Free Encyclopedia of Ecommerce :: Free Encyclopedia of Ecommerce :: Business-to-Consumer (B E-Commerce (2C) - Growth And Growing Pains, Falling Stocks, Fulfillment Foibles, Underlying Strength, Online Spending Growth Continued In 2001

Business-to-Consumer (B E-Commerce (2C) - Keys To Profitability

KEYS TO PROFITABILITY

As e-tailers seek to achieve profitability by cutting costs and spending less to gain customers, the ability to generate positive gross margins becomes the number one factor in e-tail success. Another critical factor is driving traffic to the Web site, but that needs to be combined with a high conversion rate. That is, it is important to have not only sustained visitor traffic, but also to be able to convert 10 to 15 percent of the visitors into buyers. According to a December 2000 study by the Yankee Group, the average conversion rate for e-tailers was only 1 percent.

Successful e-tailers must also provide consumers with products they want and be able to convince them that the Web is the place to buy them. Successful etailers must be able to provide consumers with a positive Web experience, make it easy to find products and information about products, and ease any fears or concerns that consumers may have.

FURTHER READING:

Cuneo, Alice Z. "Retailers Stress Bricks over Clicks." Advertising Age, September 25, 2000.

Davis, Jessica, and Dan Neel. "Pure-Play E-Tailers Retrench." InfoWorld, February 5, 2001.

Enos, Lori, and Elizabeth Blakey. "Portals Turn Eyeballs into E-Commerce." E-Commerce Times, July 20, 2000. Available from www.ecommercetimes.com.

Hampton, Jennifer M. "U.S. Fines E-tailers $1.5M for Late Holiday Deliveries." E-Commerce Times, July 27, 2000. Available from www.ecommercetimes.com.

"Inside the First E-Christmas." Fortune, February 1, 1999.

Jerome, Marty. "E-Commerce." Ziff Davis Smart Business for the New Economy, December 1, 2000.

Mahoney, Michael. "Report: Brick-and-Clicks Now E-tail Model." E-Commerce Times, December 20, 2000. Available from www.ecommercetimes.com.

——. "Report: North American E-Commerce to Grow 46 Percent in 2001." E-Commerce Times, May 3, 2001. Available from www.ecommercetimes.com.

Saliba, Clare. "New Data Confirms $10B+ E-Holiday." E-Commerce Times, January 17, 2001. Available from www.ecommercetimes.com.

Schulz, Rick. "Retailers Bring the Internet Inside to Compete Effectively." DM News, January 15, 2001.

"The Straight Dope on Web Retailers." Fortune, February 21, 2000.

——. "The Making of E-Commerce: 10 Key Moments." E-Commerce Times, August 22, 2000. Available from www.ecommercetimes.com.

SEE ALSO: Business-to-Business (B2B) E-commerce; Business Models

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