This year was great for e-commerce, as the whole industry steadily saw positive growth. But while things were quite stable on the top, the medium-tier platforms had a lot to catch up. The next year could be different if platforms anticipate and adapt to the trends that will dominate 2020. Writing for Forbes, Lin Grosman shared some of the trends that will be important for e-commerce in 2020:
One-Day Delivery becomes a factor
Amazon remains the king of e-commerce for multiple reasons, but a big one is its delivery. Fulfilled-By-Amazon products promise a two-day delivery to its customers, part of the reason why customers prefer shopping via Amazon. Now, the giant has started rolling out one-day delivery. Soon, most e-commerce platforms would have to match up to this speed or risk losing more customers to Amazon.
Dynamic Pricing becomes a tool
The fierce race of e-commerce has often forced platforms to unfairly lower prices, thus incurring a loss to retailers. But dynamic pricing has emerged as a way to compensate for that. By considering various factors, platforms can dynamically price products at different points, thus avoiding the need to slash prices all the time.
Automation becomes more vital
For many years automation has continued to shape industries, including e-commerce. The year 2020 will not be any different. More avenues of e-commerce will see automation as a mainstream solution. From customer support to the shopping guide, automation can significantly reduce manpower and slash the costs associated with them. Unlike a decade ago, customers are much more comfortable with shopping with the bots.
Go Global
Most e-commerce platforms in the US prefer to stay within the country. Only a few dare to even expand into the North American continent. Yet, cross-border e-commerce is on the rise, accounting for 20 percent of the total e-commerce trade. Amazon’s global stores have already seen success with this, and the trend suggests that this will only rise in 2020.