Increased Online Sales Come with Bad Actors Report Reveals

The time for e-commerce is now

Red Points surveyed 150 e-commerce leaders across 10 industries for their thoughts on the marketplace. Commissioned on the third week of April, the consequent report gives a first insight into how marketplaces are adjusting.

At the peak of the pandemic, around a third of the world population were living in lockdown conditions. Confined to our houses and, in many cases, unable to visit shops, global behaviours have shifted towards digital marketplaces. In total, 58% of respondents said they had seen a growth in their e-commerce revenue.

The industries with the most growth were unsurprising given the circumstances. Companies providing baby care products (75%), followed by packaged food delivery (73%) and consumer electronics (69%) saw the most consistent revenue increases. This can be explained by the growing demand for, and fears over scarcities of, these items in the first weeks of the pandemic.

Notably, the companies that were already more invested in online retail saw the most revenue growth. Of the respondents with the highest percentage of revenue already accredited to online sales, 65% saw revenue increases compared to half of the group with the lowest percentage of revenue in online sales.

With good sales come bad actors

Increased online sales is not just a cause for celebration, it is also a reason to double down on brand protection measures. The FBI has reported that, since the covid-19 outbreak, cybercrime has increased by up to four times. Meanwhile, Europol reports that cybercrime has grown more than any other criminal activity. That increase is already affecting brands: Red Points reports that 50.8% of brands have already seen damage to their reputations as a result of cybercrime.

Among companies with the highest percentage of revenue in online sales, reputation damage (78%) is the prime concern over how cybercrime can affect business. Second is counterfeiters stealing sales (71%). Protecting online reputation is a critical move for any online platform as 40% of consumers will not buy from a business with negative reviews. Although admittedly some negative reviews will come from customers unhappy with the product itself, reviews from displeased customers receiving counterfeit products will damage long-term trust.