The United States government has expressed concern about India’s revised e-commerce regulations, pointing out to officials in New Delhi that the policy will hinder the Indian investment plans of Amazon and Walmart.
These new e-commerce investment rules kick in on Feb. 1, and they ban companies from selling products via firms in which they have an equity interest. The new rules also bar them from making deals with sellers to sell exclusively on their platforms. The policies may be targeting Walmart, which just...
What Do The Future of Bookstores Look Like? Amazon Just Showed Us (And It’s Awesome)
I'm a writer. Which means I'm part of the rare breed that enjoys the three-block walk to the little bookstore on the corner. I hear the little bell that rings above my head when I walk in and I suddenly feel at home.
My favorite bookstore just closed last month.
For a long time now, people have been questioning the future of physical books. I want to say it started even in...
Here’s How Apple Is Trying to Get People to Think Differently About Its Iconic Stores
Faced with the growing decline of brick-and-mortar shopping, Apple is leveraging its large network of stores and trying to create a place for people to learn new skills and gather. The new initiative is being branded as "Today at Apple" and is now available at all 495 Apple stores worldwide, 271 of which are in the U.S.
The program's class sign up sheet went live on Apple's site on...
Local e-commerce industry can fast-track economic growth
The growing local e-commerce industry presents an exciting solution for fast-track growth in the SMME sector.
“E-commerce represents a fundamental change in the way that trade is conducted, and offers up a new, more efficient way to connect producers and merchants directly to customers around the country and in fact the world, bridging the gap between demand and supply. This presents major potential for the expansion of small businesses, improved...
What is UX and How Can it Help My Business?
UX design is one of those topics you can’t ignore as a marketer because it has deep roots in everything you do for an online brand. It’s something you and everyone in your team must understand, even if you’re not experts in the field. So what exactly is UX and why is it important to every business?
This is the question we’ll be answering today so there’s no more confusion about...
FTC Head Wants The Internet of Things to Regulate Itself
The acting head of the Federal Trade Commission (FTC), Maureen Ohlhausen, has said that she believes the Internet of Things industry should largely be left to regulate itself, rather than being subjected to external oversight. She also defended the use of data analytics to target consumers with different offers and pricing.
As much as the tech industry likes to try and create new standards, it has often taken external...
Shopify: The Invisible Selling Machine
From the unlikely setting of Ottawa, Shopify has quietly been powering an e-commerce revolution.
Shopify has done a pretty good job hiding itself from the world. The company’s e-commerce platform was involved in purchases by more than 100 million individual shoppers in 2016, yet it is invisible by design, enabling the end-to-end operation of its customers, some 400,000 individual retail shops and brands. It proudly operates not from San Francisco or...6 Mistakes Your Ecommerce Store Must Avoid
Ecommerce marketers have four basic objectives. To start, they must bring new visitors to their store. Next is to convert more of these visitors into customers. Then they must look at ways to increase the average revenue earned per customer session. Finally, they must create incentives for these customers to return for future purchases.
Apart from bringing new visitors to your store, the rest of the marketing objectives are all directly influenced...
How to Get Started in Ecommerce for Less Than $100
Starting an ecommerce business can be stressful.
Not because it's difficult, but because there's just so much information out there. It's hard to know what to do and when. Sure, you can figure it out through trial and error, but that can get expensive. Fast.
Throwing your computer at the wall can seem like a better solution. But, before you launch your laptop at the drywall, keep reading. The four steps I...
Ecommerce Technology Trends That Will Take Center Stage This Year
With 2016 over and done with, the gears are turning. Q1 of 2017 is well underway, and with it does come the next ecommerce technology trends. Last year turned out some rather impressive numbers for ecommerce. According to eMarketer, ecommerce generated an estimated 8.6% of all retail spending in 2016, hauling in about $1.915 trillion.
Everything told, the retail industry as a whole raked in 27 trillion. China dominated the...