Today, an evolution is occurring that will forever change the relationship between retailers and their customers. This new retail model, known as electronic commerce, consists of

– Mobile commerce supported by mobile devices and tablets

– Emerging social commerce platforms that bring together advertising, shopping and selling in a social media environment (s-commerce)

While the e-commerce piece of retail today is significant and a huge growth engine, anime4up the total impact of digital shopping on the retail enterprise today extends to the majority of retail sales. Around 60 percent of retail sales in the US are influenced by digital tools in some way. The influence works both ways. According to a November 2013 survey of US digital shoppers by consulting firm Accenture, 78 percent of respondents reported “webrooming”, or researching online before heading to a store to make purchase. The same Accenture study found that 72 percent of respondents found said “showroom” or digital shopping after seeing a product in a store”. Consumers then, have merged online and offline into a single shopping experience.

Digital shopping doesn’t always lead to an immediate conversion but it does translate to influence throughout the path to purchase.While this may seem like nominal growth, some major retailers have already experienced e-commerce revenues accounting for 14.3 percent of their total revenues as of the second quarter of 2014. The top 43 percent internet retailers in the US reported $24.53 billion in combined e-commerce transactions during the second quarter of 2014, a 19.2 percent increase over the same quarter in 2013.

Indian digital shoppers will spend Rs 54,700 crores buying products from other countries, civirtualtours and that is expected to rise by more than 75 percent in 2016, a report by payment firm Pay Pal said. “The Indian e-commerce space is experiencing an exciting time where innovation is the key. Our research reveals that the advent of technology is slowly diminishing borders form digital shopping. Within the number of digital shoppers set to grow exponentially, it will lead to increase in the number of shoppers who shop from global retailers with online presence, as per managing director of PayPal India.

The emerging trends show that young consumers have developed a strong taste for shopping online. It has also been seen that the primary source of traffic for online shopping and social media activity are young consumers in the age group of 13 to 25. As a result of this, the number of online shopping platforms has increased and expanded dramatically over the last few years.

As per a report out of about a total 10 million online shoppers in India, roughly million online shoppers in India, roughly 3.8 million shop across borders. The average cross border spend is also higher than domestic digital shopping spends. Average spend on cross border transactions by the estimated 3.8 million actions cross border shoppers was estimated to be about Rs 1.42 lakh per cross border shoppers in 2015. A Goldman Sachs report in May 2015, pegged the average transaction size of about Rs 1,800 for the Indian e-commerce industry. In the survey, 62 percent of those surveyed only shopped domestically, 36 percent shopped domestically and cross border while 2 percent shop only cross-border. That number would be higher, vitamondo but for concerns about shipping and custom duties that would be levied on the products. Trouble returning products that proved defective or not as described also contributed to fewer people buying from foreign countries.And 53 percent of those who bought products in other countries, used the address of a family or a friend in another country.

In 2013, the number of active sellers participating in Amazon’s FBA program rose 65 percent: 73 percent of participants who were surveyed admitted their unit sales on Amazon increased 20 percent since joining the program.

Alibaba – China’s biggest e-commerce company that also held the largest initial public offering in history in 2014 – handled a total of $248 billion in transactions on its online sites during 2014, more than those of eBay and amazon combined. Airplay, Alibaba’s online payment platform, handled more than triple the amount of mobile payment processed by PayPal. Alibaba’s IPO and business operations stirred a great deal of interest among investors but delivered precious few details a bout how they intend to operate in the United States.

Part of their strategy, experts believe, is to reach an estimated 50 million people of Chinese descent living outside their country and to provide Chinese locals with access to the world’s best retail brands. These two factors, they say, are likely to expand Alibaba’s global influence and have a ripple effect across the world’s real estate markets.

Benefits of Digital Shopping

Shopping online is better for many reasons. You don’t have to go out to find what you want, you can avoid traffic, compare prices easily and get better discounts. However all this comes with risk of internet security. We are all familiar with phishing mails and the dangers of transacting on an unsecured site and using public computers or shared wi-fi connections.

Precaution to be taken

while doing digital shopping, people should be careful about the following:-

(a) Beware of devious discounts

You see a 40 percent discount sign and conclude you are getting a good deal. However, check the current market price of the product before clicking on the buy online button. Prices of products, especially electronics, fall within a few months of launch. Many websites, however, give discounts on the original maximum retail price. Or, check out the price at your neighbourhood store. You may get a better deal there, especially if you go for an exchange offer. Also, find out about the site’s business model. Similarly, complaints will have to be resolved with the seller, not the site that lists the product.

(b) Check for Coupons

While websites themselves offer discounts and deals, you can end up with an even better deal if you follow certain coupon websites. Few websites list deals and offers across different websites, product categories, even specific products. pick a deal from here before making the payment to save more money.

(c) Avoid direct bank transfers: Pay through official payment service.

Cash on delivery and net banking are the safest ways to transact online.However, if these options are not available, go for a virtual credit card. It is an add-on ‘card’ issued on your primary credit card. All relevant details are available only online. It has a validity of a few months and you can set a credit limit of your choice. A lot of shopping websites are following the marketplace model- they are essentially a platform for sellers to list the products they are selling. The website itself doesn’t stock inventory, 1stchoicepestcontrol it monitors the order till it is delivered to you. A lot of sellers accept payments using credit cards, debit cards, e-wallets, cash on delivery, or direct transfers to their bank accounts. Each shopping website has its own payment service through which you can pay using cards and wallets. The websites can then track the order status and help with refunds, if needed. Strictly avoid direct bank transfers, unless you know the seller really well.