6 Powerful E-Commerce Trends in 2020

Global Consumerism: Customers in 2020

Hello! I am writing this article and I am a consumer. We all are. Now let’s think about what unites us most and how the knowledge of it helps you to implement 2020 E-Commerce trends.

• We spend tons of time on the Internet. It helps to socialize in 1 second. We learn a new skill in a month and for free (Hi, Youtube!). The web enables us to discuss the events the moment they occur. We buy online even the grocery, and the reason is…
• We have no time. Excessive work, rich social life, constant self-improvement. If you want to reach your customers during a little time they have, your ads and website better be appealing and precise. Our society is busy and overwhelming which is why…
• We need to filter the information. Constantly. There is too much of it. “Here’s Meghan Markle moved back to the USA, a new ad of Zara jeans, your school friend Jess just posted a story from Dominicana, subscribe to our channel, look at our new lipstick, Greta Thunberg, China, original iPhone case!” It’s a constant flow of information, never taking a minute off. So if you want to sell this new lipstick, make it noticeable. Another way, the informational noise will numb it. If we don’t get interested in a moment, we forget because…
• We buy and build brand trust instantly. Consumers’ short attention span is what makes marketing strategies more inventive. People have seen everything and there are fewer and fewer ways of surprising them. Brands draw our attention by working with famous influencers, communicating with their audience and letting it participate in the marketing process. We tag and hashtag, post and subscribe, write blogs and share stories. The brands are now trying to research the tendencies existing among their target audience through social media. They want to make one hit and get the customer. One of the trends they use is…
• We are environmentally conscious. The current events influence it even more. We want our package to be non-plastic. People refuse to wear natural fur. We buy sustainable products and donate to national parks. It is important for us to feel purpose in our actions. This way, we feel like strong individuals, which is why…
• We want everything personalized for us specifically – information according to our interests, jeans of our sizes, bloggers who support our ideas.

What expectations do customers have in the 21st century? We want to trust a brand and see other people trusting it, too. Also, the product must be sustainable and convenient. We are the generation of value- and purpose-driven consumers. Important factors that influence the purchase are transparency and traceability, enabling consumers’ to contribute to the cause, clearness, organic value of the product, and recycling option.

E-Commerce trends in 2020. Google – a past, present, and future of E-Commerce

Unless you are a giant of commerce like Amazon, people will mostly find your product through Google and only if it’s on the top of the results page. The more priority you get the more people purchase. It makes sense to include Google search optimization for items on your webshop.

Google Shopping is a marketplace and a smart ads system, promoting your product listing. It uses the keywords, title, image description, and then shows it to the customers in the moment of search. To get the best of Google Shopping, you need to set up your Merchant Center account and start a campaign. Include all the info about your product and choose the keywords best describing it. You can also prioritize some of your products and display them to a specific location, Also, make sure you have a great quality score for text ads. It means your keyword is relevant to your ad and landing page. After the end of the ads, you will measure the effectiveness of a campaign with Google Analytics. With behavioral factor technology, Google determines how much time the customers spend on the website and how many pages they visit. You can improve your ad campaign and product listing quality, analyzing the statistics. Google also enables visual search –  enter the picture and it looks for similar ones. This tool is gaining popularity.

Social Media Commerce – Retail Market E-Commerce Trend

Instagram, Facebook, and Pinterest are not only for showing the world what you have eaten or what you think about new elections. Online retailers have optimized it to become a place for marketing too. Shops and companies have appealing Instagram pages which increase the awareness of the product. It workes like this.

• You subscribe to the page because you see thousands of people following it as well. It means the shop is reliable;
• You see it constantly in your feed. Although you didn’t make any purchase yet, you know a lot about the quality of the product, its usage, and possible options;
• You got used to this page. The next time your jeans wear off this brand would be the first to think of;
• You enter their website and fill in the basket. Or you buy the item straight from the Instagram page. Write in Direct messages and get your order accepted.

Social media platforms are a comfort zone for their users. They watch funny cat videos and feel safe. They communicate with friends and feel sociable and needed. You enter their comfort zone and if your page is well-built and appealing, you become their friend too. This way, social media marketing, and shopping became a new E-Commerce trend. In 2020 it will only get more powerful. With social media E-Commerce, we solve customers’ problems by…

• showing the trustworthiness via comments, followers, stories, and likes;
• allowing to make orders through direct messages;
• saving the time they had to spend on the website accepting the product, searching for reviews.

Another way to manage your E-Commerce through social media is by good old customers` marketing. When people buy something, they want to show it to the world. The bigger the brand is, the more willing people are to share they use it. You can encourage your clients to write reviews on their pages, re-share the products, tag you on their photos. It happens that other people do not consider it as a direct advertisement but as genuine advice or recommendation. The power of native advertising. Plus, you can use the photos of your clients from social media to show them on your website as live examples. It increases brand trust.

AR and VR – the new tech E-Commerce trend

Although people shop online more often, there still products they prefer to buy in-store. They need to try on clothing and see if it fits. They have to look at the furniture and touch it. E-Commerce technology trends such as AR and VR would really help online retailers to win another battle with brick-and-mortar stores.

• Augmented reality enables to use of tablet or smartphone and in real-time see a digital picture appearing in on the screen in the real settings. Instagram and Snapchat filters have this technology. It’s not only about doggy ears on top of your head and hearts flying around. Imagine you can try on new hair color, makeup kit, T-shirt and hat just as you try a new filter. Imagine checking if the drawers fit your kitchen design. All with AR on your smartphone.
• Virtual reality enables us to use a special head-mounted display, which is not available to most customers. So it’s a special E-Commerce innovation. It displays digital pictures in 3D, so making purchases in the VR store would really remind offline shopping.

Mobile Shopping – the Current Trend in E-Commerce

Shopping online with your smartphone is the next level of convenience. Recall the description of modern consumers. They want to do everything fast because their life is filled with events. This way, smartphones become another platform for enticing customers to buy. The best options to optimize your product on the phone would be PWA and chatbots.

PWA (PROGRESSIVE WEB APPLICATION)

It is what makes your website optimized to Android and iOs so that it looks like a native smartphone app. PWA is fast, needs fewer resources and less Internet traffic. Websites with this technology work well even if the Internet connection is unstable. You still will be able to send push-notifications. Also, Google prioritizes the sites which use PWA.

CHATBOTS

People are becoming active messenger users. It is more convenient to communicate there than on social media platforms because there are fewer distractions. Only chats.

• 1.3 billion users worldwide text in Messenger;
• 1.5 billion logs in WhatsApp, 300 million use it daily;
• 260 million users are active in Viber;
• 300 million people communicate through Telegram monthly.

When it comes to online shopping, people do not care whether they text with the bot or a real person. The only thing important is the result and speed. With all respect to human beings, bots solve basic problems faster. Also, many customers voice their desire to be able to order goods with one message. If you want to be trendy in 2020, try solving this problem. Here are some examples of effective E-Commerce chatbots. Get inspired!

• Agromall – streamlines shopping process and supports clients at any stage of the sales process;
• Lego – chooses the right personalized gift. You tell location, budget, preferences and get the recommendation;
• Hello Fresh – customer support bot that also can advise the songs listen to while cooking and report the news;
• Bot Burgers – enables to order home burgers through Facebook messenger.

Environmental mindfulness

The largest glacier is melting. Gucci gives up on fur. Plastic at the bottom of the Mariana Trench. World influencer discusses ecological problems and how they affect our future. Under such circumstances in the world situation, inevitably, people will rather go for organic and sustainable products. Eco-friendly packing, delivery, and production with each year become a priority for people who shop. 

How to reduce the detrimental effects of your E-Commerce?

• source materials from local suppliers;
• donate to a green cause;
• do recycling of your package or use a reusable one;
• promote eco-friendliness on the items you sell;
• don’t be a ‘greenwashing’ brand. If you say you are eco, be it. If you are not, don’t say.

Customization and personalization – an E-Commerce industry trend

Finding a product that is perfect for you personally is time-consuming. The biggest E-Commerce retailers understand that. They increase customers’ reach by making websites more personalized. How?

• Quiz. Several questions about a user help a great deal in understanding that he needs white Nikes and not red Louboutins;
• More options. The problem with S-sizes models as mannequins is starting to fade. Websites include the pictures of models of all sizes so that customers could see whether the clothing fits them personally;
• Design. Brands allow customers to choose which items to add to the design and which not. For example, Michael Kors had a personalized campaign this autumn. Clients could have their name taped on their bags and wallets;
• Listings. People are more likely to find a needed product if you personalize their listings. Include the “You’ll also like” feature.

The Future of E-Сommerce. Conclusion

• E-Commerce experience will go further than computer and smartphone screen
• The content will become more relevant
• The service will be automatic with chatbots
• The faster delivery will become a reality
• There will be entirely personalized items
• Start with developing with the creation of progressive web apps