ECommerce Growth Will Continue at Pre-Pandemic Rates, Says New Reports
As lockdowns and other restrictions of the pandemic have eased or lifted, the ecommerce industry and those watching have been wondering what the impact will be. Without a doubt, ecommerce helped many navigate the pandemic and continue to serve their customers. Services like online shopping, curbside pickup and food delivery became commonplace overnight.
Fast forward to today, this has led to many questions about how ecommerce has increased over the past two years, and what will happen now that the crisis has passed. Specifically, has the pandemic widened the digital divide for some markets, or has it spurred certain industries to finally catch up? And what will happen to growth rates? Will they return to pre-pandemic rates, or will they continue to increase?
So far, observers have been predicting that explosive growth in ecommerce will begin to ease. A recent report by eMarketer appears to support this, with the results saying that overall ecommerce growth will indeed return to its pre-pandemic state. However, it also predicts that some categories will see accelerating growth.
According to US E-Commerce by Category, the industry will continue to enjoy double-digit annual growth from now until 2026, but it won’t be more than 30 percent of the growth of 2020. Likewise, eMarketer’s prediction is that overall annual growth will average 13.5 percent per year, with total online sales reaching $1.7 trillion globally by 2026.
Most of the recent research appears to agree that some industries will see greater continued growth than others. The US E-Commerce by Category study identified cars and groceries as the fastest-growing ecommerce segments. Others say food and automobiles will also see rapid growth during that same time period. Books, music and video segment and computer and consumer electronics segment will also have the highest share of total sales coming from the digital channel.
The biggest takeaway here is that, if your business hasn’t already, now is the time to invest in pushing your company into the digital world. Establish a strong online presence, equip your business with the best payment processing services, and keep an eye on the latest ecommerce trends. With the shift to online sales looking like a permanent move, securing the best merchant services and going digital will help your business remain competitive and fuel growth in the future.
Blair Thomas has been a music producer, bouncer, screenwriter and for over a decade has been the proud Co-Founder of eMerchantBroker, the highest rated high risk credit card processing in the country. He has climbed in the Himalayas, survived a hurricane, and lived on a gold mine in the Yukon. He currently calls Thailand his home with a lifetime collection of his favorite books.
