eCommerce Technologies That Are Evolving How We Shop Online

eCommerce, short for “electronic commerce,” is the process of buying or selling goods or services through the Internet. While there are many powerful technologies driving eCommerce today, eCommerce itself has humble origins. The first eCommerce transaction took place on August 11, 1994, when NetMarket.com was used to sell a Sting CD. Since then, eCommerce sales volume has increased nearly every quarter. And now everything under the sun is available for sale from just about any computer, tablet, or phone.

As of the fourth quarter of 2021, total eCommerce revenue in the United States was $218.53 billion. That means that eCommerce represents about 14 percent of all retail sales made in the US in a given year. Part of that tremendous growth can be attributed to the incredible number of new technologies that have been developed and deployed in the eCommerce space. Here are a few poised to make a big difference in the coming year.

eCommerce Technologies and Omnichannel Presence

You may have heard about omnichannel presence before, but it’s a juggernaut that continues to grow. To have an “omnichannel presence” once meant incorporating web, mobile, and social media operations into your sales process so that customers can buy from anywhere. Consumers increasingly expect new video chat, co-browsing, and screen-sharing options from their favorite brands. And they want to be able to purchase what they need no matter the source. By incorporating these technologies where it makes sense, you can personalize communication with your customers. At the same time, you can make purchases as frictionless as possible.

Personalization

Personalization used to be a neat marketing trick, but it’s increasingly becoming a necessity. According to a study, “74 percent of customers feel frustrated when website content isn’t personalized.” If you’re not personalizing your content, then you’re missing out on a huge opportunity and possibly even driving away your customers.

Image Search

While image search has been on the rise for a while now, 2022 may be the year it finally breaks into the mainstream. Allowing users to search by image can help get your brand in front of unexpected, new groups of people. A huge bonus is that they don’t need the right “search language” to find you. As long as they have an example of what they want to buy, and the ability to take a picture of it, they’ll be able to find your products!

Related: How to Use a Website Landing Page for Direct Marketing Campaigns