Strengths

Here are two big Strengths of the eCommerce market:

Accessibility
Perhaps the biggest Strength of eCommerce businesses is their extensive
accessibility. In the past, shopping meant physically traveling to a
certain place, within certain times. With eCommerce, buyers can now
browse, learn about, and purchase products from the comfort of their
homes, at whatever time of the day (or night). Although teleshopping
offers similar benefits, the advent of the internet has seen a huge
number of consumers move away from TV, radio, and press towards
computers.

Lower Prices
Another considerable Strength of online shopping is that products tend
to have lower prices, when compared to traditional retail channels. One
reason for this is that eCommerce typically involves sellers interacting
directly with consumers, cutting out middlemen such as distributors.
Another reason is that the eCommerce stores typically have significantly
lower overheads than brick-and-mortar stores, which have to account for
rent costs, employee salaries, and more.
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Selling in-person is generally easier than selling online. It’s easier to build trust with
people and you can overcome objections and read people’s emotions. However,
selling online is incredibly scalable. That’s why many smart small businesses start
out selling in-person but start to implement more online selling.

What are the Benefits of Selling In-person Instead of

Online?
Selling in-person has some pretty large advantages. When I started my business 4 years
ago, nearly every sale came from meeting with people in person. There are several
advantages to meeting with someone one on one and in-person.

1. Selling is about building rapport and trust. It’s much easier to create a relationship
and trust when you are meeting with someone in-person.
 2. Emotional intelligence is a key element of sales. When you’re with someone in-
person, it’s easy to tell when they’re becoming distracted. frustrated, disinterested, or
upset. If you’re meeting with people in-person, you can respond to all of these
emotions, ask them questions, and adjust your conversation based on the buyers
responses. You can’t do this with online sales.
3. You’ll have people’s attention in-person. If they’re browsing the internet, they may
have many other tabs open on their web browser. While you want to keep your in-
person meetings exciting and engaging, you don’t need to hook people in within the
first few seconds like you do online.
4. With public speaking, you can still connect with many potential customers at once,
but with the authority of being a public speaker.

Research
Consumers are more confident about purchasing a product when they have done their
own research online. They not only save time, but in many cases they prefer online
research to speaking with a representative in a store because there are so many
places to find information. The challenge for traditional stores is to provide support
personnel who can offer informed and credible advice to rival what is available online.

Sensory Information
Retail customers gather and analyze information about the product immediately before
making a buying decision. Such information is usually gathered visually. However,
with some products the customer needs to hear, feel, taste or smell the product to
make an informed decision. Online sites do as well as brick-and-mortar stores when
the purchase is primarily based on visual information such as identifying a CD case or
book cover. When the purchase requires hearing, touch, smell or taste, stores have
the advantage.

Costs
Even when point-of-sale cost for a particular product is the same for stores and online
operations, the costs in the supply chain are typically lower online. This is partly due to
the elimination of certain steps for the online operation. When manufacturers can
market directly to the consumer, they no longer need wholesalers and other
intermediaries. Online retailers also have lower inventory costs. Stores must have
physical inventory, while online retailers can use third-party drop shipping services
directly from the supplier.

Fulfillment
Stores have an advantage in order fulfillment for physical products. A customer
typically takes possession of the product inside the store, pays for it, and takes it
home. An online customer has only seen images of the product and has to wait at
least a day, and sometimes much longer, to take possession it. Stores offer greater
customer satisfaction when the customer values immediate availability of a product.

Tax Treatment
Stores must charge state and local sales taxes for their products, while online
operations only collect sales tax when they have a physical presence in a particular
jurisdiction. While customers are supposed to remit the corresponding sales tax to
their state when making online purchases, this rarely happens, and states do not
enforce it. The price advantage to the online business can be substantial.
Advantages of Personal Selling

 It is two-way communication. So the selling agent can get instant

feedback from the prospective buyer. If it is not according to plan he
can even adjust his approach or sales presentation accordingly.
 Since it is an interactive form of selling, it helps build trust with the
customer. When you are selling high-value products like cars, it is
important that the customer trusts not only the product but the seller
also. This is possible in personal selling.
 It also is a more persuasive form of marketing. Since the customer
is face to face with the salesperson it is not easy to dismiss them. The
customer at least makes an effort to listen.
 Finally, direct selling helps reach the audience that we cannot reach
in any other form. There are sometimes customers that cannot be
reached by any other method.

What Not to Buy Online

There are three major problems with shopping online. First of all, you can’t see or feel
the merchandise up close before you buy. For some products, such as books, that’s
not a big deal; a picture on the screen gives you all the information you need. But for
other products – such as a pair of shoes that need to fit just so, or a pillow that has to
match your wallpaper exactly – it’s a deal breaker.

The second big downside of online shopping is the shipping costs. Again, for some
items, this is no big deal. A lightweight package doesn’t cost that much to ship, and
many sites even offer free shipping if your purchase is over a certain dollar amount.
But really big items, such as furniture, come with really big shipping fees – and if you
end up returning your purchase, you have to pay them twice.

Finally, there are some products that are actually cheaper to buy in-store. Usually,
online prices are lower because it’s cheaper to run a website than a brick-and-mortar
store, and businesses pass those savings on to their customers. But in a few cases,
there are special factors – like the ability to use coupons or negotiate with
salespeople – that make in-store prices a better deal.

Here are eight examples of products that shopping experts say you should definitely
avoid buying online.

1. Art and Decor

Today, it’s easier than ever to buy original art online. Web-based marketplaces
like Etsy offer all kinds of art pieces – as well as decor items, such as rugs, pillows,
and lamps – often at very tempting prices. However, shopping experts warn that it’s
best to pass up these bargains. Shopping in-store for home decor makes more sense
for several reasons:

 Color Match. Try this experiment: Use your phone to snap a photo of
a picture hanging on your wall, then compare the image on the screen
to the original. Chances are, you’ll find that the colors in the photo –
even if it’s a really high-quality photo – don’t look exactly the same as
the original. If you tried to buy that same painting based on a picture of
it in an online marketplace, you wouldn’t be able to tell exactly what it
would look like in person or how well its colors would match those in
your room. The same goes for colorful decor items, such as paint,
pillows, or curtains. If you find a really unbeatable deal on this kind of
home accent online, at least try to find it in a store first so you can see it
up close. Then you can go home and click the “buy” button with
confidence.
 Check Out Details. Color isn’t the only quality that doesn’t always
come through in a photo. If you’re buying a set of curtains or a
decorative pillow, you can’t judge the quality of the fabric or the
 sturdiness of the construction without handling the goods in person.
Likewise, with scented products like candles or soaps, you can’t really
judge the fragrance without smelling it for yourself. A product described
as “a tropical soufflé of green tea, coconut, and lime” may sound
delicious, but when you actually get a whiff of it, it might smell more like
a musty basement with a dash of vinegar.
 Discover New Products. If you’re looking for, say, a lamp, it’s
convenient to be able to click through to Amazon or Overstock and have
thousands of styles at your fingertips. However, if you narrow down your
choices on the screen – selecting exactly what you think you want for
size, style, color, shape, and so on – you’ll miss out on seeing a lot of
other models that you might actually like better if you had a chance to
look at them. Browsing through a store is a much more relaxed process
than conducting a focused online search, and it gives you a chance to
discover other products that might interest you – possibly even at lower
prices.
 Avoid Return Fees. Perhaps you think it doesn’t really matter if the
image you get of a product online isn’t perfect. After all, if you open the
package and then decide you don’t love it after all, you can always
return it. That’s true, but shipping things back can be both pricey and
inconvenient, especially for bigger items like rugs. For instance, to
return an area rug purchased at Macys.com, you must pack it in its
original shipping materials and send it back within 30 days after
purchase. At RugsUSA.com, you have to pay the cost of shipping it
back yourself.

2. Furniture
Buying furniture online has all the same problems as buying art and accessories. It’s
just as hard to judge a couch’s color and quality on a screen as it is for a pillow, and
it’s even more important to get it right for such a big purchase. On top of that, there
are other big advantages to shopping for furniture in-store, such as:

 Avoid Shipping Costs. A couch is a lot heavier than a cushion, and it

costs a lot more to have it shipped to your door.  Online stores typically
charge shipping equal to 10% of the purchase price, which adds up to a
hefty sum if you’re buying a whole living-room suite. Brick-and-mortar
stores charge delivery fees, too, but online sellers tend to charge higher
rates. Plus, when you shop in a store, you can sometimes avoid the
delivery charge by hauling the item home yourself. Even if you have to
 spend $20 to rent a truck to do it, that’s a lot less than a $120 delivery
fee.
 Test for Comfort. While there are ways to avoid or reduce shipping
costs when you shop online, there’s one thing you definitely can’t do:
test the products for comfort. A couch, chair, or bed doesn’t just need to
look good; it also needs to feel good when you sit or lie down on it. The
only way to test for that is to go down to the store and try the piece out
in person.
 Avoid Return Fees. It’s especially important to make sure you like
your new furniture before you buy, since returning it can be a big,
expensive hassle. Some online retailers, such as CB2, require you to
ship back any furniture piece you’re not happy with at your own cost. If
the store isn’t satisfied with its condition when it arrives, it charges you a
restocking fee of 25% of the purchase price. And even if the piece is in
perfect condition, you still can’t get a refund for what you originally
spent on shipping.
 Negotiate the Price. When you shop online, the price on the screen is
the price you pay. When you shop in a store, on the other hand, you’re
dealing with a real, live salesperson who earns a commission on every
sale. This gives them a good reason to be willing to bargain with you on
the price or other details, such as shipping costs. This is one way that
the Internet can actually help you with furniture shopping: Before you hit
the store, go online to check prices for the item you plan to buy. If you
can show the sales clerk that there’s a better deal online, you can often
persuade them to come down on the price.
Finally, don’t forget that the Internet and traditional stores aren’t your only choices
when shopping for furniture. There are plenty of other places to buy inexpensive
furniture, such as thrift stores, garage sales, estate sales, Craigslist, and auctions.
These sources can offer even bigger bargains on furniture than the best Internet sites.

3. Mattresses
Sleep is incredibly important to your health, and the quality of your mattress makes a
big difference to how well you sleep . However, this doesn’t mean that simply buying a
pricier mattress guarantees a better night’s rest. Mattress comfort is a very personal
thing; it depends on a wide variety of factors, such as your height and weight, whether
you sleep on your side or your back, how much you move around at night, and so on.

That’s why the need to test furniture for comfort is especially crucial when it comes to
mattresses. Reading online reviews can give you a general idea of what a mattress
feels like, which can help you decide which models you want to look at. However, to
know how it feels to you, you have to lie on it yourself.

Consumer Reports  recommends putting a mattress through its paces before you buy,
spending at least five to 10 minutes on each side and on your back (and your
stomach, if that’s how you tend to sleep). That should be enough to give you an
accurate first impression. The magazine says people who brought home mattresses
for a month-long trial usually felt the same about them at the end of the month as they
did after the first night.

Another perk of shopping in-store is that you can negotiate with the sales clerk for a
better price. According to Consumer Reports, there’s more wiggle room in the price of
mattresses than there is for most products. A few chains, such as warehouse clubs,
charge fixed prices with no haggling allowed. However, at other retailers – especially
mattress specialty chains – there’s a lot of leeway. These chains tend to charge huge
markups on their products, which means they can drop their prices by 50% or more
during sales. These sales are most likely to occur during holiday weekends, such as
Memorial Day.

However, Consumer Reports says it’s possible to get these sale prices at other times
by haggling. If you simply refuse to pay more and are prepared to walk out if you have
to, the salesperson will often back down. On top of that, you can negotiate for extras,
such as free delivery, free disposal of your old mattress, or bedding accessories
thrown in along with the mattress.

4. Large Appliances
Online appliance deals can certainly be tempting. Browsing the Web, you can find
offers for appliances at drastically reduced prices, sometimes with free delivery thrown
in. However, online shopping expert Brent Shelton, speaking with GOBankingRates,
says you can often get exactly the same discounts and delivery offers shopping in-
store, so there’s no big advantage to buying online. Shopping in-store has a few other
advantages over shopping online, as well:

 See It Up Close. Like furnishings, appliances have details that you

can’t always see on a screen. For instance, if you’re buying a new
refrigerator, seeing it in person lets you check out how sturdy the
materials feel and how easy it is to open and close the drawers. You’ll
also be able to tell if your hands leave smudges on the finish –
something that you’ll never see in a photo of a fridge that’s just been
carefully cleaned and polished.
 A Chance to Ask Questions. When you shop online, you’re on your
own as far as comparing models goes. You have to scan all their specs
yourself to see how they compare in size, efficiency, and features. In a
store, you can ask the salesperson to explain exactly what the
difference is between two models that look identical to the naked eye.
 Less Fine Print. While you’re talking to the sales clerk, you can also
get all the details about delivery, installation, return policies, and
warranties. If you’re shopping online, you have to comb through the fine
print to find this information yourself. If you don’t make that effort, or if
you don’t manage to catch all the details, you could end up with an
unpleasant surprise, such as having your new fridge dumped on your
doorstep with no way to get it into the house.
 Less Risk. Shipping a big appliance, such as a fridge or a dishwasher,
is a risky process. If you open up the box and find your brand-new
appliance is damaged, you’ll have to figure out how to get that huge
 package back to the store for a return, rather than simply sending it
back on the truck that brought it. Worse, you might not be able to prove
the damage actually occurred in shipping, which means you could be
socked with a hefty restocking fee.

5. Cars
Buying a car can be a very stressful process. From the minute you walk in the door of
the dealership, the salesperson sticks to you like glue, doing everything they can to
lure you into signing a contract right then. It’s tempting to just do your car shopping
online and avoid all that hassle.

However, experts say buying a car without seeing it in person is a big mistake. Using
the Web to research different car models and prices makes sense, but before you
actually settle on a car, you need to get behind the wheel for a test drive. It’s the only
way to know for sure how comfortable the car feels, how well it handles, how good the
visibility is – even little details like whether you can reach the radio controls without
taking your eyes off the road.

If you’re buying a used car, you need to do more than just drive it yourself. You should
also take it to a trusted mechanic for a thorough checkup. They can spot all the
potential problems that you can’t detect in a 10-minute test drive. That way, you won’t
risk falling in love with a car that turns out to need thousands of dollars’ worth
of maintenance work.

Which brings us to another benefit of buying a car in person: If you discover that
you’ve landed a lemon, it’s a lot easier to return it. Even though many online car-
buying sites are perfectly trustworthy and have good return policies, it’s still a much
more complicated process than driving it back to the dealership where you bought it.

6. Musical Instruments
If you’re a serious musician, you should have serious reservations about buying an
instrument online. A high-end musical instrument, such as a Taylor guitar, costs
hundreds, if not thousands, of dollars. Before making an investment like that, you
need to know how the instrument sounds and how it feels in your hands – and the only
way to test that out is to play it for yourself. Relying on the brand name isn’t enough,
as tone and playability can vary widely even within trusted brands.

Another big problem with buying an instrument online is the risk that the instrument
could be damaged during shipping. Shelton, who’s a musician as well as a shopping
expert, says in a Kiplinger interview that this has happened to him. Insurance can
cover the financial loss, but a truly rare or vintage instrument isn’t easy to replace.
However, Shelton admits that this rule about online shopping isn’t as hard-and-fast as
some of the others; it depends on the type and quality of the instrument he’s buying.
Instruments made of wood vary more in tone, and they’re also more delicate and
vulnerable to breakage.

So, if you’re buying something like a flute – especially if it’s a low-end student model –
the risk matters less. If you find a good value online, it could be worth snapping up.

7. Groceries
It makes sense to shop online for toiletries and pantry items, such as paper towels.
Having them delivered through a subscription service, such as Amazon’s Subscribe &
Save, can save you up to 15% on your purchase, and it guarantees you’ll never run
out at an awkward time. However, when it comes to actual foodstuffs, experts say it’s
better to head over to the grocery store in person. It offers three big advantages:

 Quality. When you buy groceries online, you assume that your order is
being filled with the same food you’d find at your local store. However,
that’s not always the case. John Lal, founder of the cash-back
website BeFrugal, warns that the produce used to fill online orders isn’t
always as fresh as the stuff on store shelves, which has to look its best
to attract buyers. Buying online doesn’t give you a chance to check the
quality of the food. When you shop in a store, you can smell the
peaches to make sure they’re ripe and examine the lettuce to see if it’s
crisp. You can also check expiration dates on dairy products and
choose the one that will last the longest. You can’t count on the
employees who fill your online order to do that for you.
 Price. Buying groceries online can save you time, but experts say it
won’t save you money. Big online retailers, such as Amazon, don’t have
the same price advantage when it comes to fresh food that they can
offer for other items. A study by Kiplinger found that Amazon’s prices on
most food items can’t beat the sale prices at supermarkets or the
regular prices at warehouse stores. As for online grocery services
like Peapod, they offer a more limited selection of foods than your local
store. The best in-store bargains often aren’t available – and on top of
that, you pay an extra charge for delivery. Plus, shopping in-store
makes it much easier to compare prices and use coupons.
 Discovery. The final perk of shopping in-store is that it gives you a
chance to browse and discover new products. When you shop online,
you typically run down a list, clicking on the items you want and putting
them into your online cart. By contrast, when you push your cart through
the store, you may notice new and interesting products that you haven’t
seen or tried before, such as exotic fruits or artisanal jams. This makes
store shopping a good way to find new favorites, instead of buying the
same staples week after week.

8. Makeup
If you find a great deal online on your favorite lipstick, which you already know you
love, there’s no reason not to snap it up. However, when it comes to finding new
products, experts say it makes more sense to shop in-store. This allows you to:

 Gauge Colors Accurately. As noted above, colors don’t always look

the same on a screen as they do in real life. A slight difference in shade
isn’t crucial if you’re buying a T-shirt, but it can be when you’re trying to
find the cosmetics that best match your complexion. A lipstick that looks
like the perfect shade on your smartphone screen might not look as
great on your actual lips – and once you’ve opened it, you probably
can’t return it.
 Sample Products. The best way to find out how cosmetics really look
and feel on your skin is to try them out in person. Department stores
and specialty makeup stores like Sephora and Ulta offer “testers” of
their products, so you can experiment with new products and try
different shades. Be careful when using these, though. To avoid
spreading germs, always use the disposable applicators the store
provides, rather than applying the makeup directly to your skin. Also,
only use the samples if there are store employees keeping an eye on
them; otherwise, you can’t be sure other shoppers have used them
properly.
  Consult With Salespeople. Beauty-store workers do more than just
keep an eye on the makeup samples. They can offer advice on the best
products for different skin types and even give in-person tutorials on
how to achieve a specific look, such as a smoky eye. For example, you
can walk into any Sephora store and get a 15-minute mini makeover or
mini facial for free, with no purchase necessary.
 Use Reward Programs. Many drugstores and specialty beauty shops
offer loyalty programs that give you points on every purchase. These
programs also give you access to special discounts that are only
available to members – and, usually, only in-store.
Final Word
There’s one more thing experts say you should never buy online: anything that’s
marked as “final sale.” These closeout items usually aren’t returnable, so if you don’t
like your purchase, you’re out of luck. Unless the cost is completely negligible, it’s best
to steer clear of these items when you’re on the Web – even for products that are
normally best to purchase online.

Fortunately, you can get many of the benefits of shopping online without actually
clicking the buy button. You can hit the Web to compare products, check prices, read
online reviews, and search for coupons. This will help you narrow down your choices
and find the best stores to shop in. That way, when you finally head to the store to
make your purchase, you’ll know exactly what you want and what you should expect
to pay for it.
Why Does Customer Experience
Matter?
While it may seem like extra effort to focus solely on customer
experience, it is worth it. The value of concentrating on customer
experiences is high.

According to a study by the Harvard Business Review:

 Customers who have great experiences spend more. Their

study found that customers who had the best past experiences spent
140% more compared to those who had the poorest past experience.
 Customers who have great experiences are more loyal. The
study showed that when customers of a subscription-based business
had a good experience, there was a 74% chance that they stayed a
member for a year. There was only a 43% chance that they remained
a member if they had a bad experience. A customer with a negative
perception may leave in a year versus a customer who had a positive
experience who may stay for up to six years.
 Delivering great experiences reduces cost. While it may require
additional upfront costs to improve customer experience, the extra
investment is worth it. Customer churn and managing bad customers
experiences are often more expensive than setting up a system for
great experiences from the start. Sprint found that they reduced
customer service costs by as much as 33% when they shifted their
focus to customer experience.
Customers want experiences, and research shows that giving them
what they want pays off for businesses. Creating positive and exceptional
customer experiences requires more resources and attention, but the
return is worth it.