E Commerce is a huge industry. So it is no wonder that people are always asking about the future of ecommerce. In this article we\’re going to take a look at the future of ecommerce and where it\’s set to go in 2022 and beyond.
Emerging Markets
The future of ecommerce is set to be a bright one for many businesses. Emerging markets like India, China, Brazil, Russia and South Africa are projected to play a big role in the future of ecommerce. Now you might wonder why now. According to a recent article around 3 billion buyers from these emerging markets will have access to the internet by 2022. That is a lot of possible leads or buyers.
Your future customers are also likely to increase their spend across multiple devices; something we\’ve already seen happening over the past few years. It\’s clear that it\’s becoming harder and harder for retailers to ignore what mobile users are doing on their phones, tablets or other devices while out shopping – research suggests 50% of purchases are now done using mobiles. This obviously has implications for future ecommerce businesses, who will need to be ready to deal with the mobile future of their industry.
Physical vs Online Stores
As more and more people move to ecommerce options, brick and mortar stores are likely to see less footfall. This means that they may need to look at alternative revenue streams.
This future of retail is set to be an ongoing trend which will continue well into the future, with fewer customers making future purchases in traditional physical locations – like malls for example.
B2B and Ecommerce
Online future business to future business (B2B) ecommerce is also set to be a huge part of the future of ecommerce. Not only that but future B2B platforms are expected to increasingly provide features such as future website builders and other future communication tools to connect businesses more closely.
Ecommerce Automation
In the future, ecommerce businesses need to be future-focused. And that means automating as much as possible. It\’s already clear that future ecommerce sites need to automate product recommendations,customer service and more to drive sales – as well as revenue via subscriptions and memberships.
Looking ahead there will also be a rise in the number of customers who have an expectation around being able to automatically chat with companies via their website at any time of day or night through Facebook Messenger bots for example, so it\’s clear that future ecommerce businesses need an automated strategy in place if they want to keep up with future expectations from their customers.
Shipping and Fulfillment
With future ecommerce, traffic set to increase as we head towards 2022, shipping and fulfilment businesses will also need to make changes if they want to future-proof themselves. For example, there could be more of a move towards flexible schedules for future pick ups from customers who are likely to increasingly expect same day deliveries in cities. This means making sure you have the right workforce with the skills to work in these emerging environments is essential.
Environment and Conscious Shoppers
One future trend that shoppers should keep their eyes out for is future-conscious shopping. According to an article from ExchangeWire, future conscious shopping will continue to be a growing trend over the coming years, which means websites need to future proof themselves by including methods of payment such as Bitcoin and other cryptocurrencies, while also providing easy access to future information about shipping and more.
Private Label
According to statistics, private label products will dominate the future market – with consumers almost always preferring them over branded items. This means any ecommerce business who wants to compete and future-proof their own ecommerce website needs to be prepared to offer a two way street for these types of purchases which could include offering customizable options for customers.
Video and Ecommerce
As video transitions continue to dominate the web. Video content will also become an increasingly big part of ecommerce. This means videos are required to future-proof their ecommerce website for maximum effect.
AI, Chatbots in Ecommerce
In the future almost all ecommerce businesses will need to future-proof themselves by looking at chatbots and Artificial Intelligence for smart automated customer service.
Ecommerce Payment
There will be a huge increase in the number of customers using mobile payment technology over the coming years, so ecommerce websites need a strong mobile presence – especially as they continue to grow into mobile first businesses with fully responsive sites that can be accessed from any type of mobile device. In addition there are now more older people starting to shop online who would prefer same day deliveries as well as consumers who want wearables such as Apple.
Wrapping Up
The future of ecommerce has never looked brighter for many retailers, brands and people looking forward to starting their own business. With emerging markets set to dominate the future of ecommerce, it\’s clear that any retailer planning on taking advantage should ensure they\’re prepared with enough manpower, tools and funds to deal with the huge projected increase in traffic.