Ecommerce was very much seen as a passing fad or gimmick when the pioneers of this great web institution began. Certainly being tied to your computer screen to make a purchase you would have to wait for wouldn’t hold the interest of consumers… Right?. Yet consumers began to shop were and sales were made none the less.

One of the most challenging difficulties associated with early online transactions was the safety of the shopper’s personal financial information. As Internet hackers gained access to non-encrypted personal data it was a crushing point for many ecommerce businesses. There had to be a better way to conduct online business.

The Debut of Encryption

Webopedia describes encryption this very simple way:

“The translation of data into a secret code. Encryption is the most effective way to achieve data security. To read an encrypted file, you must have access to a secret key or password that enables you to decrypt it.”

The keys to ecommerce were given back to online businesses when transactions became encrypted. The new found privacy of customer data allowed ecommerce to become a viable and safe option for consumers once more.

Suddenly the world small business and extensions of brick and mortar stores began to grow and entrepreneurs began to willingly begin to seriously consider web sales opportunities.

This was a whole new way of doing business on the cutting edge of intangibles, like global reach. No longer did business owners absolutely have to have a sales staff, no longer was an outgoing personality required for business startup, no longer did business mean a brick and mortar storefront.

Business Without Borders

The possibilities expanded even more and more businesses began to recognize their business could be presented in a global fashion, for less startup and operational expense

Business had so long always been associated with a town, region or district, but online businesses could be conducted without geographical barriers or distinctions.

Ecommerce made way for an opportunity to explore the world of business… For anyone possible. What had been seen as elite and unattainable was suddenly a genuine opportunity. Ecommerce soared in to business owner’s hearts on a ‘no discrimination’ policy. Entrepreneurs of all ages, racial distinctions and economic levels began to find value in marketing to a worldwide customer base, who cared more for the product than the stigma of personal definition and clout that often made brick and mortar business more difficult.

An Interesting Paradigm

A financial phenomenon that has taken place in many ecommerce stores as a growing percentage of online sales continue to grow, while brick and mortar store sales are either static or in a slight decline. This seems to indicate a genuine change in the purchasing decisions and shopping patterns of our consumers.

Perhaps in the future we will see more Internet product fulfillment centers and fewer brick and mortar storefronts as ecommerce continues to gain steam as a premier shopping alternative, and valid marketing avenue