eCommerce in the spirit of sustainability. e-Chamber report - eCommerce news #no. 32

We buy sustainably, use online stores from all over the world, and, due to rising inflation, our orders are becoming more thoughtful - these are the conclusions drawn from the latest reports from the world of eCommerce, which you will read about in the 32nd edition of Advox Press Release! Do Poles buy responsibly? How are consumers' budgets shaping up during the pre-Christmas period? Is there about to be a revolution in the global delivery market? Read now and stay up to date with industry trends!

eCommerce for a sustainable future - Chamber of Electronic Economy report

For the second time, the Chamber of the Electronic Economy has prepared the report "Odpowiedzialny e-commerce". The study presents the issue of corporate social responsibility (CSR) in the context of online shopping - what does this year's edition reveal? It turns out that domestic consumers buy responsibly - although defining the term CSR comes with difficulty, more than 50% of them indicate that they buy online out of concern for a sustainable future. What is the attitude of the other side of the transaction, i.e. online store owners, towards the above issue?

From a business perspective, the level of CSR knowledge is much higher. Entrepreneurs not only see image and strategic benefits for their own brand, but also feel the need to educate customers about sustainability. What's more, the above efforts are reflected in reality - 68% of respondents indicated that Polish eCommerce is more responsible than its non-EU counterparts. The rest of the report shows, among other things, that:

• 71% of e-consumers pay attention to whether the delivered shipment is packaged in an environmentally friendly way,
• 68% of online shoppers are willing to wait longer for an order to get all the products they ordered in one delivery,
• Online shoppers check the return policy (52%) and the complaint process (50%) before buying,
• Consumers consider the most environmentally unfriendly e-commerce practices to be the use of foil to package shipments (22%), packing food products in plastic bags and commercials (20%), as well as packing small products in large packages and using fillers (18%).

There is no doubt that CSR has become a permanent part of business - raising social and environmental awareness is in the interest of all market participants. Joint activities in this area positively promote the formation of safe conditions for further development in the future.

You can read the full report on the website of the Chamber of Electronic Economy. Do you think your business is socially responsible? Check if it meets the standards highlighted in the study.

Christmas shopping in times of inflation - Channel Factory study

November has begun in earnest, and with it the holiday preparations! Gifts, decorations or groceries are expenses that year after year exceed the average monthly budget. In the face of rising inflation, how are consumers going to plan for costs? The shopping mood of shoppers was examined by Channel Factory in its Festive Season survey.

An overwhelming number of respondents admitted that they intend to look for savings while buying gifts for relatives. Due to rising prices, cheaper equivalents of products such as perfume, jewelry and electronics will be much more popular. In addition, 32% of those surveyed indicated that they intend to look for ways to cut costs during planning food expenses. On the other hand, 33% of the group said they would reduce around-Christmas entertainment. How are retailers responding to the above market situation?

The answer to today's challenges for eCommerce store owners is, first and foremost, to effectively design a plan of operations during the promotional season - 85% of consumers say that it is during the sales that they will make their holiday purchases online. This is why it is important to prepare your eCommerce for Black Friday or Cyber Monday. Equally essential turns out to be the development of effective online advertising - more than half of consumers make their final purchase decision based on persuasive advertising content.

For more tips on how to operate your business during the holiday season, read the full survey.

New definition of global delivery planned by the Universal Postal Union

Consumers are increasingly choosing to shop via overseas sales platforms - it is estimated that cross-border eCommerce will reach more than $2 trillion in 2023. Most customers are confidently navigating the global marketplace, but a sizable number of them still point out difficulties arising from the specifics of this type of shopping. Dominant among the problems cited are high delivery costs compared to domestic ones. An attempt to reduce them has been made by the Universal Postal Union (UPO), a United Nations body that focuses activities around cooperation between postal sector players. The deliberations conducted at the upcoming Extraordinary Congress may bring revolutionary decisions on the subject. What will they relate to?

According to reports, the common point for all the changes is to unify the conditions for delivering packages in accordance with the EU principle of non-discrimination and to minimize the risk of supply chain disruption. It is announced that additional costs for shipping outside the issuer's country will no longer apply, and the final rates will correspond to those inside the country. For carriers, on the other hand, the rules for delivering documents and postal parcels will be standardized, as a result of which it will be possible to deliver orders more efficiently and reduce the level of formality.

Operators united in the UPO dominate in terms of shipments delivered in the global market - they consist of representatives of 192 countries (including the Polish Post as a representative of our country). Joint action of such a large number of operators is undoubtedly an opportunity for real change.

What will the future of international shipping look like, and how will the upcoming changes affect the cross-border eCommerce industry? Read more by clicking on this link.