The e-commerce industry has undergone drastic changes recently,with several “tech trends” dominating the market today. These trends have reshaped how people carry out activities online, enabling marketers to connectin real-time with their customers.
Modern brands are expecting a global transformation of the e-commerce industry after COVID-19 and its resulting impact on businesses. Experts estimate that e-commerce sales will exceed $6 trillion by 2024, as it allows customers to purchase their desired items easily online.
Marketers are eager to understand these “tech trends” more deeply to benefit from them.For this purpose, we’ll share some tech trends reshaping the e-commerce industry.
- Artificial intelligence
AI (artificial intelligence) has infiltrated almost every industry today, and e-commerce experienced an immediate transformation due to this advancement. AI can instantly gather the necessary information about customers and make the purchasing experience more exciting for them.
However, brands are dealing with the question, “How to make AI more humanistic?” For instance, it seems that AI is learning more from negative reviews and data. So, the best use of AI turns out to be in the field of personalization.
- Advanced electronics
Recent “tech trends” also involve leveraging tech solutions to mitigate problems marketers face while communicating with customers. Invest in quality devices and tools for your employees so they can remain in contact with the audience without any issues, be it hearing or timely response. For instance, get noise-canceling headphones by Jabra to facilitate discussion between online representatives and consumers.
Invest in corded and cordless headphones, among other crucial electronics. That’s how you can make effective communication possible with your potential customers.
- Extensive personalization
As mentioned earlier, AI collects customers’ information, learns about their purchase history, and informs them about relevant products. Statistics have shown that most customers reject offers for not being personalized. So, marketers don’t have to waste money on offering people unnecessary stuff. AI can personalize a customer’s experience on your website and better engage them with offers catered to their buying pattern.
Likewise, allow your systems to use big data to engage more customers.
- Augmented reality
Augmented reality (AR) transformed the e-commerce industry by including transparency in people’s shopping experiences.
It allows customers to view the items they intend to purchase in-person while at home. According to stats,more than 80 million consumers utilized this technology monthly in 2020. Since AR enables anindividual to try a product digitally before buying it, it further strengthens their purchase decision. Moreover, customers won’t need to visit your store if they can purchase it easily online.
- Social commerce
Marketers are leveraging social media to promote their brands, provide superior customer services, and communicate with online audiences in a timely manner. What’s more, over 18% of American adults bought items on Facebook in 2020, making it the most popular e-commerce platform.
Customers also prefer purchasing products on Instagram since it guides them through thepurchase journey – from discovering the product to purchasing it. So, marketers shouldn’t neglect the utilization of social media.
- Mobile commerce
We know that smartphones have become a major source of online traffic today. So, optimize your website for mobile screens. Offer a mobile-oriented shopping experience to attract more potential customers to your platform.
Location-based marketing allows brands to advertise products relevant to their consumers’ whereabouts. Apps enable customers to interact with their favorite brands easily. So, make your customers’ purchase journey more smooth by ensuring mobile-friendly interfaces.
- Livestream commerce
Old-fashioned television shopping channels have switched to Livestreams, where marketers advertise their products online. These real-time advertisements have become popular in China as well as other countries.
During these Livestreams, marketers can also offer limited-time offers while inciting customers to purchase their products before the prices go up. Moreover, the seller can answer customers’ questions on the spot, thereby communicating with audiences effectively.
- Effective payment
“Tech trends” have made payment quicker and easier for customers. A study has shown that 40% of customers are using contactless payment methods at least thrice a week. These methods let consumers pay for things without touching a germ-infected surface, reducing the chances of catching any virus or disease.
That’s why your business must offer different ways of payment to customers in 2022. Besides, this trend will keep growing in the post-pandemic world.
- Image search
Most customers lookuptheir desired products via voice and image search. So, brands must build efficient image and voice search for their market offerings. They must ensure that their products appear higher on Google’s image-based search results.
Integrating image search into their website allows modern-day entrepreneurs to attract a larger audience. Remember that content isn’t just about writing stuff for customers to read; you must also upload GIFs, images, and videos to grab people’s attention.
- Conversational marketing
In today’s time, traditional marketing has a unique competitor called conservational marketing, in which marketers use humane language to connect with people. We have services such as chatbots, live chats, and mobile messaging, among other facilities.
Marketers can have one-on-one conversations with an individual online while AI responds to customers’ repetitive questions with consistent attention. The conversational marketing trend is surely dominating the e-commerce field in the 21st century.
Conclusion
We’ve established that certain “tech trends” are quickly changing the e-commerce industry and allowing customers to interact more efficiently with brands online. These trends offer better connectivity between marketers and consumers. For instance, image and voice search is gradually taking over conventional searching tactics, compelling marketers to redevise their strategies. AI, augmented reality, social commerce, mobile commerce, and other trends remain critical for marketers to work on to ensure competitiveness.
