Ever since 2020 and the COVID19 pandemic, the world has just gone absolutely bonkers. Our political scene is so completely divided in ways that I have never seen. In addition to this, our economy has taken turn after turn. What initially seemed to be a complete recession headed our way instead yielded certain sectors of the economy that have blown up beyond anyone's wildest expectations. One thing that proved to be extremely lucrative was the world of online shopping and purchases. It certainly made more sense to start buying things online rather than in stores, since everything was pretty much closed down. However, I don’t think anyone expected to see a complete shift in a few different industries like we are now seeing today. One thing that many small businesses had to do to stay afloat was start moving their business to an online format. Because people could no longer come into stores to browse and purchase different products, many people found themselves locked in their homes with much more money and time to shop for things online.
People who were quick to jump on the eCommerce bandwagon at a time like this are probably very well off by now. We all had to be in quarantine at some point - what else is there to do but sit around on the internet and feed our consumerist tendencies? I know for me personally, I spent a lot of time looking for new things to buy during COVID lockdown. One thing that I ended up buying was a new gaming computer. Funnily enough, the company I ordered from was getting such a surplus of orders that they simply could not keep up with demand. Who would have thought that everyone would be trying to buy a gaming computer during lockdown? My point is that there are many successful businesses out there that stepped into the world of eCommerce, and we may have a hard time getting them to come back to their brick and mortar storefronts.
The biggest thing about eCommerce is that it cuts down on a lot of overhead costs, depending on the type of business that is being conducted. Small businesses especially suffer from paying rent and property taxes, among utilities, upkeep, and other espense like that. With eCommerce, small business owners said goodbye to those costly factors and simply focused on manufacturing and shipping. In fact, some companies make even more money when they ship their products out, because shipping costs are so low. Things like packing supplies and cardboard boxes are not expensive these days. I think we have seen a large number of business owners take advantage of this online system and are now reaping the benefits.
I know that my family ordered countless items online during the pandemic. What’s easier than clicking a few buttons and having your new products show up at your door in nicely packaged cardboard boxes? The answer - nothing. Especially in a time when people are afraid to go outside on a daily basis, online shopping became the new trip to Walmart. What we need to take away from this crazy time is that the market is always capable of adjusting to new trends, outside factors, and peoples ever changing tastes, preferences, and needs. Online shopping will never be the same again as we look forward to 2021.
