Back To Basics: An eCommerce Breakdown

Think the global explosion of eCommerce over the last decade has been impressive? To paraphrase from a recent infographic: we ain’t seen nothing yet.

The new release from eCommerce and shopping cart provider Miva Merchant suggests the industry will nearly quadruple its annual earnings worldwide over the next eight years, rising from an estimated $1.4 trillion in 2015 to a projected $4.2 trillion by 2021.

The infographic, entitled “What is eCommerce?,” didn’t just talk about the future of the industry. . The company also introduced the topic to beginners – listing the proper usage of the word, discussed common eCommerce classifications – and broke down definitions for B2B to C2B, and provided statistics for the industry, past, present and future.

Here are some of the main takeaways.

Advantages Of eCommerce

If you’re among the few remaining holdouts unsure about the future of eCommerce, Miva Merchant reiterated the industry’s major benefits. These included its ability to allow business owners to reach more customers, find quality products at cheaper prices, circumvent geographic limitations and lower operational costs while delivering better quality services.

Where Is eCommerce Today?

As of 2013, Miva Merchant says more than 85 percent of Internet users have made a purchase via the web.

Leading the way were consumers in Europe, who accounted for 34 percent of all transactions. Shoppers in the United States and Asia and the Pacific Islands initiated 29 percent and 27 percent of total purchases, respectively. By comparison, only 10 percent of eCommerce revenue originated in the rest of the world. Regardless of where the purchases were made though, most buyers – 60 percent – used credit cards to finalize these transactions.

Further, the report found that eCommerce is popular among consumers worldwide, a sentiment that, if it remains, will likely fuel the industry’s growth in the coming years. In total, the graphic says 73 percent of shoppers prefer online shopping to the current alternatives.

The Future of eCommerce

Even more enticing for merchants is the outlook for the eCommerce industry. According to the infographic, 2021 will be a banner year, with revenue anticipated to surpass the $4 trillion mark.

If the prediction comes to pass, this would place the industry near 2012 earnings for the entire U.S. retail industry, according to 2012 data from Retail Pro. Fueling this growth will be the $320 billion expansion of the Chinese eCommerce market and the 13.7 percent annual increases in revenue that are anticipated in the United States.

To get acquainted with the eCommerce industry or learn more about its future projections, view the complete infographic here.