September 16, 2002

Are Small E-Tailers Finished?

News Factor: In online malls, small businesses selling the same products as larger e-tailers may find themselves marginalized unless they can afford to purchase good placement. But small e-tailers are not finished, according to analysts. In fact, they are just beginning to gain momentum in a Web world that finally offers the necessary technology infrastructure to help them get off the ground. And the savvy ones have come to understand the real value of the Internet: It is a cost-effective means of supplementing sales by reaching customers who may have been inaccessible offline. (full story)

My spin:It's easy to contemplate on the demise of online retailers, but I think the reason many MAY have failed (but MANY, MANY are doing well) is that vendors and "the media" have hyped up the net to BE much more than what it is and to DO on the 'net what should not be done.

For example, remember about 3 years or so ago the focus on paying $100 or so per month to be in a "mall" what a joke...an online mall is so different from an offline mall. Yahoo Stores is NOT a mall by the way.

It may have some mall like features and may even drive SOME traffic like a mall might - but stores on Yahoo or anywhere else must concentrate on their OWN marketing and customer development.

In any case, one thing contributing to the success of how far technology has come. As the article reads - "In the past, people had to build their own Web pages, and the billing systems were horrid," Giga Information Group research fellow Rob Enderle told the E-Commerce Times. "Now you can use a service like PayPal for billing and collection."

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