Small businesses to rule e-commerce

New Delhi: E-commerce has changed a lot of the ways that companies do business. E-commerce with all new eras, advances in technology have forced businesses to evolve, creating new ways of doing business and new rules for conducting business.

The internet revolution has come a long way as far as promoting business is concerned. It is indeed believed that "consumer connect" becomes more enhanced and better managed with online platform and initiatives. This is the reason why people today prefer to explore their requirements for products and services at various online platforms.

The online shopping and consumer connect has been growing at a phenomenal rate in India and every state and small town readily understands this fact with such great dynamism that even local businesses now prefer the online route. It is shown that 97 per cent of internet users look for local goods and services online and one in five searches are local who means someone is looking for a product or service nearby. Three out of four Smartphone users contact a business they found on their phone due to which online presence is becoming a boost for all business whether they are small or big. Small businessman earlier was never highlighted and thus never got an opportunity to grow. It is no more a coincidence now that a lesser known organizations are making their identity via e-commerce and making them available worldwide.

Launching a business online does not have to be rocket science now. With the right tools anyone can profile themselves online and be successful at it too. There is a plethora of e-commerce resources available to place the business online and make it easier and affordable to the reach of consumers.

The popularity of online platforms improves the branding of a company thereby making small vendors enhance their business prospects. Today the burgeoning demand to be online is only making these small businesses improve their profit quotient by channelizing their presence in right platforms. Thus, local businesses are finding new ways to promote themselves by widening the search game of the consumers.

Getting one's business online is dedicated to grow small businesses by making it fast, easy, and free to get online. Local businesses of recent times have surely gained momentum with more and more consumers feeling the necessity to raise the bar of these small scale businesses. Over the next three years, businesses that make use of the web expect to grow 40 per cent faster than those that don't.

Small businesses are undoubtedly vital for India's socio-economic development and ironically 95 per cent of the SMEs do not have a web presence or a website which is hampering the visibility of these businesses.

Today even small businessman sitting in different part of the country doesn't necessarily possess a website because it is believed that creating a website is very expensive. However, with the e-commerce platform, today people realize that website creation is not that expensive. Rather, one requires the right kind of website creating agencies who assist in this manner at lucrative terms and conditions.

The importance of a website is today growing amongst businesses including small and medium scaled since people understand that website allows consumers to know everything one needs to know regarding the company and its services and features.

There are various online service providers who are helping SMEs offering them to create a free website and business directory listing, providing them an excellent online service and assisting them to generate leads from prospective customers. It is helping local businesses to scale up and sustain them nationally.

There are several main categories under which local businessman and professionals can register them for free like Automobile Dealers, Car Rentals, Construction Machinery and Supplies Chemists, Electronics, Electrical Equipment, Fitness, Entertainment, Fashion, Lawyers, Dentists, Restaurants, Taxi services, Agriculture, etc.

Local Businesses with so many advantages is surely carving its niche in the online space and ruling the E-commerce world.

(Rahul Jalan is the Director of Indiaonline.in)