[{"@context":"http:\/\/schema.org","@type":"Article","@id":"https:\/\/www.the-future-of-commerce.com\/2021\/04\/21\/2021-ecommerce-trends\/#Article","articleBody":"Within half a year, online sales and strategies experienced about five to 10 years of growth acceleration. Let\u2019s examine the 2021 e-commerce trends that are moving from the \u201ctrend\u201d category to the \u201cmust-have\u201d classification.\n2021 e-commerce trends reflect a society that\u2019s forever changed. Brands must focus on DTC, mobile, social as a search and selling tool, and data.\nThough businesses are happy (and eager) to watch many of their pandemic challenges disappear in the rearview mirror, experts agree that companies shouldn\u2019t abandon their digital strategies as lockdowns come to a close.\n2021 e-commerce trends: Shifts in how we buy, sell, and consume drive massive change\nThe top 2021 e-commerce trends that are here to stay:\u00a0\nPersonalization: Delivering in the moment and understanding preferences will be key to growth\nService: If you\u2019re not taking care of customers after the sale, you\u2019re going to have fewer customers to take care of in the future\nOmnichannel: Always-on, data-driven efforts will boost engagement, sales, and loyalty across all sectors and industries\nPurpose: Sustainability, equality, environmental, and political stances are all now part of what makes a brand appealing \u2013 or not\nCX: The entire customer experience must be seamless, from search to handing off between screens, to customer service\nPayment and delivery options: Click and collect, curbside pickup, simple payment will all\nDirect to consumer: More and more brands are extending their go-to-market with DTC businesses\nCreative wins: To gain attention online, your marketing and messaging must stand out from the crowd\nSocial commerce: By 2027, it\u2019s projected that social commerce will drive $604 billion in sales\nFor many businesses and their customers, 2020 was marred by the stresses of living and working through a global pandemic. But Dan Gingiss, CX guru, notes there\u2019s a lot of good to come out of 2020 \u2013 namely, innovations in e-commerce and the customer experience that helped digital shopping experiences mirror in-person experiences as much as possible.\n \nBest examples of B2B e-commerce: Companies winning the game\n   B2B buyers have changed. How are companies keeping up? Here are five brands that provide shining examples of B2B e-commerce.  \nThe future of e-commerce: Consumers are changing \u2013 and organizational structures need to adapt, STAT\nA crucial element to be aware of when it comes to 2021 e-commerce trends is that the siloed environments of sales, marketing, opps, IT, etc. are over.\nTo create the experiences that draw in new customers and retain present ones, mindsets within organizations have to pivot.\nThe internet has helped to level the playing field when it comes to e-commerce, and now that small and mid-size businesses have the ability to quickly build and scale storefronts within hours, the sky\u2019s the limit when it comes to market growth for those businesses.\n \nRetail e-commerce growth: Predictions for 2021 and beyond\n   Retail e-commerce growth jumped during the 2020 holidays. Can brands keep up the momentum in 2021? Here are three predictions.  \nDiscover what the experts have to say about 2021 e-commerce trends\nIn the premiere episode of the new LinkedIn Live series, \u201cKeeping Up with E-Commerce,\u201d host Dan Gingiss said he hopes to focus on positive discussions of such experiences:\nMartin Newman, also known as \u201cThe Consumer Champion\u201d for his expertise in customer experience, reflected on the pervasiveness of online shopping and, more specifically, the likely permanence of offerings such as curbside pickup. Customers who enjoyed their first time buying their groceries online and picking them up in the store are likely to continue doing so in the future.\nIn her experience, Maria Morais, global industry director of SAP Customer Experience, said that it was \u2013 and continues to be \u2013 important for companies to set their e-commerce options up for success.  It\u2019s often as simple as featuring curbside pickup in an easy-to-find location on a retailer\u2019s online homepage.\nMany businesses that couldn\u2019t offer same-day pickup saw success starting with next-day pickup and eventually narrowing that window as they perfected their e-commerce strategy. And this year, there\u2019s plenty of room for perfecting.\n \nRetailers flex their flexible fulfillment muscles: BOPIS defined\n   Flexible fulfillment is a requirement today. Ship-to-store, ship-from-store, and BOPIS (buy online, pickup in store) options rule the retail experience.  \nSocial commerce and e-commerce converge for massive results\n\u201cI interview consumers all over the world,\u201d Newman said, \u201cAnd when I ask them what\u2019s frustrating about online shopping, they all say the same thing \u2013 and it\u2019s what drives them into the store to buy fashion. They say, \u2018I still like to touch the feel of the products. I don\u2019t get the same experience online that I get in the store.\u2019\nI think there\u2019s a real opportunity for retailers and brands and CPG businesses going direct to consumer to up their game and leverage their content more effectively within the transactional journey within that path to purchase.\u201d\nOn top of that, Newman said, companies need to be where customers are. For Paul Smith, global industry principal of consumer industries at SAP, that means social selling.\n\u201cThe historical dominance where people searched for products was always Google and Amazon. Last year, 8% more product searches started in a social network.\nThat\u2019s a significant shift, and that\u2019s only going to continue this year. So, I think we\u2019re going to start seeing this convergence of media and commerce coming together,\u201d Smith said.\n \nWhat is social commerce? Definition, examples, stats\n   Social commerce is the use of a social platform for e-commerce sales, and it's huge: By 2027, it's projected to drive $604 billion in sales.  \n\u201cI think we\u2019re also going to see significant growth from things like live video selling as well, to bring that human element and human interaction back into it.\u201d\nWith data privacy affecting marketing, the ability to scale and build storefronts quickly, and competition being fierce, most 2021 e-commerce trends will remain a reality well into the future.\nInterested in hearing the experts\u2019 other predictions for this year? Watch the replay of the first episode now.\nKick-a$$ commerce. \ud83d\udcf2 Innovation.\ud83d\udcf2 \ud83c\udf43Sustainability.\ud83c\udf43 \u23f1 Service + support.\u23f1 Customers expect a lot from brands. Hear the best in the biz talk how to deliver.","author":{"@type":"Person","@id":"https:\/\/www.the-future-of-commerce.com\/2021\/04\/21\/2021-ecommerce-trends\/#Article_Person","image":{"@type":"ImageObject","@id":"https:\/\/www.the-future-of-commerce.com\/2021\/04\/21\/2021-ecommerce-trends\/#Article_Person_ImageObject","url":"https:\/\/23x6xj3o92m9361dbu2ij362-wpengine.netdna-ssl.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2016\/08\/lisa-m-james-150x150.jpg"},"name":"Lisa James","sameAs":["https:\/\/twitter.com\/thebookoflisa","https:\/\/www.linkedin.com\/in\/thebookoflisa"],"url":"https:\/\/www.the-future-of-commerce.com\/contributor\/lisa-james\/"},"dateModified":"2021-12-06T17:34:04+00:00","datePublished":"2021-04-21T12:40:18+00:00","description":"2021 e-commerce trends reflect a society that's forever changed. Brands must focus on DTC, mobile, social as a search and selling tool, and data.","headline":"Click, click, buy: 2021 e-commerce trends driven by DTC, mobile, social","image":{"@type":"ImageObject","@id":"https:\/\/www.the-future-of-commerce.com\/2021\/04\/21\/2021-ecommerce-trends\/#Article_ImageObject","height":"630","url":"https:\/\/www.the-future-of-commerce.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2021\/04\/2021-e-commerce-trends-1200x630.jpeg","width":"1200"},"mainEntityOfPage":"https:\/\/www.the-future-of-commerce.com\/2021\/04\/21\/2021-ecommerce-trends\/","name":"Click, click, buy: 2021 e-commerce trends driven by DTC, mobile, social","publisher":{"@type":"Organization","@id":"https:\/\/www.the-future-of-commerce.com\/","additionalType":"https:\/\/www.wikidata.org\/wiki\/Q1193236","description":"Relevant, timely information & analysis on commerce trends, both consumer-facing and B2B.","logo":{"@type":"ImageObject","@id":"https:\/\/23x6xj3o92m9361dbu2ij362-wpengine.netdna-ssl.com\/wp-content\/themes\/hybris_foc\/assets\/images\/layout\/logo-new-2x.png?_=1","height":"96","url":"https:\/\/23x6xj3o92m9361dbu2ij362-wpengine.netdna-ssl.com\/wp-content\/themes\/hybris_foc\/assets\/images\/layout\/logo-new-2x.png?_=1","width":"500"},"name":"The Future of Customer Engagement and Experience","sameAs":["https:\/\/podcasts.apple.com\/us\/podcast\/a-call-for-a-better-experience\/id1479742201","https:\/\/twitter.com\/FutureOfCEC","https:\/\/www.linkedin.com\/groups\/4844282","https:\/\/www.the-future-of-commerce.com\/feed\/"],"url":"https:\/\/www.the-future-of-commerce.com\/"},"url":"https:\/\/www.the-future-of-commerce.com\/2021\/04\/21\/2021-ecommerce-trends\/#Article"},{"@context":"https:\/\/schema.org\/","@type":"BreadcrumbList","itemListElement":[{"@type":"ListItem","position":1,"name":"2021","item":"https:\/\/www.the-future-of-commerce.com\/2021\/#breadcrumbitem"},{"@type":"ListItem","position":2,"name":"04","item":"https:\/\/www.the-future-of-commerce.com\/2021\/\/04\/#breadcrumbitem"},{"@type":"ListItem","position":3,"name":"21","item":"https:\/\/www.the-future-of-commerce.com\/2021\/\/04\/\/21\/#breadcrumbitem"},{"@type":"ListItem","position":4,"name":"Click, click, buy: e-commerce trends driven by DTC, mobile, social","item":"https:\/\/www.the-future-of-commerce.com\/2021\/04\/21\/2021-ecommerce-trends\/#breadcrumbitem"}]}]