Fast internet, round-the-clock social networking, and supersonic downloading. If these are the benefits that you are looking forward to avail with the coming of 3G mobile services, think again. The business landscape in Pakistan is going to be changed forever now. With over half of the population using the Internet via their mobiles, 3G would not only revolutionize e-commerce in Pakistan but increase the market size substantially. Those marketers who previously complained that e-commerce is still a nascent sector in Pakistan due to limited market potential can now finally take a sigh of relief.
When people want to buy something, they don’t wait to access a Wi-Fi connection to be able to do it. With 3G, they would be able to search about anything anywhere and buy right from their mobile even before they get home. This means that web businesses would finally be able to properly flourish within Pakistan and not rely on International sales for a positive return on investment. The reason why India has the fastest growing e-commerce in the world is because it offers 3G Internet to its billion people. According to The Economic Times, India’s e-commerce industry is expected to reach $70 billion by 2020. While 3G will not be enough for Pakistan to catch up with India anytime soon, it certainly will give it the necessary impetus to become a major player in the sector. With many young entrepreneurs in Pakistan starting their businesses online, 3G will bring tremendous benefits for the Pakistani economy and if leveraged properly may attract many prominent investors and venture capitalists.
Bust just like everything on earth, 3G has not come without its challenges. A customer, who clicks on the purchase button on an e-commerce site while in the rush of things, would want it to be delivered to him the same day if not straightaway. Think about it; unless a customer wants it immediately, he would go home and spend more time in researching the product before buying it. This being said, online marketers know that buying is a journey which does not only include the last-click. It may with a search via mobile, click on an ad, visiting the Facebook page and then finally directly entering the site and purchasing the product. Customers don’t just indulge in impulse buying; they usually search about it on Google before finally making a decision. 3G mobile services would enable the buyer to pass this information barrier quicker in order to lead him to make the sale. This will open a new arena for performance marketers in Pakistan as customers will now be searching about their products all the time, literally.
