Predictions for the Future of E-Commerce: What's in Store in the Coming Years?

Predictions for the Future of E-Commerce. What awaits us in the coming years?

Ten trends that are already impacting the industry and will continue to change shopping habits in the next five years.

1. Covid-19 and Online Shopping The impact of the pandemic on e-commerce in Latvia was readily apparent in March of this year. First, interest in online stores increased sharply. Second, people were purchasing essential goods more frequently and in larger quantities. As a result, store warehouses quickly emptied, and securing a delivery time suddenly became as difficult as buying tickets to a JRT performance. Safe, contactless deliveries became increasingly important. However, the pandemic had the greatest impact on businesses that had previously only considered, or had not even considered, selling their goods online. The range of online offerings rapidly expanded, as for many entrepreneurs, it became a matter of survival. From an e-commerce perspective, the biggest change, of course, is the rapid increase in the number of people willing to shop online. Once they try it, they enjoy the perks of online shopping, such as saving time. New habits are emerging, such as ordering groceries for the entire week. So, it's safe to say that this has been a period of rapid growth for e-commerce; the only question is how to retain customers.

2. More Mobile Purchases Trends show that people are increasingly shopping online from mobile devices. According to Statista, 82% of US residents have purchased something using their phone at least once in their life. Most of these purchases occur on weekends (OutBox), as they are less likely to be on their computers at that time. Other interesting data shows that a third of shoppers will check product descriptions and prices on their mobile phones while in-store (Invesp). And according to Google, 62% of people who dislike a website's mobile version will no longer buy from that merchant. And 32% will leave a page if it doesn't load within 1-3 seconds. These figures are endless, but they all point to the need to invest in a user-friendly and fast mobile version of a website or develop an app, depending on the scale of the project. The mobile e-commerce pie is becoming increasingly important.

3. B2B e-commerce revenue is growing Despite the rapid growth of B2C (business-to-consumer) e-commerce, B2B (business-to-business) e-commerce has already significantly outpaced it. Global B2B revenue is twice that of B2C, and Forrester predicts it will reach $1.8 trillion by 2023. Merchants prefer the conveniences e-commerce provides – automated shopping, online catalogs, and time savings.

4. Omnichannel Retail or Selling Across All Channels A modern marketing strategy involves consistent and unified sales across various online and offline channels. Ideally, they complement each other and interact, but the most important thing is for the customer to feel a unified communication. This starts with the ability to pick up an online purchase in-store and ends with the shopping cart syncing with the mobile app, allowing the purchase to be completed on either channel. We've already mentioned data on how many people check the brand's website or app while in-store. Shoppers are getting used to having a single retailer available to them across all platforms, and this needs to be taken into account.

5. ROBO – research online / buy offline – look online / buy in-store. This is one of the characteristics of omnichannel retail, demonstrating how shopper habits are changing and how deeply marketers need to understand them. We're used to people coming in-store to see a product and then ordering it online. But trends show that the opposite is now happening as well. In a 2019 Forbes study, 81% of respondents admitted to researching products online before purchasing. Customers want to be informed before making a decision, but being physically present—being able to see the purchase and consult with the salesperson—is also important.

6. Cryptocurrency Payments Currently, 5.5% of internet users own cryptocurrency (Divante) and want to use it for payments. This figure may be relatively small, but it becomes significant if the sale is global, especially in specific regions where local currencies are unstable. The largest cryptocurrency turnover is currently expected in South Africa, Thailand, Indonesia, Vietnam, and Brazil. While there is still considerable uncertainty in this area, major players such as Facebook, Mastercard, and PayPal are investing heavily. In any case, for global projects, we recommend monitoring developments and being prepared. For example, in the case of airBaltic, Bitcoin payments worked as a good PR move, although the implementation was far from smooth as planned.

7. Product Subscriptions Here's a new way to build relationships with regular customers and even attract new ones. Product subscriptions are beneficial for both parties. Customers don't have to remember to place an order every time, and for the retailer, this means predictable revenue. Psychologically, receiving a package triggers the same processes in the customer's brain as receiving a reward or gift—it's just as enjoyable, even if they made the purchase themselves. Furthermore, the likelihood that a customer will retain a subscription is much higher than that they will make a repeat purchase. For e-commerce, this means creating new systems that handle repeat transactions and automate product shipping and accounting. Product subscriptions work well, for example, in industries like cosmetics, where a product's shelf life is expected.

8. Personalized Customer Experience In e-commerce, competition is fierce, both globally and locally. How will your store differentiate itself? Personalization is a great way to connect with customers, creating the impression that the product is designed specifically for them. More and more retailers are building their digital strategies on available data about potential and existing customers—their online habits, previous purchases, demographics, personal information they've already provided to the retailer, and lookalike audience analysis. Current personalization techniques in e-commerce include: audience segmentation (e.g., new and returning customers); data collection from all sales channels (including physical stores); reaching out to customers who have abandoned their shopping carts for some reason, for example, by offering an additional discount; different pricing and discounts for different audience segments; and automated retargeting systems.

9. Virtual and Augmented Reality Methods for Product Demonstration This is an area that is truly dynamically evolving. There are many products for which the digital environment presents a challenge—this is especially true in the apparel and accessories industries. Meanwhile, with the development of virtual reality technologies, it is becoming increasingly easier to implement features such as trying on glasses using a webcam. Amazon and Ikea have created a way to test whether a proposed sofa's size fits the apartment's parameters and how it will fit into the interior. Of course, development is still quite labor-intensive and expensive, but we've finally reached the point where there are sellers for whom such investments can pay off.

10. Eco-friendly e-commerce This industry is influenced not only by technological advancements but also by other global shifts in consumer thinking, one of which is sustainable business practices. Introducing eco-friendly packaging for shipping goods can be a powerful marketing tactic, enhancing brand image. Moreover, let's not forget that this isn't just an empty gimmick—it's a genuinely good cause and a step that, we hope, will soon become the norm.