There is a statistic you probably have heard: the pandemic accelerated the shift to ecommerce by five years.
While the transition is underway, it is difficult to imagine a smooth shakeout that has gone smoothly.
The stock of Shopify, the company at the forefront of the ecommerce bust, has seen a 60% decline from recent highs due to a combination of technological (Facebook’s faltering ad business) and macro (reopening) changes.
Are you ready for what’s next?
2PM is known as one of the industry’s leading resources. It released a report in conjunction with Deloitte that outlines eight trends to watch in the ecommerce industry:
- Brands will drop 3rd-party retailers: In order to create a better customer experience and better control of inventory, brands will focus on their own channels of distribution (“Nike will be 70% direct by 2027”).
- There will be an increase in stores opened by digitally native brands: Why? Since physical stores “highlight the brand’s online presence.”
- The changes to Apple’s privacy policy will have a long-term impact. With the iPhone maker already stymied Facebook’s ad tracking, the company is on the path to creating its own ad empire.
- The rising cost of customer acquisition is forcing companies to invest more in their own content to reach prospective customers.
- Mobile payments are still a battleground in the US. The US ranks 8th in mobile payments. Adoption growth is crucial for business growth.
- Amazon and Walmart will continue to buy up planes and ships to ensure that there is no disruption of the supply chain in the future.
- Shopping centre’s are expected to play an instrumental role in the future of e-commerce, especially as logistic centres for product returns.
- Brands will have to take note of their metaverse and blockchain strategies in order to make Web3 more than a fad.
If you would like to read the full report, you can do so by clicking here.