All the Facts and Stats You Ever Wanted to Know About Ecommerce

2018 might become known as the year of ecommerce.

The popularity of online shopping has exploded over the past year, as evidenced by record-high sales during the Thanksgiving weekend shopping extravaganza.

And it doesn’t take an expert to realize that the popularity of ecommerce is only going to grow in the coming years.

But what is that growth going to look like and what’s driving it? To help answer that, here’s a look at some of the interesting facts and stats about the ecommerce industry.

How Much Is Spent Online

• Retail ecommerce in the US will surpass $500 billion for 2018. That’s compared to $446.8 billion in 2017.
• Retail ecommerce revenue will exceed $700 billion by 2022.
• B2C ecommerce sales are expected to account for 1.96% of the country’s GDP this year, up from 0.99% in 2011.
• The average annual ecommerce spend per US consumer is a little more than $1,900.
• B2B online sales are outpacing B2C. In the US, B2B ecommerce will reach $1.2 trillion by 2021.
• When it comes to ecommerce’s share of retail sales, the US is ranked fifth globally with 9%, behind China (where ecommerce accounts for a whopping 23.1% of all retail sales), the UK, South Korea, and Denmark.

Who Shops Online

51% of Americans prefer to shop online.

• 96% of Americans with internet access have made a purchase online, and 80% in the past month.
• On average, men spend more per online transaction ($220) than women ($151).
• 58% of consumers who shop online do so because they don’t have to deal with constrictive store hours.
• Millennials make 54% of their purchases online.
• The majority of US consumers (66%) buy exclusively from domestic websites, while 27% shop domestically as well as abroad.
• 92% of baby boomers shop for products or services online.

Ecommerce and Small Businesses

• Despite the exponential growth of ecommerce, 46% of small businesses in the US don’t have a website.
• Of small businesses with websites, only 30% use them for ecommerce. 80% of small businesses primarily use their websites for general information.
• During the 2017 holiday shopping season, small retailers saw a 30% higher conversion rate via smartphone than big companies.

The Return Conundrum

Ecommerce returns increased by a staggering 94.8% over the latest five-year measured period.

• In 2017, $113 billion worth of ecommerce purchases were returned in the US.
• 62% of consumers are more likely to buy online if they can return an item in store.
• While returns at brick and mortar shops are around 10%, returns for online purchases are more than double at 20%.
• 41% of consumers buy multiple sizes or variations of a product online with the intent of returning.
• 80% of consumers expect to be able to return purchases for free.
• A negative return experience will lead 89% of shoppers to avoid a retailer or brand in the future.
• Offering free returns gives ecommerce retailers a 357% chance of increasing consumer spending.

Rise of Mobile

By 2021, 53.9% of retail ecommerce will be generated by phones.

• This year’s Black Friday was the first day ever to reach more than $2 billion in mobile sales. That record was beaten a few days later when Cyber Monday saw $2.2 billion in sales via phones.
• As of 2022, 52% of all online purchases will be paid via digital wallets.
• Nearly 7 in 10 US consumers use mobile apps to access deals and offers.

Shipping

• 54% of US shoppers abandon their online cart if shipping rates are too high.
• 2018 saw a 10% increase for free shipping by online retailers.
• 64% of shoppers in the US would like ecommerce retailers to offer express shipping, with 51% saying they’re willing to pay to get their purchases delivered faster.
• Most consumers still prefer to receive their purchases delivered to their home, but other options are quickly gaining ground, including click-and-collect, which has increased by 119% across all retailers since January 2018.
• Offering free shipping gives online retailers a 96% chance of attracting more shoppers.

The Bizarre

• 22% of consumers have shopped online while in the bathroom. (Yup, there was a poll for that.)
• Consumers who are parents are twice more likely than non-parents to buy online after drinking alcohol.
• 43% of shoppers have made an online purchase while in bed.

The numbers don’t lie: ecommerce is thriving and the industry hasn’t even come close to reaching its peak potential yet. It’s safe to say that businesses that fail to jump on the ecommerce bandwagon will miss out on some serious revenue potential, not to mention becoming less relevant to an increasing number of consumers.