5 Mobile Commerce Trends to Rule In 2018
Studies have shown that more than 80% of shoppers prefer using mobile phones to computers — either for product searches, price comparisons, or locating stores.
According to Statista, mobile commerce revenue is projected to reach $669 billion in 2018 and will continue to soar.
The rise in m-commerce is attributed to the fact that almost 54% of millennials are accustomed to shopping online and expect personalized and speedy solutions.
The advent of progressive web apps is only going to push this momentum.
This simply means that businesses will have to focus more on mobile transactions and adapt to the following 5 trends in the coming year — if they want to maintain their competitive edge.
1) Marketing through Automation and Social Media
Marketing automation has provided massive growth opportunities for e-retailers in terms of revenue generation and customer satisfaction.
Be it email campaigns, customer reviews, re-engagement, discount codes, or loyalty point generators, these tools have literally covered all the essential aspects of marketing, leaving business owners more time to focus on their goals.
With recent software developments, the emphasis on such automation will only increase for the sake of reducing business complexities and enhancing shopping experiences.
Social media sites, which are currently seen as marketing platforms for several businesses, will be exploited more since they are easily accessible through their apps and have a huge database of active users.
In fact, more startups and small businesses will seek and pay influencers and bloggers, not only for their brand promotion but also for audience segmentation.
2) Personalised Marketing – Both Online And Offline
One of the most effective ways of capturing consumer interest is through personalization.
A growing number of retailers are investing their resources in analytical tools to track buyers’ online behavior and purchase history.
The data gathered from several websites including social media is then used for customized solutions and suggestions. They even offer discounts or special deals on various items.
Technologies such as push notifications and geolocation marketing, contribute significantly to grabbing customers’ attention in real time and at the right location.
Many brick and mortar stores have even installed ‘beacons’ to detect a users’ mobile devices from a range, for sending timely messages.
Some even have interactive screens for users to browse the inventory themselves for available variants or price comparisons, rather than asking for assistance.
3) Single Click Payments
There’s an unsaid expectation amongst consumers that any transaction nowadays will require minimal effort.
Amazon was granted the One-Click patent in 1997 and has been extremely successful in offering exclusive single payment services to their customers – as is evident from their sales data. Amazon app has been one of the best e-commerce mobile apps ever.
The patent, however, was scheduled to expire in 2017, which means e-commerce retailers are now incorporating single click payment options for their consumers.
In fact, Google and Apple are already on the verge of streamlining this process.
Single click payments will not only expedite the overall processing of orders, but will also boost impulsive buying — especially via mobile.
In short, market players willing to adopt this trend will be the potential leaders of the mobile commerce industry.
4) Augmented Reality Will Be Realised
The much-awaited augmented reality (AR) is all set to dominate the mobile commerce industry.
More retailers are expected to integrate AR into their stores which will enhance their users’ shopping experience.
AR not only provides the most interactive and immersive experience to buyers, but also enables them to view in-depth information about a product. It also instills confidence among buyers to make buying decisions.
5) Artificial Intelligence to Get More Push
Artificial intelligence can significantly impact the m-commerce industry. Especially, with its ability to analyze and forecast outcomes from huge chunks of data that are generated by various consumer touch-points.
It will not only help retailers save time and money, but will enable them to understand the tipping points within their business and optimize conversion rates.
AI integrations can be used to provide better-personalized shopping experiences, customer interactions (through chatbots), fraud protection and enable image searches.
It’s about time that retailers embrace AI with open arms to enhance their services and double their sales.
Upshot
The e-commerce story is sure to take wings hereon. While these trends highlights the positive side of the industry, businesses need to be flexible with their approach to find success.
User experience is going to be key.
Companies should be open to spending on research, development and integration of latest technological tools to reap long term business benefits.
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