Digital Transformation and the Future of Ecommerce
The term "Digital Transformation" has been floating around since the pandemic struck us. Many companies were adopting digital transformation to survive the effects of the norms that came with the pandemic. So begs the question, what is a digital transformation?
In simple terms, Digital Transformation is the selection of digital technology to convert businesses or services, through replacing manual or non-digital processes with digital processes or replacing older digital technology with newer digital technology
So let us see what are the examples of digital transformation
- When an organization adopts new technologies like cloud computing.
- Switching to email marketing from mail flyers.
- The use of social media, to drive acquisition and product engagement.
- Leveraging data from multiple sources to create a targeted multi-channel marketing plan.
- Combining eCommerce with in-store pickup, aka BOPIS (Buy Online Pickup In-Store)
- Partnering and collaborating with market intelligence and research companies such as IDC, McKinsey, and Gartner, to smoothen a digital business strategy.
- Welcoming digital change
What are the reasons behind the digital transformation in eCommerce?
- People are always searching for new products online
According to Salesforce, the leading CRM company, a monstrous 87% of shoppers search for information about a product and read the related reviews, online, although they make their final purchase in a brick-and-mortar store. Shoppers expect to find proper and updated information about products and brand contact information easily and quickly, online.
- Rising expectations
Morden shoppers have evolved. They have become aware of the market trends and expect personalized experience across a range of channels. Hence the term omnichannel marketing. Shoppers nowadays expect the items in the shopping cart to move from device to device, as they enjoy using apps. The key to growth is the need to cater to the sopper's base.
- To display value, brands need a strong online presence
Gone are the days when brands opted for marketing strategies. Now they opt for direct-to-consumers. The benefits are both for the customer and the businesses alike. Businesses eliminate the need for middlemen to make more profit and customers get communications from the brand manufacturer directly. Vigorous branding and a strong presence create a path for success in this type of marketplace.
The impact of digital transformation in the future of eCommerce.
If you are an eCommerce retailer or B2B (business-to-business) wholesaler, and you are aware of the know-how of the digital world doesn't mean you are sorted for life. The website that you maintain and where all the shopping is done by your customers is just an aspect of your company's digital transformation. As a business you need to keep an account of the shifts in your customer's behavior and expectations, enabling you to modify your business strategies to meet their needs. Eventually, keep up with your competitors. If your competitors offer BOGO (buy one get one) you have to do something better and if they offer free shipping, then you have to too.
So let's take a look at a few ways digital transformation is going to change eCommerce.
- Private-label Selling Accelerates And Direct-to-consumer (DTC)
DTC's business strategy in simple terms is a reaction to uplift private label products as it has the ability to make more money. By implementing the direct-to-customer (DTC) strategy in their business, brands can not only earn extra but also know their customers better. When brands choose DTC instead of their retails partners, manufacturers also balance out the slow in-store sales.
- Breaking Limits With Augmented Reality (Ar)
AP software is proving to be a game-changer in the eCommerce industry. The amazing thing about AR is that it helps the shoppers to visualize the products that have interested them. Before the introduction of this technology, shoppers were reliant on luck, tape measures, and imagination. They were unable to envision the product properly and confidently. AR has changed the way shoppers perceive eCommerce by removing the psychological hurdle to purchase.
Want a taste of what shopping is like with AR, check out the furniture retailer Burrow. Burrow at Home is an app by Burrow that enables customers to try out furniture in their living spaces virtually. The app can scan the floor of the room, customize and personalize the Burrow furniture and then drop it into view for the customer.
- Shift Of Business Physical Retailers To Ecommerce
The pandemic brought down the businesses of all the brick and mortar and wholesalers. Retailers who adopted eCommerce quickly were having a time of their lives with sales. However, behind the scenes, the established packaging ecosystem and shipping processes were decayed with the norms of social distancing and reduction of staff in the warehouse. Couriers were overburdened with packages and there was a tremendous increase in shipping time.
Ecommerce was giving success to businesses even long before the pandemic. Economists have projected that the eCommerce sales will top 476.5 billion by 2024 which's an upward trajectory from 279.7 billion dollars in 2017. Nowadays digital transformation is an essential process for any brick-and-mortar business.
- Bigdata Will Play An Important Role In Personalization
Big Data is now one of the most essential parts of digital business transformation. Ecommerce giants such as Amazon use big data to provide a highly customizable shopping experience to their customers. This is all possible by fine-tuning the site's algorithms based on a shopper's activity while shopping.
Maybe in the future people may choose to opt out of personalization. But for the time being, companies continue to push personalization in the Internet of Things (IoT) devices, like automated doorbells and thermostats and artificial intelligence (AI) such as Siri or Alexa. To apply personalization and big data to your business model, you can go ahead and install product recommendation integrations on your site.
Digital Transformation is more than just a trend. It is now a mode for survival for businesses that have suffered from the effects of the pandemic. It is the way forward. The aftermath of the pandemic would tell a different story to the world. The story of how businesses through digital transformation survived the pandemic. If you are in search of digital transformation services do visit us.
Authors Bio- Nora is a copywriter and content writer for Daffodil Software. She specializes in, ghost blogging, email marketing campaigns, and content for sales pages. She works closely with B2C and B2B businesses providing digital marketing content that gains social media attention and increases your search engine visibility.
