With part one done, here are a few more trends that — if followed — will improve those who need accounting for e-commerce:
Mobile Communication
Beyond just having a mobile-friendly website, businesses should take a mobile-first approach to ensure customers have an accessible and engaging experience with the company. A smooth, enjoyable, and browser friendly commerce experience will increase the probability of returning customers and sales.
Little details like text message notifications, a mobile shopping app, and mobile content can contribute to the customer experience. Accounting for e-commerce providers can partner with developers to create their mobile platform so that customers can directly communicate their needs instead of searching for competitors or remaining unresponsive.
Voice-Initiated Retail
Assistive technologies like Siri and Alexa have birthed opportunities to drive business through voice recognition. ‘Conversational commerce,’ a term coined by Uber’s Chris Messina, pertains to plying goods and services through a chat or messaging platform, a move that allows brands to interact with customers in real-time to answer questions about a product or facilitate the buying process without the customer leaving the platform or visit physical premises! It can be used individually to get close to the customer (personalisation) or on a one-to-many basis through social media (interactivity).
The rising popularity of devices such as Apple’s HomePod and Google Home make it increasingly difficult to deny the rise of voice-powered technology. The voice assistants in these machines are continuously evolving and becoming even more accessible to buyers, a shift that undoubtedly benefits online retail.
As a business, you can maximise this trend by incorporating chat applications such as Facebook Messenger or tapping into voice technologies such as Siri to let your shoppers interact with your business, receive personalised recommendations, or even make purchases.
To use conversational commerce successfully, you’ll need to pay more attention to your SEO strategy (make sure voice assistants can find your content), UX (voice is a very different medium than the web), and content. Voice assistants don’t need much text; they scan Google for keywords to make customer suggestions. Thus, accounting for e-commerce providers need to leverage relevant long-tail phrases about their company name, services, and location.
Online Marketplaces and Similar Channels
In recent years, e-commerce marketplaces have become increasingly popular, leading more shoppers to purchase goods from independent sellers with lower prices and more unique products. As existing retailers such as Amazon make it easier for sellers to sign up, businesses find fierce competition with multiple sellers that offer similar products at competitive prices.
To save on the costs of fees charged by marketplaces, you can create an account and sell to customers alongside Amazon. This enables you to expand your distribution channel without adhering to Amazon’s sales practices and guidelines. Nonetheless, you should carefully consider how much exposure you want to give your brand before joining a marketplace.
You must also evaluate if your products and services fit the platform. For instance, Facebook and Instagram are great marketplaces since they don’t charge an entry fee or portion of your earnings. But to see if your circles of influence prefer physical products to services offered, you could test out a few targeted ads to see the leads and conversions concerning accounting for e-commerce services.
Adding social media as a lead generator might be time if you get at least two conversions per week. Otherwise, you should revert to promoting your services as general social media posts instead.
The Conclusion
Going digital has its benefits, and with one-fourth of the world’s population transacting online, that’s a large market to penetrate. You’ll be aligned with other companies’ efforts to minimise environmental harm, offering more convenience that increases their UX and serving them no matter which device they browse from — be it a smartphone, tablet, pad, or computer.
Consult with The ECommerce Accountant now if you need help! We’re business advisors for online retailers and influencers, providing accounting for e-commerce. Book a meeting with us now to learn more!