Grocery eCommerce: What You Need To Know Before Getting Started
The grocery eCommerce space is growing at a rapid pace. In fact, it's now one of the fastest-growing categories in retail, with growth rates expected to exceed 40 percent over the next five years.
Groceries are a necessity for many consumers, and they represent an enormous opportunity for online retailers who know how to navigate this market successfully.
This guide will provide you with all you need to know about starting a grocery eCommerce and my suggestion for a grocery eCommerce platform (this isn’t an ad, I just have a preference).
Keep reading to learn more!
Grocery eCommerce is a term that can cover various business models.
The term "Grocery eCommerce" can cover a lot of different business models. For instance, if you're an online grocery store, your customers will purchase groceries online and have them delivered to their door or picked up at the store.
If you're a home delivery service, customers order from your website. They have their groceries delivered by professional drivers trained in safe driving practices (and even provide customer service).
Another option is click-and-collect, where shoppers buy their products online but pick them up at the store themselves.
Finally, drive-thru shopping allows customers to pull into designated parking spaces outside their local supermarket and place orders through an app on their smartphone.
Should you get into Grocery eCommerce?
The grocery eCommerce market is increasing. According to Statista, the global grocery eCommerce market was estimated at $87 billion in 2018 and is projected to reach $100 billion in 2023. If you're considering starting a grocery eCommerce business, this growth presents a scalable opportunity.
Several factors have driven the growth in grocery eCommerce:
The ease of shopping online compared with going to physical stores (especially for busy professionals).
Customers can compare shops across brands and retailers without leaving their homes or offices.
If you want to get into grocery eCommerce, here are a few things to consider:
Have a passion for the industry. Grocery eCommerce is a massive market with many players in it. Having a passion for the grocery business (and experience) is a starting prerequisite, IMHO.
Manage inventory and logistics well. Grocery eCommerce businesses deal with many different products that must be stored correctly until they're sold or shipped out to customers who ordered them online (or delivered).
Integrate an efficient system for tracking orders so that when someone places an order, you can ship it quickly without making mistakes along the way--and without wasting any food.
Find the right niche and ensure your site is user-friendly, so customers feel comfortable shopping.
What is Mercatus?
Mercatus is a leading grocery eCommerce technology. The platform allows you to sell more products, increase sales, and decrease costs. Mercatus is also a cloud-based platform that lets you sell your products online and in-store through an omnichannel approach.
Mercatus was designed with grocery stores in mind so that they can easily add new items, update pricing or create new promotions without hiring developers or IT staff members (if they choose).
How does Mercatus work?
The platform offers you a suite of applications, including:
A customizable solution for grocery eCommerce.
A loyalty program that you can integrate with your existing customer database.
An automated marketing engine that can send personalized emails and text messages to your customers based on their interests and purchase history.
Why use a grocery eCommerce platform?
Improve sales: Online grocery shopping is a fast-growing channel. If you still need to get an eCommerce platform in place, now is the time to start exploring your options.
Reduce costs: Shoppers have high expectations for a seamless checkout experience, which means creating and maintaining an online store can be expensive if you need to do it right--and even more so if you need the right tools at hand. Grocery eCommerce platforms like Mercatus can help you maximize efficiency by reducing costs associated with building their custom solutions or hiring third-party developers for every new feature request.
Increase customer satisfaction and loyalty through better performance across all channels (web/mobile/POS): Grocery retailers need to deliver excellent experiences wherever their customers are interacting with them: Whether on desktop computers at home or mobile devices while shopping in stores or ordering ahead from their phones during lunch breaks at work, whether they're browsing recipes online before heading into stores later that evening; or even when they want advice from friends who've already tried out certain products themselves.
Grocery eCommerce best practices
In addition to making sure that the platform is easy to use and has a mobile app, you should also make sure it has good customer service.
Also:
Use a single platform: It's not enough to have one platform for inventory management and order fulfillment; you need your eCommerce site integrated with other tools such as CRM (customer relationship management) systems, email marketing software, and analytics tools so that everything works together seamlessly for you to get an accurate picture of how your business is doing at any given time.
Look for a platform that is focused on groceries.
If a company claims to be an eCommerce solution, but their website doesn't mention groceries at all, consider whether they can meet your evolving needs.
A good indication that a platform is built specifically for grocery retailers is if it offers features like:
A customizable product catalog with SKUs and images (or integration with third-party solutions).
Payment processing options that work seamlessly with your store's checkout flow.
An optimized user experience (UX) for shoppers looking specifically for food products.
In summary
As consumers' shopping habits change and grow, so does their demand for convenience and speed when buying groceries online. This Substack has given you a better idea of what it takes to start a grocery eCommerce business.
It's an exciting time to be in this industry, and there is a lot of growth potential. However, make sure you take time to compare costs and research your options, so you can ensure you’ve made the most sensible pick for your business.