Introduction
A few years ago, eCommerce shopping was fairly a new concept for a lot of people. However, there has been a dramatic shift in perception after the Covid-19 pandemic. From being existent but not essential to becoming a multi-billion dollar industry, the eCommerce industry has grown by leaps and bounds and is expected to grow even more in the coming years.
This spurt in eCommerce growth has nudged businesses to re-evaluate their online retail approach. Integration of new features and going hand in hand with new online business trends that replicate in-store shopping experiences have become essential for marketing managers. Businesses have to embrace new technologies to support online sales and stay competitive in the industry.
In a nutshell, as today’s customers expect a smooth eCommerce shopping experience, you need to keep up with the emerging trends in e-business.
And, being a $4.89 trillion industry, keeping up with the upcoming trends becomes relatively significant. Therefore, if you want to know what’s trending in eCommerce, look at some of the upcoming trends in eCommerce given below.
In this blog, we have highlighted some of the future trends of e-marketing to look for in 2022.
eCommerce Marketing Trends 2022
Mobile Devices
Today, every single person uses a smartphone. It is always within our arm’s reach and even dictates our regular habits. As a result, it is one of the emerging trends in e-business.
Consumers are using mobile devices for online shopping. They are using mobile retail apps or websites to learn more about a particular product or service. Hence, it has become a game-changer for eCommerce businesses as well.
Apart from having a mobile-friendly website, you need to have mobile-optimized eCommerce apps to acquire success in this space.
It is because almost 85 percent of consumers are opting for mobile apps over mobile websites. Therefore, developing an app for your eCommerce store is important. It enables your customer to acquire what they want easily. Moreover, mobile apps eventually convert at a higher rate than a website.
This way, consumers will not only browse your app but also purchase from your eCommerce store.
Consumer Awareness
When you follow the future trends of e-marketing, your business tends to grow efficiently with a significant increase in leads. As a brand, you should never forget about consumer awareness and loyalty.
Building a brand digitally is more than just posting content. You should always focus on posting translucent and trustworthy content to accomplish your target goals. It is because if there is no transparency, buyers immediately shift their attention to new brands. Therefore, consumer awareness should play a vast role in your business’ marketing and communication strategy.
Having consumer awareness will help you in educating your consumers about your products and services and their performance. However, you need to plan it appropriately for consumer engagement and welfare.
You need to achieve the following goals while conducting consumer awareness programs:
- Learning about the customers interested in your products.
- Helping your prospective clients in finding the products they are looking for.
- Educating your customers about how your products will solve their problems and garner trust.
- Conveying them the strengths and benefits of your products.
- Create a marketing plan to generate awareness among the target audience concerning your products.
If a target audience is well aware of the products you are offering, the selection and purchasing will become easy and efficient.
Also Read- eCommerce Branding: 10 Proven Ways To Build Your Brand
User Experience
In today’s competitive environment, customers have become more picky and selective. 76 out of every 100 visitors leave the website or end up abandoning the cart if they find its design unattractive. Therefore, it is imperative to create a website that is transparent and easy to navigate, so that the purchasing process becomes more intuitive.
Suppose you walk into a store where you are finding a hard time locating a product you want. You tried to seek help but noticed that the customer service associate is not paying any heed. You will feel annoyed, frustrated, and angry and leave the store immediately.
The same happens in eCommerce stores as well. Therefore, to avoid cart abandonment, you need to focus on:
- Providing information related to the price, savings, customer reviews, ratings, and availability of the product.
- Factors include operational simplicity, a design that is not overshadowing the eCommerce website, product promotion, security of user’s data, accurate visual elements like menus and catalogs.
Buying Experience
You can personalize your webpage and deliver relevant content by improving search queries, shopping, cart, purchase history, geographical location, and social behavior.
Additionally, you need to integrate Customer Relationship Management (CRM). For this, you need customer information that includes on-site chats, SMS, e-mails, Facebook Messenger, Loyalty Programs, Order Status, and a lot more.
As a marketer, you should engage with your customer by answering questions while they are shopping. This way, they will lead to the cart and checkout successfully.
Conversion Rate
Other upcoming trends in eCommerce are increasing conversion rates. Apart from driving audiences to your eCommerce site, converting them is relatively a challenging task. However, by keeping their shopping experience straightforward, grabbing their email address, removing any distractions from the header or footer, and changing the currency by recognizing the IP address, you can avoid cart abandonment and even win their trust.
Furthermore, you need to avoid using third-party checkout providers to avoid any disruption in shopping and making your customers skeptical about your site.
Because of the changes in the finance industry, customers prefer different modes of payment too. Therefore, you can make their checkout experience satisfying by adding different payment options and digital wallets to your eCommerce store.
Also Read- 15 eCommerce Hacks that will Double your Conversion Rate
Product Recommendation and Product Content
Webpage design plays a crucial role in eCommerce sites. Hence, it should be easy to navigate and contain pleasing layouts. Apart from quick deliveries, great prices, and appealing design, you also need to focus on product content. It is because it has the power to transform the look and feel of a web page.
To improve product content and recommendation, you need to conduct a thorough competitive analysis and identify basic styles, use trendy keywords and try new trends. This way, you will also be able to increase your conversion rate.
Machine Learning
Machine learning is another trend that has played a significant role in the evolution of the eCommerce industry. A simple analysis system will help in showcasing how sturdy and transformative it can truly be.
Machine learning has evaluated the online activity of millions of people by using its algorithms. It even helped in processing enormous amounts of data effortlessly. It can be used to create product recommendations for a specific customer or a group of customers according to their preferences.
It is shaping this industry in countless ways like chatbots, eCommerce targeting, customer experience, etc. It is directly impacting customer service and business growth. By improving the crucial aspect of your business, they are creating a predominant place in the industry.
Video and Influencer Marketing
In 2019, videos proved to be a great method of engaging with customers. From then, it has taken a primary place in the list of new online business trends. When you create a video for your website, you tend to grab and engage the customer instantly. It even helps you to provide information about your products and services effortlessly.
Video contents like podcasts and short videos augment the opportunity for buyers to learn the way your products and services provide solutions to their problems. With the help of videos, you can explain and showcase your products better.
On the other hand, the increase in social media platforms has shifted the entire audience to the digital landscape. You can promote your products with the help of influencer marketing. For example, you can ask a social media influencer that already has your audience’s ear to build larger followers and a solid brand reputation.
You can team up with influencers to offer your customers discount codes, competition and contests, giveaways, and getaways.
Cloud Computing
What is the need to hold data at a single location, when you can store it at multiple locations using cloud computing? Cloud computing has its servers located in different places. However, all of them are connected and function as a single system.
It offers a plethora of benefits to eCommerce businesses. If you have cloud computing, you can take your business globally. This feature has made it a go-to solution for eCommerce businesses worldwide due to its high-performance inputs. It helps you to build sturdy relationships with your customers, generate sales, and even increase revenues. WorksLeader is a cloud-based eCommerce platform that can improve your eCommerce experience.
Content Marketing
According to some researchers, content marketing will always remain a crucial aspect of the eCommerce industry. It’s a two-way conversation with your customers.
It means that you can engage with your customers efficiently by adding relevant information about your products and services. However, posting content is not just the only thing. It needs to be promoted as well.
For this, you can use social media platforms and even link your brand’s website with blogs. Always remember to deliver unique and interesting content that your customers will remember forever.
Social Media Marketing
You can make your social media platforms a sales channel. In 2020, social sales made up 3.4 percent of total eCommerce sales, and the figure is still increasing.
Optimizing several social media channels appeal to multiple omnichannel consumers. Since the demand for online retail shopping was higher during the pandemic, new retail features have made shopping on social media platforms like Facebook, Instagram, etc., a lot easier.
Buyers now can browse, click, and buy on social media effectively, thereby reducing the journey between interest and conversion.
QR Codes
Now that mobile devices are in the trend, how can we skip QR codes? Customers that use smartphones can effortlessly scan these QR codes. It is a great option for boosting landing pages or engagement and even driving traffic towards your social media platforms. It is known as the “mystery market” of your brand and can help in driving more sales.
You can use QR codes in marketing in the following ways:
- Linking product packaging with the online store.
- Linking it to your feedback page.
- Offering links and discounts.
- Leading customers to social media and content platforms
Artificial Intelligence
Over the last few years, Artificial Intelligence has been making a broader impact on this industry. It has proved to be beneficial in improving product recommendation, product search, customer segmentation, and customer support. It can significantly improve the performance of your brand.
It is believed that AI will soon bring automation, intelligence, and scalability to the content product and marketing of a brand. Therefore, when you augment your existing employees with AI-driven tools, you will be able to expand their capabilities without incurring costs with headcount. This way, you would gain tremendous profitability and growth in this competitive space.
Customer Experience
Your eCommerce should target every person. It should provide every person the relevant information about the product and services. It is advisable to minimize the number of steps involved in checkout. The more the steps are, the less likely the customer will convert.
Moreover, ensure to keep prices and fees transparent so that they don’t get annoyed because of a last-minute change in price.
Voice Search
Voice search is not going to replace the traditional method of searching. However, as it increases, it will become crucial to optimize this feature in your eCommerce platform. Like Siri, Cortana, Google, or Alexa, creating your voice search will improve your buyers’ shopping experience.
It will cut back the search time and provide a more accessible alternative to jumping onto Google and typing a query. It will also deliver faster results as well as make multi-tasking highly convenient.
It is estimated that voice search enabled eCommerce transactions will reach up to $19.4 billion by 2023. Therefore, if it is integrated into your eCommerce site, it will prove to be a most effective tool for multi-taskers.
Key Takeaway
The above-mentioned trends are proof of a lot of things happening in the eCommerce industry. With the evolution of technology and human beings, the future of eCommerce is very bright. Thus, ensure to always follow the trends to grow and excel in the market.
