Ecommerce has become a booming industry in the technological age, largely because of the ease of use and availability to users. As everyone knows, though, we are living in the world of “here today, gone tomorrow.” Here are 5 ways that ecommerce sellers will have to evolve if it wants to stay current in the future.
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Digital Curation
Digital curation is the way that online sellers seem to always know what you are looking for. Essentially, the ecommerce seller uses information based on your previous purchases or search history to suggest new items that you would most likely enjoy.
This is the newest form of up-selling. Without vendors to offer suggestions, this is the way that ecommerce sellers can convince buyers to keep spending money on their products. It works out for the buyers, too, who get easy access to products that are in-line with their interests. If ecommerce is going to remain relevant as technology advances, this feature will be a must-have.
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Mobile-Friendly Sites
More than 50% of all online business is done from a mobile device like a phone or tablet. An easy way for buyers to determine if a website is outdated is to see if they have a mobile-specific interface. If not, many users will simply leave the site in favor of a more up-to-date option.
This is not only an issue of user-friendly service, but also of a website being found at all. One of Google’s newest algorithm updates allows users on mobile devices to find mobile-friendly sites first. This means that a site without a mobile interface will not be found by more than half of their target audience.
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Multi-Language Locators
The world has never been smaller than it is right now; anyone can buy a product from halfway around the globe with a few taps on their cellphone. The ecommerce industry will have to take this into account as it evolves, or risk losing out massive amounts of buyers to competitors.
The most likely outcome will be software that allows an ecommerce site to detect the users location and adjust the language accordingly. This way, a buyer from China can order a pair of shoes from Italy and the website will intuitively switch its language for that user from Italian to Mandarin. This advancement will be essential if ecommerce is to keep up with the rapid trends of globalization.
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Social Marketing
Ask anyone about social media, and they are likely to comment that it has taken over the life of either them, or somebody they know. Social media became unthinkably large, and ecommerce has an obligation to use that to its advantage.
Plenty of websites are already selling their products on sites like Instagram and Twitter because these are the things that their market uses on a daily basis. This does not simply stop at convincing one person to buy their product, but also to share what they bought and where they got it.
Many businesses have started using hashtags on various social media sites so that people can discuss their purchases with other users. This spreads the word around about their products better than any marketing team, and the site doesn’t need to pay a dime. This trend is the future of ecommerce; using social media effectively.
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Synthesize
Ecommerce experts have predicted that it will not be long before real-life stores are forced to keep up with the ecommerce websites and create online businesses of their own. This is why you can notice huge stores like Wal-Mart even starting to offer their own online deals.
To keep current, ecommerce will have to do what everything else on the Internet does and expand. While it may seem extreme, there will likely come a time when tangible stores are a thing of the past.
Conclusion
Ecommerce is always growing, but these are the 5 biggest progressions that it will need to make if it hopes to stay current and up-to-date with user needs. After all, while there are more ecommerce sites out there than ever, that only means more competition with the newest thing.
Jessica Kane is a professional blogger who has worked in eCommerce for the last five years. She currently writes for Rakuten Super Logistics and recommends them for all your product fulfillment needs to further your success.