The emergence of e-commerce has benefited the economy and its people at large. Buying and selling of products and services through the internet have revolutionised trade. Mainly speaking e-commerce has helped in empowering women from all walks of life.
Speaking of e-commerce, the ease and convenience to order products and services from home or office have simplified the lives of every common man. From grocery to home delivery of food, a simple mobile cover to the air conditioner, taking life insurance covers or net banking facility, you name it, and you can do it, thanks to internet and e-commerce.
Small-scale business women or even individual women trying to make their mark into the trade are efficiently using the e-commerce medium for starting up their business. Earlier women faced many difficulties in conducting business through traditional measures as it required them to travel a lot.
But with Ecommerce platform women can now carry out their business sitting at their home and without having to go anywhere.
Benefits of e-Commerce to women
- Convenience to do any business either small or big
- Minimum investment required for startup
- No investment needed for infrastructure as business can be carried out from home or any convenient place
- Minimum to no business related travels, making business easy for women
- Handicraft, handloom and craft work done by women can now reach to a large population inducing sales
- Benefit of promotion through e-Commerce platform
Women from rural areas can benefit from e-commerce on a huge scale. It is a perfect opportunity for women in villages doing skilled work. They can quickly set up their business using already existing business portals. All they need is to get registered with these portals, start the sales. The portals will only take a small portion of sales against their services.
On the other hand, small-scale cottage industries have already started working towards developing business through e-Commerce. Even government is also promoting business development through the digital medium by proving secure loan facilities to such endeavours.
How lives of women have changed
The e-commerce structure has drastically improved upon the trade undertaken by women. Women, in general, find it easy to become sellers of merchandises or services. Best examples of such benefits are handcrafted jewellery, Pottery, garments and at home service features of beauty parlours etc. with the comfort of offering products/services for their home to buying of products/services from the house itself has benefited in many aspects.
- E-Commerce is time and efforts saving
- It provides more possibilities for business growth and development
- Opportunity to explore internal trade market and influence buyers
- Create self-employment opportunities
- Instills confidence in independence
- Generated employment at large
- Improved living conditions for making good profit
Apart from the benefit as mentioned above that e-Commerce has given to women, one of the most sustained and desirable results from e-commerce has been empowering women.
The confidence to get a social standing, opportunity to earn both money and self-respect and create a name and identity, has empowered women and provided a new ray of hope, that women can do anything.