Trends in the Ecommerce World

commerce, the buying and selling of goods and services electronically, is becoming the preferred way for the modern consumer to purchase goods. Consumer behaviors began changing prior to the pandemic to online and electronic shopping and are projected to nearly double in the next two years. As a company that wants to succeed, it pays to understand how eCommerce is changing, how to utilize eCommerce for profits, and how to market an eCommerce business to gain the most benefit.

How Modern Ecommerce Landscape is Changing

Modern consumer behaviors are quickly becoming wrapped around eCommerce through omnichannel buying. Omnichannel buying behaviors allow a modern consumer to purchase items through multiple channels for a seamless shopping experience. It allows consumers and brands to communicate in a variety of ways.

Instead of a consumer being tied to only one way to shop for a product, omnichannel shopping allows the same shopping experience whether the consumer is shopping in a brick and mortar store, on their smartphone, or on a computer. If a consumer starts a purchase of a product seen on a social media platform, leaves that platform and visits the store from a smartphone, the items previously viewed or placed in a shopping cart will still be available without any extra steps.  

Another example of omnichannel buying is using reward points for a brand. The customer may use a physical card to swipe while in a brick-and-mortar store to gain points on items purchased, an app to use away from the store to order a product or to order ahead that links points, and automatic rewards when ordering online from a website. Wherever the customer shops, the points are always there.

Growth of Ecommerce Activity

Ecommerce come a long way from its inception in 1969. With technological advances and a global pandemic, the need and desire for e-commerce continue to grow as the preferred way to shop. Online purchases increased from 53% prior to the pandemic in 2019 to 60% following the pandemic during 2020-2021. Ecommerce trends are projected to reach 22% of total global retail sales by 2023. This is compared to 14.1% prior to the pandemic in 2019.

When examining only one area of eCommerce such as grocery sales, the growth has been slower in 2021 compared to the growth of 2020 due to the lockdown of the pandemic. Projected digital grocery sales are expected to skyrocket from $122.4 billion in 2021 to $243.7 billion in 2025. Just as large chain grocery stores will profit from an eCommerce platform, small businesses like convenience stores will be able to join in on the revenue created with an online presence.

Marketing

When marketing an omnichannel concept for a brand, there are several ways to approach the campaign once the initial platforms are created. Prior to marketing, customer-based considerations need to be decided, then the marketing strategies can be paired with those considerations.

Marketing to the Target Audience

How will the brand find, support, and manage the target audience and chosen marketing techniques?

• Focus content on the way potential customers will be valued. What are the desired customer demographics? What pain point can be addressed? What does that demographic value?
• Choose your channels. Where would the identified demographic most likely see or purchase the products? These may include YouTube, social media platforms, blogs, podcasts, commercials on streaming television platforms, or a standalone website
• Consider the main organizers of the content. If the content creation and management are done in-house, will it support all the desires of the eCommerce platform? If it is done by an external source, are the funds available to accomplish the set goals?

Marketing Strategies

Once the decisions have been made, consider different ways to market the product or service to the audience through an omnichannel approach:

• Produce original content: The customer knows if a brand understands its demographic. Be original with content. Be engaging and dynamic. Speak to the demographic with content that is specialized for the pain points and interests they possess.
• Optimize websites: Create a way for the website to be used to capture customer data. Revisit the website often making sure it is navigated easily and speaks to the customer’s needs. Ensure the mobile version has satisfactory form, fit and fidelity. Remember that the whole idea behind truly streamlined ecommerce is to have an omnichannel approach.
• Utilize social media: Social media platforms such as Twitter, Instagram, Facebook, and TikTok can be used to bring brand awareness to a customer base, advertise sales, and gain followers who will become the audience to market to more specifically.
• Use an email drip campaign: Drip campaigns are emails designed to be automatically sent to a target audience. These emails can be on one certain topic or on the same topic to different demographics. They can be used to advertise, get subscribers to a newsletter, or announce important events.
• SEO: Search engine optimization is becoming a common phrase in today’s society. SEO, while not paid advertising, does require playing the long game in terms of investment.  44% of people start their online shopping journey with a Google search – this is where SEO is decisive.

Social media influences

When it comes to ecommerce, do not underestimate the power of social media. In fact, online stores that utilize a social media presence, like Instagram and TikTok, have 32% more sales than sellers who do not have an online presence. With 90% of ecommerce businesses utilizing social media, it becomes a necessary part in competing for customers.

Loyalty

Customer loyalty is a key concept no matter what type of business is in place. In fact, repeat business accounts for 65% of a company’s revenue and it is more expensive for a business to gain new customers than it is to keep repeat customers. So how is customer loyalty attained?

Customer loyalty program

Keep customers coming back by offering special reward just for repeat buyers. Ensure these rewards are ones that speak to the demographics of the customer base.

Distributive fairness

Give all customers the same output as they put into their buying experience. If they spend more time or money, give them first access to sales or services. Make them feel good about the time and money they give to the brand.

Impeccable Customer Service

Make sure customers know they are valued. Give them a variety of ways to contact the business. Give them reminders when they have left something in their cart. They want to know they matter and that the company cares about their return business.

Takeaway

Technology and people are always evolving, and since ecommerce brings it all together, the future is always in a state of change. It's never too late to jump in, learn something new, evaluate it for your business, and move methodically forward. For now, consumers are in the driver's seats and ecommerce businesses will be customizing the journey ahead for them.