Top 10 Trends in E-commerce in 2020

Artem Semenko
DigitalSuits
Published in
5 min readJan 8, 2020

The e-commerce world is developing rapidly. A lot of online marketplaces emerge daily and foster the market’s growth. As we are in 2020, every online entrepreneur should be aware of upcoming e-commerce trends in order to take advantage of them, no matter how advanced their online business is now. It is important that e-commerce trends are constantly being analyzed and timely adopted. So you can steadily promote your brand and really contribute to the development of the business. It also will help boost your store performance. Otherwise, you run the risk of falling far behind.

According to Statista research, in 2021, over 2.14 billion people worldwide are expected to buy goods and services online. The retail e-commerce sales worldwide will reach the amount of $6.54 trillion in 2023 compared to $3.53 trillion in 2019.

DigitalSuits considered several popular studies, including a famous annual review of e-commerce trends from Absolunet, and selected 10 most important e-commerce trends in 2020.

1. Mobile sales will keep rising

Statista reports the mobile share of all eCommerce sales is expected to exceed 70% in 2020 and reach 72.9% in 2021. These numbers cannot be ignored. Improving e-commerce opportunities for mobile clients can be a huge business opportunity.

The growth of e-commerce was partly due to the increased use of mobile devices. People do not just shop online, they also use their mobile devices for viewing or research before deciding to make a purchase. As confidence in online sales grows, consumers are more comfortable shopping on mobile devices than ever before. As a result, more and more websites are now optimized for mobile use.

2. Artificial Intelligence Sets New Standards

Chatbots and artificial intelligence (AI) are designed to enhance the customer’s overall purchasing experience. It provides buyers with relevant and interesting goods based on their search requests, product page visits, purchase history, and tailored ads. AI technology carefully suggests offers by analyzing “Your Wishlist” and “Your Collection”.

Furthermore, AI Assistants can perform a number of tasks that are usually assigned to a person, such as inventory management or query processing. These digital assistants meet a variety of processes, freeing up your time to focus on other aspects of your business.

3. Get Personal

In an effort to become more personalized for customers, brands transfer the conversation “in person.” More and more businesses aim to offer customizable and personalized goods. Direct messaging, as a means of optimizing customer service and assisting in sales, has become one of the most relevant trends in digital marketing in 2020.

Brands believe that personal correspondence with customers is effective for building a relationship, whether it is dealing with complaints, accepting orders or even just communicating.

4. Voice search

Voice search has remained as an e-commerce trend in digital marketing and technology in general over the past few years. And it is still developing. Voice search is 3.7 times faster than usual. Also, it is more comfortable and easier to say than to print. Voice search technology is perfect for mobile. Almost everyone has Siri, Alice, “Ok Google” in their pocket. According to a Comscore study, by the beginning of 2020, voice search will take up to 50% of search queries. Thus, businesses should optimize eСommerce websites for long-tail keywords (typical for voiced search) and suggest new content.

5. Selling through social media

Social media today has changed our daily lives. The Buy button on Facebook and Instagram began to be used more and more often. The platforms are constantly updating to meet the needs of customers on the Internet. Many social channels are turning into mini search engines of their own. And 55% of online shoppers have bought a product directly through a brand’s social post. All this is important to consider when promoting your brand.

6. Drone delivery

Today such giants as Amazon, UPS, Dominos has already begun experimenting with drone delivery technology. It might turn into the mainstream for many e-commerce companies in the near future. It has great potential to enhance the delivery services, increasing the overall safety and efficiency of the transportation system. Drone delivery is a new and efficient way to boost the user experience. One of the best examples is Amazon’s service called Prime Air.

7. Flexible Payment Options for Big Purchases

Payments should not be strictly limited to credit or debit card. 2020 is to offer flexible payment methods over a space of time. This doesn’t necessarily have to be credit agreements. This could be a term of service account agreement between a business entrepreneur and a customer.

It is a must-have option if you want your online store to become more competitive, you should put in place a simple checkout process that involves easy payment options.

8. Business to Business

Who said e-commerce is only for B2C brands? B2B companies are also taking advantage of new trends. B2B e-commerce sales are estimated to increase worldwide to $6.6 trillion in 2020.

In a survey of 500 B2B organizations, BigCommerce found that 80 percent accepted orders and payments through their website, which once again proves the growth of e-commerce in B2B industries.

9. Automation

In 2020, you need to automate the company’s processes to the maximum, use technologies that will simplify the marketing, sales, production and delivery of goods. Automation will improve the quality of customer service, reduce staff costs and increase the conversion rate.

One solution will be an accounting system where employees do not need to enter customer data several times.

10. Augmented Reality (AR)

According to Daniel Newman, the coming year will be the golden age of AR technologies, especially in retail. AR transmits customers into a lifelike simulation that gives them the complete idea of how something will look and feel in real life. In 2020 online buyers will have the opportunity to study, inspect, “try on” and test the product online almost the same way it happens in real life. For example, Toyota already uses 3D modeling and AR technology in its mobile product. Sephora allows you to virtually test makeup products on yourself, while the IKEA app lets you virtually “try on” the selected furniture in your home.

Conclusion

The general trends of e-commerce in 2020 continues are the same ones outlined in past years. The key point is to focus on more personal relationships with targeted niches. But the ways to create this link should be based on automation and new technologies.

Of course, this is not a complete list of all the trends in e-commerce that we focus on when working in this area. The above-mentioned trends just must be taken into account at all stages when planning a business development strategy.

Feel free to contact us, together we can find the best solutions for your business, based on the latest technologies and actual trends.

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