Future of eCommerce Development

Updated on 24th September 2019!

“Ting!”

“Your parcel has arrived.”

We all love this notification. Just like we love “Your salary has been credited”, right?

Thus, online shopping has become almost an integral part of our lives today. Be it apparels, electronic gadgets, fashion accessories, sports equipment or anything. We can get it from online stores. Well, brick and mortar stores are still holding the major business share. But you can’t ignore the emerging growth of the eCommerce industry. 

An online business idea just popped up in your mind? Thinking of starting your eCommerce business venture? Well, you can’t start an eCommerce business just like that. You need to be well-prepared to face the vying market. Also, setting up an eCommerce store involves huge monetary investment.

So, to make sure your investment doesn’t go into vain, we have come up with this blog. This is the ultimate guide on eCommerce website development trends for 2020. Read on and chalk out an effective plan. Follow the hottest trends in eCommerce industry. And build an user-centric and profit-driven online store. 

What will you find here?

eCommerce Industry Growth – A Highlight

1. Predictive Analytics
2. Artificial Intelligence
3. Voice Search
4. Social Selling
5. Personalization
6. Chatbots
7. Conversion Optimization
8. Mobile Payments
9. Subscription-based Business Models
10. eCommerce Web Design Trends

Let’s dig into the details!

1. A Highlight on the eCommerce Industry Growth

We all know how popular online shopping is today. It needs no introduction at all. But, what’s the secret behind this immense popularity?

Well, you can say that the internet, the abundance of mobile devices and tailor-made apps, etc. have changed our shopping behavior. Also, many people prefer expediency, convenience, ease and personalized approach offered by online shopping experience. 

Let’s take a look at some of the important stats in eCommerce business.

The Statista report also indicated that 

• The online retail sales of physical goods are projected to surpass 740 billion US dollars in 2023.
• In the U.S., the Apparel and accessories retail eCommerce is projected to generate over 145.8 billion U.S. dollars in revenue by 2023.

Some other important stats in eCommerce

• According to Nasdaq, around 95% of all purchases are expected to be via eCommerce by 2040. 
• According to Statista, 80% of US Internet users have made at least one purchase online. 
• Another Statista report shows that by 2021, 53.9% of all retail eCommerce is expected to be generated through mCommerce.

Thus, you can see and expect the exponential growth in the eCommerce industry in the coming years and beyond. 

In such a competitive scenario, it is high time you pay the utmost attention to your eCommerce web development. 

The eCommerce industry is always evolving. To make sure your online business is ahead in the line, you have to implement the latest and the ongoing trends. 

Time to dig a bit deeper into the eCommerce web development trends for 2020. 

2. Predictive Analytics – To Know Your Customer Better

Well, it has been in the market for quite a while now. However, generally, the take up has been a bit low. Maybe due to inhibitive costs and complexity associated with it. 

However, with Big Data in the market, trends are rapidly changing. Now, you will find plenty of less complicated and more affordable solutions available. 

Predictive analytics encompasses a variety of statistical techniques. The techniques analyse historical and current data. And generate predictions about upcoming events. 

With Predictive analytics, your eCommerce businesses can

• Know in advance what your customers are most likely to buy
• Determine the maximum price a customer is ready to pay for your product
• Practice better price management
• Target promotions and recommendations
• Enhance business intelligence
• Reduce fraud
• Improve supply chain management

So, to make the most money on your sales, using predictive analytics is crucial for your eCommerce business growth in 2020.

3. Artificial Intelligence – To Offer Better Shopping Experience

Today, Artificial Intelligence (AI) is everywhere. According to Gartner’s prediction, by 2020, AI will handle over 80% of all customer interactions.

eCommerce giants like eBay, Amazon, Alibaba, Rakuten, etc. are already reaping the benefits of AI in eCommerce. So, not using AI in your business is only letting your competitors beat you! 

Benefits of Artificial Intelligence in Your eCommerce Business

Usually, the main objectives of an eCommerce business are as follows.

• To understand customers better
• Generate new leads
• To provide an enhanced user experience

Now, with AI implemented in your online business, you can

• Offer customer-centric visual search
• Retarget potential customers
• Improve the sales process
• Approach customers with more personalized tone
• Improve recommendations for customers
• Provide intelligent shopping assistants
• Offer automation
• Filter fake reviews, etc.

AI is changing the way we sell and buy online. In the coming years and beyond, we believe AI will impact a lot. From customer retention to satisfaction, transactions to business efficiency, and a lot. So, integrating AI in a must-include for eCommerce 2019 trends. 

4. Voice Search – To Assist Your Customers Grab The Best Deal

Well, experts believe that voice search is the next big thing in the eCommerce landscape.

This technology has an accuracy rate of 95%. Already products like Google Assistant, Amazon Alexa, Siri, and Microsoft Cortana are trending in the market. In fact, from the past few years, voice-empowered shopping has been one of the most discussed technology trends in the eCommerce industry. 

The benefits you can avail using voice search in eCommerce are

• Better customer experience
• Better store navigation
• Increased mobile purchases
• Secure payment gateways

Thus, the next logical step becomes to integrate voice search into your eCommerce web design trends. 

5. Social Selling – To Reach Broader Audience

Today, considering the power of social networking in eCommerce is no more surprising! Most of the social media big players are offering some kind of eCommerce integration. 

You can see that Twitter is launching product pages. Instagram added a “shop now” button. Facebook now allows brands to use a “buy” button. 

In Q3 2017, Facebook earned around $10.14 billion in advertising revenue alone. No wonder why brands see social media networks as a huge pool of potential customers today. 

How social media platforms attract brands? They offer different user targeting options to businesses. Also, if managed effectively, they offer businesses

• High levels of customization and consumer reach
• Profitable conversion rates
• Detailed reporting, and
• High engagement rates

Usually, while scrolling through their feeds, customers have to leave the page to make a purchase. It creates friction in the buying process. You have to overcome this friction.

You can allow customers to click or swipe on your product straight from the feeds. And allow them to pay instantly. Thus, using social selling, you can increase the rates of impulse buys.

Consistent social selling increases sales goals by 40% than non-social sellers. Also, it generates leads and creates a deeper relationship with customers. 

It is expected that by 2020, more brands will understand the importance of social selling. Just running Google Shopping ads is not enough anymore! So, make sure you are connecting sales to your social media account.

6. Holy Grail of Growth – Personalization

Personalization is about creating a personal experience for each consumer. It is usually done through tailored recommendations. Search queries, purchase history, geolocation, and browsing history are some of the aspects based on which tailored recommendation is done. 

Well, let’s take a look at some of the surprising stats on personalization.

• 74% of customers feel frustrated when website content is not personalized.
• 81% of consumers want brands to get to know them. They expect brands to understand when to approach them and when not to.
• 75% of consumers are more likely to buy from a retailer that recognizes them by name. Recommends options based on past purchases. Or knows their purchase history. 

No wonder why personalization increases businesses’ profits by 15%. 

So, want to shine in eCommerce business? Embrace more personalization while approaching your customers.

7. Chatbots – The Ultimate Shopping Guide For Your Customer

We already mentioned the role of Artificial Intelligence in the eCommerce business. Now, one of its successful implementations is chatbots. The successful implementation of chatbots makes your eCommerce business way smarter than your competitors. 

Chatbots not only save time but also provide automated and fast answers to customers’ queries. Instead of waiting days for an assistant to call, customers get instant answers. Bei it early morning or midnight, customers never have to wait for answers. It undoubtedly offers great customer satisfaction. Thus, your business’s customer service reaches a new height! 

Also, integrating chatbots in your eCommerce trends 2019-2020 can save a lot of operational costs. How? Well, investing once in the chatbot integration is cheaper than hiring a dedicated worker. Businesses do not have to pay for overtime, sick time or vacation time then. 

So, if you already have not planned for it, it is high time to do so. Implement chatbots in your online store. And enjoy great ROI by improving your customer service and 24X7 availability. 

8. Conversion Optimization – Product Page Vs Home Page

Usually, businesses have an obsession to design intriguing home pages. However, especially for eCommerce websites, putting a bit more emphasis on the internal pages can do wonders.

The reason is quite simple. The homepage is more often seen by repeated visitors. Either they search your brand name in Google. Or they go directly to your website. The new visitors tend to land on internal service or product pages more frequently. Also, this is probably their first interaction with your brand. Hence, an impressive internal page design may turn your new visitors into regular customers. 

Put yourself in the customers’ shoes. And design the product pages in the way your first-time visitors want to see it. A stellar first impression is crucial for increasing the conversion rate. Hence, put more efforts to optimize your internal product page designs. Thus, this is definitely going to be a major part of the eCommerce web design trends 2019 – 2020. 

9. The New Normal – Mobile Payments

This is no more a trend. But, mobile payments have become a necessity for today’s eCommerce businesses. According to a Statista report, by 2021, 53.9% of all retail eCommerce is expected to be generated through mCommerce. 

Well, the rise of mCommerce is no more surprising. With the growing trend of smartphone usage and eCommerce mobile apps, we all knew this had to happen someday! 

Today, we all are aware of digital wallets like PayPal, Google Pay, Samsung Pay or Apple Pay. Worldwide eCommerce businesses are widely implementing these digital wallets. All these digital services allow users to make purchases through electronic transactions. Undoubtedly, it allows more frictionless shopping experiences for the customers. Also, a market survey reported that 70% of people expect that by 2030, digital payments will overtake cards and cash. 

Recently, cryptocurrency is also cooking up a storm. Though we have not seen it being implemented by eCommerce businesses so far. Still, we can expect things can go this way soon! Well, definitely, maybe! 

10. Subscription-based Business Models

In the U.S. alone, 5.7 million subscription box shoppers are there! No doubt why subscription-based business models have become the new trend. 

Subscription-based eCommerce has gained a lot of traction. The two main reasons for the demand for subscription-based eCommerce are as follows.

• Ease of automated monthly direct debit.
• The excitement of monthly products delivered.

Product subscription boxes are becoming fun these days. From makeup to pet products and from food boxes to shavers. The subscription-based eCommerce entices customers by offering personalized boxes right to their doors. 

So, introducing a subscription element into your eCommerce business can be a game-changer! 

11. Bonus: eCommerce Web Design Trends

So far, you saw the major eCommerce website development trends in 2020. Now, we are going to talk about some eCommerce web design trends. 

On the internet, a site is a business’s storefront. Especially for eCommerce businesses, it is crucial to attracting prospective customers. And ultimately turning them into paying customers. Just like a brick and mortar store, the designs and layouts of an online store play a game-changing role here. It can be the difference between turning a prospect into a potential customer. Or bouncing away in favor of a competitor! 

Digital experience can dictate the entire experience a customer has with a business. So, you can afford to get left behind.

A. Mobile Era

A huge percentage of online shoppers prefer using mobiles to shop. So, designers have to create e-commerce websites for mobile-first. And then only adapt to larger screens. In the coming years, we will see more mobile-friendly features. Card-like layouts, finger-friendly icons, and long scrolling pages will be seen on most of the eCommerce website themes. 

B. Thumb Navigation for Mobile

As continued from the above point, the next eCommerce web design trend is obvious! Statistics show that 94% of smartphone users hold their devices vertically. Hence, to facilitate thumb use, positioning the navigation buttons at the screen bottom will be a good practice. 

C. Striking Colors

Well, the use of white space and minimalistic design are already trending in the market. However, this year, we are probably going to see the experimental use of striking and bold colors in eCommerce web design trends 2019-2020. For eCommerce websites, the monochromatic design is not very appropriate. 

D. Vintage Photography

Reviving the vintage styles is one of the most trending eCommerce trends in recent days. In vintage photography, we can see the use of a muted color palette. This is reminiscent of the gritty, low-fi photography of the 70s. Also, colors are here imbued with more black than other modern styles. It heightens that dated look.

So, other than all these, you have to make sure your eCommerce site design implements the following points. 

• Micro-interactions
• More and more video content
• Contextual logos
• Storytelling approach, etc. 

Wrapping Up

There is no doubt that technology is evolving at a rapid pace. It is a great catalyst for both diversification and expansion of the eCommerce industry. So, implementing the ongoing technological trends in your online store can assure success. 

Many of the eCommerce trends mentioned in this blog were derived from the success they have brought to many eCommerce sites. Also, being a leading eCommerce development company, we observe the best market practices. Our rich domain experience in building great online stores for our global clientele has given us enough insights on some of the latest trends mentioned above. 

So, ready to build an online store? Our expert eCommerce website development team is always just a call away to assist you!