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E-Commerce Trends That Will Make or Break Your Business (Updated 2024)
Last Updated on: October 26th, 2024
As of 2024, business is no longer just about selling products. It has become all about selling experiences to customers. Every new trend in business is basically to make customer experiences better. Out of all trends, e-commerce trends will take your business to the next level of success.
With the rise in technology, the rate at which trends are coming and developing is marvelous. The expectations of the customers are increasing, and at the same time, the burden on sellers is also increasing
Top eCommerce Trends You Need To Be Aware Of In 2024
Obviously, the traditional old methods are not going to help you increase your sales in this fast-paced world. Hence, keeping up with the trends is a must. Here is a list of the best e-commerce trends that you need to start using for your business: –
1. Start Investing In Your Brick-and-Mortar Stores
If your business has both online and offline presence, it is going to turn out very beneficial this year. Generally, many businesses make the mistake of closing their brick-and-mortar store and moving completely online. Do not commit this mistake.
Research Online And Purchase Offline (ROPO) Is a common habit among eagle-eyed shoppers, who are always on the lookout for the best deals. They research products online, compare the prices, and find the best possible deals for themselves. And then go to the store and buy the product.
Basically, ROPO helps you find out how effective your digital campaigning is. Also, it will help you better analyze every investment you make in digital advertising. Apart from that, it also gives you an idea of how much revenue you generate, impactful ads, their effect on customers, and a lot more.
Also, having an offline store will help you provide a ‘pick up in store’ feature to your customers. They can now collect from the store according to their time preferences. Additionally, it will save shipping charges and drive more customers to the offline shop.
2. Integrate AR And VR For Better Customer Experience
The main problem that people face while buying products online is that they cannot see or feel the product. Thankfully, Augmented Reality (AR) and Virtual Reality (VR) have solved this problem.
Hence, these technologies provide a better solution, you can see how the products look at your home or on you without moving anything or going anywhere.
For example, IKEA is a well-known Swedish furniture company. It launched its AR app last year. Using that app, you can see how the products look in your home. The measurements are true to scale, which helps you know whether the furniture will fit in your room or not and how it will look in your home.
Furthermore, Amazon has also added an AR view feature, which allows you to view all the products, such as electronics, furniture, etc.
3. Use Automation For Repetitive Tasks
Many sellers run away when they are told it’s time to implement new technology. People think investing in various apps causes extra expenses and, at the same time, is very difficult to manage. However, automation is one of the biggest causes of the rise in competition in e-commerce.
The main reason people are investing in technology is because the entry cost is low. Additionally, the output is always high. Moreover, with the latest advancements, technology is becoming easier to understand and implement.
There is a lot of order management software in the market that suits your needs. Whether you want an app using which you can fully manage your e-commerce business like EMERGE App, which has a full suite of features handling everything from inventory to simple accounting and is suitable for every kind of business.
Or apps for dedicated tasks like managing social media, Hootsuite is a good app for email management you can use MailChimp.
4. Start Using Chatbots For Better Customer Experience
eCommerce platforms are making use of machine learning to bring more personalized and faster experiences for customers. Good customer service is the biggest priority for sellers. Hence, they are using insights from machine learning outputs to provide product recommendations and advice, as well as better search results.
Being physically present is not always possible, so Chatbots are a perfect option. Chatbots can handle customer service problems 24×7 and provide better and more accurate recommendations by making use of machine learning product purchase histories and search results.
5. Enable Voice Shopping Options
Order everyday essentials using just voice commands. Voice shopping is here to add more comfort to the customer’s shopping experience. According to research by Google, 20% of mobile searches are voice searches, and the numbers are expected to rise in the future.
There are several voice assistants present in the market, like Amazon Echo, Google Home,
Alexa. According to a study by equities securities research firm Consumer Research Intelligence Partners, buyers who make use of Amazon Echo to buy products online are among Amazon’s most loyal customers. They spend an average of $1,600 per year. While the others spend $1,300 per year on the average Prime customer base.
These voice assistants have made the work of the users easier. Actually, more people are trying it, user engagement is increasing, and they are relying on them to complete small, simple, everyday tasks. It is a growing technology, and there is a lot more to explore.
6. Upgrade Your Delivery Services For Same-Day Delivery
While everybody is selling the same products, sellers need to be better than their competitors. Why should the buyers choose to buy from you?
The best reason for that will be providing them with excellent customer services and under that comes faster shipping and better delivery logistics.
Customers want same-day delivery or next-day delivery, and sellers need to fulfill that demand. Otherwise, the customers will turn to their competitors.
7. Use Quality Videos To Showcase Your Products
While buying products online customers always find it difficult to answer- what is the 360-degree view of the product? How can you make the best use of the product? Will it suit their needs? The answer to all these queries is explainer videos.
Videos are sound marketing tools. Create high-quality explainer videos in which all the important features and uses of the product are mentioned and post them on social media websites.
You can also ask the influencers to post videos using the products. When customers see others using the product, they develop confidence in it.
8. Start Using Social Media To Connect With Your Target Audience
Word of mouth is still very important. While buying products, people find it very difficult to trust the new online markets.
Before buying anything online, people have the habit of looking up reviews online. So, teaming up with an influencer of your business niche is the latest marketing strategy you need to start following.
Influencer marketing helps you to build brand awareness. All you need to do is send your free services to the influencer and ask them to share their views regarding your services on their social media websites.
This way without spending extravagantly, you will be able to reach out to their followers. Also, their loyal followers would become your loyal customers.
Social Shopping has already been popular since 2018. Instagram is already known to bring the maximum sales to all social media websites.
Sellers can bring the products in front of the customers without even making them realize that with the help of social media websites like Instagram, Facebook, and Twitter (now X). They can buy the products from their website without leaving that site or switching between apps.
9. Optimize Your Websites And Apps For Your Mobile
Mobiles had already changed the business scenario in 2017 and they continue to do so this year as well. Having a dedicated mobile app for your business is a must as it is more convenient and accessible for shoppers.
Digital wallets allow one-click payment, fingerprint, and facial recognition technology. Moreover, support and other mobile features have increasing conversion rates.
10. Invest In Blockchain For Transparency In Your Supply Chain
It’s not the first time that the eCommerce industry has come across blockchain technology. However, as the application is evolving with time, changes are coming into place. Although people generally think of blockchain as related to cryptocurrency, there are more uses of blockchain in general.
Blockchain also acts as an appen-only ledger. This means you can add data to it without having to remove it. Hence, eCommerce companies can mainly benefit from it by using blockchain ledger. This would help them ensure transparency to their shipping clients and help improve communication.
11. Offer Personalized Subscription Models
In recent years, there has been a rise in subscription models in eCommerce. However, with time, top eCommerce companies are offering subscription offers tailored to the needs of the subscriber.
You can provide personalized services not only in terms of what products your customers can select but also when and where they want their deliveries.
As a result, with such subscription models, you can improve customer loyalty. Thereby, this will supply a steady stream of revenue for businesses. Apart from that, with better personalization, your business can build strong connections with customers.
Bottom Line
Some of the oldest e-commerce trends are to keep working hard and not stick to old, outdated methods. Initially, new trends may be intimidating to try out. But don’t hesitate to get out of your comfort zone and implement new trends.
You need to invest time and see what works best for you. So, do you know any e-commerce trends that we have missed out on? Let us know in the comment section below.
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