The Rise and Projected Growth of eCommerce
eCommerce Marketing Strategy
eCommerce Platform Strategy
WooCommerce Overview & Trends
Shopify Overview & Trends
The Need for a New Plan for the “New Normal”
The Rise of eCommerce
The Covid-19 Pandemic led to drastic changes in lifestyles and habits the world over. The ripple effects are still rippling out so that we don’t fully know the totality of all the outcomes, but many clues exist to guide us into the likely future we face. One of those outcomes is the increase in the demand for eCommerce solutions. eCommerce grew rapidly during pandemic conditions, but all indications say that growth is only the beginning. Instead of life “going back to normal” when it comes to the eCommerce growth shift, we are experiencing a transition to the “new normal.” Traveling for business and pleasure, drinks out with coworkers, an evening out to hear some live music, crowded beaches in summer, or reservations for an anniversary dinner are slowly but surely coming back. Other pandemic habits brought on by the Big Shift are also here to stay and will likely continue to rise as more and more embrace new habits pushed to the mainstream during lockdowns.
The bottom line is eCommerce is not going away. The market won’t contract after all the lockdowns and masks are a distant memory. eCommerce, including online product research and online purchasing from savvy internet customers, is only going to rise. Covid-19 wasn’t a high point for eCommerce, just a tipping point.
Global retail trade saw eCommerce’s share of the pie increase from 14% to 17% in 2020. In China, the retail space’s online sales rose from 19.4% to 24.6% from August 2019 to August 2020. Jumia, in Africa, experienced a 50% jump in purchases in the first two quarters of 2020. Mercado Libre, a Latin American online marketplace, sold twice as many items per day in 2020’s second quarter as they had the previous year. In Kazakhstan, online retail sales nearly doubled from 2019 to 2020. In just one week of March of 2020, Shopping app downloads in Thailand leaped a staggering 60%.
- U.S. retailers’ online year-over-year (YoY) revenue growth is up 68% as of mid-April, surpassing an earlier peak of 49% in early January.
- There’s been a 129% year-over-year growth in U.S. & Canadian e-commerce orders as of April 21 and an impressive 146% growth in all online retail orders.
eCommerce Marketing Strategy
Enilon helps customers navigate the newfound potential of eCommerce. Covid was the rock that started a ripple of small waves moving out globally as time went on. Now it’s time to catch the big waves as a business and partner with Enilon to prepare for years of projected growth as the eCommerce trend continues to capture more and more of the retail market space. Clients looking for solid eCommerce marketing and sales strategies will have a capable strategic partner for full-service online marketing strategic planning through implementation and execution.
eCommerce Platform Strategy
Enilon’s primary focus is on supporting WooCommerce Checkout and Shopify for our client’s eCommerce platforms depending on their needs. Supporting these two platforms allows Enilon to serve our customers best by harnessing focused expertise and utilizing software robust in their staying power, usability, and assurance of continued growth and innovation. WooComerce has 26% of the U.S. eCommerce software platform market. At the same time, Shopify has 23% of the U.S. market.
Together these two platforms hold nearly 50% of the U.S. eCommerce platform market share. Couple that with the fact that eCommerce is here to stay with the Big Shift moving online search and shopping to mobile, and businesses face seismic changes in the online sales and marketing landscape. Mobile devices now account for 64% of retail website traffic as consumers choose to do most of their online shopping from their cellphone.
WooCommerce Checkout Is King On WordPress
WooCommerce is a free-ware plugin that works with any WordPress website turning it into a robust online store, making it perfect for cost-conscious owners and bootstrap start-ups. Limitless customization possibilities and scalability make it an ever increasingly popular choice.
The plugin has a 94% market share in the WordPress marketplace. It is #1 with a 26% market share in the entire U.S. e-commerce marketplace. Recently WooCommerce Checkout was purchased by Automattic, which guarantees further integration with WordPress. As of June 2021, over 1.6 million online stores in the United States use WooCommerce Checkout.
Current WooCommerce Trends for 2021
- Improving the Mobile Shopping Experience: From 2017 to 2021, e-Commerce sales from mobile devices across the globe will rise from 34% to 54%.
- Enhanced Product Pages: including detailed product info (benefiting SEO strategies), 360º visualization, faster loading on mobile thanks to 5g technology, and be on the lookout for the integration of augmented and virtual tools.
- Personalized Shopping Experiences: Through the integration of A.I. [artificial intelligence] and machine learning, you can greet your customer by name, know their location, language, and shopping habits. A.I. allows online shops to tailor the customer’s shopping experience with targeted local events or sales. Here are just a few WooCommerce personalized shopping experience features to be aware of:
- MultilingualPress – Speak your customer’s language with MultilingualPress translating your online store to a global audience and speaking their language will boost conversion rates.
- WooCommerce Extra Product Options – Give your site the ability to customize products as they wish with conditional logic forms.
- WooCommerce Darwin Pricing Integration – This plugin enhances online markets with geo-targeted coupon codes and tracking codes.
Shopify: The Up and Coming Platform
Shopify is an easy-to-use, intuitive platform. Versatile and attractive templates attract users to the software. Power, reliability, and excellent customer support keep shop owners happy and engaged. As of 2020, Shopify hosts over 1,000,000 businesses in 175 different countries.
Shopify is #2 with a 23% market share in the U.S. e-commerce marketplace. The eCommerce platform has garnered a reputation as easy to use with an extensive library of available themes and plugins. However, Shopify, unlike WooCommerce, does have limitations when it comes to SEO and complete customization. One solution we use to help Enilon clients is to integrate both platforms. Shopify’s Checkout API allows any storefront with API capabilities to use Shopify checkout. Meaning you can combine a WooCommerce Store with a Shopify Cart/Checkout system, providing customers the best of both worlds in some cases. For instance, Rockfordfosgate.com utilizes Python/Mezzanine e-comm setup with a Shopify checkout.
Mapping Out A Plan for the “New Normal”
The “new normal” will include the massive continued growth of eCommerce markets. Shopping online, curbside pickup and grocery delivery, online meal orders for delivery and carry-out, and telehealth appointments and prescription ordering are all here to stay with huge upsides for endless growth potential. Plus, other new emerging markets with the rise in popularity of streaming services for gaming, tv/movies, music, and even live concerts. Even brick-and-mortar schools are launching virtual academies to meet the increasing demand of families to live on the go and not be tied to a location-based education. The digital age is upon us! Individuals and families can live anywhere: work, shop, school, and entertain themselves online.
Enilon is a leader in charting a new course and mapping the uncharted territories of the emerging eCommerce markets. Without a solid, navigable plan, businesses can be like a ship without a sail: knowing they need to be active in pursuing mobile-friendly, online business opportunities but no power behind the vessel to drive sales and move the momentum forward. Enilon is ready and capable of partnering with your company to help launch you towards a new level of success in the digital, mobile, online marketplace effectively and efficiently. Call Enilon today to set up a discovery meeting to see if we are the right partner for your company.
