During the height of holiday shopping season, Brafton reported that consumers were steadily shifting toward online buying and that eccommerce revenues hit record highs. Now, an eMarketer forecast suggests online sales will continue to climb, exceeding $188 billion in 2011.
The firm says that eccommerce sales saw 14.8 percent gains in 2010, reaching $165.4 billion. Growth is expected to continue, with sales predicted to rise 13.7 percent year-over-year in 2011, hitting $188.1 billion.
In 2012, the firm anticipates that online consumers will spend more than $200 billion on the web. Ecommerce is expected to hit $209.3 billion next year, which will represent 11.3 percent growth over the anticipated 2011 online sales figures. Moreover, the firm predicts a steady climb in ecommerce, with revenues predicted to reach $269.8 billion in 2015.
Internet marketers must take this as their cue to get serious about online campaigning and the purchase funnel. Brafton recently reported that search engines are consumers' leading starting points to online purchases, and search marketing combined with social media campaigns boosts CTRs by 94 percent.
