E-commerce generates $1.2 mn revenue every 30 seconds: Study

The global e-commerce industry generates over $1.2 million in revenue every 30 seconds with Facebook, Pinterest and Twitter contributing $5,483, $4,504 and $4,308 respectively, says a joint study by Assocham-Deloitte.

Social networks are contributing significantly to the growth of e-commerce business revenue. The maturity of social media and its reach across the masses and classes makes it a suitable platform for online sales, said the study which was released here on Wednesday.

Social media pages provide information regarding new products in the market, user reviews and ratings of the product, recommendations, and information technology (IT) products.

"Social media also helps e-tailers build brand awareness by responding to customer queries. Seasonal sales and offers are displayed on social networks to reach maximum number of people.

"E-tailers have even started to motivate customers with reward points to provide feedback on the product on social networks," said D.S. Rawat, Assocham secretary general.

According to analysts, social networks increasingly have direct links to e-commerce sites, which provide complete product description, availability status, pricing and delivery information, and access to product reviews and ratings, all of which help prospective buyers to make a purchase.

Social media provides a platform for e-tailers to engage with customers for advertisement, building brand awareness, developing a community of trusted users, spreading word-of-mouth and customer feedback, the study added.

Payment gateways help the e-tailers to receive money instantly rather than waiting for the 'Cash on Delivery' payments, thus reducing chances of theft and fraud. The retailers are slowly moving towards payment gateways for improving security and dealing with other complexities which arise with financial transactions.