As we approach the new year, brands must understand the digital commerce movements and trends that will affect their success on the digital shelf. Read on as we explore the nine key trends in digital commerce in 2023, and learn how to capitalize on these trends starting now.

1. Omnichannel Retail

Consumers aren’t shopping through a single channel. In today’s omnichannel retail market, shoppers browse online through your site, in-store, through various apps, and across third-party sellers – sometimes all within minutes of each other. To win in this retail space, you must optimize your content for omnichannel commerce. 

Omnichannel retail removes boundaries between commerce channels, providing a seamless shopping experience for consumers wherever they interact with your brand. Omnichannel shopping options are more than merely a helpful addition to your marketing strategy; they’re necessary for you to maximize your reach – and sales. 

Customers expect omnichannel shopping options. Structure your digital commerce approach accordingly.

2. Effects of Inflation

Consumers are reeling from the effects of global inflation in every market. And that means sellers are too. 

Inflation affects every aspect of digital commerce, from materials to manufacturing to marketing and sales. Everything is more expensive for nearly every party in the supply chain. How brands respond will determine their e-commerce success in 2023. 

Combatting inflation in digital commerce requires brands to set themselves apart from everyone else in the market, and they can do so through:

• Product data quality and transparency 
• Sustainability 
• Price sensitivity 
• Supply chain diversity 
• Prioritizing customer retention strategies 

Inflation poses a challenge to all brands. But when you take a proactive approach to the inflation issue, you can come out on top.

3. Augmented Reality and Virtual Reality (AR/VR)

Commerce is no longer an in-person – or single-channel – experience. Brands can engage consumers through AR and VR applications that elevate their shopping experiences. When shoppers browse from a screen, they want and need purchase experiences that are the next best thing to in-person shopping. AR and VR deliver. 

The virtual try-on is among the most popular uses of AR technology. Amazon recently launched its Virtual Try-On for Shoes, allowing customers to see how a pair of shoes might look on them, empowering more confident and informed purchase decisions from home. 

AR and VR commerce applications allow shoppers to visualize themselves using a brand’s products. When in-person try-on options aren’t possible, AR/VR provides shoppers with the information they need to make purchase decisions that they’ll be happy with, increasing customer satisfaction and reducing return rates.

4. Artificial Intelligence and Machine Learning

Personalization is key to reaching consumers and guiding them toward the sale. Artificial intelligence –– and more specifically, machine learning – uses behavioral data to create personalized shopping experiences for consumers. 

Research shows that 88 percent of shoppers say personalization positively influences purchase decisions. Using data mining to inform predictions regarding consumer wants and needs, AI and MI empower brands to put the right products in front of the right customer at the right time. 

Through AI/MI applications, brands can achieve:

• More effective targeted marketing
• Higher customer retention with re-marketing campaigns 
• Efficient sales processes 
• Personalized product recommendations 
• Customer segmentation 
• Demand and sales forecasting 

When implemented and utilized correctly, AI and MI inform every step of your digital commerce, from marketing to sales forecasting.

5. The Metaverse

At the most basic level, the Metaverse is a virtual world in which people live, work, shop and interact with others — all from the comfort of the physical world. The Metaverse is being used to build blockchain and cryptocurrency platform to facilitate the exchange of goods.

The Metaverse’s identity protocol is its distinguishing factor. Within the Metaverse, users can register and verify their identities. This verification enables shoppers to make secure purchases online. 

Additionally, the Metaverse creates immersive shopping experiences. Virtual stores allow users to figuratively step in and explore shelves as they would in a brick-and-mortar location. And unlike the typical online shopping experience, which is a single user interacting with a screen, buying through the Metaverse allows buyers to interact with other customers shopping for the same items. 

The Metaverse provides a secure transaction platform and a worldwide reach while providing a personal shopping experience.

6. The Necessity of Offering Alternative Payment Options

Brands must meet customers where they are to earn their first purchase – and all recurring purchases. That includes offering alternative payment options, like “Buy Now, Pay Later” financing. 

Driven by market needs and preferences, installment financing like BNPL is predicted to swallow as much as fifteen percent of incremental credit card profits by 2025. That number shows that consumers want alternative ways to pay at checkout. 

Forbes reports that nearly half of all consumers will spend more money if they have the option of low monthly payments or consumer financing. The convenience of POS financing appeals to every age group, regardless of the industry. 

Brands who want to win the digital shelf in 2023 must consider how alternative payment options will empower them to engage more shoppers, sell more products, and take hold of market share.

7. Retail Media Networks

Retail media networks allow brands to advertise to consumers at the optimum moment: at or near the point of purchase. Like the most effective digital commerce strategies and methods, retail media networks deliver personalized, highly-targeted ads to shoppers. 

Retail media networks empower brands to target audiences on multiple channels. Instead of focusing on channels, retail media networks focus on meeting the consumer where they shop, creating impactful touch-points that address their unique needs. 

Advertising on retail media networks allows brands to make the most of their ad spend. Digital retail media creates a way for brands to reach customers in relevant spaces when they’re prepared to buy.

8. Subscription Commerce

According to a recent study by McKinsey, the global subscription e-commerce market has grown 100 percent year-over-year for the past five years. And Forbes notes that the market is expected to reach $904.2 billion by 2026. 

What does that tell brands competing in the marketplace? Subscription commerce is a must for brands to engage with consumers and cultivate long-term brand and product loyalty. 

Digital commerce facilitates convenience and instant gratification: two hallmarks of subscription services. Retail brands can capitalize on subscription services to provide consumers with an affordable way to access the products they want when they want them.

9. BOPIS Maintains Popularity

Buy Online, Pick Up In Store (BOPIS) exploded in popularity at the beginning of the pandemic. Restrictions are lifted, but consumers still enjoy the convenience of the flexible fulfillment option. 

BOPIS is predicted to be a $703 billion market by 2027. But brands will only see success if they provide quality product content for the consumer and product data validation for retailers and trading partners. Regional and store-level data accuracy ensures order fulfillment and positive purchase experiences. Brands that wish to compete must update inventories at the store level in real-time, and that is best done through effective product data management. 

Content and data accuracy, quality, and consistency determine a brand’s success in the BOPIS space. 

Your Future in Digital Commerce with Content Status

Securing your success relies on a solid digital commerce strategy as we go into 2023. Reach out to the team at Content Status to learn how our tools and resources can help you optimize your digital presence and sell more starting now.