The 4 Most Important E-commerce Trends in 2022

In this blog article, we will cover the following topics:

Shopping today means e-commerce

E-commerce trend 1: Voice search – shopping by voice control

E-commerce trend 2: Visual commerce – experiencing products first-hand

E-commerce-trend 3: Shopping Stream –  immerse yourself in your own product and brand world
1:1 personalisation with entertainment factor
Artificial intelligence makes it possible

E-commerce trend 4: Multichannel sales – informing across channels

Conclusion: Bet on the e-commerce trends 2022 and be one step ahead

Shopping today means e-commerce

Online shopping has become mainstream for people of all ages. From books to clothes to groceries, we can have almost anything delivered to our homes, often within hours. E-commerce, with its direct-to-consumer business models, has paved the way for brands to connect directly with their customers.

And yet, even companies that have e-commerce in their DNA need to keep an eye on a wide variety of e-commerce trends to ensure they keep up with customer demands and don’t get left behind by the competition.

For those who regularly read our blog posts, the following topics will not be unfamiliar. But that is what turns topics into trends: Every retailer will have to deal with them in 2022, because they will celebrate their final breakthrough in the mainstream in 2022.

In the following sections, we will therefore go into the 4 most important e-commerce trends in 2022.

E-commerce trend 1: Voice search – shopping by voice control

Voice assistants on the phone, in smart home applications or on TV have been around for a long time. However, the technologies have continued to improve over the years. The user experience has become more and more comfortable for consumers, so that they have become accustomed to voice search for information. In this way, voice search has also found its way into e-commerce.

Online retailers therefore need to become aware of the changing search behaviour so that they can satisfy it in future sales. In the coming years, more and more users will become comfortable with this technology and get used to shopping for products via voice search. Ordering products through smart speakers will provide consumers with a faster, more accessible and more convenient shopping experience.

Current statistics predict that the market for voice-controlled smart speakers will be worth around 4 billion dollars in 2022.¹ This trend will therefore have a lasting impact on the e-commerce landscape.

The technology does not yet work perfectly: factors such as languages, accents or culturally different usage behaviour make this challenge complex. But even at this early stage, it is foreseeable that 2022 will be the year of voice search. E-commerce retailers who do not want to make the shopping experience unnecessarily difficult for their customers must integrate voice technology into their websites.

E-commerce trend 2: Visual commerce – experiencing products first-hand

Visual Commerce is the next generation of the classic packshot. Instead of simply using product photos, other types of content such as user-generated content, interactive content and videos as well as augmented reality are incorporated into marketing.

Customers still have a hard time imagining what their new couch will look like in their living room, for example. With augmented reality (AR) they don’t have to, but can easily create a live video via smartphone, tablet or laptop, which is supplemented by the products. The same applies to wall art, floor coverings or clothing, for example.

Augmented reality integrations are an almost unaffordable investment, especially for small retailers. That’s why we have listed here how you can implement visual commerce even with limited financial resources:

• Change the images of your standard products from JPG or PNG to a WebP format to improve quality and loading speed.
• Create 360-degree images or videos of your best-selling products.
• Invest in a visual search function to allow customers to search for products using images.
• Use user-generated content on product detail pages to increase conversion rates.
• Create visual shopping ads on Pinterest to drive traffic to your website and increase sales.
• Use QR tags to connect offline and online content.

E-commerce trend 3: Shopping stream – immerse yourself in your own product and brand world

Personalisation is more than greeting every customer on the website with a “Hello, [first name]!”. Customers expect an individual omnichannel experience and that requires personalisation. With machine learning, smart website features and online tracking technologies, this is possible.

According to a study by consulting firm Deloitte, the impact of marketing personalisation is such that 22% of consumers are willing to share sensitive personal data in exchange for offers that are personalised to them.² For example, the company Enfamil asks expectant mothers for the date of birth to provide personalised information during pregnancy.

More and more brands are adopting this practice because personalisation facilitates the customer shopping experience and increases brand loyalty. But where is the journey heading in 2022 and how can you stand out from the competition when it comes to personalisation?

1:1 personalisation with entertainment factor

To set a special highlight in terms of personalisation, you can offer each customer their own individual shopping stream. In this personalised area of your online shop, your customers not only receive individualised product recommendations, suitable product combinations or shopping news. In the form of entertaining content, they are also presented with the brands that are most relevant to them. The Shopping Stream is dynamic and individualised in terms of layout and design as well as content. In other words, no two streams are alike and are therefore as individual as the customers themselves.

Relevant content suggestions create additional added value. In combination with the playful interaction possibilities, the Shopping Stream provides a service and entertainment factor at the same time. This creates a natural customer loyalty effect. At the same time, shop operators can benefit from a higher customer lifetime value and an increased repurchase rate.

Artificial intelligence makes it possible

Although the use of artificial intelligence based on machine learning is nothing new in e-commerce, these technologies have so far mostly only been used for recommendations and product searches.

In the past, product recommendations were made manually and were prone to errors. Now they are automated and far more intelligent, as AI technology can be used to make suggestions based on customers’ search history, purchase history, gender or demographics. However, this was only the beginning.

Artificial intelligence and machine learning are excellent for predicting the user’s expectations in real time based on previous click and purchase behaviour. Adjustments are made in the online shop accordingly.

In practice, this means that two users are each offered different versions of the same online shop – not only different products, but also different content.

E-commerce trend 4: Multichannel sales – informing across channels

It is perfectly justified to focus on a single channel when selling your own products. Customers know where to look, the marketing investment does not fragment.

However, this limits your chances of connecting with other interested customers on different channels. Statistics from Sprout Social show that about 75% of customers have bought an item because they have seen it multiple times on different touchpoints.³

A study by Global Web Index reinforces the importance of social media when shopping: 37% of respondents using social media channels to learn about products and brands and complete purchases in online shops.⁴

Expanding your reach on social media platforms, but also on large online retail sites such as Amazon, eBay and Etsy, puts you right in the heart of your target group.

Can you think of any other e-commerce trends that shop operators should not miss in 2022? Then feel free to leave a comment and share it with us!

Conclusion: Bet on the e-commerce trends 2022 and be one step ahead

Overall, all of these e-commerce trends aim to customise the user experience in a variety of ways. Don’t miss out on the potential of these trends and stay one step ahead of your competitors. If the topic of personalisation has aroused your interest, then you have the opportunity to inform yourself comprehensively about it in our virtual bookshelf. Have fun browsing!

Sources: ¹ Research and Markets, ² Deloitte, ³ SproSocialut , ⁴ GWI

More information about online shop personalisation >>

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