02 Feb
Online shopping has been growing at an extraordinary rate in the last few years. In 2016, worldwide ecommerce sales were over 1.86 Trillion US Dollars and this revenue is expected to grow to 4.48 Trillion US Dollars by 2021. Online shopping is hugely popular worldwide and the UK and Europe enjoy a large slice of that popularity.
Just as sales are increasing at a rapid rate, so too is the technology that companies use to sell their products. Ecommerce offers huge potential for online businesses, and keeping up with the newest trends is important so you can get the best out of your business.
Below are four of the top Ecommerce trends that businesses will find in 2018.
Digital Wallet Payments
Digital Wallet payments are on the increase as Smartphones gain popularity. A Digital Wallet gives consumers the ability to pay for goods using their Smartphone or payment platforms such as PayPal.
Customers can create accounts where their ‘wallet’ is held digitally (via apps such as Google Wallet and Apple Pay). These Digital Wallets can be used for online shopping and some websites, such as Business Insider are forecasting that in the US mobile payments volume will increase to $503 Billion, and be used by 55% of the consumer population by 2020.
Offering this additional option by ensuring your customers have quick and simple Digitised Wallet payment options can give your business the edge over your competitors.
Netflix Style Shopping
With Netflix style shopping you can increase your order value by offering your customers alternative product suggestions with notes such as “you liked this, and you may also like this.” This gives your customer a sense of the ‘personal touch’ – and it’s shown to be a popular strategy for many online retailers.
For example – 56% of online shoppers are more likely to return to a site that recommends products to them and 45% are more likely to shop on a site that offers personalised product suggestions.
In order to gain this level of insight into your customers it’s important that you learn how to use your customer data and analytics so that you can offer relevant and up to date offers or suggestions.
There are a variety of methods you can use to collect customer data and choose how to target customers with personalised suggestions – all depending on what channel you are using. Make sure you research the capabilities of the analytics on your selling platforms to ensure you get the best out of these invaluable services.
Messenger Apps and Chatbots
Chatbot use will be growing in 2018, particularly amongst Millenials – with 60% saying they already use them when shopping online and 71% of those who haven’t used them saying they would like to do so.
Chatbots can be invaluable to you as they can take on much of the human load from your business – such as compiling data, answering customer queries and filling in forms. This can help your business by allowing you to focus on other areas,
Chatbots in messenger apps are another platform that will grow in 2018. Businesses that utilise them will have the ability to send their customers personalised content, suggested purchases and offer specialised deals.
A wider range of Fulfilment Options
As the competition between Ecommerce businesses heats up the company that is able to deliver orders with speed and accuracy will win.
Despite the growing trend in areas such as Chatbots and Digital Wallets, the core ‘basics’ still make the biggest difference to your success. After all, if your foundation isn’t working correctly then all other innovations become ineffective.
As technology improves and specialist companies invest in cutting edge resources to streamline their fulfilment processes, it’s important to choose a fulfilment service that is on top of their game. Customers are becoming far more discerning and expect state of the art systems when they purchase online.
At Meteor Space we pride ourselves on staying at the top of our game with the very latest in warehouse technology and IT systems. Get in touch today to find out how we can help you offer service that’s ahead of the crowd in 2018.
