The meteoric rise of e-commerce has been nothing short of remarkable, with 2017 witnessing an unprecedented boom in online retail sales across the globe. According to a recent report from Statista, worldwide sales reached $1.5 trillion by the end of last year – a staggering figure when compared with previous years’ figures!
Indeed, the Internet is transforming industries at an unprecedented pace. From travel to grocery shopping, people are increasingly leveraging their time online to make purchases and seek out information about various services. And this trend is only set to continue into the future – according to research conducted by Juniper Networks it estimates that by 2022 internet retail will surpass traditional brick-and-mortar stores such as Walmart by 64 billion dollars!
1. AI-Powered Solutions
AI is quickly transforming the e-commerce landscape, providing an array of advantages for online businesses.
Intelligent software systems are transforming the industry, making automated tasks and decision-making possible that would have previously been reserved for human operators.
An intelligent system uses machine learning algorithms to continuously update itself based on its own experience. This enables it to develop proficiency over time and become more effective at performing various tasks or even making decisions.
Given a task, an AI-powered solution can complete it without requiring any involvement from humans; instead relying solely on calculations and data analysis to carry out necessary operations.
The possibilities with AI are enormous: businesses can utilize this technology to enhance their customer experience by automating tedious processes, eliminating wastage and enabling faster turnaround times!
2. Mobile Optimization
The mobile web is crowded with sights, but one must be mindful of the fact that users have fewer options when it comes to accessing content on their phone.
To combat this reality, many e-commerce platforms are providing enhanced functionality and accessibility across all devices by integrating powerful tools such as Artificial Intelligence (AI) – offering customers a more convenient experience as well as increased sales leads!
Utilizing AI to optimize your website for mobile has become an incredibly valuable asset. By using technology like text and image recognition, automatic click-throughs and customer profiles can be taken into consideration – bringing optimization to a whole new level!
Pro Tip: If you’re not sure how to leverage these handy upgrades in your e-commerce site yet, don’t hesitate to get in touch with our team of experts at Agora – we can help you plan out a strategy that will maximize both your visibility and conversions!
3. The Future of E-commerce Marketing is Data-Driven Marketing
With the advent of AI-powered solutions and conversational commerce, your e-commerce marketing strategy must be data-driven. The key to success is not only understanding your customers’ needs, but also utilizing all available data to provide them with the best possible experience.
Leveraging all available data at your disposal is the key to success in today’s marketplace. There is simply no excuse for ignoring customer data if you want to ensure you remain relevant!
Having access to up-to-date consumer preferences and behaviors can help guide your marketing efforts and facilitate targeted offers while avoiding having to display irrelevant messages on their devices.
4. Chatbots and Conversational Artificial Intelligence
Whether you’re a first-time entrepreneur or seasoned industry veteran, one thing is certain: you have heard the term ‘chatbot’ before. It’s an automation tool that leverages artificial intelligence to converse with users in real time and provide them with tailored solutions.
In addition to being a useful tool for optimizing your e-commerce marketing, chatbots are an excellent choice for businesses looking to diversify their offerings and win over new customers. You can set up these intelligent companions as reliable representatives of your brand while simultaneously catering to customer needs in real time!
5. Blockchain: The Future of E-Commerce
In the not-too-distant future, your e-commerce provider could be using blockchain technology to enhance the user experience and ensure better security across its platforms. This ingenious concept provides a secure way through which buyers’ information can be handled and transactions efficiently completed with relative ease – it’s perfect for today’s online marketplaces!
Blockchain is a digital transaction ledger that relies on consensus mechanisms like cryptography and game theory to facilitate execution of transactions between parties. As opposed to a conventional database system, where records are kept in sequence; this innovative approach uses an intricate combination of encryption routines alongside ever-changing data structures that distinguish each entity from its predecessor by means of a code added as an extra layer on top of each item within its system.
This ingenious technology has many benefits, including increased efficiency and enhanced product safety. By utilizing blockchain technology (or its precursor technologies) within your e-commerce operation, you can offer unprecedented levels of trust between parties while eliminating fraud risks along the way – resulting in an overall more pleasant customer experience!
Secured Transactions and More
The unprecedented adoption of e-commerce has enabled consumers to make purchases without exposing their personal data or making purchases over insecure channels. With the rise in data breaches and frauds, however – consumer confidence has been shaken. To restore trust with customers’ data security is a pressing concern, particularly when it comes to managing sensitive information.
To prevent data breaches on the backend and maintain vigilance over customer data, organizations are exploring new solutions that leverage artificial intelligence (AI) and machine learning (ML).
The most prolific use case for AI-powered platforms is payments. Rather than relying solely on humans to validate payment information and credit cards (and potentially having them stolen), algorithms can perform this function automatically and more securely than ever before!
Even if your platform does not offer full-fledged payment processing capabilities yet, there are still ways you can enhance the user experience for customers who are making payments. Look for simpler payment options like PayPal, Google Wallet, Apple Pay or even debit/credit cards! These solutions enable straightforward transactions with minimal effort from users; plus they guarantee security and convenience when purchasing anything online!
Learn More about the Experts Who Studied These Emerging Trends in E-commerce
This recent study by MasterCard reveals that nearly half of online shoppers are intending to make a purchase in the next six months; yet, these same consumers lack confidence in their current websites’ ability to offer an ideal shopping experience.
Despite this, Chief Marketing Officer of MasterCard announced that consumer satisfaction levels continue to rise and can be attributed largely to the convenience of mobile apps available for smartphones and tablets – with many users saying they prefer web-based sites over native applications and app stores.
Indeed, you’ll find that all five top emerging trends we have highlighted above relate directly to the ongoing ubiquity of mobile devices. With consumers spending more than 60% of their time online on such platforms as smartphones and tablets, it’s crucial for businesses large and small alike to provide seamless access to their operations from wherever they may be at any given moment!
Conclusion
Despite the numerous advantages that ecommerce platforms can provide, such as data-driven personalization and customer support via live chat or email, there are still many obstacles to overcome before reaching that ideal customer experience. However, with the aid of an intuitive ecommerce platform and robust features it provides for optimization – along with cutting-edge technologies such as AI – these challenges are quickly falling into history!
Our team is dedicated to providing you with the tools you need to achieve success on multiple fronts. We believe in making it easy for merchants to run their businesses online and providing a user-friendly experience when navigating through the website. It’s our mission to make life easier!
