The effect that tech-savvy consumers are having on the e-commerce environment is not only bigger than ever; it’s quicker than ever. Gone are the days when shoppers would meander online trying to decide if an online purchase was worth the gamble.
Instead, modern technology is helping people keep a record of their transactions, and modifying how those consumers transact with retail outlets.
Those developments, in turn, influence the general picture: new possibilities are developing on both sides of the world as technology transforms business-to-consumer dealings. Consumers are now able to access various means of measuring costs, finding alternatives, finding shops, and receiving coupons.
You can check review sites like Collected.Reviews to see other customers’ reviews on e-commerce sites before buying online.
Below are 5 ways technology has helped in evolving e-commerce:
1. Social commerce
Social media have always had a natural synergy with eCommerce. Check your Facebook feed and friends will ask for and share feedback about products and services. Shoppers do not use social media directly to buy but play a key role in purchasing. The technology that drives social trade has a profound influence on the industry. With eCommerce sites like Shopify, social business is rapidly moving forward. By offering a way to sell products on the Facebook page and Instagram shopping posts of your business, consumers can buy items without the Instagram application being taken out with a single tap.
2. Artificial intelligence
A recent Gartner report forecasts that 85{95ac361686e1022d0a46022788c73603b99cfafff38318a85d050d04a9150854} of consumer interactions will be handled by artificial intelligence by 2020. (AI). It is fair to assume that we are shifting our dealings with customers and that this change is driven by technology. eCommerce machine learning can also be used to analyze and forecast sales trends in the form of AIs for conversation stimulation. This is also happening on Netflix, which predicts what audiences want to see before their acquaintance. From a CMO’s point of view, AI can help to get a competitive advantage by wading through mountains of data to predict trends.
3. Supply chain efficiency
The customer today has a buy-in mindset that applies to frictionless service and fast delivery. Due to its free returns and quick delivery by retailers like ASOS, online retailers of any form and scale have to string their supply chain to remain in the game. With technological stacks becoming more complex, technology and integrations are the keys to maintaining supply chain performance.
4. Seamless payment processing
Consumer experience has been a great motivator for e-commerce, which impacts merchant services through the drive for smooth transactions. With payment problems as one of the leading reasons for cart drop-off, online dealers use techniques to identify quicker, smarter forms of payment.
5. From buying to selling
The emphasis of eCommerce has predominantly been on buyers because they generate more desire than sellers. A new study published in the INFORMS journal Marketing Science shows that sellers have a 3.5-fold increase in the size of eCommerce sites compared to buyers. From an e-commerce point of view, we begin to see a change in the use of innovation to the benefit of the seller. Platforms such as Shopify and BigCommerce use technology to enhance seller accountability about how their company, advertising, and logistics function.
Bottom line
For both purchasers and sellers, digitalization is evolving the eCommerce game. Clients are seeing the advantage of predictive marketing and personalization by uninterrupted new ways to make shopping, pay, and connect with online retailers. When technology evolves, it offers business and consumers opportunities.