Ecommerce platforms don’t look like they used to. The once-simple tools that serve as the backbones to retailers’ ecommerce sites are increasingly extending their reach by integrating with online marketplaces, offering fulfillment help and bolstering retailers’ mobile commerce offerings.
And with good reason. Ecommerce is surging and that’s driving shoppers to demand more from online retailers. In turn, that’s leading merchants to expect more from their ecommerce platforms.
Consider: In June, online shopping for the first time overtook grocery stores and restaurants to become the second-biggest chunk of the $520 billion U.S. retail market. Spending at nonstore retailers, which includes online retailers, rose 1.7% month over month in June and drove an overall increase in retail sales, according to the U.S. Commerce Department. Nonstore sales accounted for 12.5% of national retail spending in June, outpacing grocery stores’ 12.4% and restaurants’ and bars,’ which also accounted for 12.4%.
Then, there’s Amazon.com Inc….
To read the rest of this article, which examines new offerings from ecommerce platform vendors, please sign up for a free site membership, or sign in below.
Want to read more? Unlock Free Strategy Membership