The future of e-commerce
The rise of e-commerce has changed the landscape in retailing. E-commerce, in fact, is defined as the set of transactions that come to life from the purchase and sale of goods and services on the web and the set of communications or management of commercial activities through the Internet. It is interesting that it also includes other more specific factors such as online distribution of digital content, investment operations on online trading platforms and other banking or institutional procedures that find their place on the web.
As can be seen, this is a very wide economic area that is affected by multiple factors influencing its output and externalities (both positive and negative).
Online sales: in constant updating
The online commerce sector is constantly evolving and changing, and the variations that take place in it have in most cases very intense effects. Therefore, it is good practice to make predictions on which to formulate new ideas to strengthen your business. A failure to adapt to new trends could even cause the exit from such a highly competitive market!
The world of digital e-commerce platforms runs fast, and you need to keep up to date with the latest trends to maintain your status, whether it is business-to-consumers (B2C) or business-to-business (B2B).
For this reason, it is good and right to ask: but what will the future trends actually be that will lead to the optimization and improvement of e-commerce platforms?
E-commerce: future trends
Thanks to some studies by private equity companies specialized in investment in the consumer sector, it was possible to trace future trends that could take hold in e-commerce.
Below is their view of the future of digital commerce:
The experience lived through e-commerce will transcend the screen.
In addition to the experience provided through all types of screens (smartphones, tablets, PCs), future experiments will be aimed at delivering an experience that finds its way through new touchpoints such as voice, wearable products and kiosks.
Customization will be central to the e-commerce experience.
Although “customization” has been a buzzword for decades, the next wave of personalization will do a much better job of predicting needs. Each individual will get a different experience based on their geographic location, their web search history, past behaviors, etc. When entering a store, a salesperson can sense many things about the customer. The future of e-commerce will use technology to do the same thing, there will be smarter technology that will provide a better experience.
The e-commerce experience will include more and more relevant content.
Consumers want brands that have qualities and that convey values in a personalized way to the shopper. This requires content. E-commerce brands are moving towards creating broader, relevant and useful content that stimulates engagement and facilitates the right purchase. Machines will allow this to happen faster and in real time for long-term retail items, allowing human beings to develop content that enhances the experience.
The e-commerce experience will move towards better service and increase the customer experience.
The emphasis has long been on offering cheaper services. Future leaders in the field will go beyond the efficiency of delivering services that create value for the consumer. For example, after-sales services (chat rooms, etc.) that can enrich the customer’s journey.
What the future requires are systems that allow companies to customize merchandising, personalize their assortment and link the right products with the right content. This requires a platform, which in many cases is difficult to achieve. Companies that are able to adapt themselves, or, even better, create systems from scratch, will be able to win.
