Top 8+ eCommerce Trends 2024 You Should Not Miss

2021 was an eventful year for online enterprises worldwide. From technological advancements to supply chain breakdown due to the COVID-19 pandemic, the last 12 months have kept all store owners on the move. As 2024 is coming, it is the perfect time to uncover the eCommerce trends of 2023. Besides guiding you through the top 8+ eCommerce future trends, we provide some practical advice and tips to keep up with the raise. Now let’s get started!

Top 8+ eCommerce Trends 2024

Trend 1: Voice Shopping

Recent years have witnessed a huge demand for product search and purchase via smart speakers. Voice shopping will, therefore, be among the most dominant future eCommerce trends. According to Statista, the volume of voice shopping is calculated to measure up to $40 billion in 2023. 

An outstanding example of businesses adopting voice shopping is Amazon – the most well-known online market in the USA. 41% of its clients show interest and use the new function in which they can buy goods with Amazon Alexa. 

Voice commerce is claimed to help customers interact with business, and receive recommendations instantly. If you are looking for ways to create a better online shopping experience, give Voice Shopping a try. 

To perform voice shopping, bear in mind three tips: 

• Optimize content and emphasize the volume of search
• Develop both website and smartphone version
• Ensure the voice command functions well, and end-users have no problems purchasing commodities by Voice Assistant.

Trend 2: Personalized Marketing/ Products

When it comes to eCommerce trends in 2023, “personalization” will be a must-have element. 

According to a study by McKinsey, 80% of customers desire personalization from retailers. To put it simply, they are more willing to pay for a company that provides personalized products, and promotions. Besides boosting sales, personalization contributes to brand loyalty in the long term.

Should you be eager to have a personalized eCommerce enterprise, do not miss these things:

• Stimulate data gathering and analysis process
• Invest in technology to distribute personalized pop-ups, follow-up emails as well and other relevant marketing offers.

Trend 3: Social Commerce

Social media has become an indispensable part of people’s daily lives. Besides the basic functions, people utilize these platforms to browse for new products. 

2021 saw a rise of social media as a sales tool. China set initiatives in this eCommerce future trend with the value of social commerce amounting to $351.65 billion in the same year. 

Social media platforms have built many features that allow consumers to make purchases without leaving the app to support merchants in sales and marketing. 

Takeaways to take advantage of social commerce:

• Choose appropriate social platforms (Facebook, Instagram, TikTok, e.g) based on customer behavior analysis
• Collaborate with KOLs to broaden your reach
• Make use of paid advertising and in-app shopping features to generate sales.

Trend 4: Multiple payment methods

The next trend in this eCommerce trends 2023 list is undoubtedly diverse payment options. 

Concerning payment methods, customers have different needs. However, they are likely to cancel the sale once they cannot find suitable ones. Diversifying payment technology is a great way to reduce cart abandonment and increase consumer spending. Furthermore, should customers save their payment information on your site, they can speed up the checkout process for the next purchase. 

In the context of social distancing and exposure limitations, the demand for touch-free payments in general and digital payments, in particular, has been more imperative than ever before.

To follow this trend, your merchants can start with two steps:

• Adopt e-wallet payment such as Google Pay, Apple Pay, and Paypal
• Consider trying interest-free financing solutions and 1-click payment options

Trend 5: Omnichannel 

Omnichannel retailing is no longer a strange concept. However, some merchants are still mistaken between multichannel and omnichannel. So, 

what “omnichannel” actually is. 

Omnichannel retailing means selling wherever your customers are willing to buy: in offline stores, online stores, mobile apps, or through social platforms. All operations are managed through a centralized hub, where sales and inventory data are fed into the system. 

This eCommerce future trend, in no doubt, creates wonderful opportunities:

• By reaching more touchpoints, you can entice more clients.
• A streamlined shopping experience stimulates repeat purchases.
• According to the IDC report, the profit could rise to 30% due to the cut-down in inventory along with additional revenue. 

Nevertheless, there are some challenges of omnichannel that should be considered. Here are three pieces of advice to overcome the challenges:

• Compile and associate inventory in a seamless manner
• Invest in training staff. You should ensure your employees stay up-to-date with the latest shopping trends and technology. 

Trend 6: AI (Artificial Intelligence) and AR (Augmented Reality) – The Future of E-commerce

Due to the explosion of digital transformation, it comes as no surprise that AI and AR are the two most commonly mentioned terms in our survey about eCommerce trends in 2023. 

For anyone still confused between AI and AR, take a look at their different applications in online businesses. On one side, AI helps merchants make personalized recommendations based on customers’ past behaviors. AR, on the other side, erects barriers to physical testing between online stores and offline stores. Therefore, AR technology has brought about a remarkable change in some industries such as fashion, cosmetics, and home decor. 

If you are a fan of skincare and makeup, you will certainly be amazed at the case of Loreal on the Shopee platform.

Picking up lipsticks is not an easy task, even at offline stores. Thus, on International Lipsticks Day, L’oreal launched Shopee BeautyCam. This application allows consumers to try many lipsticks and receive results in the form of videos or photos. In addition, Loreal introduced Effaclar Spotscan. Just by scanning your face, you can get full consultations with acne diagnosis and the corresponding skincare routine. 

The two functions attracted millions of positive comments in Singapore, Vietnam, and China. This strategy also expands the brand name to young generations. 

In summary, AI and AR implementation’s increasing conversion rate effect will not fail to satisfy merchants. 

Trend 7: Video Commerce

It is a matter of fact that consumers are becoming lazier to read long-written posts. Here raises the need for a more effective and creative type of content. 

As video combines both image and sound, it offers a vivid view of the product, thus improving the conversion rate. 

Recently, TikTok has evolved among the most ubiquitous platforms for young people, which paves the way for short-form videos. In that move, Facebook and YouTube also introduced Instagram Reels and YouTube Shorts respectively. 

To get started with video commerce, consider two things:

• Move toward short-form videos
• Examples of video content: unboxing videos, tutorials, explainers, and so on
• Post videos on both social media platforms and the website (home page, product page).

Trend 8: Livestream Commerce

Despite its opportunities, utilizing AR in eCommerce requires enormous investment. If you are a small merchant looking for an alternative, give the final trend in the eCommerce trends 2023 a try. 

As most live streaming activity takes place on social media platforms, it forms a part of eCommerce. The promoter (the seller, or ambassador) demonstrates the product as well as its design and function. Customers have the chance to ask questions simultaneously. 

Livestream shopping provides consumers with an interactive shopping experience. Besides, there are usually special promotions during the live streaming time. Thus, this trend is gaining more and more popularity. 

According to Forbes, in 2020, the live stream sales during the Global Shopping Festival in China reached $6 billion, which doubled that in 2019. Livestream commerce in China is also expected to account for 15% of total online sales in 2023.

Takeaways to implement live stream commerce:

• Livestream commerce narrows the gap between brick-and-mortar stores and online stores. Merchants can seize this chance to increase sales revenue. 

How Can Online Merchants Follow These eCommerce Trends 2023?

Do market analysis to discover industry trends

Capitalizing on some of the above trends requires first recognizing the relationship between them and your business. Constantly researching markets and your audiences will assist you in developing better strategies. 

Investigate your competitors

To achieve success in any field, it is important to observe your rivals closely. What innovations are they coming up with? What are the distinguishing characteristics? Addressing these questions will enable you to position your business properly in a crowded eCommerce space. 

Keep an eye on industry news and influencers

Should your business want to stay up-to-date with the future eCommerce trends, you’d better subscribe to blogs and industry publications. Then, it is worth keeping track of other industries and markets to gain a macro view. 

Wrap-Up

If you desire to become a market leader, do not hesitate to implement the above trends. In 2024, voice, Livestream shopping together with AR, and Omnichannel promise to increase coverage. Furthermore, merchants will put more payment methods into practice. However, above all, merchants should invest wisely in data analysis to get personalized marketing. Then, this marketing strategy had better originate from personalized content on social media. 

Thanks for spending time with us. We hope you find these pieces of information useful. 

Should you be looking for an eCommerce solution partner, please feel free to Contact us. BSS Commerce Shopify is willing to help your business make breakthroughs in the journey of 2024.