HIGH-TOUCH INDUSTRIES AT A DISADVANTAGE IN ECOMMERCE High-touch industries such as B2B software, real estate, and telecommunications, that require the engagement of an virtual agent to sell and/ or service their products and services have been largely left behind by ecommerce technology, while low-touch industries such as books, apparel, electronics, and others thrive with continually evolving technologies. Do-it-yourself website companies such as Shopify and Weebly are rife with shopping carts, inventory management, and similar solutions that assist users in building low-touch ecommerce sites quickly and efficiently. But when it comes to high-touch industries, these websites are largely relegated to informational portals that are constructed to lead customers to off-line communications such as email, calls, and store visits.   INCREASING DEMAND FROM CUSTOMERS FOR ONLINE ENGAGEMENT Customers today are increasingly demanding that their commercial needs be met online as they look for faster and easier ways to shop for products and services. Global retail ecommerce grew at an astonishing rate of 24.6% in 2021 and took up 11.7% of the total retail market[i]. Every day we find more examples of companies such as Amazon and EBay displacing traditional or brick-and-mortar counterparts as these counterparts are forced to retrench or restructure. Similarly, customers […] read more