Gig Economy Part 3: E-Commerce
Since 1994, the shopping world has changed due to the explosion of e-commerce. These sophisticated online shopping experiences are not only easier for the consumer but have employed millions.
Many of these great e-commerce companies are in leading positions, setting the pace and creating the trends that shape the rest of the world’s online shopping. These companies employ millions of people who work as independent workers. If you are interested in a gig with an e-commerce giant, read on:
Amazon
Amazon is one of the largest employers after Walmart in the United States. It does not just employ direct workers; it has created millions of gig economy employees over the years.
The company has expanded and created more avenues to sell your product and services via the Amazon platform. The opportunities are for established businesses or new entrepreneurs. Even if you don’t have your own product, you can use the Amazon platform to resell products created by others. In addition, many people have taken up the opportunity to become full-time authors through their Kindle Publishing platform. As a result, in terms of numbers, Amazon has over 1.5 million published authors worldwide.
eBay
eBay is a pioneer in the e-commerce industry. As a marketplace, the platform allows people and businesses to sell directly through its online auction platform.
The company, which was founded in 1995 has expanded to more than 20 countries and employed millions to sell their products on the platform. The company, which boosts 885.5 million monthly visits, employs over 4 million online people.
The e-commerce giant specializes in electronics, fashion, home and garden sports, toys, and even business and industrial products.
Etsy
If you are interested in handmade or vintage products, you can be a seller on the platform. In addition, people and companies can sell directly to the monthly 392 million website users.
Anyone can create an account on the platform and start selling. For example, a seller can sell art, photography, clothing, accessories, food, toys, and beauty products. If you are good at selling, you have over 300 million users to sell products anytime.
Shopify
Shopify is an online store that handles everything from marketing and payments to secure checkout and shipping. It helps you build, manage and grow your business by organizing the layout of your store’s appearance through various themes, which you can change whenever you want. Shopify powers over 1,700,000 online companies worldwide.
Shopify is another big e-commerce platform that hosts online stores. The platform allows sellers to design stores and sell products to its millions of monthly users. It also offers payment processing, enabling you to accept and receive payment for the products you sell.
Wayfair
If our topic of discussion is still on shopping gig economy employers, we can’t leave Wayfair off this list. Here is why;
Wayfair is an e-commerce company specializing in furniture and home goods. Founded in 2002 as CSN Stores, Wayfair provides an open marketplace where more than 10,000 global suppliers sell millions of products directly to digital customers.
Wayfair has developed offices and warehouses throughout the United States to support its digital activities and expanded its operations abroad in Canada, Germany, Ireland, and the United Kingdom. As a result, the company gets an estimated monthly traffic of 126 Million visits, which offers excellent opportunities for independent contractors to get jobs and make sales.
Alibaba
This giant Chinese online store is one of the biggest employers of independent sellers who transact daily on the platform. This multinational technology company specializes in e-commerce, retail, internet, and technology.
Like Amazon, sellers can create accounts on the platform and sell products. Furthermore, one can still source a product they don’t have from them and resell it to a new buyer. What sets Alibaba apart is they help businesses purchase large quantities of products directly from manufacturers at wholesale prices.
Final thoughts
E-commerce is the future, and you can join the bandwagon by offering your goods or services via one of these digital marketplaces. You can even resell other people’s products if you don’t have one. We all need to appreciate that these online shopping stores have played a significant role in creating employment for millions.
Check the platforms out and learn more about what you can do to get started as an independent contractor on your platform of choice. The key to running a successful online store is to make every transaction count. So, go ahead and create that account today!