The hottest E-commerce trends for summer 2023

November and December are the busiest and most profitable months for online sellers. The summertime, however, is the perfect time to refine your business practices so you can maximise your sales long before the busy winter months arrive.

But how can you be sure what trends could help your business optimise its practices? In this article we’ll explore some popular trends we’ve noticed that could help you this summer.    

Omnichannel marketing

What exactly is omnichannel marketing? Omnichannel marketing (OM) combines all your businesses marketing channels into one seamless experience, putting your customer at the centre of your marketing strategy. Whereas multi-channel marketing keeps a consistent message across all channels, OM allows for a deeper level of customisation for the end user, giving them a better customer experience.

There are both positives and negatives to omnichannel marketing. Implementing an omnichannel marketing strategy this summer can provide your customers a better experience with your brand throughout their journey, increasing purchase rates, brand loyalty and repeat business. A disadvantage of omnichannel marketing is more competition. Competitive markets are great for the consumer, but for a business owner, it can be a struggle.

By implementing a well thought-out unique omnichannel strategy, you won’t need to chase potential customers as your customers will chose you!

Variety of payment options

In the 21^st century there’s a variety of ways for customers to pay online, which you should embrace. In addition to traditional payment methods such as credit and debit cards, many consumers have come to expected support for 3^rd party payment platforms such as PayPal as standard.

Payment options can also be flexible in timeframe. For example, ‘Buy Now, Pay Later’ (BNPL) or financing options provide your customers with flexible payments options to make their customer journey more accommodating to their needs.

Yet with the rise of cryptocurrencies and digital payments consumers can use crypto or electronic wallets (e-wallet) to save their payment information and remove the need for entering personal card details for every purchase. Popular examples of e-wallets are Amazon Pay, Google Pay, Apple Pay and Samsung Pay.

Customise your users’ experience

A great addition to offering your customers a variety of payment options, is providing different ways to personalise the users experience can offer your business and brand with a plethora of benefits. What do we mean by personalisation? Personalising your users experience by tailoring what your users see or has seen is a sure-fire way to increase your chances of repeat business.

You can show specific offers & deals, or even comparative selling by utilising cookies or geographical locations and other personal information to create a truly bespoke experience. You don’t have to be totally data driven either, remember the little things. Using iconography or having a sense of humour when it comes to things like 404 error pages can create a personality for your brand. You don’t have to heavily invest into it, but should these things be noticed, they’ll stick with your customers who find them.

Sustainability

Consumers are growing increasingly conscious over the impact their purchases can have on the environment. Some consumers may go so far as to consider everything from the source of materials, product packaging and even methods of delivery as they seek to reduce their carbon footprint.

There are many ways in which your e-commerce business can be run more sustainably. Product packaging is the most notable implementation. By using sustainable materials such as recycled polyester, organic cotton or hemp-based plastics, you can reduce waste and your impact on the environment.

A serious commitment to sustainability is a great USP and way to attract new customers. One audience who are incredibly environmentally conscious are Millennials, who have over $600bn spending power in the US alone!

A rundown of trends for 2023

To summarise these 4 hot trends of 2023, lets simplify what these boil down to. The best way to increase customer loyalty and repeat business is to make your e-commerce platforms streamlined, flexible and sustainable:

Streamlined- Ensure that you provide a simple, clutter free customer journey for your consumers to experience. Remove irrelevant pop-ups & links to follow and keep your consumer in one place by converging your marketing channels, providing a relevant, straightforward customer journey that’ll keep them coming back!  

Flexibility- Provide a variety of pathways for consumers to find you and ways for them to purchase, ship or hire your products and services. Financial flexibility is quickly becoming a hot trend, as consumers seek to make purchases without the pressure of upfront payments.

Sustainable- Green business is the way forward in the eyes of the consumer. There are many different points of entry for sustainable materials to find their way into your business. For example, sourcing from local businesses or using reusable materials to make your products, to environmentally friendly packaging & low carbon delivery methods.