Trends Shaping eCommerce in 2016 and Beyond

Mobile domination will clearly be at the forefront of eCommerce in the coming years. A discourse on the trends shaping the future of eCommerce sales would be incomplete if we don’t speak about the evident intensification of the mobile era. As per reports, mobile eCommerce sales crossed a hundred billion dollars in the U.S. last year. The figures marked a major improvement from 2014 when mobile sales totaled a tad above 75 billion dollars. Mobile eCommerce has charted an equally promising trajectory in other parts of the world, besides the US- as well. Asia, in fact, experienced faster growth than what the US did. The year-on-year mobile sales went up by 249.3 percent here.

As retailers, it would be easier for you to bolster your performance within the digital space if you are acquainting yourself with the top eCommerce trends in 2016 and beyond. Let’s go through this rundown.

ECommerce in 2016: Of mobile domination and more

With the unprecedented rise of mobile eCommerce, retailers are definitely faced with a set of new challenges including optimization of sites for mobile viewing, revision of content strategies for geography-based applications such as Facebook, Google My Business, and Yelp among others. It would, however, be wrong to claim that desktop eCommerce will entirely phase out in the midst of the growth of mobile commerce. So, it will not really be advisable for you to shift focus altogether. Your digital campaigns should be duly optimized for all devices in order to leverage desktop and mobile in the best possible fashion.

If you have already introduced these changes to your eCommerce websites then your marketing efforts are geared for better performance.

2016: The year when marketers should shore up their attention to “people”

2016: The year when marketers should shore up their attention to “people”. – By Ben Larcey, the designer of ecomm.design.

With so much being talked about the rise of mobile eCommerce and the continuance of desktop, this is the time when you should focus more on your customers rather than on devices. Retailers are required keeping track of the movement of customers across multiple devices and the way they consume information. Let’s not forget that “device” is never a consumer’s priority while he is in the process of consuming information. Your ability to simultaneously track consumer behavior and device-based needs and bring about changes in accordance will be crucial to business growth.

Videos will assume greater significance as far as product sharing is concerned

As of now, it has been estimated that by the end of this year nearly two-thirds of online traffic will be driven by videos. Descriptive product sharing is redefined by video offerings. The kind of creative skills demonstrated by retailers over the years can best be described as exemplary- spoofs, viral ads, and short web stories are proof of that.

Brace up for more “relevant” ads

The mobile has no place for traditional banner ads. With search engines looking for constant avenues for improved user experience, marketers should be ready with more personalized content for buyers. Thanks to ad-blocking, marketing efforts will now be duly geared towards the creation of more non-intrusive but relevant ad formats – which in turn will accelerate the growth of more genuine engagement with users. And, we all know what more genuine engagement can result in – better conversions!

Concerns over content saturation will continue

Content is king and it’s not going to be any different in the coming years. As we all know, the most successful brands in the digital space are backed by powerful content marketing strategies. Content marketing is important for spearheading brand loyalty and bolstering customer relations. As per reports, most of the digital engagement happens on mobile with adults spending nearly three hours a day on an average to consume digital content- and, we have only 24 hours a day. Experts as such fear whether we have actually reached peak content consumption or not.

Finding a niche amidst this clutter, will as such, turn out to be an uphill task for marketers.

Winding Up

The aforementioned challenges, no doubt, will go on to spearhead a surge of creativity and exactitude in the digital realm. No matter how challenging it is for retailers, the customers can brace themselves up for an enhanced shopping experience. A business module based on the right mix of creativity and analysis is sure to gain the competitive edge.

Disclosure: Some of our articles may contain affiliate links; this means each time you make a purchase, we get a small commission. However, the input we produce is reliable; we always handpick and review all information before publishing it on our website. We can ensure you will always get genuine as well as valuable knowledge and resources.