Business

An ecommerce site is a business. Our Management & Finance category addresses online payments, funding needs, employee issues, merchant profiles, key metrics, multichannel and omnichannel strategies, cross-border analyses, inventory management, accounting topics, sales taxes, and much more.

Business
2021 Top 25: Our Most Popular Posts of the Year

December 30, 2021 • Kerry Murdock

We published an article in late January from contributor Sig Ueland. It addressed the rise of drone delivery and the providers spearheading that technology. "8 Commercial Drone Delivery Companies" became our most-read piece in 2021. Sig returned to human-free carriers six months later, addressing robots rather than drones.
Business
Charts: Top Global Search Engines

December 28, 2021 • Adel Boukarroum

Search engines are an integral part of our everyday lives. Google, Yahoo, Bing, and others enable billions of consumers worldwide to locate the content they need quickly. For more than a decade, Google has dominated the industry, consistently processing more than 80% of worldwide queries.
Business
5 New Year’s Resolutions for SaaS Companies

December 27, 2021 • Armando Roggio

Losing fewer customers and depending on advertising less should be the top New Year's resolutions for SaaS companies in 2022. Software-as-a-service (SaaS) companies are a segment of the ecommerce industry. Their subscription-based digital offerings can be profitable. But the SaaS model also has challenges.
Business
Will Web3 Change Ecommerce?

December 24, 2021 • Armando Roggio

The concept of a decentralized web could lead to new forms of ecommerce. Web3 — sometimes called web 3.0 — is a popular buzzword. Queries on Google for the phrase peaked in early December with search volume about 20 times that of just a year before.
Business
Charts: Online Grocery Sales in the U.S.

December 22, 2021 • Adel Boukarroum

Ecommerce will account for over 20% of U.S. grocery sales by 2025. That’s according to a new report from Incisiv, a research firm, and Mercātus, digital-focused grocery consultants. The study, “eGrocery’s New ...
Business
Book Excerpt: ‘Entrepreneurialism Is a Noble Art’

December 21, 2021 • Rick Wilson

Rick Wilson is the longtime CEO of Miva, the pioneering ecommerce platform. His new book, "Dragonproof Principles: Principled Leadership For The Modern Entrepreneur," is now available. What follows is "Principle Two: Entrepreneurialism Is a Noble Art," an excerpt.
Shipping & Fulfillment
Take a Side in the Future of the USPS

December 20, 2021 • Armando Roggio

In the last 15 years, the United States Postal Service has lost around $90 billion. It has often failed to meet delivery expectations. And yet, the USPS is vital for many ecommerce companies. By law, the USPS must deliver to every address in the United States six days per week. This makes the USPS a common and often good choice for last-mile delivery specifically and ecommerce generally.
Business
Ecommerce Briefs from Europe: Growth, Acquisitions, Amazon, Delivery

December 19, 2021 • Marcia Kaplan

"Ecommerce Briefs" is my occasional series on news and developments that impact online merchants. In this installment, I'll focus on happenings in Europe.
Business
7 New Year’s Resolutions for Ecommerce Companies

December 15, 2021 • Armando Roggio

Clearly defined goals can help ecommerce companies make 2022 the best year yet. The goals or resolutions should be aspiring and engaging enough to encourage action. What follows are seven resolution ideas for 2022. Adapt these to your company and implement them throughout the year.
Shipping & Fulfillment
Charts: Shipping Backlogs; Container Prices

December 14, 2021 • Adel Boukarroum

Increased demand for consumer goods, Covid-induced disruptions in container ship schedules, and a labor shortage at ports have produced longer wait times and supply-chain disruptions.
Business
24 Streaming Sites for Movies, TV, Sports, News, More

December 13, 2021 • Sig Ueland

Even online merchants need a little distraction. And with the plethora of online streaming services available these days, it's easier than ever to access exceptional entertainment. Here is a list of streaming sites for movies and TV series.
Business
‘Modern Wisdom’ Is a Media Sensation

December 10, 2021 • Eric Bandholz

Chris Williamson is a modern-day polymath with a fitting podcast. It's called "Modern Wisdom." Launched in 2018, it has experienced a whopping 30 million downloads across 400 episodes. He told me, "We talk about human nature, marketing, philosophy, life, life hacks, biohacking, fitness, health, pretty much everything."
Payments
Expand Payment Options to Convert More

December 7, 2021 • Pamela Hazelton

Essential features for many online stores in 2022 include enhanced chatbots, virtual product sampling, and real-time order tracking. But what happens once shoppers reach the checkout page is equally important. Plenty of issues — such as limited payment options — can interrupt the process.
Business
5 Good Ways to Measure Brand Awareness

December 6, 2021 • Armando Roggio

Business leaders intuitively understand that brand recognition is important for sales and growth. But it's often difficult for those leaders to know how to expand or improve that recognition. What's needed are reliable ways to measure brand awareness.
Business
Barbell Logic Rides Shift to Online Fitness

December 3, 2021 • Eric Bandholz

The pandemic has upended the fitness industry. Having no access to public gyms, millions of folks turned to at-home workouts. According to Matt Reynolds, the founder of Barbell Logic, an online strength coaching company, the shift is permanent.
Business
Sales Report: 2021 Thanksgiving Day, Black Friday, Cyber Monday

December 2, 2021 • Marcia Kaplan

Sales for the three big U.S. shopping days were flat or slightly lower from last year. It's not surprising since retailers encouraged consumers to shop earlier due to expected product shortages and shipping delays. Buyers heeded the suggestion.
Shipping & Fulfillment
Charts: Supply Chain Disruption Worldwide, U.S.

December 1, 2021 • Adel Boukarroum

In its October 2021 World Economic Outlook report, "Recovery During a Pandemic," the International Monetary Fund highlighted how supply bottlenecks are key contributors to inflation and economic uncertainty. According to the report, shortages and other supply-demand dynamics have impacted the flow of crucial manufacturing components.
Business
November 2021 Top 10: Our Most Popular Posts

November 30, 2021 • PEC Staff

Our mission since 2005 is to publish independent content to help ecommerce merchants. What follows are the 10 most popular articles that we published in November 2021. Articles from early in the month are more likely to make the list than later ones.
Business
The Right Answer to ‘What Do You Do?’

November 26, 2021 • Eric Bandholz

Clay Hebert once attended a conference in San Diego. He sat next to a fellow who inquired about his work. "What do you do?" the fellow asked. Describing the encounter, Herbert told me, "That question stumped me." Hebert had fumbled his introduction to Matt Mullenweg, the founder of WordPress.
Staffing
Lessons from Hiring on Freelance Marketplaces

November 23, 2021 • Armando Roggio

How does a company find good freelancers? For many businesses, hiring a freelancer starts on a labor marketplace such as Upwork, Guru, Toptal, and similar. I have done this myself.
Local Business
22 Top Local Business Directories

November 22, 2021 • Sig Ueland

Claiming your company's profile on local business directories is an easy way to increase awareness, offer info on your products and services, create opportunities for positive reviews, and improve your search rankings. Best of all, the listings are free. Here is a list of local directory sites.
Business
The Beauty of Bootstrapping a Business

November 19, 2021 • Eric Bandholz

"Ecommerce Conversions" is my weekly podcast interview with an entrepreneur. But this episode is different. I'm interviewing no one. Instead, I'm addressing a singular topic: bootstrapping.
Business
Charts: Ecommerce Share of Global Retail Sales

November 18, 2021 • Adel Boukarroum

It's no surprise that the ecommerce share of worldwide retail sales has been surging. In July eMarketer estimated that share to reach 19.6% this year, a massive 42% increase from 2019. By 2025 the percentage will be 24.5%, according to eMarketer.
Cross-border Selling
2021 Singles Day: Record Sales for Subdued Event

November 16, 2021 • Marcia Kaplan

China's Singles Day, previously a celebration of unbridled spending, had a very different tone this year. Thanks to the Chinese government, consumerism is no longer in vogue. Nevertheless, both Alibaba — whose founder Jack Ma started the event — and JD.com, its closest competitor in revenue, racked up record sales.
Business
Charts: Ecommerce in the Middle East (Stats, Outlook)

November 11, 2021 • Adel Boukarroum

The Gulf Cooperation Council is a regional, intergovernmental political and economic union in the Middle East. In 2015, ecommerce revenue in the GCC was $5.3 billion, or just 0.4% of gross domestic product. By 2020, revenue had quadrupled to $21.6 billion.
Business
eCommerceFuel Founder on Work-Life Balance, Priorities

November 5, 2021 • Eric Bandholz

Andrew Youderian is the founder and CEO of eCommerceFuel, a leading online community of established store owners. He oversees a diverse team and manages a growing business with worldwide members. Surely, one would think, he works long hours with little downtime.
Local Business
Charts: Physical Retail to Transform Layout, Purpose

November 3, 2021 • Adel Boukarroum

The shift to online buying could prompt physical retail stores worldwide to commit a third of their space for online fulfillment. That's according to Edge by Ascential, a U.K.-based research and advisory firm.
Business
21 Years In, 2BigFeet Charts Opportunities, Growth

October 29, 2021 • Eric Bandholz

Where can you find a size 24 men's shoe? At 2BigFeet.com. Brandon Eley co-launched the business in 2000, before Google AdWords and long before Facebook and Shopify. "We've seen a lot of changes in 21 years," he told me. "Keyword stuffing was legitimate search engine optimization back then."
Business
Ecommerce Briefs: Walmart; Amazon Logistics; Holiday Shopping

October 28, 2021 • Marcia Kaplan

"Ecommerce Briefs" is my occasional series on news and developments that impact online merchants. In this installment, I'll focus on Walmart's ecommerce activity, Amazon's parcel delivery, and consumers' holiday shopping intentions.
Payments
Here’s Why PayPal Should Acquire Pinterest

October 25, 2021 • Armando Roggio

PayPal has denied published reports that it is interested in acquiring Pinterest. Nonetheless, if consummated, the transaction might be the first of many similar acquisitions as platforms seek vertical integration. In this post, I'll address why it makes sense for PayPal to buy Pinterest.