eCommerce Trends to Watch in 2023
Effective digital marketing requires keeping your finger on the pulse of the latest trends, both when it comes to how consumers prefer to connect with brands and how your competition is appealing to your target market. Each year, new trends alter the digital marketing landscape in surprising ways. While some amount to nothing more than design fads, others have true staying power and can alter the digital marketing world for years to come.
As you develop your eCommerce website for 2023, it’s wise to know which eCommerce trends industry analysts predict to make waves in the coming year. Knowing these eCommerce trends and thinking of creative ways to capitalize on them can help you refine your digital marketing strategy for 2023 and beyond.
Authenticity: Gone Are the Days of Clickbait
Shortsighted marketing tactics are simply no longer effective. Attempting to encourage impulse buys from your intended audience and trying to make emotional appeals will not be so effective in 2023 and beyond. Modern consumers have easy access to virtually any type of purchase they wish to make online, so any form of implied scarcity, tacky emotional appeals, or impulse-driven marketing will fall flat.
Your consumers appreciate authenticity more than anything, so 2023 is the year of doubling down on building your brand voice through your eCommerce channels. Instead of working toward trying to convince people to buy from you, develop content that makes them want to buy from you.
Personal Connections: You Can’t Rely on Cookie Tracking as Heavily in 2023
Consumers are growing increasingly aware of data security. Many of them are now opting out of cookie tracking whenever they see it. Since it’s a legal requirement for websites to ask permission to track with cookies, some consumers may simply leave a site as soon as they see the cookie tracking notification. Many modern online shoppers simply use tracking prevention software, such as Apple’s Intelligent Tracking Prevention system, to block both third-party and first-party cookies, and this is certainly going to result in inaccuracies with cookie data analysis.
It may be time to develop a new system for learning more about your target market. Consider alternatives to relying purely on cookie data to make informed decisions about your market. Start putting more effort into your social media channels and encourage your team to make more personal connections with your ideal customers. Surveys, feedback tools, and polls are some of the most effective and accurate data-gathering tools at your disposal; if you want to learn more about your target audience, why not ask them your questions directly?
Mobile First Marketing: Start Paying More Attention to Mobile Traffic
If you aren’t already honing your marketing approach to mobile, you’re behind the curve. More web traffic than ever occurs through mobile devices. eCommerce sites need to ensure their mobile sites are as functional and intuitive as their main sites for desktop browsers. Mobile web traffic and mobile purchases are going to become even more common in 2023 and beyond, so make sure your customers know they can rely on your mobile site for fast and easy purchases.
Headless eCommerce: Develop a Unique Digital Storefront
So many eCommerce sites today share cookie cutter design; the average customer has probably seen dozens of the same checkout screen over the last few years. While you want it to seem intuitive, you don’t want your site to look and feel the same as everyone else’s. “Headless eCommerce” refers to the growing trend of eCommerce companies developing their own digital storefronts. Instead of being locked into a specific eCommerce service’s storefront design, headless eCommerce allows site owners to effectively unlink their storefront appearance from the eCommerce platform’s functionality. Everything works the same, but it looks different.
Creating a more unique digital storefront for your site not only helps you stand out from the competition but also provides an additional layer to your brand identity and makes your eCommerce site more memorable than others. Take full creative control over your eCommerce site and create something that resonates with your brand identity instead of relying on the stock storefront page that everyone else uses.
Artificial Intelligence and Machine Learning: The Dominating Trend of Modern eCommerce
Over the last few years, “AI” and “ChatGPT” have turned into buzzwords for the digital marketing sphere, and for good reason. These new technologies are far from perfect, but they present an incredible level of potential to eCommerce retailers. Machine learning and AI-based data gathering technology allow marketers to appeal to consumers more accurately. Over time, these systems gather data based on past customer behaviors, searches, and other actions to provide those customers with more relevant product recommendations.
Investigate the potential machine learning could offer to your eCommerce outlet and think of ways to use the gathered data effectively in 2023 and beyond. While this may require significant investment on your part, the ability to reach your target customers on a deeper, more personal level with product and service recommendations geared to their habits, preferences, and past behaviors will not only lead to more sales, but also stronger connections between your brand and your target audience.
Keeping pace with the latest eCommerce trends can be almost as difficult as implementing them for your own brand. Imagine Monkey offers a wide range of digital marketing services designed to make your eCommerce efforts more successful, to help your brand reach a wider audience, and to help you maintain competitiveness in your market niche. Contact Imagine Monkey today to learn more about the eCommerce services we offer and how we can help your brand succeed in 2023 and beyond.
Updated: 3/2/2023
