E commerce in Pakistan

E commerce in Pakistan

By

Mishal Shaheen

The number of registered e-commerce merchants has witnessed more than 2.6 times rise in recent time in 3G/4G services. There is more availability of cheaper smartphones and better internet packages.

Pakistan has one of the highest usage of internet and mobile services in Asia

Pakistan has one of the highest rates of mobile and Internet penetration in South Asia, with 40 million Internet subscribers and 20 million Facebook users.

It has encouraged users to start using this growth for their profit

This visible growth has encouraged many retailers to operate their own websites or use online marketplaces to sell their products. But there is still much room to grow.

E commerce success rate in Pakistan

According to statistics, Pakistan’s e-commerce sales amounted to $622 million in 2017 and projected to cross the $1 billion mark by 2020.

How did E commerce boost up?

Apart from technology, some of the factors that have served as a catalyst to e-commerce growth include ease of purchasing, availability of cash on delivery option, a variety of products to choose from and customer reviews and feedback on social media. Although it is a fairly new trend in business for Pakistan, the online shopping trend is spreading quickly.

It shows that despite the fact that online shoppers are largely from the urban areas, rural shoppers are also willing to go online to make purchases for goods they cannot find in local markets.

Read impressive article on Top 5 Trends for 2019

What should be done?

This high growth in terms of sales and consumer preference has also encouraged brands to rethink their strategy with regards to conventional retail channels and try alternate e-Commerce methodologies.

Quality of products is also an issue which should be addressed by online retailers to boost consumers’ confidence.