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Will the price of gas increase online sales?

vwebworldvwebworld subscriber Posts: 40
edited May 2008 in Marketing
Just a thought... as gas prices climb  consumers may turn more to online resources to purchase goods and services rather than jumping in their car and drive to a store.
 
Ecommerce sales are expected to continue to grow and the price of gas adds another reason.
 
If you do not have an online presence with ecommerce capabilities, you should get one. If you do have a web site / ecommerce store make sure it is user friendly, easily found, and communicates your product/service differentiation.
 
Why not add - "save gas/money - shop online" to your ecommerce marketing?
 
~Roland
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Comments

  • DaleKingDaleKing subscriber Posts: 141
    Way ahead of you! I`ve been using something similar in my sig file for over a week.
     
    Dale King
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  • vwebworldvwebworld subscriber Posts: 40

    Way ahead of you! I`ve been using something similar in my sig file for over a week.
     Dale King
    You`re always way ahead of me Dale ~Roland
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  • DaleKingDaleKing subscriber Posts: 141
    Nahhhhh, you actually beat me to the punch on this one, Roland. You posted your topic before I posted mine.
     
    Dale King
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  • DaleKingDaleKing subscriber Posts: 141
    Regardless of gas prices, people are going to shop for food and daily items in stores. So it still comes down to offering something that people simply can`t get in brick-and-mortar stores, for whatever reason.
     
     
     
     
    No one is disputing that. But there`s a variety of reasons that online sales are continuing to grow. And one of those reasons is the soaring costs of gasoline. No one can deny that gasoline prices are having a positive effect on online sales.
     
    And regarding offering items that people can`t buy in brick-and-mortar stores...that myth was blown up a long time ago. For instance, this past Christmas I purchased two Hunter air purifiers as gifts from Amazon. I could have very easily purchased the same items at Walmart. But that particular day, I didn`t feel like getting in my car to go get them. The point is people buy online for convenience more than anything else.
     
    Dale King
    DaleKing5/24/2008 3:54 PM
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  • DaleKingDaleKing subscriber Posts: 141
    We likely won`t see online shopping completely replace going to a store in the local area.
     
     
     
    That`s a safe assumption. Just like e-books won`t phase-out paper books. There will always be a certain segment of the population who prefer to hold a a real, tangible book in their hands.
     
    Dale King
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  • OldeNikkoOldeNikko subscriber Posts: 0
    Omega point...
     
    Good concept Craig.
     
    Like the days of that new thing called TV and the perceived threat to the movie industry... the movie "bigs" were all up in arms about TV killing movies. OR... the advent of cable over broadcast TV --- Different horses, same stuff out of the south-bound end of that north-bound critter. --- History has shown that at some point, there is a leveling off an in the end, and both sides prosper... IF they work for and at it, improving and serving their customers in the very best way they can, given the limitations they have to work within.
     
    Lesson...?
     
    You figure it out, my brain hurts just thinking about it and all the ways for both sides of the consumer supply chain to profit by this inevitable social change. (Are not ALL social and climate changes really inevitable? It`s the nature of the beast!)
     
    OldeNikko5/28/2008 12:36 PM
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  • DaleKingDaleKing subscriber Posts: 141
    People will use the site---online or physical---if they can get what they want.

     
     
     
    ...Or if it`s "convenient." Don`t underestimate convenience when it comes to consumers. Why do you think convenience stores can charge so much more for items than your local supermarket? Convenience!
     
    Convenience is a huge motivating factor for consumers, both online and off.
     
    Dale King
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  • nevadasculnevadascul subscriber Posts: 3 Member
    Just food for thought.
     
    Dell computers relied heavily on e-commerce sales for their business model and saw a big drop in sales.  They forgot that a lot of people still like to see and touch products they are buying.  Dell now has partnered with Walmart  to sell computers.  I think the high cost of gas will make people consolidate shopping trips, not necessarily drive more people to e commerce sites.
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