Digital River Pens White Paper Examining Risks and Rewards of Manufacturers Selling Direct-to-Consumers via E-Commerce
White paper offers best practices roadmap for direct e-commerce
MINNEAPOLIS — Mar. 31, 2014 — Digital River, Inc. (NASDAQ: DRIV), a leading global provider of Commerce-as-a-Service solutions, announced the availability of its newest white paper, which helps branded manufacturers navigate the all-important decisions about how to establish a direct-to-consumer (DTC) e-commerce business model. The free white paper entitled, “Presence, Intelligence and Conflict: Opportunities and Challenges in Direct-to-Consumer E-Commerce,” not only indicates the rewards of having a DTC e-commerce channel, but also offers a best-practices roadmap for maximizing a DTC online sales presence.
As modern retailing continues to evolve, the move toward the DTC e-commerce channel by branded manufacturers is gaining momentum. In fact, in a 2013 global survey of brand marketers, 24 percent said that they already have an active DTC channel and 41 percent said that they expect to sell directly to consumers within 12 months.*
Digital River’s DTC e-commerce white paper examines the factors that are driving this trend and gives manufacturers insights regarding their own paths to e-commerce. The paper explores perceived channel conflicts, challenges with supporting brand identities and technical knowledge requirements, as well as the benefits that DTC offers, including a powerful engine for mining consumer data, the opportunity to build new customer relationships and revenue growth. The paper also shows the ways that DTC can have the counter-intuitive effect of improving channel relationships.
“Consumers are increasingly going online to shop, not only for convenience, but also to connect directly with the brands they trust. From power tools to toys, and sporting goods to small appliances, shoppers are also looking for more product choices and variety. This is inevitably leads to the manufacturer,” said Tom Peterson, Digital River’s executive vice president and general manager of commerce. “It’s up to the manufacturer to carefully consider when, why and how it will make the move to DTC e-commerce. This white paper offers manufacturers great background for exploring these decisions, initiating internal discussions, and learning about strategies that have worked for other DTC sites.”
Click here for a free download of “Presence, Intelligence and Conflict: Opportunities and Challenges in Direct-to-Consumer E-Commerce.”
About Digital River, Inc.
Backed by 20 years of e-commerce experience, Digital River is recognized as a leading global provider of Commerce-as-a-Service solutions. Companies of all sizes rely on Digital River’s multi-tenant, SaaS commerce, payments and marketing services to manage and grow their online businesses. In 2013, Digital River processed more than $30 billion in online transactions, connecting B2B and B2C digital products and cloud service companies as well as branded manufacturers with buyers across multiple devices and channels, and nearly every country in the world.
Founded in 1994,
Digital River is a registered trademark of Digital River, Inc. All other trademarks and registered trademarks are trademarks of their respective owners.
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