eCommerce site: no place for small players?
I used to run an online store not long ago, but the Internet arena was completely different at that time if compared to what we have now. Yes, I have been selling on eBay for years, but eBay business greatly differs from a pure stand alone online store.
Once I have become a partner at one of the top local bookstores I have realized the need to go back to e-commerce basics to improve our service and attract new customers - competition is also tough here.
My first impression is that e-commerce nowadays is the industry taken by big players. There are no good websites focused on covering e-commerce issues for small or middle business. InternetRetailer does not fit here. A good exception is Wilson’s e-commerce website, but in my opinion it does not keep up with all the changes that occur on the Internet. As a result, many things discussed at the website are either obsolete or simply impractical.
Webmaster forums also do not discuss e-commerce much. SitePoint and Webmasterworld have special forum sections for e-commerce, but if you check them you notice that there are much less popular than other forum sections.
I was lucky to spot some really good threads discussing online store conversion and some other issues, but I expected much more information on this topic:
Increasing conversion rate: your tips
Site Search - Weakest function of most commerce sites
Conclusion: I admit the thought that I did not dig deep enough, but after this short research I have a feeling that e-commerce is not good for small business owners anymore. The reason – they can’t compete with big players in the field. Individual entrepreneurs run gift businesses and some other similar businesses in tiny niches, but others are taken. Yes, probably it is a question of niche (as always), but I am afraid that there are too few niches for small business owners profitable enough to survive.
I might be wrong (I wish I were), but this is how I see it now.
[tags]ebay, ecommerce, online store, online business, seo, internet marketing, affiliate marketing, make money online, home based job, earn your living online[/tags]
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