With the steady growth of technology in recent times, ecommerce has not been left behind. The industry is also evolving, and we are seeing new trends every new year. 2018 is almost forgotten now, but we still remember how well ecommerce performed. But things are expected to change in 2019. The improvement is mostly based on bettering the customer experience.
Also, most of the advancements are tech-based. Generally, ecommerce is very beneficial to your business. You just have to play your cards right and handle it accordingly. But we won teach you how you can manage your ecommerce today. Rather, we’ll be looking at the changes you should expect to see on ecommerce platforms in 2019. We are ready to take off, so fasten your belt.
- The Mobile Friendly Migration
Okay, this trend has been a major point of discussion in the past decade. The main aim of business persons is to reach out to the least of their customers. Marketing experts have noticed that the best way to reach out to users easily is by making your website mobile-friendly.
Generally, most internet users access it through their mobile devices. In this case, you will need to make your ecommerce as mobile-friendly as possible so that you can make it easy for the users to access it. No one would want to get off their bed or chair just to log in to their computers to shop. Also, they won’t want to wait for the bus, train, or plane to reach their destination so that they can do their online shopping.
Instead, they want to get what they need in the quickest way possible. There is no better way than letting them reach to your ecommerce site than through a mobile phone. It is estimated that mobile devices drive more than 65% of ecommerce visits. So, if you don’t think mobile-first, you will be losing a lot of visitors.
- Dropshipping, Check
If you are an ecommerce business that lacks enough capital to get started, you can opt for dropshipping. Dropshipping is all about acting as a middleman between the supplier or manufacturer and the consumer. You can sell products to customers even without owning a physical or online store. You just communicate with the supplier, and they will deliver the product to the customer. This model is easy to start and tends to be less risky.
With dropshipping, you will only purchase the product once the customer places an order. Also, you won’t need storage costs.
Because dropshipping is beneficial in many ways, there will be more of it in many ecommerce sites. It was estimated that businesses that use dropshipping enjoyed average revenue growth of more than 32%, along with an average conversion rate of 1.74%.
If your business deals with bulky items that might need some storage, dropshipping should be your model to consider.
- AI, AR, and Chat Bots
Artificial intelligence has not only dominated the mobile devices, but it also dominates the ecommerce platforms. Machine learning is an AI application that will be noticed in many ecommerce websites. The machine learning is just meant to understand what the user wants and prefers.
Augment Reality (AR) will also be noticed in most ecommerce platforms, along with its practical applications. The AR is meant to give the customer the experience of a specific product without having to leave the house. This is an approach that lets the user ‘try’ a product before purchasing it.
Another tech-based improvement will be Chat Bots. The chatbots will mostly attempt to handle the customer service agents’ work of ordering status updates, or even retrieving shipping numbers. But the good thing is that the AI, AR, and Chat Bots don’t exactly take away people’s job. It only makes the work easier and better. Your ecommerce needs such advancements to make it through 2019’s competitive market.
- Personalized Experiences
There is nothing so satisfying like having a unique experience that is perfectly personalized for a specific user. In this case, the user will feel like the ecommerce platform understands them and that they were specifically designed for them.
For that reason, ecommerce platforms are developing a unique brand experience that is aimed at prioritizing the customer’s needs and values. This strategy outshines other approaches like product diversification or discounting, which are more of short-term strategies.
A personalized experience will be the norm of ecommerce stores. This will become easier especially when the ecommerce platform integrates AI and machine learning.
You can check out Volusion reviews to see how a good ecommerce platform would look like in 2019.
- Online Grocery/Household Store
Earlier on, ecommerce stores specifically focused on electronic devices, mobile devices, clothes, and other items. They didn’t specifically go for items like groceries and other minor household items. However, 2019 seems like a different year, and ecommerce stores will start venturing into selling groceries.
Stats show that customers that shopped for groceries at their local store ended up spending an average of $200. However, the same amount of groceries from an online store would cost them roughly $75. As usual, customers want good-quality products, but they also appreciate a way that they can save a few dollars. Luckily, the groceries at the ecommerce stores are still as fresh and healthy as those at your local store.
Ecommerce stores will increase in 2019, and also in the future years. People want to shop, but they also want to do so in the most comfortable approach. That is why a good ecommerce would be good for them.
If you want to develop an ecommerce store, you need to learn more about the entire field. It isn’t just a thing you can start overnight and expect it to flourish. Rather, you need to consider a lot of things, including the niche you prefer.
Once you decide you want to continue with the ecommerce store, you will need to develop an enticing website. Luckily, there are multiple ecommerce website builders out there to help you. Ensure that you choose the right builder that will make your site both professional and friendly enough. Don’t forget to consider what other people say about the builder before you choose one.