Why Hospital Gift Shops Need E-commerce
Having an online presence is becoming increasingly important for all trades and for retailers in particular. Retailer’s online marketing strategy should include online shops that operate alongside existing store-based outlets. Offering customers an online option leads to the idea of "endless aisles" within the retail space, as they can offer products online without the need to merchandise the inventory within the shop’s physical location. This is especially important for Hospital Gift Shops who have extremely limited space and must carefully consider their inventory options.
An online gift shop not only benefits the hospital gift shop but also patients and their loved ones as well. A loved one who lives in New York can easily send a gift to a patient in a hospital in California from the privacy of their home. An online gift shop allows for 24 hours a day, 7 days a week service for customers and enables them to shop online at any hour of the day or night, outside of shop hours, providing an obvious huge advantage for hospital gift shops.
Online shopping has become a multibillion-dollar revenue stream and online shopping retail sales are predicted to grow steadily to $370 billion in 2017, up from $231 billion in 2012. It is clear to see that a hospital gift shop who does not have an e-shop is missing out on a lot of potential revenue.
E-commerce Benefits for Hospital Gift Shops
The benefits of e-commerce include its round-the-clock availability, speed of access, and wide selection of goods and services for the consumer. The process is quick, easy, and convenient. The majority of e-commerce websites are retail stores selling products directly to the public, allowing them to reach a greater number of consumers who are not in close proximity. Physical stores are limited by the geographical area they can service, an e-commerce website provides an international and even global reach.
E-commerce enables the consumer to complete transactions from the comfort of their own home, transactions take only minutes rather than hours. It is convenient, saves time, saves gas, and offers a greater product selection. E-commerce is no longer a luxury for hospital gift shops, it is a necessity to maximize growth.
The Proliferation of Mobile Search
I would say that mobile is the future of marketing, but the era of mobile has already arrived, more users are spending larger amounts of time engaged with mobile devices than ever before. We can expect this growth trend to continue in the future.
According to recent reports, 40% of users’ internet time is spent on mobile devices. Walk around any public area and you’ll find more than just a few folks with faces glued to their smartphone screens.
Google refers to mobile search as “The new font door to your store”. There are now more Google searches on mobile than desktop, and more than half of all web traffic now comes from mobile and tablet devices. This has all happened primarily in the past two years, and this trend will only continue. We are a mobile society, with unparalleled processing power in our pockets. And with the improvements around voice search, it will be easier than ever to search for things while on the go.
Mobile traffic now exceeds desktop traffic! Companies like Yelp have reported that 55% of all searches are from mobile devices. It is safe to say mobile is important for hospital gift shops.
About Healthy Commerce
Healthy Commerce got its start in 2005 with our first website, HospitalGiftShop.com (HGS). Since that time HGS has grown into the largest network of online hospital gift shops in the United States. We now have more than 550 hospitals under contract and thousands of orders are placed through our partner E-commerce shops every month.
Healthy Commerce provides our partners (hospitals and clinics) with highly-customizable, fully-hosted, online E-Shops, providing our partners with the opportunity to gain a reputable online presence, an enhanced patient experience and added revenue from commissions on all sales. All with absolutely NO financial commitment or overhead required!
Our Mission
We believe that a patient receiving flowers and gifts from a friend or family member can act as a powerful motivating force towards a full and speedy recovery. Therefore our ultimate mission is to aid in improving the outcomes of patients in every hospital nationwide by easily connecting them to their loved ones through an E-Commerce shop located directly on the hospital's website.
Benefits of HospitalGiftShop.com
- We manage the E-shop orders both online and by phone
- Customers can reach a live person 24/7 on our 800 line
- We manage re-routing for home delivery if discharged
- We manage returns, cancellations and substitutions
- The core of our agenda is a continued focus on improved patient experience
- Allows loved ones who don’t live in the area to easily and conveniently send gifts
- Improved patient satisfaction
- We strive to put the patient first, and create a patient- and family-centered culture.
- Gain added revenue for your hospital
- Product selections unique to your location
- Online inventory is virtually unlimited
For more information on how your hospital or clinic can easily and quickly begin realizing the benefits of E-commerce contact Maria Sternlicht at maria@healthycommerce.com or 760-473-0712.
