Have you ever pulled out the last roll of toilet paper and started to panic? How will I get to the store before this roll is gone? I have a meeting to prep for and a paper to write by tomorrow! Then you remember your dash button by Amazon on the wall right next to the toilet. Perfect! I just press this button and a case of toilet paper will arrive at my door in two days. What a lifesaver! Modern technology and e-commerce transactions bring you toilet paper, laundry soap, even coffee, all at the press of a button. 
How many people really shop online?
Pew Research found the earliest e-commerce transaction occurred in 1994. By 2015, total eCommerce revenue grew to $350 billion dollars. If this survey were to be conducted in 2018, I’m sure the number will have increased significantly. The survey found that 79% of Americans shop online. For comparison, in 2000, only 22% of Americans made purchases online.
Is online shopping generational?
It doesn’t have to be! Younger generations have grown up with technology and the internet. 90% of respondents age 18-29 buy items online. Millennials (those born between 1980-2000) are the largest demographic group in America and have a growing economic impact. They make up the largest generation currently in the workforce. Income combined with experience making online transactions makes for a formidable digital shopping contingent. In comparison, 65% of those 65 years or older buy items online. This number is still higher than expected for Baby Boomers who are newer to the online world.
From the comfort of your home
Online shopping allows you to shop from the comfort of your own home, at any time of day. As a new mom, Amazon Prime saved me when my son was an infant. We placed orders almost daily. I could order right from my phone as I was feeding him, without having to pack him and all his things up to go to a store.
24% of Americans make no purchases in cash during a typical week. Ease of payment is very important when making an e-commerce transaction. This has led to developments with Apple Pay, Google Pay, and others. Now I can buy something just with the scan of my fingerprint. This makes me as the consumer feel more secure with an additional biometric security feature.
Are brick and mortar stores dying?
Even with the prevalence of online shopping, the physical store is not obsolete. Consumers do have concerns including waiting in lines and price differences. Forbes reports that waiting in line at a physical store for longer than 5 minutes is unacceptable. Shoppers are used to the convenience of online shopping. James Frost, UK CMO, Worldpay, says that “in a world where consumers can browse, buy and arrange receipt of goods at the touch of a button from their smartphone, the idea of waiting in line is increasingly at odds with the type of experience shoppers now expect from high-street retailers.”
Even though two-thirds of online shoppers prefer to buy from a brick and mortar store, price differences remain the decision-making factor. Shoppers are tied to who has the best deals.
The next time you are looking at the last roll of toilet paper, will you press the Dash button or go to the store?
For me, convenience always wins.