Economy – Xocbox

09 Mar23:55pm

44% Increase in US Ecommerce Sales in 2020

2020 turned out to be an amazing growth year for retail sales with total sales increasing 6.9% to $4.04 trillion up from $3.78 trillion in 2019 according to the US Department of Commerce figures.

Despite the coronavirus having a negative impact on in-store shopping, online shopping increased and was responsible for the total overall gain in retail sales, the first time that the total gain in retail sales has been due to ecommerce sales alone.

While Amazon remained the number one retailer in North America, other retailers continued with their push into the online sales arena. Amazon accounted for 31.4% of all US retail sales in 2020 and while this is a huge part of total overall sales, their percentage lead was down from 2019 when they accounted for 43.8% of total online sales. However, it was still other large stores that made more headway in online retail sales. Those that made gains included Walmart, Best Buy and Target.

So it comes as no surprise that the majority of retailers whether large or small are looking to increase their spending on technology and technology related products during 2021.

Whether they are looking to move to a different ecommerce platform, improve website functionality or automate processes, there is no question that the pandemic has caused a major shift in the way online shopping is viewed by both retailers and more importantly, consumers. No longer an afterthought but a major consideration for any serious retailer, online sales are now viewed as an integral part of any retail business.

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02 May00:25am

How the pandemic is shaping tech decisions

There is no doubt that the decisions that retailers made early this year about where to focus their tech spending are changing rapidly as the year unfolds.

Whether it’s trying to attract a new, shelter-at-home shopper, the addition of new more relevant product lines, or how to carry out regular retail processes more efficiently with a smaller number of employees all working remotely, retailers large and small have been struggling to meet the challenge of COVID-19.

We have found that the pandemic has affected our retail customers differently, with some becoming busier than they were during the holiday season and looking for ways to automate more of their processes, some looking to boost their supply chain processes and source new products, and others trying innovative new marketing strategies such as live webinars, allowing them to connect on a more personal level with their customers.

xocbox has also been working to find innovative solutions to help our customers by working with their existing websites and technology, and introducing new integrated custom solutions to enable them to remain competitive and keep selling products during these difficult times.

If you are looking for cost-effective ways to manage your retail operation with the help of technology, we would love to help you – call us today at 858-752-3803.

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28 Apr21:55pm

As Ecommerce Grows, Recruiting Gets Tougher

The recent headline on the front cover of Internet Retailer magazine screamed out Always Be Recruiting. What is happening in the etail world?

Due to the improved economy, and huge growth in e-commerce, experienced e-retail staff have found themselves to be in great demand.

While this is great news for those seeking work, it is making life difficult for employers trying to find the help they need to remain competitive, and is especially frustrating for small and mid-sized companies whose staff may be moving on to greener pastures.

The US Labor Department’s Bureau of Labor Statistics is predicting strong growth technical jobs that are essential to e-commerce. In fact, a survey by Dice.com which finds jobs for technical staff, found that 71% of those surveyed expected to see an increase in the number of technical staff they employ by as much as 11% in the first quarter of this year, and this scenario is expected to continue throughout the year.

One way companies are approaching this problem is with the use of technology in their own systems and processes to fuel growth, and this is where xocbox can help.

One of our customers recently observed that a process his staff had been doing manually before incorporating it into xocbox’s system, had taken about 15 minutes to do and involved cutting and pasting information from one place to another and possibly reformatting the data.

Since xocbox provides a central place to manage data from different sources, we were able to include this task into their processes, allowing staff to update data in their site in a matter of minutes by simply pressing a button and cutting out hours of tedious work.

If you are thinking of hiring more staff to keep up with an increasing workload, and ever changing demands, contact xocbox to see how we might be able to help.

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