4 Major eCommerce trends for 2021, according to Adobe
This year Adobe, teamed up with Econsultancy to create a report titled “2021 Digital Trends Experience Index”. This report highlighted a number of interesting and important trends for eCommerce, and how 2020 has impacted its growth and trajectory. As eCommerce experts, and a Magento Commerce Specialised Partner, we examined the report and thought we would breakdown and highlight 4 of, what are in our opinion, the biggest takeaways from it.
The user experience remains paramount
On a number of occasions in the last year, we have discussed the importance of crafting and perfecting the user experience of your eCommerce platform and the benefits it can have for your business. In this report, Adobe highlights how those companies that placed significant importance on their user experience have reaped the benefits and in many cases have outperformed their industry.
An interesting find from the study highlights how many of those involved in running eCommerce platforms are themselves not satisfied with its user experience and would either ‘possibly or definitely’ get frustrated with the platform.
Privacy is an experience
Throughout the year we have all likely noticed the rise in GDPR compliancy, as stricter measures begin to take place. And the popularity of documentaries such as Netflix’s The Social Dilemma has caused consumers to question their data privacy and look for companies they feel they can trust. Whatsapp saw a large drop in customers with their recent data transfer policy update, Tiktok almost got banned due to American concern over privacy; and VPN providers are starting to get brand recognition amongst the general public. This shift has impacted all digital-based companies, including eCommerce companies. The senior marketing executives surveyed in this report, highlighted the importance of data privacy and protection amongst the public when 92% of them considered privacy to be a fundamental part of the customer experience.
This opinion is mirrored amongst UX leaders, the majority of which either agreed or strongly agreed that “how a brand handles customer consent in their first interaction shapes trust going forward”. This points to a growing need for companies to be respectful of their user’s privacy and to be considerate towards their boundaries and a growing desire for transparency.
eCommerce is growing
While this is not necessarily news to any of us that work in eCommerce, as we have all seen the reliance businesses have had to place on their eCommerce platforms, we now have some actual data to back up what we have all witnessed in 2020. According to this study, the UK saw a 50% increase in the number of businesses created in June 2020, compared to the same month in 2019. And considering lockdowns were still rampant at this stage in Europe, it is safe to assume that a majority of these businesses are operating eCommerce platforms.
B2C eCommerce platforms also saw massive growth in footfall this year, with an average growth of 63% seen. This highlights just how important eCommerce has become for many customers. With varying degrees of lockdowns, people with varying medical health, and travel restrictions for many; eCommerce has replaced the traditional brick and mortar store for many customers and by providing positive, trust-building experiences eCommerce platforms can sustain some of this increase interest post-pandemic.
The average user is adapting
As mentioned previously, eCommerce platforms have seen a rise in visitors, but with this comes a change in how many people shop. While new users bring about new expectations, and behaviours, many B2B eCommerce platforms (51% of those surveyed), have reported unusual buying behaviours from existing customers. What do they mean by “unusual”? Well, likely this simply means behaviour and flow patterns that do not fit within the expected flow of the current platform. This can cover anything from increased purchase volumes, the adoption of features such as requisition lists, or even negatives such as increased cart abandonment. While this may seem scary to some, this change in behaviour offers businesses an opportunity to adapt and meet the new expectations of their customers. And by doing this, a business can continue to stand out from competitors and set industry standards. In fact, this report points this out through their finding that CX leaders are 52% more likely to have “significant insights into new customer journeys” compared to those following standard CX practices.
Looking at the report, and the areas and trends that stuck out to us it is clear that eCommerce will continue to play an important role in the coming year and beyond, and as the user adapts both in terms of their behaviours and their expectations around privacy and the eCommerce experience as a whole, those platforms that can adapt and meet these new expectations and behaviours will be the once to thrive and reap the benefits that eCommerce possess.
If you have concerns about your current eCommerce platform and the experience it provides to your users and you want to improve it to meet these new expectations, then get in touch with our team at [email protected] or call us on +353 (0)1 4750066
