Upcoming eCommerce Trends in 2015
By John Sanchez
Wednesday, January 28, 2015
The New Year is well underway. The eCommerce industry is expected to continually evolve so business owners should be able to make projections, be open-minded and ready to make the necessary changes in order to adapt to the ever changing times. Based on our lessons and experience in the past few years and based on the foresight of industry experts, here are the upcoming trends you should watch out for in 2015:
Rise of Omni-Channels
A number of CEOs have stated that more eCommerce business owners are keen on making use of every available shopping channel to increase sales and reach more customers. So aside from having an online store, online entrepreneurs might soon consider setting up physical stores to showcase their products.
Convenience is one of the primary benefits of shopping online, but it somehow lacks that instant satisfaction of being able to physically hold and examine the products you want to buy. This is where brick and mortar stores come into play. The challenge now for business owners is to come up with creative and seamless marketing strategies to enrich the customer experience in all shopping channels.
Providing Excellent Customer Service
Offering crazy good deals and discount rates are commonplace in the eCommerce industry; giving excellent customer service -- not so much. In order to get one up on the competition, business owners must provide the best possible before-during-and-after-sales customer service.
Mobile Optimization is a Must!
Almost everyone has a mobile phone these days -- across all demographic and social classes. According to eMarketer.com, there are more than 1.75 billion smart phone users worldwide, with the numbers increasing by the day. As smart phones and tablets become more affordable, more and more people are bound to do their shopping via a mobile site or mobile application. Online retailers are sure to get more customers if their online stores are customized for mobile users.
Along with mobile optimization, online entrepreneurs must also provide improved online security and safety for mobile shoppers.
Growth of Social eCommerce
The power and influence of social media is already being felt in the world of eCommerce as consumers become social influencers to either make or break products. Likes, posts, shares and retweets become instant endorsements. Customers also turn to social media to voice their disapproval as well.
Online entrepreneurs must beef up their social media presence and social selling by connecting and engaging their customers, users, friends, fans or followers. If it’s possible to reply to every comment, tweet, like or share, then try to do so! Always remember that every person in your social network is a potential customer.
Faster Shipping Time
Business owners are aiming to satisfy customers by providing the fastest shipping time and prompt delivery of products. Consumers no longer have to wait weeks or days to receive products purchased online as same day delivery service might soon become the norm.
Going Global
Both business owners and customers are likely to spread their wings by going global in 2015. In an interview with ecommercenews.eu, Scandinavian Design Center CEO Jörgen Bödmar projects that "local consumers all over the world will discover global or foreign web sites in a major way, and spend a larger portion of their online budgets on non-local e-retailers.” Online merchants should explore selling and catering to a much larger worldwide market as customers start exploring and start purchasing from different locations around the globe.
How about you, what do you think will be the "in thing” in the eCommerce sphere in 2015? Do you agree with the upcoming trends mentioned above? Tell us your thoughts by letting us know in the comments below.
Happy selling!
References:
http://tech.co/5-strong-ecommerce-trends-set-drive-profits-retailers-2015-2015-01
http://ecommercenews.eu/key-e-commerce-trends-in-2015/
http://www.avalara.com/learn/whitepapers/5-ecommerce-trends-watch-2015/
http://www.inc.com/rebecca-borison/top-trends-in-ecommerce-for-new-year.html
http://www.emarketer.com/Article/Smartphone-Users-Worldwide-Will-Total-175-Billion-2014/1010536
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