Ecommerce facts about this holiday indicate 2017 is going to be the greatest year ever for e-commerce gift giving and in some very important ways.

Because more than just the big numbers, ecommerce facts about this holiday season indicate more people now believe the benefits of shopping online are better than offline. They are proving it with their spending. And this is a trend likely to change holiday buying behaviors for many more years to come.

Here are 23 ecommerce facts about this holiday season.

1. $107.4 billion is expected from ecommerce sales this holiday season (+14% vs year ago) (Forbes)
2. $6.6 billion from Cyber Monday (+17% vs year ago) (Forbes)
3. 3 hours on Cyber Monday (from 8 PM to 11 PM) account for more sales than the entire rest of the day (Forbes)
4. For the 1st time, Cyber Monday sales are greater online than offline (Forbes)
5. $5.0 billion from Black Friday (+16% vs year ago) (Forbes)
6. 88% of people plan to spend money on Facebook marketing this season (Paradox Labs)
7. 82% of people prefer delivery through shipping during the holiday (Ecommerce Nation)
8. 81% of respondents reported free shipping as a primary motivator for doing more of their shopping online (Walker Sands)
9. 80% of all transaction to occur from the 100 largest U.S. web retailers (Adobe)
10. 78% of online shoppers want more images from ecommerce sites (Big Commerce)
11. 75% for retailers in the probability of converting a desktop or laptop shopper during the holiday season (Deloitte)
12. 66% of frequent online shoppers have used Amazon Prime in the past year (Walker Sands)
13. 60% of all online sales are from Amazon this holiday season compared to 50% last year (Cuker)
14. 59% of converting a smartphone shopper to purchaser for a retailer (Deloitte)
15. 55% of ecommerce transactions on Thanksgiving and Black Friday were captured by Amazon (Bloomberg)
16. 54% of visits to ecommerce sites from mobile this holiday (smartphone + tablets). This is the 1st holiday season where more ecommerce sales have come from mobile rather than desktop  (Forbes)
17. 51% of holiday budgets are planned to spent online, compared with 42% in-store (Deloitte)
18. 51% of Americans think shopping online is the best way to shop, with 49% preferring shopping in-store (Big Commerce)
19. 51% of Millennials would be likely to make a purchase over social media; 36% of Gen Xers would be likely to make a purchase over social media; 14% of Baby Boomers would be likely to make a purchase over social media  and 3% of seniors would be likely to make a purchase over social media (Big Commerce)
20. 48% of online shoppers have bought or spent more than planned when shopping online (Big Commerce)
21. 40% anticipate using a retailer’s app on their smartphone (Deloitte)
22. At 28% (-3% vs. last year), department stores placed a distant third behind the Internet and mass merchants as a shopping destination (Deloitte)
23. 23% are influenced by social media recommendations (Big Commerce)

Do these ecommerce facts give you a good idea of people’s buying behaviors this holiday season. Is your business ready to take advantage of the opportunities in ecommerce for next year.

eCommerce case studies show how regular audits and improvements to a website produce big results from seemingly small changes.

That’s because most of us now prefer to buy online, especially Millennials. And businesses that make the process easier, simpler and more seamless are going to see the benefits. Consider these facts:

• 85% of customers start a purchase on one device and finish it on another. (Google)
• 67% of Millennials and 56% of Gen Xers prefer to shop on online rather than in-store. (Big Commerce)
• 51% of Americans prefer to shop online. (Big Commerce)

Just what happens?

Here are 15 eCommerce case studies that show big results from small changes.

1. BANDAGES PLUS: Is an eCommerce site that sells compression therapy supplies, bandages, tapes, ready-made kits and more. Bandages Plus serves a unique audience specifically looking for their products. They segmented products into categories that included best sellers, high-margin items and others. The segmentation was reflected in their Paid Search ad campaigns which targeted ads by user groups. The improvements resulted in a 50% increase in both transactions and revenue.
2. COMPANY FOLDER: Makes custom folders and wanted to remedy their online quote function. This was a vital step in their marketing funnel, so making the process as smooth as possible was essential to ultimately driving more sales for the business. They took a cumbersome single step process with lots of options and broke it up into a multi-step bite size process. Doing this resulted in a whopping 67.68% increase in total quotes.
3. DIAMOND CANDLES: Is a company that features rings beneath the wax of its candles. By utilizing customer-contributed photos on its Facebook page, Diamond Candles upped conversion rates and attracted more than 290,000 new Facebook fans.
4. DIVA: Is a fashion retail chain based in Australia with more than 160 stores worldwide. Slow load times and functional obstacles created challenges for conversions among eCommerce case studies. Site improvements were implemented such as: 1) Removing obstacles and diversions to the Shopping Cart when the user wanted to keep shopping, 2) speeding up the site via site enhancements and Google Page Speed Service and 3) improving social sharing and proof. The results was average revenue per visitor was up 92%
5. EDIBLE ARRANGEMENTS: Offered customers a same-day delivery option but people weren’t taking advantage of the offer because they didn’t know about it. To educate customers about this option they significantly increased visibility with a large banner in an extremely prominent position on the homepage, just below the navigation bar and featured a countdown timer to the deadline for same day delivery. It was impossible to miss or misunderstand. What is the result of this simple countdown feature among our eCommerce case studies? An increase in same-day sales by 8%.
6. ENVELOPES.COM: Wanted to see if they could “rekindle the flame” and land some sales from hot leads using target followups. So they tested out email sends at two alternate time lapses post cart abandonment; the first group sent the following morning at 11 am and the second group 48 hours post cart abandonment.  Although both did well, the emails sent 48 hours later delivered the best conversion rate and sales with: 1) An open rate of 38.0%, 2)  a click-through rate of 24.7% and 3) a conversion rate of 40.0%
7. EXPRESS WATCHES: Debated whether to communicate a lowest price guarantee versus a stamp of authenticity on their website. They tested variants with both, each telling a different story about the clientele: bargain hunters vs aficionados. The results were pretty surprising. By labeling the site with a badge of authenticity, Express Watches saw an increase in online sales of 107%. A huge differential from the price based messaging, simply from a little seal of authenticity.
8. HOUSEPLANS.NET: Is an eCommerce site that sells ready-designed house plans direct to consumers. The audit revealed some issues that could be addressed with a thorough link audit and cleanup. A Content Audit found opportunities to improve the site quality as a whole and clean up indexation in Google. That process involved pruning underperforming content on the site, which turned out to be close to 80% of all product pages. This resulted in a 434% increase in organic traffic revenue over the previous year.
9. LILGADGETS HEADPHONES: Sold its headphones exclusively on Amazon. The idea was to offer parents a choice they didn’t previously have in the children headphones market — a simple and clean look with amazing sound and premium components. But to stand out and create a competitive advantage, Lilgadgets needed to build a brand, which meant developing a site of their own. They made sure to offer a custom checkout experience where customer could see where they were in the process and what was left to complete. The result was: 1) A 38.3% lift in peak conversions, 2) an average conversion rate of 8% and 3) conversions have risen despite advertising campaigns that have increased site traffic by 80%.
10. MODERN COIN MART: The self-described “Modern Coin Superstore” added a simple trustmark to its eCommerce site to ease customers’ anxieties about the purchasing process. A tiny graphic produced monumental results among our eCommerce case studies, boosting sales conversions to 14%.
11. PAPERSTONE: Is a small paper company that competes with large brand big box stores like Staples and Viking. With most people defaulting to the brands they know best, Paperstone needed to find a way to leverage their strengths against the competition; lower prices.
12. RADICALGOLFCARTS.COM: Is an eCommerce store selling aftermarket golf cart parts and accessories. They overhauled their website with changes such as: 1) Fix a SSL Certificate Issue on the site, which caused some browsers to prompt users in the cart with a warning the site was susceptible to hackers, 2) use a Favicon, the little icon seen at the top of tabs and in browser bookmarks is the unsung hero on online branding and conversions, 3) increase the presence of Free Shipping on the site and 3) elevate the presence of Trust Factors in the Cart and Checkout. When the pieces came together, sales were up 66%,
13. TOTAL HOME SUPPLY: Is an eCommerce site that specializes in selling products for private homes and businesses, such as air conditioners, heaters, fireplaces and appliances, as well as other home and business needs. There was no call tracking to determine where conversions were coming from, and lack of tracking made it hard to determine the full value of their ad campaigns. Call tracking was implemented to better understand conversion. The call tracked increased cost 9%, but revenue increased 199%.
14. UNDERWATER AUDIO: Had a problem with visitors who were in the middle of their sales funnel, researching specific products but then dropping off at the comparison page. When they noticed this leak they decided to get to the bottom of it. The new version did away with the data tables, streamlined the text, and put everything above the fold. The redesigned page had an increase in online sales of 40.8%
15. WINE ENTHUSIAST: Put content into play to earn trust with consumers. The company’s website features wine reviews, articles and videos to help build an audience. The content helped yield a 50% increase in monthly email opt-ins.

Do these eCommerce case studies convince you of the big results possible from small changes? Does your eCommerce business need to be examined to see you can improve?

Ecommerce stats show we buy more online from more devices in more places and at more times of the day than ever before. And this migration is going to continue.

But ecommerce consumers are savvier. They have high expectations and demands that, if not met, cause them to go elsewhere and not likely to return.

To help your business get the most from this movement, here are 52 ecommerce stats every marketer should know to grow.

WHO BUYS? AND HOW MUCH?

1. $394.9 billion are ecommerce sales for 2016, an increase of 15.1 percent from 2015. (U.S Department of Commerce)
2. 191.1 million U.S. online buyers. (Statista)
3. 98.9 million online buyers who have purchased at least once via a mobile device (Statista)
4. $1,800 in the U.S. and $1,600 in the U.K. is how much the average eCommerce consumer spend per customer over the course of the year  (Statista)
5. 80% of the US population has made an online purchase; 50% have made more than one. (Business Insider)
6. 67% of Millennials and 56% of Gen Xers prefer to shop on online rather than in-store. (Big Commerce)
7. 54% of online purchases are made by Millennials. (USA Today)
8. E-commerce sales in 2016 accounted for 8.1% of total sales compared to 7.3% of total sales in 2015. (U.S Department of Commerce)

WHAT ARE BUYING BEHAVIORS?

1. 51% of Americans prefer to shop online. (Big Commerce)
2. 58% of consumers say their least favorite part of shopping online is paying for shipping. (Small Biz Trends)
3. 55% of consumers would rather interact with technology in store than a sales associate. (Forbes)
4. 49% of parents say they cannot live without online shopping. (Big Commerce)
5. 46% of online shoppers read social media reviews and blogs before purchasing online. (Selz)
6. 46% feel online review help make them feel confident about their purchase and 45% feel they make companies be accountable to their customers. (Pew Research)
7. 39% of Americans have shared their experiences or feelings about a commercial transaction on social media platforms. (Pew Research)
8. 30% of all products ordered online are returned as compared to 8.89 percent in brick-and-mortar stores. (Small Biz Trends)
9. 25% of online shoppers are age 54 or older. (IBM)
10. 23% of shoppers are influenced by social media recommendations/reviews. (Big Commerce)

WHERE ARE WHEN DO THEY BUY?

1. 85% of customers start a purchase on one device and finish it on another. (Google)
2. 82% of Americans consult online ratings and reviews when buying something for the first time. (Pew Research)
3. 72% of Millennials research and shop their options online before going to a store or the mall. (Forbes)
4. 65% of Americans indicate that when they need to make purchases they typically compare the price they can get in stores with the price they can get online and choose whichever option is cheapest. (Pew Research)
5. 62% of smartphone users have made a purchase online using their mobile device in the last 6 months. (Outer Box)
6. 44% of retail internet minutes were spent using a smartphone device, while 11% were spent using a tablet, as compared to just 45% spent using a desktop. (IBM)
7. 43% of online shoppers have made a purchase while in bed. (Big Commerce)
8. 43% of e-commerce traffic comes from Google search (organic) and 26%  comes from Google Adwords. (Wolfgang Digital)
9. 40% of Americans (and roughly half of those under the age of 50) indicate that they nearly always turn to online reviews when buying something new. (Pew Research)
10. 23% of online shoppers have made an online purchase at the office. (Big Commerce)
11. 20% of American online shoppers have purchased from the bathroom. (Big Commerce)
12. Only 11% of users access the Internet via desktop only – almost all users are using multiple devices. (comScore)
13. 22% of consumers spend more as a result of using digital; just over half of these shoppers report spending at least 25% more than they had intended. (CMO)

WHAT ARE EXPECTATIONS?

1. 92% of U.S. customers would consider delivery within 2 days to be ‘fast delivery’, but only 18% would consider delivery within 5-7 days as fast. (Criteo)
2. Over 90% of people buying on Amazon wouldn’t purchase an item with less than three stars. (Feedvisor)
3. 75% of reviews on eCommerce sites give the full 5 stars. (YOTPO)
4. 71% of shoppers believe they will get a better deal online than in stores. (Selz)
5. 69% of online shoppers want more reviews from ecommerce sites. (Big Commerce)
6. 66% of online shoppers have decided not to buy an item because of shipping costs. (Big Commerce)
7. 44% will abandon their shopping card if the shipping cost is too high or if there are unexpected additional charges. (Receiptful)
8. 40% of customers are fine interacting with chatbots. (Forbes)

WHAT CAN YOUR BUSINESS DO TO BENEFIT?

1. Using product videos on eCommerce sites can increase product purchases by 144%. (Small Biz Trends)
2. 88% of shoppers characterize detailed product content as being extremely important. (Forbes)
3. 74%of small business websites have no eCommerce. (Small Biz Trends)
4. 60% of shoppers actually read your return policy before completing a sale, and the return policy ultimately influences 80% of the sale. (Small Biz Trends)
5. 60% of consumers have completed a “buy online” to “pickup in-store” purchase via mobile. (Forbes)
6. 50% of mobile coupons that are redeemed are captured from a retailer’s site by the consumer. (Neilsen)
7. 58% of the Top 1000 US online retailers send welcome emails. (Internet Retailer)
8. 39% of smartphone users have redeemed at least one digital coupon in the past year. (Neilsen)
9. 30% of mobile shoppers abandon a transaction if the experience is not optimized for mobile. (Marketing Profs)
10. 30% of mobile coupons are obtained from specialty sites like Groupon and Living Social. (Neilsen)
11. 20% of grocery store sales are expected to come from online by 2025. (CNBC)
12. At least 15% of retailers will offer a price match guarantee. (Biz Journals).
13. Online sales in the United States are expected to reach $523 billion, up 56% from $335 billion in 2015. (Forrester)

To know what’s next in ecommerce, here is an infographic from the Villanova School of Business.

Do these ecommerce stats you see how your business can benefit. Do you need building an ecommerce plan for your business?

Peter Drucker (at right) said:  The purpose of a business is to create and keep a customer.

How would Peter say brands that do business online are doing?

The trend is brands continue to do more business online, Despite a weak economy, online sales have grown for five consecutive quarters and, in the 4th quarter of 2010, online sales were a record breaking $43.4 billion, +11% versus year ago, according to comScore.

But statistics show for companies that learn social media skills, the benefits are a lot greater.  If you have a brand that has an online presence (and who doesn’t), these stats give direction on how to better manage your time, resources and marketing dollars.  More important, they show how to create and keep more customers now and for some time to come.

Here are 12 surprising stats that show the benefits to brands that learn social media skills.

1. TRAFFIC TO COMPANY WEBSITES IS -23% IN THE PAST 12 MONTHS.  More business is moving online but the company website is clearly becoming less relevant.   
2. 25% OF TIME PEOPLE SPEND ONLINE IS ON SOCIAL NETWORKS. That’s up from 15% a year ago and shows pretty directly where all that traffic away from company websites is going.
3. 40% OF COMPANIES NOW DRAW MORE TRAFFIC TO THEIR FACEBOOK PAGE THAN THEIR WEBSITE.  According to the Harvard Business Review, it’s part of our DNA as human being to want to share our brand experiences with others.  The numbers show more people would rather learn and stay in touch with brands through social networks than listen to the company speak of corporate websites.
4. 22% OF COMPANIES  NOW HAVE A BLOG BUT THE AVERAGE RATE OF POSTING IS 1X/YEAR.  That’s over 1 in 5 but the average publishing rate is 1 in 52.  The business building potential of blogs has not even been touched.
5. ONLY 30%  OF COMPANIES CLAIM TO USE SOCIAL MEDIA MONITORING TOOLS TO REPORT CONVERSATIONS ABOUT THEIR BRANDS TO THEIR MANAGEMENT.  Social media offers brands the opportunity to fish where the fish are but not if you don’t listen to where the conversations are occurring.
6. 57% ADMIT THEIR BRANDS ARE AT RISK NOT USING TOOLS TO MONITOR CUSTOMER CONVERSATIONS.  This may occur for a variety of reasons: 1) Not enough time, 2) not enough resources or 2) lack of knowledge about specific monitoring tools.  With over half admitting their brands are as risk, the liklihood some progress is going to occur is good.   
7. THE #1 REASON PEOPLE PRESS THE A FACEBOOK “LIKE” BUTTON IS TO RECEIVE PROMOTIONS AND DISCOUNTS.  In other words, when consumers are on Facebook, what we are saying to brands is “talk to me because if I like what you do for me, I’m going to be your biggest fan.”
8. BRANDS THAT USE FACEBOOK FOR ECOMMERCE ACHIEVE 2%-4% CONVERSION (ON PAR WITH ECOMMERCE WEBSITES) AT NO COST THROUGH WALL POSTS.  The same conversion rate for no money.  Sounds like a no-brainer to me.
9. FACEBOOK STORES (A SIMPLE, FREE OR LOW COST ADDITION TO A FACEBOOK PAGE) TYPICALLY SECURE 1-10% OF A BUSINESSES’ FAN BASE.  This is perhaps one of the best illustration that social media can be used for social commerce.
10. OVER 40% OF THE TIME PEOPLE ARE ON TWITTER, THEY ARE LEARNING ABOUT PRODUCTS/SERVICES OR PROVIDING OPINION ABOUT BRANDS.  That’s close to half the time consumers are on Twitter..
11. PEOPLE SPEND 20% OF THEIR TIME ON TWITTER BUYING PRODUCTS:  Here’a all the brand related reasons people go to Twitter.
12. THE RATE OF GROWTH FOR “SOCIAL COMMERCE” (SALES THROUGH SOCIAL NETWORKS) IS PREDICTED TO INCREASE +56% ANNUALLY FOR AT LEAST THE NEXT 5 YEARS.  That’s far above the increase in online sales noted at the top of this post.  It is expected to continue at this pace for some time as the chart before for Booz & Company illustrates.  Said another ways, brands that use social media for sales are going to more than double their business every two years.

The sources for this statistics comes from a variety of companies and individuals.  They include: Booz & Company, comScore, ExactTarget, Harvard Business Review, Marketing Profs, Silicon Alley Insider, Social Media Examiner, WebTrends, Mike Stelzner, Ann Handley and Jeff Bullas with my thanks.

Do these stats surprise you or cause you to want to learn social media skills for your brand?