Today, technology is making e-commerce retailers rethink how they want to do business. The basic layout of selling on the internet has changed. In this modern scenario, retailers carefully calculate every step, and a lot of thought is put into every webpage.
That’s because users want features such as keeping track of their purchase, price comparison, and early delivery. At the same time, the needs of e-commerce businesses have also changed. Companies want websites that can handle lots of traffic, can scale easily, and on which they can easily deploy new options. The digital age of e-commerce now demands that brands change their overall strategy and become more tech-sophisticated. Even software development has become different, with companies like BairesDev now focusing on Agile development to create a product that’s adaptive to change.
There are a couple of things that technology is changing in today’s e-commerce scenario.
1. Personalized experience
Most people like to have solutions specifically tailored to their needs. And in e-commerce businesses, personalization is the new standard. Personalized recommendations, personalized content, custom landing pages, and targeted advertising are the very heart of modern e-commerce.
It helps businesses to set up a customer base that is loyal and expects a particular type of service – the kind they provide. And they do that through the use of automation tools. For example, these tools help to customize service by sending personalized emails, reminders, and even make precise product recommendations depending on the customer. For instance, Spree Commerce is a Ruby tool that can add all the product customization requirements for growing brands.
2. Increased user satisfaction
All major e-commerce businesses now understand that the purpose of e-commerce business is customer satisfaction and convenience. Most people don’t have time to go to malls and shopping complexes. E-commerce sites save their time, money, and the inconvenience they face while window shopping.
And there are many things customers nowadays are expecting—faster delivery for privileged customers, lower prices, etc. Apart from these, you can use technology in your favor to build a more comfortable online shopping experience. For instance, your website should be responsive to allow for easy purchases from mobile devices. The checkout process should be as streamlined as possible and any inconvenience, especially around money issues, should be dealt with immediately.
3. Easy payments
Since we’re talking about money and the checkout process, it’s important to notice that companies are now expected to have express checkout payments, integrated wallets to accept payment in any form, the standard debit/credit card payment, and the cash on delivery(COD).
Many online services like PayPal, Apple Pay, RazorPay allow now for one-click integration on websites so that you can accept payment through their convenient services. There have been changes from the developer’s perspective too. For example, instead of developing code from scratch, you can add PayPal or Swift Gem in your Ruby on Rails application, allowing you to save time and money.
And with trusted channels like Google Pay and Apple Pay, the consumers can rest assured that their transactions would be completed safely. There are also features like one-click checkout for people who want to buy something as fast as possible once they have made their mind.
4. Mobile purchasing
Mobile buying has given rise to 24/7 selling. All e-commerce websites today have mobile apps. Along with the convenience of using a mobile app instead of logging in through the website, these apps also have push notifications. These notifications are one of many reasons people buy things. the recipients of push notifications are 30% more likely to engage with the app. Companies often give special discounts on their apps.
Ecommerce businesses also make their website mobile-responsive, as mobile-friendly websites, along with allowing people to browse with ease, also rank higher in search engines. Of course, you can use a software solution to enhance your search optimization.
Mobile selling can be a great branding opportunity since most people install the application for permanent use. It also is a direct channel between the customer and the company. Instead of acquiring customers through search engines, they can directly show notification through mobile devices.
5. Integration with voice assistants
Many people are using a large number of voice assistants like Cortana, Siri, etc. Voice search is also getting popular, with Google saying that many people are now using voice to search in its service. In fact, Google estimates about 20% of its searches are done via voice daily. No wonder why so many e-commerce businesses are making their websites in such a way that people can order through voice.
Voice assistants/bots can be programmed to answer basic questions about the product. They could also recommend items to you if you ask them to. That’s why there’s a growing interest in voice search integrated to ecommerce, as only through voice search would they be able to gain a market share in the e-commerce sector.
Conclusion
E-commerce has changed quite a bit in the last decade. New technologies are being integrated into systems. AI algorithms and seamless sales processes now make sure that buying something is as easy as possible. VR is used for virtual store-shopping. Tech is creating changes for both retailers and customers.
E-commerce is growing at a fast rate. As a smart business owner/company executive, it’s essential to understand how the e-commerce business is changing because of these technical innovations. Once you understand the benefits of these innovations and integrate them on your website, customers will begin to trust your brand, which will lead to more sales organically.
