Ecommerce continues to grow and, subsequently, impact retail practices across industries. Mobile device use is driving a large part of this trend and is predicted to make up 45% of ecommerce revenue by 2020. As such, brands need to pay extra attention to the experience shoppers have on all different devices as they develop digitally cohesive marketing plans. Streamlined strategies that include social media, influencer marketing, email, and content marketing are more important than ever given that 73% of online consumers use multiple channels to shop.
Beyond mobile, there are a number of ecommerce trends shaping the future of the industry. We’ll talk about some of those below.
Social Selling
Over 3.48 billion people use social media worldwide, so it is no surprise that the major social media platforms are now offering ecommerce integration. Instagram added a “shop now” button, Twitter launched product pages, and Facebook introduced a “buy” button for brands to utilize. Ecommerce and paid advertisements offer lucrative opportunities for social platforms to increase their revenue so being competitive is as important for them as it is for the brands that compete through them.
Instagram, Facebook, and other platforms attract brands by offering various user targeting options. They also offer detailed reporting, high engagement rates, and profitable conversion rates if managed effectively. Social giants are reducing the footprint of the buying process by removing the friction and allowing users to swipe or click on your product straight from their social media feed and pay instantly via tools like Apple Pay and Google Pay.
By 2020, it will be essential for brands to reach their target audience via ads on Facebook, Instagram, and other major social media accounts. And the competition will only grow as more brands dive into this sort of advertising.
See our article: How Social Commerce is Changing Retail
Artificial Intelligence
Artificial Intelligence (AI) technology is capable of learning individual consumer’s habits and demographics using customer data. Many ecommerce sites are already integrating a function of this technology to perform dynamic personalization where automated emails are generated with content and subject lines determined entirely through the power of the AI system. By 2020 we will see a lot more eCommerce sites joining the trend and taking advantage of the possibilities that AI offers.
Predictive Analytics
Predictive analytics encompasses a variety of statistical techniques that analyze current and historical data to generate predictions about future happenings. As complex as it might seem, predictive analytics provides ecommerce businesses with amazing insights when it comes to automation and predicting a customer's actions. And for those without mathematical or statistical talents, there are a number of online resources that provide analytics tools and assistance.
Subscription-Based Models
While overall wealth for consumers in their twenties is lower than twenty years ago, disposable incomes are higher. This means that consumers in this age group are making fewer large, one-time purchases but are willing to spend smaller amounts of money on a regular basis. As a result, subscription-based ecommerce businesses have become more commonplace and are expected to continue to grow in popularity. Platforms like Squarespace are even integrating this option into their offerings.
See our article: Subscriptions for Squarespace Commerce – Total Simplification
The convenience of a monthly automated direct debit and the fun of receiving a monthly product or service is enticing for many modern consumers and especially so for millennials. These younger consumers, as a whole, are prioritizing personal experiences and emotion, over larger, more generic purchases of items like cars and homes. The combination of an experience-first mentality and the time constraints of busy professionals is contributing to the growth that subscription-based businesses are experiencing. If your brand can pull a subscription element into your ecommerce offerings, you can leverage an amazing opportunity to expand your business in a way that can provide much higher levels of revenue and repeat business.
Mobile Payments
Mobile payments will continue to increase as the number of mobile optimized payment methods grows, functionality improves, and the number of devices that have the functionality to pay for products online instantaneously increases. The growing popularity of technology such as virtual assistants, contactless cards, wearable devices, and augmented reality will drive cashless transactions in the future, making it easier for consumers to shop ecommerce sites.
As the security of mobile payments improves, this digital payment option will reach record use.
Chatbots
As platforms like WhatsApp, Snapchat, and Facebook Messenger have gotten consumers used to private messaging, many businesses are utilizing this technology to facilitate one-on-one interactions. However, it’s not really a person-to-person communication. Artificial Intelligence technology in the form of chatbots is simulating real conversation and has already replaced real people talking to the customers for a number of brands. As we move into 2020, brands will continue to take to private messaging with chatbots answering questions, offering product recommendations and discounts, and resolving customer queries and complaints.
See our articles for more information on this topic:
What Is A Chatbot and Do I Need One? from April 2018
The Latest on Chatbots from May 2019
Conversion Optimization
New users rarely enter your ecommerce website through your homepage. If you have an ecommerce site selling a product through Google Shopping or on a social platform like Facebook, users click on your ad and are most often taken straight to the product page, not the homepage. When prospective customers enter your site via these internal pages, it is likely to be their first interaction with your site and brand. So, it makes more sense to put an emphasis on internal pages and to spend time optimizing your product and other landing pages rather than your homepage.
Summary
Technology is evolving at an overwhelming rate and is an excellent catalyst for the expansion and diversification of the ecommerce industry. The ecommerce trends we’ve discussed in this article have brought success to many ecommerce websites:
Social Selling is expected to reach 2.95 billion by 2020 and will be essential for brands to reach their target audience.
Artificial Intelligence has already been integrated into a number of ecommerce sites and advances in the technology will prompt even more sophisticated use of this resource.
Predictive Analytics provides ecommerce businesses with amazing insights to help increase not only their relationships with consumers but also their bottom lines.
Subscription-Based Models have become more commonplace and are expected to continue to grow in popularity as younger generations attempt to balance the realities of life along with their increasingly high expectations for quality of life.
Mobile payments will continue to increase as the technology and security of these resources improve.
Chatbots will increasingly replace humans in brand-consumer digital communications to provide assistance whenever consumers require it.
Conversion Optimization efforts are shifting from the brand homepage to specifically tailored landing pages.
The experts at Strategy Driven Marketing would love to learn more about your brand and business goals. We have extensive experience helping organizations create and maintain ecommerce websites that are an expression of their brand and direct channel to their customers. From creative and front-end development to functionality, responsiveness, and more, SDM can help you provide an amazing user experience that will create a buzz about your brand and keep customers coming back time after time. Contact us today to learn more!