Not long ago BoaCompra’s experts described just how connected the Chilean market has been, in this article, and how important this connectivity has been for the growth of e-commerce in the country. News of great development then became a natural consequence, as soon as online consumers became more confident about buying online.
Stats on Online Shopping in Chile
Once e-commerce websites became more customary as choice of purchase method, payment options started changing a bit as well. According to this report released by Statista, e-commerce in Chile increased 25.8% in 2018 and online payments grew 36.8% in the first quarter of 2018, according to a report released by the National Chamber of Commerce, Services and Tourism (CNC).
It is indeed a vibrant scenario for digital businesses in the country. As the online market moves towards online stores, local and international merchants have been celebrating, since it is getting easier to reach new clients, and payment processes are facilitated with online tools.
The same report stated that 57.6 million transactions were registered on e-commerce websites during that semester, an increase of 43.9%. The categories that showed best performance were:
- Products (Consumer Goods) – increase of 49.9%
- Tourism and Entertainment (T&E) – increase of 44.4%
- Services – increase of 42%
Credit and Debit card usage soars by 17.2%
It is a well-known fact that cash is one of the most popular payment methods among consumers in Chile, especially to cater to everyday needs. This is a trend followed by Chile’s neighbouring countries in Latin America, and several international merchants have adapted their commercial strategies in order to meet local payment demands.
In 2018, however, this report published by the CNC described a significant change among online Chilean consumers’ habits: online payments with credit and debit cards increased 17.2% during the first quarter of 2018.
For any international merchant focusing on e-commerce in Chile and wanting to take advantage of this thriving market through a payment aggregator, BoaCompra offers several local payment methods – such as local credit and debit cards – and a 24×7 customer service in Spanish.
More Online Channels, More Sales
According to the CNC Studies Department’s manager, Bernardita Silva, these changes reflect the high penetration of the Internet among the Chilean population and the efforts of e-commerce merchants to promote their products using smart strategies and offering great deals online.
In this article, Silva also states that “this is also a great opportunity for entrepreneurs and small businesses because an online channel gives them the ability to reach a larger audience and reach markets that were previously inaccessible and thus sell their products or deliver their services in a more efficient way and often at a lower cost”.
This is just a consequence of an impressive growth in the number of online users, whose demand for digital services has risen year by year, as shown in the article “Chile: The Importance of Cash and Internet Penetration in e-Commerce”.
