Most business owners and marketers are aware that the internet and ecommerce are dramatically changing the world around us. However, it can be hard to put this awareness into concrete terms. We know that people are buying things online, but how many people, how much stuff, and what kinds of stuff? Having a good understanding of these things can help marketers create better campaigns and help business owners plan for the future. To that end, here are nine recent stats on how the internet and ecommerce are changing business.
According to a recent report from Hubspot, nearly half (45%) of marketers use inbound as their primary source of leads. Less than one in four (22%) said outbound marketing was their primary source of leads.
The study also found that inbound marketers who prioritize blogging are 13 times more likely to see positive return on investment than those who don’t.
Nielsen released a study on online consumer habits which found that 50 percent of online consumers in North America and 40 percent in Europe are willing to buy groceries online.
The Nielsen study also noted that Americans are more receptive to online learning than others around the world. According to the report 57 percent of North American online consumers are willing to get an education online, compared to the global average of 52 percent.
The inverse was true for sharing medical information online. North Americans (45%) and Europeans (39%) were less likely than the rest of the global audience to share medical information online where between 50 and 60 percent of the population was okay with it.
According to data from Internet Retailer that was cited by Marketingsherpa, ecommerce accounted for 7.7 percent of total retail sales in Q4 2014 (excluding food service). This is a 14.6 percent increase from the same period in 2013.
The Marketingsherpa report also included data which found that 83 percent of consumers say that free shipping would make them more likely to shop online, up from 80 percent one year ago.
Using data from the Walker Future of Retail study, the Marketingsherpa report also notes that nearly every online shopper that responded to the survey (99.8%) indicated they had made at least one Web purchase in the past year.
Ecommerce is changing the face to B2B sales. According to a Forrester report, within five years, 1 million US B2B salespeople, roughly a fifth of the sales force, will lose their jobs to self-service eCommerce.
This data shows that in a variety of important ways, ecommerce is changing the way people around the world do business. The last two stats provide some of the most compelling information. First, we see that just about everyone who uses the internet has become comfortable with paying for some service or buying some product online. Though ecommerce only accounts for 7 percent of sales now, that percentage will continue to grow.
The statistic about the loss of B2B sales jobs is a reminder the changing economy requires businesses to change and adapt with them. It’s not so much that the internet is killing jobs than it is that certain jobs will become obsolete as consumers choose to use more online self-service options. Businesses that start offering the options sooner will get a head start on their competition.
For more interesting statistics about internet marketing, read this article with 10 appetizing stats on app usage.