Todays episode is brought to you by …….. the letter E. If you had the privilege of watching Sesame Street as a kid, than you appreciated that reference and the walk down memory lane. But as luck would have it, I wasn’t kidding. This discussion is inspired by the letter E.

And now for the “E-tails”. There is no question that the Internet has become an integral part of sales in today’s business climate. And why not? Corporate management the world over are not about to leave any stone unturned or not make use of any avenue of selling goods and services.

And it has been working out quite nicely over the recent years. For example in the UK the Office for National Statistics reported that UK on line retailers generated £167m per week in February 2009. It was also reported that E commerce made up 3.4% of all retail sales in the UK.

In the United States, Citi Investment Research projects a 4.4% e-commerce sales growth for 2009 (topping out in the $141 BILLION USD range) and 16.5% growth in 2010. E commerce has already top out over $100 Billion in recent years in the USA.

Keep in mind this also includes the strains and weight of an ailing economy circling the globe. And there have been times of percentage declines and dips at certain points during the past year in e-tail sales. Some areas of retail have been effected more than others however. Overall though, e-commerce has been very strong and in fact more and more people are using the Internet for shopping to help save time and cost to get round and about to shop in person.

Most likely most of us know what e-commerce is. Nevertheless we will avoid any possible confusion by spelling it out. Simply put, e-commerce is the sale of goods/products and services via a website.

Earth wide, for instance, according to the Nielson Company, the most popular items purchased over the Internet are books, clothing/accessories/shoes, videos/DVD’s/games, airline tickets, electronic equipment, music, cosmetic/nutrition, computer hardware, hotel/tour reservations, event tickets, computer software, groceries, toys, sporting goods, auto’s and auto parts, and sports memorabilia. But the list goes on and on.

The list of services is also very extensive. Among the services purchased on line are a host of technology based services. On line services provide, but are not limited to, training, tutorial, work for hire, and consultation assistance and support. And as Internet businesses continue to multiply and develop, the demand for on line related services will increase.

It doesn’t take a brain surgeon to surmise that the sale of products and services will result in income for the Internet retailer. And that my friend can be your income? But there are also other revenue possibilities connected to e-commerce. Here it comes ………

That’s right, you called it, advertising related income. On your e-tail web page, aside from your products and/or services, you will have a modest array of eye pleasing ads sprinkled about. As a result of these ads you will potentially earn some sponsorship dollars and/or some pay per click dollars.

To get your share of e commerce money you will need to learn and apply a few things. You will need web marketing and web management know how. You should have a firm grasp of sales and merchandising. You should thoroughly know your products and.or services. You need to understand delivery and how to properly set up an on line shopping cart. You should embrace the value of customer service from one end of the spectrum to the other and practice it at every step of the way. That will help you in all of the other related areas of e commerce operations.

So don’t tell me how to get to Sesame street, tell me where I can find your web store.

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