Advantages And Disadvantages of E-commerce Websites

 

There are many benefits to operating an online store, including:

1. Practicality. When it comes to convenience, online shopping and selling are a mainstay. You can access the internet whenever you want, unlike traditional stores, so you can shop online whenever you want.

2. A wider range. Many e-commerce websites provide a larger assortment of products than many traditional brick and mortar retailers. Many shoppers who are unable to find what they need in physical locations turn to internet retailers for assistance.

3. Quicker cost comparisons. Comparing costs of goods and services is made simpler and faster for consumers through e-commerce platforms.

4.  Possibly more affordable. Instead of spending thousands of dollars to store their products in a physical leased space, a storefront that is created for them, or a warehouse, online businesses or individuals can choose a domain name or hosting site to sell their products. Since it is often simpler to establish a website than a physical store, selling online can be particularly helpful when a startup firm grows its customer base.

Although the market for commerce is being revolutionised by internet sales, there are some acknowledged drawbacks, including:

1. Poor client service. E-commerce websites have the drawback of preventing prospective buyers from getting a "hands-on" or first-hand encounter with the product before they make a purchase. For instance, you can't test out a new phone or try on clothing to see how it fits or feels before buying, so you might have to go through extra trouble to return the item if you're not satisfied.

2. Inadequate customer service. One significant limitation of e-commerce is that online retailers may not have customer service representatives who can resolve your issues. Unlike traditional brick-and-mortar stores, which have a workforce to help sell their products and resolve issues, some e-commerce sites, particularly smaller operations, only have a handful of customer service representatives on staff due to cost and scale. As a result, consumers may find it difficult to resolve product-related issues or obtain answers to their questions.

3. Reduced regulation. Keyword optimization, a component of search engine optimization (SEO), heavily influences the results of an online search. While major search engines have best practises in place to prevent fraud, nefarious sites can still rise to the top of the results page, making it difficult to determine whether a site is trustworthy, secure, or verified. Buying a product or service from an untrustworthy website may jeopardise your privacy and financial information. There is little verification for safety or quality in consumer-to-consumer (C2C) transactions made through online classified advertisements, which can pose a significant risk to consumers.

4.  Waiting periods. Though you can buy items with a click of a button, there is still a delay between the date of purchase and when you receive your goods, whereas traditional brick-and-mortar stores allow you to walk in, pay for an item, and then leave with it.

(MasterClass, 2021)

Reference

All about E-commerce: Pros and cons of e-commerce - 2023 (2021) MasterClass. Available at: https://www.masterclass.com/articles/ecommerce-explained (Accessed: January 15, 2023).

Commerce Mates. (2020). Advantages and Disadvantages of E-Commerce. [online] Available at: https://commercemates.com/advantages-and-disadvantages-of-e-commerce/ [Accessed 20 Jan. 2023].