The Evolution of e-commerce

The Evolution of e-commerce

We thought it would be good to pause for a minute and remember where digital retail took the first steps forward.

Here’s a brief look at the history of e-commerce and a few predictions about what’s in store for the future

Check out this timeline - the first two decades were about establishing e-commerce and its fundamental proponents, whereas the last several years have been about improving usability and becoming omnipresent.

The e-commerce evolution since 2000

Online retail is now focused on being more and more convenient, responding to changing consumer behaviours and expectations. We have moved from using one stationary computer per household (if we were lucky), to having palm-sized versions in our pockets. The digital transformation has taken us from having a basic user interface on a black and green screen to interactive e-tailers offering highly complex services.

With that in mind, in a more recent timeline of trends by Clerk.io from 2000 onwards we can see the evolution has been more related to improving and refining the experience for both customers and vendors. This is what piques our interest and is where we get passionate.

The status & future of digital retail

Since the COVID-19 outbreak, the industry has been undergoing tremendous changes. The Economist recently released a report called "The future of shopping: what's in store?" shedding light on the ongoing shifts and future trends of retail during and after the global pandemic.

It drove a dramatically high number of shoppers online, and consequently, global e-commerce sales skyrocketed worldwide.

As this chart from Statista presents, retail e-commerce sales worldwide amounted to 4.28 trillion US dollars in 2020. The e-retail revenues are projected to reach 4.89 trillion US dollars in 2021 and continue to grow to 6.388 trillion US dollars in 2024!

Mobile Devices as the source

This increase will come about from the more prolific use of mobile devices. The customer insight being they are either on the go or don't have much time to spare. So, providing a speedy and convenient shopping experience cashes in on this customer need.

Last year, global mobile users are expected to exceed 7 billion. Nearly 73% of global e-commerce sales were on mobile devices at the end of 2021. This trend has continued and when supported with personalisation will grow expeditiously.

...coupled with Personalisation

The technology our clients work with is enabling them to power thousands of personalised shopping experiences. Using Artificial Intelligence technologies ensures flawless personalisation – for example, personalised search, personalised recommendations, personalised emails, and audience segmentation.

...and single sign-on payment options will close the deal

Digital and mobile wallets were already the most popular online payment method worldwide by 2019, making up 41.8% of global e-commerce transactions. The share is projected to reach 51.7% in 2024. Comparatively, credit cards are expected to decline to 20.8% in 2024.The crucial areas for growth, therefore, are to ensure brilliant mobile experiences, driven by personalised communications and facilitated through UX-perfected digital wallets. We work with global retailers to ensure the effectiveness of each of these platforms as should all retailers planning on fighting for that lead in the market.

Sources: eMarketer.com, clerk.com, worldpay.com, statista.com