Digital Aptech is a tried and tested destination for global businesses for custom e-commerce solutions. We empower businesses with “state of the art” e-commerce solutions over the years. Apart from that we feel it is also our responsibility to provide a clear picture time to time of where the online retail industry is heading to. It is not about the upcoming technologies alone that we want to make our readers aware about. Keeping a tab on the evolution of customer experiences and customer expectations what we feel are more important for businesses to stay ahead in the race. It is important to note that technological advancements do not occur frequently; at least not in the world of e-commerce development. Those advancements or evolutions are rather more like tools. Those tools facilitate driving your business (as well as that of your competitors) in a specific direction. From what we monitor, one basic thing needs to be emphasized more than anything else. With the passage of time, expectations and demands of customers are just mounting at a steady pace.
Here are some of the latest trends in e-commerce development that businesses should rather not ignore. Adapting to these trends will help businesses cater to their customer expectations better.
In its present state, e-commerce is more contextual
Contextual e-commerce is an idea which relates to omni-channel marketing to a large extent. It is about understanding a context in which your customers may discover your product. This brings up a possibility that they may purchase the product then and there after its discovery. To describe this context correctly, it is better and more sensible using the phrase omnipresent purchase opportunities. In fact this phrase also makes the inherent meaning easier to grasp.
You cannot confine contextual commerce to any single strategy. This is what makes this concept so fascinating. In other words, as a retailer you can go absolutely creative introducing fresh purchase opportunities to your target audience. You can achieve this through implementing fresh channels of sale. You may even require making little investments. But more than anything else it is important to bring changes into the retailer’s mindset while pursuing contextual e-commerce. Arrange scenarios based on when and how you catch the right audience and provide them with an impulse. There could be an immediate possibility that they may purchase your product or service right there on spot.
e-Commerce is also about “on the go”
Mobile e-commerce development solutions are steadily working their way to get into the lives of smartphone users. In fact this trend started since the beginning of the 2000s. As a result of this trend, mobile journeys have only become increasingly smoother and convenient. Consumers are now so much accustomed with this positive mobile experience that they are always ready to shop from their handheld phones irrespective of what they want and where they are.
Buying on the go is nothing short of a full-scale trend in e-commerce. Now there is the feature of voice-assisted shopping recently introduced. In this approach buyers experience potentially frictionless browsing, selecting and buying products hands-free. They just use voice commands to accomplish browsing, selecting and buying products. To facilitate greater convenience to this category of shoppers there are smart speakers at home. When on the go, they can rely on mobile e-commerce apps with integrated virtual assistants controlled by voice.
e-Commerce based on subscription
There was a time, not so long ago, when customers wanted avoiding the hassles of repeat orders. They wanted to get specific products or services delivered regularly without getting into placing repeat orders. They wanted to involve no time or reminders in placing reorders either. This is where the concept of subscription e-commerce came into existence. Various types of subscription model are now there is existence. As a result this commerce model proves useful for different markets and industries.
Let us explore few of its varieties in the following sections of this post.
Replenishment subscription based e-commerce is ideal for sellers who deal in daily essentials. It automates the entire process of purchase of necessities. This approach is not only effective for businesses that deal in tangible products but also for those that provide household services. Some of examples include services like dog walking, cleaning and others.
Discovering or curating is an approach in which consumers first subscribe for sample boxes. Only after they become satisfied with the samples, they start trusting a particular brand. Once they start trusting a brand, they place orders for full sized products. That is how they gradually become committed and loyal customers. This approach is more suitable for lifestyle products like sugar-free snacks, organic beauty products and so on.
Access subscription model involves only those customers who sign up for membership. These customers get early access to certain advantages. The advantages include offline events, fresh arrivals and knowledge, etc.
Ethical approach in e-commerce
There is a section of buyers who care what they buy to the extent how the manufacturers make the products. They also assign much priority on the value and the message the makers of their purchased items convey. In e-commerce development services it is not possible ignoring this section of conscious customers. As a result e-commerce storefronts cannot do away with ethics and social impact in real-world scenarios. Ethics is one the latest trends in the fast evolving world of e-commerce. But it must be a true dedication on behalf of businesses. Companies should rather act responsibly than considering it as a sure shot means to win over customers.
Content centrism matters too
A tried and tested way to earn trust of customers is publishing relevant, factual and authentic content. This helps customers making informed decisions related to purchases. This brings us to note the latest trends in content marketing. These days video content is one of the most viral tools to cut an impression with your probable customers. According to a rough estimation, chances of purchases of any product rises by 144% with a product video.
What makes these videos so crucial in the domain of online retail? When one is shopping online it is not possible to check an item from various angles. This is where product videos come in handy. Product videos also provide near-authentic look and feel of any item or product. With help of a video, customers can determine the exact product or item that they will ultimately receive while buying anything online.
Product videos can be of various types. Retailers can select their type based on the kind of products they deal with.
For example those who deal in jewellery or gifts can go for video storytelling.
On the other hand, those who deal in beauty products or automobiles can choose influencer endorsement.
Retailers dealing in electronics or sports gears can go for how-to tutorial videos.
Team videos are the “one size fits all” variety. These videos usually prove ideal for almost any business.
In this context it is also relevant mentioning about user generated content. e-Commerce brands encourage customers to share feedbacks. As a result, content generated by users are quite relevant in content marketing. Digital or online customers advocate any brand in convincing and sincere manner. They do this through their “word of mouth” approach. This approach enhances credibility of any brand unlike almost anything else.
In the world of e-commerce one of the most popular versions of content generated by users is product reviews. The other version that is also worth mentioning is social media posts that have brands tagged.
Technology-driven e-commerce
To carry out all the major e-commerce operations retailers relied on a single e-commerce software application. This software used to handle everything ranging from storing information on both products and customers to processing orders as well as payments. But that approach is now obsolete. Customer expectations are now sky-high compared to that in the past. Even the market is more competitive than ever. In these changed circumstances retailers better prefer embracing the digital transformation. This digital transformation possesses the capability optimizing every individual process involved in a business.
This is the reason why competent e-commerce Development Companies like Digital Aptech and others keep busy finely tailoring systems like ERPs, CMS and CRMs for their clients. This is also the cause why personalization and prediction tools are so relevant in the present times. It is all about integrating a greater number of technologies. This is how retailers are trying out newer possibilities of building more enhanced customer experiences. At the same time these integrating technologies are improving business workflows effectively.
Headless ecommerce
Customers do not bother about the cost behind their seamless memorable experiences. But retailers do as they have to provide the much-needed funds to include the expected digital experience on their e-commerce websites. To cut a long story short, headless commerce is the in-thing. It provides great shopping experiences to shoppers in one hand while on the other secures handsome benefits for retailers.
Headless e-commerce is different from traditional e-commerce development solutions. It employs a decoupled architecture. In this architecture the presentation layer or the front end remains separated from business logic or backend. The APIs make the connection between the two. As retailers plot new user experiences, developers bring those ideas to life. E-commerce developers build the frontend right from scratch and with absolutely zero aligning with the backend. This is how retailers cut the otherwise hefty cost of development. Moreover deployment in this approach also takes place much faster.
Conclusion
In real life, e-commerce Development is not about adopting all the trends outlined above. Rather it is more useful when you start from a clear understanding of where your e-commerce business is standing at present and the level of customer experience in provides. It is also important understanding the technology stack your business makes use of. From there you should try to see any untapped potential or any obvious lapse in the operation. Business evolution is truly a never-ending journey.
As you embark on this never-ending voyage, make sure you team up with tried, tested, reliable and technically-informed e-commerce consultants who stay abreast with the latest evolutions in the industry. Digital Aptech is the player that fits the bill perfectly! With years of experiences in bespoke software development, it is your most assured platform to get innovative, full-range e-commerce solutions to drive your business to higher levels of success.
