eCommerce, a.k.a. online shopping, is a rapidly changing industry – between 2021 and 2025, the eCommerce market is expected to grow to $17 trillion. In Australia, eCommerce retail contributed to a 41.5% increase within digital activity in 2020-21 alone, driven by growth in online trade. With the rise in eCommerce opportunities also comes an increase in competition across brands, so it’s essential for businesses to stay on top of the latest eCommerce trends.
In this article, you will learn:
Virtual voice assistants, such as Apple’s Siri and Amazon’s Alexa have already been around for some time, but virtual assistants in eCommerce are expected to become even more ingrained in the shopping experience. This technology can also help improve the shopping experience for those with visual impairments.
According to recent research, the voice assistant market is expected to reach about $6.2 billion in revenue this year making it a fast growing eCommerce trend.
Voice search impacts the way consumers search and shop online and makes it easier for potential customers to find your business and products using long-tail keywords.
Integrating voice search strategies, like voice-assisted bots, into your business structure can help you modernise your efforts and stay ahead of your competitors.
Consumers are looking for increased personalisation when it comes to their products and how ads are targeting them. As a business, it is more important than ever to adopt this eCommerce trend and learn how to anticipate what a customer needs and offer it to them before they even realise they need it.
Many online shops are tackling this by providing personalised recommendations based on the customer’s search and purchase history.
Personalisation can create a positive customer experience and lead to increased brand reach, repeat customer engagement and customer loyalty over time.
Consider implementing personalised recommendations into your business strategy such as email marketing, targeted content and relevant discounts based on customer behaviour data, and be sure to observe privacy laws.
As technology is becoming more advanced, so are privacy preferences and user data concerns. Although collected data serves as a helpful insight as to how to market, there is also a need to protect the privacy of the customers who are using and interacting with your product.
Zero-party data is information that is shared with your business voluntarily by the customer. For example, your company can ask users if they would like to participate in a quick voluntary survey.
Utilising the zero-party data eCommerce trend can help businesses achieve both personalisation and compliance. You can provide a personalised experience while also protecting customers’ privacy by requesting permission or feedback.
There is an increasing number of ways that customers can interact with or try out a product before purchasing. This is done through augmented reality, the latest wave of metaverse-equipped companies and technologies – and this eCommerce trend is likely going to become more popular throughout 2022 and beyond.
eCommerce businesses can use augmented reality to offer customers engaging and immersive virtual shopping experiences that allow shoppers to interact with products and create a connection with the brand, converting prospects into customers.
Reduced human interaction when it comes to customer service is becoming commonplace, and most of it is done through chatbots. For example, merchants like Sephora and Amazon rely solely on chatbots to navigate customers through the customer service portals. L’Oréal also uses chatbot messengers to help customers find their perfect fragrance.
In 2022 and beyond, 85% of all user interactions will be through chatbots, and 53% of customers would rather message a chatbot than call a customer service agent. With this growing eCommerce trend, companies can also reduce their spending on customer service agents.
eCommerce websites can use chatbots to:
With the use of chatbots, small businesses can engage with their customers by seamlessly responding to inquiries and providing support. Your business could cut down on costs by switching from customer service representatives to eCommerce chatbots.
Becoming more sustainable in our day-to-day lives is not necessarily a new trend, but businesses’ commitment to sustainability is being watched more closely by consumers.
To become more eco-friendly, an eCommerce business can do things like implementing reusable and sustainable packaging in their products or focusing on updating old utilities and Heating, Ventilation and Air Conditioning (HVAC) systems.
An increasing number of customers are drawn to companies that take eco-friendly initiatives and adopt sustainable eCommerce trends. For example, your brand can educate customers by telling them their carbon offset upon purchase.
There may be many benefits of becoming a greener company, including:
Mobile commerce (mCommerce) is the process of buying and selling goods and services through wireless handheld devices such as smartphones and tablets. This eCommerce trend has seen a rise as shopping experiences have begun to spread from traditional websites on desktop computers over to websites and social media channels on mobile devices and other channels.
For example, Instagram has implemented Instagram Shopping, a feature that allows users to shop or purchase a product directly from the post it is featured in.
Adopting the mCommerce trend by integrating multi-channel and multi-device mobile shopping options through your business’s social media can benefit your business by:
Your business can use mCommerce by offering:
This can be a great way of encouraging your social followers to convert and become customers, helping drive sales for your product or service.
Another eCommerce trend that is taking off is diversified payment options. This means that it is beneficial for companies to offer customers multiple options when it comes to checking out and purchasing.
Your business could also consider payment split options through a third-party vendor like Klarna, so customers have the ability to pay off larger purchases over time.
eCommerce businesses can offer various online payment options including:
Offering diversified payment options give users more flexibility and could result in a better customer experience. Customers may be more likely to make a purchase if they are able to pay in installments using Buy Now, Pay Later services such as AfterPay.
Following the pandemic, many customers are looking to continue to support local and small businesses. Many of these businesses can expect a more prosperous period ahead, such as fresh produce delivery services, handcrafted products, or other delivery service businesses. If you are a larger business, consider partnering with local businesses to help make an impact and leverage the shop small eCommerce trend.
Many customers choose to shop small to support a local business and purchase unique products that are often personalised or custom quality handmade goods only available through small businesses. Shopping with a small business that promotes their values helps customers feel aligned and can help foster brand affinity and loyalty.
The use of subscription models is also becoming a popular eCommerce trend that can help retain new and existing customers. Subscription models are able to give users flexibility and, if done properly, can make a positive impact on your business. Some examples of companies that have already adopted subscription models (both product- and service-related) include:
The benefits of an eCommerce subscription model include:
Businesses are expected to see a rise in video content as a way to market products and services to their users. Shoppable videos are a growing eCommerce trend thanks to the rise of influencer marketing and user generated content. Shoppable videos aim to be engaging, informative, and fun, while also including product links throughout. With just a few simple clicks, the viewer can purchase your advertised product straight from the video.
Using shoppable videos with links to your products in your eCommerce business can have many benefits including:
Having web pages that load quickly has been an important factor in the user experience for a while. This eCommerce trend is gaining even more traction. As a business, it is more important than ever to make sure your site speed is up to par – a slow-loading website could cause users to exit and not return to your page.
Having faster load times on your product pages can result in higher conversion rates. There are a number of things you can do to improve your page load speed including:
Another eCommerce trend that gained massive popularity during the pandemic is the option to get groceries or products delivered to your curbside. Although this eCommerce trend stemmed from the pandemic, it has become a simpler way for customers to shop and will likely remain popular.
This can be a great middle ground for businesses that are not equipped for or do not want to venture into home delivery.
Offering curbside delivery allows your business to attract a wider audience by allowing shoppers to order online and conveniently pick up their purchase at a designated location such as the store's parking lot.
Headless eCommerce is an eCommerce trend that is becoming increasingly popular for many brands as well. Headless eCommerce is a setup in which your shop’s front end is separate from the back end.
Headless eCommerce allows for processes and solutions to work faster and seamlessly, and allows for more creative control over the front end capabilities which leads to a stronger user experience.
Packaging has always been something that is important when selling products; the more visually appealing the package is, the more likely someone will buy it. Exclusive elements are something that may never fall out of fashion - special and reusable packaging has especially gained popularity in recent years.
Businesses have adopted the exclusive packaging eCommerce trend by adding personalisation within the package, like a thank you note or fun stickers.
Using exclusive and custom packaging helps your brand connect with customers on a deeper level and stand out from your competition. Specifically, personal touches on customers’ packages can help encourage them to come back for more.
Additionally, you can also create limited edition “drops” to further promote your products. Drops are products that are added as a special release for a limited amount of time.
This eCommerce trend creates scarcity and can help promote a sense of urgency with your customers to purchase before the product runs out. Oftentimes, products from limited edition drops will not be restocked.
A limited edition drop can help spread word-of-mouth advertising which can help attract new customers. Consider releasing products this way with social media hashtags to get the word out.
Before you decide to adopt an eCommerce trend, follow the below steps to make sure the trend makes sense for your business:
These new eCommerce trends and tips can help open up many opportunities for your business such as improving your customers’ experience and setting yourself apart from the competition. Do not shy away from trying new things and seeing if it works – you may be surprised!
To further fast-track and simplify your business growth, be sure to utilise tools, such as QuickBooks to help you organise and run your business.
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