Do you run a small ecommerce business? As you’ve probably noticed, the ecommerce market has always moved at breakneck speed. Even before the pandemic it was growing at an explosive rate.
How do you keep up?
Read on, because we’ve put together 5 ecommerce trends for small businesses. —the upsides and downsides of these trends, plus a few useful tips for making the most of them.
- Social commerce
How much time have you spent on social media this week? Well, quite. Your target market is equally as addicted to scrolling.
It’s no surprise that more and more businesses are embracing social commerce. By selling directly through platforms such as Facebook, Instagram, Tik Tok and Pinterest you gain access to a massive global consumer base, all gathered together in one place.
What’s more, because you can interact directly and personally with real customers, it’s a great way to build trust and loyalty.
So far, so good.
What’s the downside?
Social media is designed for buyers, not sellers.
The first problem is GDPR. When checking out directly via a social media platform, customers can (and do) opt out of providing contact details. As a result, any remarketing campaign is left dead in the water.
Then there’s commission, transaction and processing fees to consider. They may be affordable for large retailers—but for a small business, ecommerce seller fees can become painful very fast.
Which options offer a better return on investment?
- If you’re selling through the platform marketplace, offer discount vouchers on future purchases, or
- Avoid the platform marketplaces altogether
- Instead, create a social media campaign to drive organic traffic directly to your ecommerce website
- Personalisation
Personalisation makes customers more likely to buy from you again. It breeds loyalty.
When it’s done properly, your customer feels as though they’re getting personal attention. Rather than being about what your business wants, careful personalisation is all about them.
What’s the problem?
Unfortunately—and here comes the downside—personalisation is often done badly. We’ve all been on the receiving end of maddening, `dear [first name]’ emails offering stuff we’ve already bought or don’t need.
As a small ecommerce business, how do you get personalisation right? Is it complicated and expensive?
Actually, no. On Shopify and Woocommerce you’ll find affordable or free plugins which track customer behaviour, purchasing patterns, order history, even items abandoned in the cart.
It’s a question of using this data imaginatively and respectfully. Here are some examples of how to do that:
- When a customer has left something in the cart, send a reminder email and offer a discount
- Provide ideas on related products, and offer reduced prices on them
- See how often they buy the same products, then send timely emails as a friendly reminder
- Sustainability
Modern consumers are eco-conscious, and prefer to shop somewhere which reflects their values. Given a choice, they will generally opt for a company which minimises its environmental impact.
This isn’t just a passing trend. Consumer behaviour has changed for good, and businesses which don’t reflect this may come up against problems.
In the long term, sustainability makes financial sense. You’re likely to win regular customers if you clearly communicate sustainability as a value, and offer eco-friendly products.
Now, we know what you’re thinking:
This is all well and good for large retailers. As a small ecommerce business, your resources are limited. Where do you start?
The challenge
It’s not possible for any business, let alone a small ecommerce business, to turn on a sixpence and suddenly achieve net zero. It requires research, time and, in some cases, an initial outlay.
Having said that, you don’t have to go all in. Small but meaningful steps are better than no steps. To give you a few examples:
- Reduce packaging to a minimum and, wherever possible, use compostable or biodegradable packaging materials
- Consider switching your ecommerce website hosting provider to one which uses renewable energy for their servers (yes, that’s us)
- Provide ethically sourced alternatives to your existing product range
Bear in mind, you’ll want to eliminate any risk of greenwashing accusations. For example, and not naming any names (Amazon), advertising eco-friendliness then using canoe-sized boxes for tiny items is unlikely to build trust in your green credentials.
- AI chatbots
OK, chatbots aren’t everyone’s cup of tea. However, AI is a growing trend in ecommerce—and there are several good reasons for this.
Firstly, intelligent chatbots are quick, efficient and available 24/7. They can interact with multiple customers simultaneously, identifying and solving problems faster than any human on the planet. For busy, time-poor website visitors, this is a plus point.
Also, the algorithm collects and analyses data such as customer preferences, buying patterns and on-site behaviour. You can use this data to personalise recommendations or make improvements to the website.
Now, you probably know what’s coming.
The downside
Put simply, chatbots aren’t human.
When it comes to the nuances of language, understanding complex requests or demonstrating emotional intelligence, robots fall woefully short. When there’s a frustrated customer at the other end of the online conversation, that lack of humanity could damage a hard-won business reputation.
There are also security issues to consider. Chatbots are frequent targets for cybercriminals because they collect and store customer information. Unless that data is securely protected, it could be compromised.
- Make sure your website is robustly protected — e.g., encryption, secure payment gateways, firewalls, anti-malware software, access control etc.
- Don’t delegate too much responsibility to the chatbot. It should stick to basic questions
- If the bot can’t answer, make it easy for customers to reach a real-life human
- Mobile shopping
The smartphone has become a virtual high street. It’s where most people go shopping.
Provided your ecommerce website is fully responsive, and optimised for search engines, it’s likely to see ever-increasing mobile phone traffic and, as a result, more purchases.
Sounds great.
What’s the problem?
If it’s even slightly difficult to buy your products via a mobile phone, customers simply won’t bother. They’ll go elsewhere.
Mobile visitors need to quickly find what they need, check relevant product information and then complete the purchase with minimal effort. If they are repeat customers, they’ll probably want a one-click checkout.
But before all that, consumers need to find your website— and without search engine optimisation, that will be difficult. Effectively, your products will be invisible to online shoppers.
Here’s the solution:
- Make sure that all website pages, including product descriptions, are correctly optimised for keywords
- Beef up the product descriptions — ideally, to at least 125 words
- Check how easy it is to buy your products via mobile. The process should be quick, intuitive and effortless
No matter what happens within the ecommerce market in future, your website will always remain the single most important tool for selling your products. It has the potential to attract more customers than any other form of marketing.
If you need some advice about modernising your website, or have any questions about SEO and product descriptions, we’re here.
