Ecommerce trends for 2015

Ecommerce, once an afterthought by big brick-and-mortar stores, is booming, with holiday sales this year reaching record levels.

There’s no doubt ecommerce is not only here to stay, but in some cases is rapidly overtaking bricks (aka brick-and-mortar stores) in terms of sales and customer convenience.

With that in mind, here’s a look at the top ecommerce trends shaping up for 2015.

Mobile Rules

Retailers are beginning to put more efforts into designing for mobile and tablets. Research has shown consumers will browse their mobile phones to check out online shopping sites but are more likely to buy on their tablets.

According to a recent Huffington Post article about upcoming ecommerce trends, “People prefer to scout deals on their smartphones, hence E-Commerce retailers need to ensure that they cater to their mobile savvy consumers.”

Content Marketing

More and more companies use content marketing to generate traffic, sales and leads, and that trend is going to continue to grow in 2015. More than a quarter of digital marketers recently surveyed said content marketing will be the most important kind of marketing for 2015, according to the digital marketing experts at Smart insights.

Shipping and Returns

Free shipping is nothing new to consumers – many seem to expect, if not demand it. What sweetens the pot for consumers and can earn retailers more sales is flexible returns, which many like those at Inc. Magazine are predicting will be a trend for 2015. Zappos is known for its free shipping on returns, which makes consumers more likely to take the risk to try a product they’re not sure they’ll like.

Content Personalization

Rather than just settling for banner ads that target consumers based on previous purchases and search history, companies will continue to try to personalize their message through strategies like “thank you” emails. According to Internet Retailer, “2015 will be about delivering a nearly perfect user experience to the consumer, with all information that a consumer needs to finalize a purchase right there, in the ad.”

Compliance

Not fun or buzzwordy, but PCI compliance will continue to be a must in 2015 for ecommerce sites. Not being PCI compliant can cost businesses their customer loyalty and big bucks, not to mention potentially putting retailers out of business.