7 Top Ecommerce Trends of 2019
|The ecommerce industry did significantly well in 2019. The worldwide revenue of ecommerce almost touched $2290. It’s predicted to reach $4479 billion by the end of 2021. These numbers, in a way, helps us anticipate the handsome growth the industry is going to witness in the upcoming years.
The trends in the eCommerce industry are influenced by various things: from what customers shop, to what goes into their shopping process, to how they react to your different marketing tactics. In the last few years, lot of trends have emerged which has influenced this industry in a dramatic way. Witness eBay’s collaborative efforts which has since seen great resources such as Shiply tap into its business wealth. Shiply is an online shipping platform facilitating unique business outcomes where millions of customers can get rates for shipping large items straight from eBay. So much has changed.
And, ecommerce giants such as Amazon, Alibaba and other major eCommerce giants have been adopting these changes, lock, barrel and stock.
Here, I walk you through seven trends that will do your eCommerce store a world of good if you implement them this year:
#1. Dropshipping
According to 2018 State of the Merchant eCommerce Report, of the 450 online stores, 16.4% are using dropshipping.
For the starters, Dropshipping is the safest bet for ecommerce businesses that are at the bootstrapping stages. It simply means to act as a bridge between the manufacturer, supplier and the customer.
No doubt, you will be part of purchase processing, but then you will not be handling the product. In fact, the product gets directly shipped to the buyer from the warehouse.
This business model has both pros and cons.
The pros of leveraging dropshipping model:
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- The product is bought only on receiving the order
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- No money gets used up in storing inventory
- The overhead costs are lower
The cons of leveraging dropshipping model:
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- You have no control over the shipping duration. It may take longer than desired.
- Unprofessional and unethical sellers may not live up to customer expectations. So. It’s important for you to know your sellers inside-out while setting up shipping rules for them.
Businesses leveraging this model have experienced average revenue growth and conversions.
Given the benefits associated with dropshipping, this model will be witnessing a massive uptick in the future.
#2. Payment Processing
According to Baymard Insitute, nearly 70% of the shoppers abandon their carts. This is awful. It simply suggests that customers have researched, and even made up his mind to buy the product, but then, for some good reason, stops himself from buying the product.
The reason pointed out Baymard’s study is long and complicated checkout process. According to the report, 28% of the cart abandonment happens because of complicated checkout process.
The payment process is the final step in the customer buying journey that could make or break a sale. So far, the customers have painstakingly gone through various stages of the buying process and have finally decided to go for the product, but then payment processing isn’t smooth and easy. This is where eCommerce stores lose their would-be customers.
So, if you are planning to have edge over your competition this year, make sure to introduce smarter payment processing and effortless checkout processing to ensure quick conversions. For smooth payment processing you can consult some of the top ecommerce development companies.
#3. Unique Packaging
According to a recent study, 68% of shoppers felt that a brand looked premium because of its packaging. In fact, the study also claimed that 61% of the shoppers were excited to see products that came with unique packaging.
So, if your ecommerce business wants to make a mark this year, make sure your packaging stands out. Unique packaging makes the brand more recognizable.
For this, you could seek help of third-party vendors such as Packhelp. The company is known to offer customized, durable, packaging, for businesses of all sizes.
#4. Artificial Intelligence (AI)
Ecommerce stores are adopting hyperpersonalization strategies these days, based on customer segmentation and customer’s browsing history. This is where intelligent algorithms, formally known as Artificial Intelligence, come into play. AI-powered tools can help you create personalized recommendations for each customer of yours.
However, here’s the problem: The accuracy of the data is said to be directly proportional to the quality and the size of the data. Small businesses may face difficulty in terms of accumulating large volumes of data. This is where third party vendors powered by AI tools could act as a saving grace for small businesses. For leveraging AI tools, you could connect with top artificial intelligence companies.
#5. Voice Search
It goes without saying; voice search is the most-sought and most-talked about tech these days.
Ecommerce stores no matter what have to start thinking about this tech more than ever before. As per Google’s latest guidelines voice search should comprise of more textual content. This, in turn, will make the content appear easily in rich snippets and knowledge graphs.
For all the tables and pictures that we use on our ecommerce site, using more of voice-enabled buttons will bring in more conversions from smart speakers. For embedding voice search in your site, rope in seasoned digital marketers who are fully aware of the modus operandi of voice search.
#6. Product Visualization
Using augmented reality for product visualization will witness a significant uptick this year, thanks to Apple’s launch of AR kit for iOS 11 and with Google launching AR code for Android smartphones. Consider Ikea’s new app that helps users visualize furniture in their homes.
#7. Photo Shopping
This is one the latest trends that gathering steam in the eCommerce arena. Users will simply point their camera toward the product they intend to buy and automatically the eCommerce stores will pick up the hint and present relevant product options. In fact, there are several photo apps such as CamFinder that’s helping eCommerce stores in this process.
Wrapping Up
Sweeping changes are taking place in the tech world backed by AI and MI tools. Not surprisingly, even the eCommerce industry is witnessing the effects of these changes. So, if you are running an eCommerce store, you need to embrace those that suit your needs sooner than later. But then, no matter what, remember to offer value to users. The better value you offer to users the better the sales.
For all I know, there are loads of other trends that eCommerce sector is witnessing. Share them with us in the comment box below.
Author Bio: This is Jennifer Warren, a Content Crafter for GoodFirms – a review and research platform for mobile app development, web developers London and more. The company publishes research report on a time to time basis, the latest one is on PPC Management Research.