Consumers today expect uninterrupted shopping experiences when browsing through online stores. Even the smallest of downtimes can cause an e-commerce business to lose sales because of frustrated customers and a damaged brand reputation. This makes reliable internet connectivity an absolute must-have for online businesses.
In this post, we explore how dedicated internet connectivity can help improve your e-commerce store’s uptime, improve customer experience, and boost your bottom line.
What is Downtime and How Does it Impact E-commerce Businesses?
Downtime refers to the period when your online store is unavailable to customers. This can result from connectivity issues, server overload, or other technical difficulties in the platform.
Studies have found that e-commerce businesses lose almost 10% of their revenue to downtime and website performance issues.
For larger stores with high traffic, downtime can cost thousands of dollars per minute and lead to long-lasting brand reputation damage.
Why is Reliable Connectivity Important for E-commerce Uptime?
Here’s why online businesses must invest in a high-speed internet connection:
i. Real-time Updates
E-commerce platforms require consistent updates to manage orders and inventory and address customer service requests. A lag in internet connectivity can cause delays across processes, impacting operations on both the front and back end of the business.
ii. Customer Trust
Slow page load times or frequent site downtimes can drive users away. Frequent downtimes can drive visitors away, impacting trust and brand loyalty in the long run.
iii. Secure Transactions
Online stores need to handle sensitive payment data, making it crucial to maintain a secure environment. A reliable connection reduces the risk of interrupted transactions, minimizing failures, duplicate charges, and other errors.
How Can Dedicated Leased Lines Ensure Reliable Connectivity?
Unlike the standard broadband connections that share bandwidth between multiple users, a dedicated leased line offers your e-commerce business exclusive and constant bandwidth. Here are some of its benefits:
i. Guaranteed Bandwidth
Your business gets a fixed bandwidth dedicated to only your operations. This allows you to handle high volumes of traffic, especially during peak shopping times like Black Friday or the holiday season.
ii. Reduced Latency
Leased lines can reduce delays in page load times and ensure faster response times with low-latency connections. This helps offer better online shopping experiences to users.
iii. Increased Reliability
With a dedicated bandwidth, you’re less likely to experience service interruptions even during high-usage periods.
Benefits of Dedicated Leased Lines for Online Stores
Dedicated leased lines also offer significant advantages to WooCommerce and Shopify stores:
i. Improved Speed and Performance
Studies have shown that a delay of one second in page load time can reduce conversions by 7%. A dedicated leased line ensures your load times remain fast and responsive.
ii. Real-time Data Processing
For automations like inventory management to run seamlessly, businesses need to process real-time data. Dedicated connections ensure the updates can remain instantaneous so that there are no disruptions in processes.
iii. Seamless Communication
E-commerce businesses need to proactively communicate with customers across the buying cycle. Dedicated leased lines ensure automations like WooCommerce or Shopify order confirmation emails go out on time.
iv. Improved Security and Compliance
A leased line provides a private connection to your e-commerce business. This reduces the risk of cyber threats and phishing attacks that are common on public networks.
v. Business Continuity
Dedicated leased lines ensure consistent uptime as they come with defined Service Level Agreements (SLAs) with guarantees. The connection providers also offer continuous support and recovery to clients.
How to Choose the Best Leased Line Provider for E-commerce Businesses?
While there are several dedicated leased line providers today, we recommend considering the following when evaluating the options:
- Bandwidth options – Ensure that the provider offers the bandwidth you need based on your site’s traffic and transaction volume.
- SLAs and support – Look for providers that offer strong SLAs and responsive support for faster troubleshooting.
- Pricing – While they pay off in terms of reliability, subscribing to dedicated leased lines is costlier than the standard broadband. So evaluate the ROI of the subscription.
- Scalability – Your store’s requirements will change over a period of time. Ensure the leased line provider can scale the bandwidth available to you with ease.
- Security measures – Get details on the security features and workflows set up by the provider, including data encryption, firewalls, and protection against Distributed Denial of Service (DDoS) attacks. This is also essential for protecting customer data and ensuring PCI compliance.
- Contract terms – While some providers offer flexible terms, others may lock you in for a defined period. Consider your business’s stability and growth potential before signing a lengthy contract.
- Industry experience and client references – Before choosing a leased line provider, seek client references, testimonials, and case studies. It’s important to also check for industry experience.
- Value-added services – Check for the additional services offered by providers. This can include cloud hosting, virtual private networks (VPNs), and security monitoring.
- Tech stack integration – Choose a provider whose infrastructure can easily integrate with your current IT environment and tools. This can make managing and monitoring the connectivity easier.
Conclusion
The competition for consumer attention is increasing daily. It’s important to engage their interest while they’re in the store, and to do so, ensuring good uptime is important.
With a dedicated leased line, your e-commerce store can deliver consistent performance, security, and reliability to the new-age customers who are always shopping on the go.
Read More : What Is Leased Line Connectivity?
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