We live in a world of e-commerce, yet its significance was duly recognized during the first year of the Covid-19 pandemic in 2020. E-commerce not only kept the world going but to a large extent, also helped in controlling the spread of the virus. Online purchases eliminated the need to step out, hence reducing the volume of people buying their daily needs at the brick-and-mortar stores.

E-commerce has been around in India for almost 2 decades now, however, the emergence of a new disruptive force is starting to revolutionize this industry. This disruption has arrived with aggregators like Uber, Oyo rooms, Ola, etc. who have gone on to establish multi-million dollars’ worth businesses. The concept of an e-aggregator is now being rapidly adopted in the retail industry and they are making online shopping an entirely new hassle-free experience, full of choices. Let’s examine how these aggregators are transforming the entire e-commerce industry.

Bringing the customers and the sellers together

Aggregators bring together the products from merchants across the country on their platform where the end consumers make their purchases. The technology for the online stores along with the display and promotion of the merchant’s products are taken care of by the aggregators, hence saving additional time and money for the merchants. Since these websites offer a wide range of choices to the consumers and have a much higher click-through rate, the chances of potential customers visiting these websites are greater than a standalone product or an individual merchant’s website. This eventually leads to better visibility and consistent sales, helping the merchants run their businesses smoothly.

Shopping is hassle-free

Although the aggregators offer hundreds of choices for any given product, they seldom overwhelm the user with choices. Most aggregators provide the consumers with several filters to narrow down their search results as much as possible to find the near-perfect product. They also provide better search results during the consumer’s subsequent visits based on their previous searches and preferences. Additionally, few of the aggregator websites provide the facility of comparing similar products from different brands or sources. With various such inclusions, the potential consumers can be well informed and can balance between their needs and their budgets.

Removed the limitations of time and place

Aggregator websites are on the internet and come with no limitation of time or space for shopping. With an increasing number of consumers using the mobile phone for browsing the web, these mobile-friendly websites allow them to shop while traveling, eating in a restaurant, or walking in the park, or the wee hours of the night at their homes. This is a win-win situation for the aggregators, the merchants as well as the end consumers.

Recommendations and reviews

While buying a new product from a new source, consumers want to learn from the experience of others who have used it before. In the real world, the consumers have to rely on the words of the merchant when buying a product; but with online shopping, they can read the reviews and experiences of others who have already purchased the product. Aggregator websites not only encourage their consumers to review the product but also provide them with an opportunity to review the merchant, the delivery agency, and the after-sales services. This way, the new consumers get ample information about their desired product and can make an informed decision.

New ideas and innovation

Since aggregators do not own the products, they heavily invest their time and effort into improving the technology and innovation on their platforms to create the most fulfilling shopping experience for the consumers. They also work on assisting the merchants in promoting the products that are on display on the platform. Aggregators also use Artificial Intelligence in customising the platform for the shoppers and provide them with recommendations based on their usage pattern and inputs, leading to an easy and seamless shopping experience.

Uncertainty is history

Covid-19 showed the entire world how uncertain life can be. At the time when the world came to a standstill, the retail industry was on the verge of collapse. But the e-store aggregators came to the rescue of both merchants as well as the consumers and kept the industry, the society, and the economy going. Even for any future Covid-19 like situation, the e-store aggregators are expected to neutralize the uncertainty and help life flow with minimal hindrances.

As mentioned earlier, e-store aggregators are emerging as a disruptive force revolutionizing the retail industry by simplifying the online shopping experience. The funding and investments that these aggregators are attracting are a clear indication of the industry embracing them with open arms. Therefore, one can expect that these aggregators are here to stay and continue to make our online shopping of requirements ranging from groceries to clothing, a satisfying one.