entrepreneurs have great ideas but lack the capital to hit the ground running early on. In years past, not having a physical business location would lower visibility and likely decrease credibility. Having a web presence is often enough to gain recognition and can mitigate the cost and risk associated with owning a building.
Rapidly test different marketing messages

Investing in marketing strategies and campaign materials is costly enough. On top of that, adding in the expense of signage or POP displays can inflate budgets quickly. And let’s be honest—if a marketing message is getting printed and displayed, it better be the right message. Transferring some of this significance to your website and eCommerce platform can alleviate the stress and allow you to A/B test messaging, designs, and more at a quick and cost-effective rate.

Check out our A/B testing results from William Murray Golf
Easily re-engage lost customers

When someone enters your store, browses, and leaves without making a purchase, you have very little likelihood of reconnecting with them after they walk out the door. With your eCommerce site, you can track what users shop for, re-engage them with email marketing to share products or services of interest, and even grab their attention using a drip email campaign if they’ve abandoned their cart.

What eCommerce integration should you consider using

Now that you’ve seen some of the benefits to adding an eCommerce option to your website, you might be wondering what integration Reusser would recommend. Well, we’d love to loop you in.

Shopify can be a standalone eCommerce website or easily integrated into your existing website. This customizable solution not only provides an online shopping experience, but helps you find customers, drive sales, and manage your business online. Another option to consider is Craft Commerce, which is built on the Craft Content Management System. This route is ideal for complete new website builds or for stores that have more unique needs. While we like working with these two platforms, there are several others to consider such as WooCommerce, BigCommerce, Magento, and more. Based on your website’s unique needs, one of these could be a better fit, and we can help guide you in making that decision.

Wondering how long it takes to integrate an eCommerce solution? While it depends on the complexity of your website, our team can implement a solution rather quickly. Likewise, if you already have an eCommerce solution but need help optimizing your user’s experience, this is something we can help with even quicker.

As a reminder, the pandemic only accelerated the growth of eCommerce’s piece of the global consumer spending pie. Imagine where you could be if you had invested into your eCommerce presence before the pandemic hit? As the long-term behavioral changes linger, and the online shopping trend inevitably increases, take some time to seriously consider how implementing eCommerce could impact your business for good.

Ready to start the conversation?

Have we piqued your curiosity? One additional benefit to adding an eCommerce platform is the expanded digital marketing presence you’d be able to tap into. Honing in on your digital audience, crafting content to target your buyers, and understanding the analytics behind shopping decisions can help guide your digital marketing strategy for years to come.

With this in mind, along with the other many benefits mentioned above, we’d love to have a conversation with you about your website. There are likely many routes to choose from, and we’d be happy to walk alongside you and evaluate your options.