5 Industry-Shaping eCommerce Trends in 2023 and Beyond
How many packages did you receive from FedEx, USPS, and other courier service providers last year? How about during the holidays? Based on your own experiences with online shopping in the previous year, you might already know that electronic commerce is becoming more competitive. As a business owner, how will you stand out? How can you attract your target audience and convert more of them into returning customers? Let’s discuss the answers to these questions by taking a closer look at the online shopping trends, numbers, and predictions shaping 2023.
- Increase of shoppers on social media platforms
In recent years, Instagram and Facebook have become popular online destinations for people to discover and buy products. From makeup and skincare items to leather goods and jewelry, you can search for and purchase almost anything on social media nowadays. Unlike e-commerce sites that usually require account creation, about 4.48 billion people already use social media, which makes social commerce more convenient for many shoppers.
In addition, built-in native social commerce features, including in-app checkout, buy buttons, and instant messaging technology, add to social media’s appeal as an online shopping platform.
Social commerce earnings may reach $80 billion by 2025 in the United States. Furthermore, by 2025, the total number of American buyers on social commerce may reach over 114 million.
Instagram and Facebook dominate in the US, with 12 percent of users who made successful purchases on social media did so on Instagram, while 19 percent used Facebook. Social media commerce makes even more sense for brands with younger audiences, as Millennials and Generation Z (1981-2012) are the most frequent shoppers on social channels.
As shopping on social media channels becomes increasingly popular, e-commerce platforms are making it much simpler for retailers to combine both. For instance, Shopify’s integration with Facebook and Instagram allows retailers to sync their product catalog on Shopify to both social commerce platforms, enabling easy creation of ads and shoppable posts. Other leading e-commerce companies are also making it easier for retailers to bring the look and feel of their websites to Instagram and Facebook by grouping products together to help customers discover items. If you are interested in this feature, contact us for a free quote.
- More online shoppers are supporting sustainable brands
A growing number of consumers are buying from brands that reflect their values and beliefs. Currently, 44 percent of global consumers are more likely to purchase from a business or brand with a clear commitment to sustainability. Moreover, 41 percent of shoppers choose to spend their money on brands with a strong commitment to relevant social issues.
If one of your goals in 2023 is to attract environmentally-conscious online shoppers – there are millions of them, after all – you need to communicate your brand’s environmental or social cause pledges, objectives, and progress to customers. An example for beginners is to focus on recyclable and environmentally-conscious packaging. According to eMarketer, 19 percent of online shoppers prefer minimal packaging for shipping, and 18 percent would rather shop from brands that use compostable packaging materials.
- Using artificial intelligence to personalize shopping experiences
In 2023, more brands may double their efforts to integrate artificial intelligence (AI) and machine learning to provide accurate product recommendations based on previous data and, ultimately, personalize each customer’s shopping experience.
Clothing retailer Levi’s is already steps ahead of their competitors by using an AI-powered recommendation engine to read and predict consumers’ online behavior cues to provide unique shopping suggestions. Levi’s has since recorded an increase in both conversions and revenue per visit.
- Tapping into zero-party data
Online privacy and security remain pressing concerns among shoppers. In response, the government has made it easier for online shoppers to browse in private without worrying about cookies on their devices. Companies that fail to comply can face hefty fines and penalties. Even Google Chrome intends to block all third-party cookies in 2024.
While 28 percent of technology decision-makers expected these changes to customer data and privacy regulations to inhibit goals for growth in 2022, this does not need to be the case in 2023 and beyond. E-commerce brands can work around the “death of third-party cookies” by gathering zero-party data or the information that customers provide voluntarily. For instance, in 2022, approximately 42 percent of brands planned to offer their online clientele personalized product recommendations using tools like quizzes.
For a more thorough dataset of your shoppers’ behaviors and preferences, aim to utilize multiple zero-party data collection methods. To get started, check out these tips from Octane AI.
- Live shopping attracts consumers from older generations
Live commerce uses social media channels to fuse live streaming with commerce. Viewers tune into Instagram, Facebook, or TikTok Live videos, have real-time conversations with a brand’s human representative (not chatbots), and transact on the spot.
Live selling or shopping is a straightforward process wherein a brand uses the live stream feature of a social media platform to promote products, answer queries, and complete sales with people who are joining to watch. While considerably new in the United States, live selling is popular throughout Asia, especially in China. In fact, the livestream selling market in China grew from $3 billion to $171 billion in just three years. And as of 2022, Qianzhan Industrial Research Institute has reported that the country’s livestream market reached $330 billion in sales.
According to current estimates, the livestream market in the US will be worth $35 billion by 2024. And, while Gen Z and Millennials are the tech-savvy bunch of the 21st Century, more Baby Boomers and Gen X are participating in live stream shopping.
If you consider tapping into the world of live selling, expect significant rewards. Take it from the entrepreneurs who reported live commerce conversion around the 30 percent mark, which is 10 times higher than conventional commerce. They are also encountering less product returns and refunds, which has long been a prevalent issue among e-commerce stores.
Stand Out in an Oversaturated E-commerce Environment
As the number of online shoppers continues to rise, e-commerce brands will need to incorporate new tech and trends, such as those mentioned in this article, to attract and retain customers. If you need help keeping up with online shopping trends and building a marketing strategy to meet your customers’ demands, let Primeview spearhead your e-commerce marketing needs. Dial 480-970-4688 now to get in touch with our experts.
