It’s been two years since the world was turned upside down. But in every situation, there is an opportunity. When the pandemic lockdowns hit, the e-commerce world had an opportunity to spread its wings, and some businesses were forced to make digital transformations that they had in the pipeline but hadn’t fully committed to prior to the pandemic. Now we’re in a post-pandemic world, and much has changed. Many businesses have completely transitioned to remote working and online shops, closing their brick and mortar locations in exchange for a 24/7 virtual presence. We have been watching this transformation and these are the biggest trends you will see in the e-commerce world this year.
An expanding customer base
As remote and hybrid working models become more popular, the requirement for online shopping will naturally increase. Traditionally, business-based customers would call or email your business during working hours with an order, but with all of the remote and hybrid working models now being executed across industries, having people in an office to answer the phones isn’t as practical. Additionally, all customers, whether they are retail, wholesale or industrial, are looking for more efficient ways to purchase. Online shopping is the most efficient way to do this as you can compare pricing and shipping timelines between multiple shops simultaneously. As a retail customer, how many times have you seen an item in a shop and compared it to the cost on Amazon, eBay or another online retailer to see if you’re getting a good price? Why not do this in the B2B world as well? By online shopping, you eliminate the need to request and wait for quotes from three or more vendors, and that’s one of the many reasons why business customers are expanding towards online shopping, increasing that customer base.
But more competition…
With an expanding customer base, it will mean that more businesses will be looking to move some or all of their revenue options online, which means more competition in a much more visible space. As customer behaviours evolve and more customers transition into online shopping, the pool of businesses will naturally grow as businesses go where the buyers are. This competition can be great but it can also push ecommerce businesses to move past their comfort zones and finetune their entire offering at every stage of a product’s life cycle.
Faster order fulfilment
With a larger customer base and a growing competitive pool, e-commerce businesses will need to think about how they are going to remain competitive and where they can gain an advantage. One of the many ways is through faster order fulfilment. Amazon lit a massive bonfire in the retail industry when it started one-day, next-day and same-day delivery as it created a need for customers that they didn’t even know that they had: it made them hungry and impatient, and if they could not get it in time from their favourite local shop, they knew they could get it from Amazon in 12-48 hours without the hassle of leaving their house and the convenience of knowing where their order is at all times. Customers across industries have grown impatient, and will choose a competitor who will deliver faster at the same rate; and why should they wait if they don’t need to? When you make a purchase online, you want it as soon as possible, and the same goes for any e-commerce purchase, making faster order fulfilment one of the top trends we will see this year.
Abandoning legacy systems
To become more efficient as an e-commerce business, you will need a much more robust system, such as TradePeg. One of the many things we will see this year in e-commerce is the adoption of new systems and software that will increase efficiency and allow collaboration with other systems to create a much more effective ecosystem for an e-commerce business. Old systems are often based on dated methodology and if you want to push past your competition and ensure much faster delivery to your customers, you will need a system that can keep up with the many technological changes in ecommerce while supporting the needs of your business. Leaving a legacy system behind is the only way to move forward in this space.
Investing in the right e-commerce platform technology
With all of the changes that happen in technology, finding a software solution that can support your business’ unique requirements and keep up with the many changes is challenging, but not impossible. One of the biggest trends we’re going to see this year is more development in e-commerce platform technology, with a prioritisation in product discovery. After all, if customers cannot find your product, then you might as well close up shop. The right e-commerce technology, like TradePeg, can support your business in the way you need it without the cost of an enterprise level software solution. TradePeg inventory management software works to streamline your operations, maximise efficiency and reduce errors while seamlessly integrating with your favourite accounting software, carriers and marketplaces; making your e-commerce business ready for 2022 and beyond!