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Last year proved to be a major catalyst for accelerating transformation in the world of digital commerce. Cut to today, we have more eCommerce brands engaging audiences from across locations than ever. Some brands made their digital debut in the pandemic while the others revamped to stay at the top of their game. A lot of brands that were earlier selling via third-party marketplaces or majorly through physical retail touchpoints also joined the bandwagon to reach their audience via alternate, more feasible means.
Epigamia (Drums Foods International) made its digital debut with us and saw a remarkable increase in its brand awareness and business growth.
The brand was earlier selling via multiple retail touch-points and had been planning its own online launch with a trust-worthy eCommerce handler and that’s where EasyEcom chimed in.
The new year is here and so are the new trends for global eCommerce that we believe you should capitalize on. Check out these top eCommerce trends that will prevail in 2021 and how you can make the most of it for your brands to nail the new age of commerce.
Omnichannel Selling
Omni-channel eRetailing includes every possible platform you can think of to market your products including your own web store, marketplaces, and social media. Omni-channel selling is to ensure that marketing strategies are geared towards enabling customers to convert on any channel. It’s simple to understand but practicing omnichannel selling requires proper planning of your resources, so make sure you are prepared.
Fabbox, a healthy snacking company and an esteemed part of EasyEcom’s customer family, is an impressive example of how to get your omnichannel selling right. The brand has its shop on Facebook, a digital store, and sells on other marketplaces to maximize its reach and audience engagement. To handle orders from all directions, they have also deployed chatbots on the website and their social media handles. This is the level of preparedness you need to cater to your audience coming from all directions.
JustWatches is yet another brand that we are associated with and is practicing omnichannel selling. The company operates from its website as well as social media handles to meet user demands. The order fulfillment happens from their physical stores across the country. Omnichannel in the true sense!
Make the most of this eCommerce trend
Make sure you can handle the audience coming from different directions using resources at your disposal. For instance, you can implement chatbots that take user queries, make purchase requests on different platforms. You can engage a team and or a system to handle these channels individually and keep a track of your progress. Based on how you perform on each channel, you can re-strategize or ditch a channel that is not working out for you. For easy inventory listing, and connecting your offline stores with online channels, you can try out various inventory management/order management tools. EasyEcom aids its patrons with all these facilities at the click of a button.
Social Commerce
Social commerce is the foundation of modern-day business as we know it today. The scenarios have changed, of course, but the concept remains the same nonetheless. Engaging your customers on social media makes sense because that’s where you will find half the world’s population and the reach is unparalleled.
All major social media platforms now exhibit e-commerce capabilities. From catalogs on Pinterest to shops on Facebook and Instagram, social commerce is unlocking new milestones for online sellers. Facebook Shops were announced in May, 2020 but they quickly gained popularity and a lot of B2C brands have set up their digital storefronts on the social media platform. These shops allow sellers to set up full-fledged storefronts on their Facebook and Instagram business pages.
One of our esteemed clients Snackible is a prime example of how to use the power of social commerce to serve your audience where they are most of the time. Besides selling on their own eCommerce store, the brand makes use of its Facebook shop to cater to the audience.
Suta, one of our valuable Fashion and Apparel clients has an up and running Instagram shop that allows the users to browse through the products on the app itself. One other EasyEcom client in the same category, Rustorange also exhibits strong social commerce with its Facebook and Instagram shops along with a fully-functional website.
Facebook has been taking major steps to up its social commerce game. The social giant owns both Instagram and Whatsapp and is making the best use of these platforms while executing its social commerce plans.
On Instagram, customers can access the social giant's ‘in-app checkout’ feature that allows shoppers to make a purchase without having to leave the app. It can all happen on Instagram itself.
Facebook has also pushed WhatsApp to join the band-wagon and is allowing in-app shopping experience now. It will let users browse through the products on Facebook Shops and buy products directly via the chat option.
Social commerce as we know it will gain more visibility this year with more advanced features dropping in soon.
Make the most out of this eCommerce trend
Social commerce can expand your online selling horizons to the depths unknown but this option is available to one and all. Hence, the competition becomes even more fierce than selling from a good old fashioned digital storefront. Here’s what you do:
- Build your social media audience
- Set up your shops on Instagram and Facebook
- Collaborate with influencers
- Get them to feature your products in their short videos and live-streaming
And, that would give a good ignition to your start.
Video Commerce
Using video content to sell and promote products is what we call video commerce and this trend has been quickly gaining momentum and rightly so. It allows the consumers to have a deeper look and feel of the product and an experience with the brand itself.
The Video commerce approach is tried and tested to improve the conversion rate anywhere between 50-100% and it has become the ultimate ace card for eCommerce marketers. There are different kinds of videos that can be leveraged for video commerce.
Shoppable Videos and live-streaming
A shoppable video features the products to be sold and they are linked to the product page in the video itself. Viewers can choose to purchase the product directly from there, go to the product page, or directly land to the cart page for faster transactions. The products in the video are tagged and the links to these pages can be referenced from these tags.
A live-streaming video, on the other hand, features products in real-time to form an instant connection with the target audience. Two big players going after live-streaming shopping are Facebook and TikTok. Facebook has been experimenting with this feature for a while and we can expect them to roll it out soon.
TikTok, on the other hand, has partnered with Shopify to feature products in their short video and live video format to allow Shopify sellers to tag their products in them. Users can simply tap on it to view and make a purchase on the platform, without ever leaving it.
While video commerce is gaining popularity on social media handles, it can be set up on any section of the website. And, that is what would be trending this year.
Come to think of it, video commerce is a major update on the TV advertising industry we got used to as kids but it’s limited to certain devices and on certain platforms for now. Imagine watching an OTT movie and being able to order the protagonist's outfit from the current scene right from your screen. Well, if we can dream it, it might happen sooner or later.
Make the most of this eCommerce Trend
Start with ad placements on Instagram and Snapchat stories instead of regular feeds is a good way to start your social commerce initiatives. You can get more creative with the video and placement. For instance, make a product video of your best products and tag them for direct purchasing. You can place these ads on stories or social media feeds for people and generate traction directly to the checkout page of your store. You can also collaborate with influencers on TikTok and ask them to feature your products in their live-stream.
Personalization
Personalization isn’t something new to eCommerce but since everyone is now online, it could be new to late additions to the eCommerce bandwagon. This trend carries its importance forward to this year and will possibly beyond, thereby making it crucial for your audience to experience the best customer service on your website. You can make use of the shoppers’ data to understand their liking and come up with relevant suggestions in turn establishing strong customer relationships, hence customer loyalty.
For instance, based on the purchase history, smart recommendations can be made to the consumer or they can be reminded of the items they might have abandoned earlier, and so on. But that’s something that brands are already doing and this will only flourish in the upcoming months. So, what’s the trend here? It’s using personalization to improve your human quotient using smart systems. Consumers love a brand that doesn’t act like one and instead tries to make more humanly connections with their consumers.
We are delighted to have been associated with Mylo, a health and wellness brand that not only sells carefully-curated pregnancy and baby products but also offers a personalized experience and helpful community for young parents and experts to come together to share their parenting journey. They have managed to create a community of over 1 million+ people on their platform.
Make the most of this eCommerce trend
Check everything on your list that can be done via technology when it comes to offering a personal experience to the consumers. You can use your CRM database information for personalized service on the platform of your shoppers’ choosing. Conduct audience polls on your social handles to understand their needs and interact with them as much as you can. You can also hold Q&A sessions for the same.
Machine Learning and Artificial Intelligence
Artificial intelligence is not a buzzword anymore and its applications have found more permanent and concrete roots in eCommerce businesses. Now that people have realized the importance of technology, it will be easier and more trusting for them to deploy into their day to day operations. Going into 2021, mainstream stuff like chatbots, smart recommendation systems, will only get stronger and brands will start digging deep to harness the full potential of AI we have available as of now. Voice-enabled search, for instance, is getting steadily popular for digital shopping. It is smart, convenient, and will soon be IN! Virtual assistants such as Google Assistant, and Microsoft’s Cortana, Amazon’s Alexa, Samsung’s Bixby, Apple’s Siri are some great platforms that are quite successful with voice queries.
Make the most of this eCommerce trend
Start with a simple audit to check where you stand when it comes to using technology for your business.
Now, do a self-assessment of the activities that are time consuming and can be automated using AI. In case you need a reference for your checklist, here is an article for help.
Moreover, start early and invest in the upcoming AI technologies like a voice-enabled search for your eCommerce business and get a competitive advantage in the industry.
Micro-Warehousing
Micro-warehousing is probably one of the most successful eCommerce experiments that has helped a lot of small and medium-sized businesses overcome their supply chain problems.
The micro-warehousing system refers to a fulfilment ecosystem outside of a traditional company warehouse. The companies who practice micro-warehousing open small warehouses across different locations in tier 2, tier 3 cities making next-day delivery possible and keep up with the customer demands.
Our partners Pickrr and Emiza are some of the most reputed brand names in the micro-warehousing industry. They make it possible for businesses to offer same or next-day deliveries and compete with giants like Amazon and Walmart.
Make the most of this trend:
Micro-warehousing is a great option for the businesses struggling to maintain their stock and frequently getting into out-of-stock or understocking situations. This leads to losing customers to your most disruptive competitors and you eventually die out. In order to keep up with the customer demands and timely delivery, you should engage a micro-warehousing company and work on further improving your supply chain.
Sustainability and Green Consumerism
A lot of brands have started advocating sustainability. The world is going through a major paradigm shift on the cultural, social, and economic fronts and people are inclining towards green consumerism. After all, there is no second Earth!
Retail giant Amazon has several dedicated campaigns to promote healthy and sustainable commerce including their shipment zero initiative that actually promotes zero-carbon shipments via sustainable process improvements, recycled materials, electrification, and various renewable energy initiatives. Additionally, Amazon is also redesigning its product packaging to minimize waste. Tech giant, Apple is also dedicated to promoting sustainability with its carbon neutral and energy efficient initiatives.
With giants like Amazon and Apple setting an example, a number of brands, small, medium alike that are going to follow the carbon-free footprints and spread green consumerism.
We are honored to have been working with brands that promote sustainability and some of them are even conceived with the very notion. Two Brother Organic Farm is one such brand that was built to find alternate solutions to growing agriculture and soil-fertility problems and provide chemical-free, healthy food.
The Ecocert certified organic farm is home to a number of indigenous A2 cows and is known to produce fruits, vegetables, processed foods, and dairy products organically.
Make the Most out of this eCommerce Trend
Practice what you preach! It’s that simple. We, as a society, brands and earthlings have a responsibility to make sure that the aftermath of our doings does not affect the future of the upcoming generations. There are a number of ways in which you can adopt green consumerism in your eCommerce business. For instance, you ditch plastic for your packaging, reduce waste, and look into other processes that you can afford to lose. You can start by stepping into Amazon’s footsteps and minimizing waste while packaging the final goods. With people getting woke, a lot of brands are taking it upon themselves to promote nature-friendly initiatives among their users. For instance, Big Basket asks their users to return their paper boxes to the company delivery person when they get their next round of orders and so forth.
Online shopping goes beyond B2C Products
Necessity is the mother of invention and that’s exactly what gave birth to this eCommerce trend. The pandemic accelerated the digital transformation of a lot of physical store-oriented businesses. Additionally, the consumers who were still not used to shopping online turned to eCommerce with the lack of any other alternative to get essentials and gradually not-so-essential goods.
And, before we knew it, food, apparel, accessories, and gadgets weren't the only things you could buy online. The list includes products like cars, bikes, furniture, spare parts, handy-man tools, and even light bulbs.
BeepKart is one of the most rapidly growing online marketplaces for electric 2-wheelers. Now, that’s something you didn’t think you’d do anytime soon- Buying a bike online! The platform allows you to check the features, compare prices, and offer services like doorstep test drives, delivery, and service.
Make the most out of this eCommerce trend
If you are coming from a brick and mortar background, think along the lines of how to make it easier for consumers to buy from you. For starters, create a proper catalog, start selling D2C. Next up, engage 3PL and 4PL in the beginning to streamline the supply chain management for your eCommerce business.
Our 3PL and 4PL partners are some of the most fast-growing brands in the industry including Emiza, QuickShift, First ventures, ShipDelight, iThink Logistics, and more.
Augmented Reality (AR)
AR is one of the most appealing technologies used by online brands that make up for a perfectly immersive shopping experience.
Some of the major AR use cases in eCommerce include:
- Preview Placements
- Virtual try-on services
- Interactive User manuals
IKEA has been doing it for a while now and it’s helped them gain more sales. Another company called WANNABY launched a dedicated app called “Wanna Kicks” that lets online shoppers try on sneakers virtually from their homes. The applications and implementation of AR are not unheard of but they are still fairly uncommon. AR use cases can be massive for the eCommerce industry and the brands have started to realize it. It will only go up from here and you should also start thinking of investing early in the technology to stay ahead in the game.
Make the most of this eCommerce trend
The worldwide pandemic has induced the biggest digital transformation within a matter of months and online selling has moved past B2C like we discussed in the previous trend. So, if you are selling a product that would require people to have a better look and feel, invest in AR. For instance, if you are selling home decor products and would like your shoppers to get a preview of the products, you can always take inspiration from IKEA.
Advanced Data Analytics
Picking up on changing consumer needs in time is where the money is. A lot of brands focus on the basic metrics including campaign CTRs and conversion metrics, direct and referral traffic, etc. It’s important to keep track of these but it’s certainly not enough. You should be able to identify how consumers interact with your business. Segregating and capitalizing on different kinds of consumers based on analytics would thrive as a crucial eCommerce trend. Nonetheless, you should not miss out on any metrics, and doing that can be daunting but there are software to assist you with just that.
At EasyEcom, we offer a plethora of reports along with an Operating system for eCommerce that your business might need to streamline day to day operations. Drop us a line at care@easyecom.io to talk to our experts.
Make the most out of this eCommerce Trend
Track everything! In the words of our CEO, “if you are not tracking what you are doing, don’t do it in the first place”. Go beyond traditional metrics and take advantage of customer data when they visit your website, when they are shopping around and when they leave and come back again.
Following are some of the key data points that you should most certainly track for your eCommerce business:
- Inventory Management KPIs
- Inventory replenishment reports
- Customer lifetime value / repeat purchase history reports
- Results from Ad Campaigns on different platforms
- Overall Margin & profitability Reports
- Channel wise sales / profitability
- Daily/Monthly visitors on your website
- Browsing / purchasing trends on website
- Trending products
- Reports on products bought together so that brands can bundle them together for easy purchase next time
eCommerce has seen a new high in the last few months and it will only go higher. The competition in the industry will be fierce too, so it’s important that you stay prepared. We are here to back you right up. Know how we have stacked up to enable 10x growth for your eCommerce business.
Are you looking for an omnichannel inventory management solution with integrated B2B order management for your eCommerce business? Drop us a line at care@easyecom.io or directly sign up for a demo here.
