Digital transformation is paving its path in every walk of life. eCommerce is not an exception. This industry uses digital technology to uplift workflows, make them swift, reduce errors, and make the service delivery customer-centered.
For many, eCommerce digital transformation is limited to improving UI/UX. However, at a deeper level, it’s way more than this. Let’s explore the scope of digital transformation in the eCommerce industry.
What Is Digital Transformation In the eCommerce Industry?
Before we talk about the reach of digital transformation, let’s understand what it means for the eCommerce industry. At the very basic level, it means replacing outdated systems and migrating key workflows to the cloud.
As an eCommerce business embraces digital transformation, it tries to adopt tools & technologies that can provide an organization-wide understanding that is important for improving productivity and service delivery.
It occurs on the business side and customers side. On the business side, it simply means system updates, and for customers, it means using applications for order placing and tracking. The simplest example of ecommerce digital transformation is the shopping app with admin and customer versions.
Using the customer version, the app allows customers to place an order from anywhere, track the delivery, and share feedback. The admin version allows the business to keep a watch over all the operations like inventory, logistic chain, CRM, and finances.
Depending upon the business requirements, digital transformation often involves merging two or more applications. For instance, integrating Uber with AirBnB.
What’s Fueling The Fire Of Digital Transformation For eCommerce
In the beginning, the scope of digital transformation was limited to upgrading the UX/UI as it is the first point of contact for businesses and customers. However, now it’s expanding and reaching data processing, logistic workflow optimization, CRM upgrade, and many more. This wider scope is for multiple reasons:
-
More interest shoppers in new products
Salesforce revealed that nearly 87% of shoppers are referring to online reviews about a product or service before actually buying it. They need to know what other customers are experiencing with the services they are currently interested in.
This is why eCommerce businesses are improving their online presence, having digital channels to track consumer behavior, and understanding market trends.
-
Customers expect more from eCommerce businesses
Customers’ expectations are now more on personalization. They want eCommerce businesses to provide personalized shopping experiences and suggest relevant products. They are looking for an omnichannel shopping experience. They want to show what products they add in the browser-based application that should be displayed in mobile applications. This was only possible with wider digitization.
-
Customers want to remain informed at every stage
Gone is the era when customers were OK to learn about the shipping details. They now want to stay informed about when the order was shipped, where it has reached, how to raise a return request, provide feedback, and other key details.
This required connecting CRM, inventory, logistic chain, and other order-related departments, which only expanded digitization can bring to the table.
-
Contactless shopping
The new normal, which is maintaining social distance to avoid the spread of COVID-19, is allowing eCommerce businesses to deliver better and optimized contactless shopping. This is why more and more businesses are moving to eCommerce and offering online shopping experiences.
The Digital Transformation Trends of 2022 & 2023
Impact of Wider Digitization On the eCommerce Industry
The deeper penetration of eCommerce digital transformation is bringing a wider revolution for industry players.
-
Improved DTC or Direct-to-consumer
DTC is a key business strategy that every eCommerce business has to adopt to grow and expand. With digital transformation, this industry will experience streamlined DTC workflow, as it is easy to connect with wholesalers, retailers, and other delivery aspects. They can even conduct direct post-sales surveys, collect consumer feedback, and ask for reviews.
Along with improving delivery, digital technologies allow eCommerce businesses to build a direct connection with customers. Businesses can use the collected feedback for personalized delivery.
-
AR is making a touch of reality to virtual shopping
Many people avoid using an eCommerce platform just because they are missing the touch of the brick-and-mortar shopping experience. They feel that they won’t be able to have a real picture of the product, how it feels, how it looks, and other aspects.
AR, as a part of digital transformation, fills this gap. In fact, this is a game changer for the eCommerce industry as it’s a way to allow customers to visualize the products in real time. This experience allows customers to trust a product and buy it without apprehension. AR introduction has managed to reduce the return and retention for the eCommerce industry.
-
Big data is strengthening personalization
Big data is important for eCommerce businesses and digitization is helping them to gather real-time and accurate data to improve multiple aspects. Amazon is the best example of this use case. Amazon is using digital technology to gather big data that is later used in service personalization.
For every Amazon customer, there is a fully-personalized home page. Amazon uses high-power machine learning technology to change the algorithm according to past consumer activities.
-
Wider payment options
Online payment has also evolved a lot. In the beginning, it was all about credit cards and debit cards. The rise of UPI and eWallets demanded integration with these payment methods. Now, we have Bitcoin and cryptocurrency, and customers want to pay via these payment methods.
Contemporary eCommerce businesses need to upgrade the payment methods and upgrade as new options are offered. This is only possible with digitization.
-
Mobile-based shopping is on the rise
Nearly 73% of shopping is happening via mobile. As mobiles have easy accessibility, it’s easy to shop from this device. This is why eCommerce businesses are now strengthening mobile shopping. Digital transformation allows businesses to support omnichannel marketing and shopping.
With digital transformation, it’s easy to integrate AI and VR to make shopping more personalized and realistic.
-
B2B eCommerce is going to be more expensive
The current market growth indicates that B2B commerce will expand and will become more expensive. However, traditional B2B websites are outdated and lack functionalities. For instance, they can only manage the supply chain using fax and phones.
With effective digitization efforts, B2B websites can become more intuitive and interactive. B2B websites can now have a fully-automated supply chain and logistic chain that leads to building brand loyalty. Digitalization is improving B2B at every level.
Digital Transformation Is Empowering eCommerce
Over time, the eCommerce industry has evolved significantly. Above that, customers expect more from businesses. With digital transformation, it’s easy to pivot, scale, and personalize the service delivery. It’s more than making UI and UX customer-focused.
Now, it’s all about empowering DTC, making virtual shopping more apt and realistic, and improving mobile-based shopping. With the use of AI, automation, MI, and AR, the eCommerce industry is able to understand customers’ requirements better than before.
However, eCommerce digital transformation can only bring desired results when optimized, need-based, and cost-effective. Such digital transformation is only possible when experts are involved in the process. Hence, the wise step to take here is to hire a digital transformation service provider and eCommerce App Development Service provider that can help you at every step.
Get in Touch