Earlier this year, here at 6R we attended a macro trend presentation (looking at big picture consumer trends). The presenters talked about ‘4C thinking’ collaborative, creative, conversational and convergent. This is not a ‘next year’ type of trend forecast but instead a bigger picture ‘stand back and take a look’ at the longer term.
It seems that 2015 is going to be a good year for online. Some internet trawling, reading and research reveals that 2016 trend predictions have some common themes in terms of e commerce (if we’re still calling it that, surely it’s just another way to shop by now?)
Mobile (converging at a store near you)
Mobile is not a future trend anymore, if you haven’t started to address this then it’s time to get on board. All the stats are backing up that buying via the smallest screen we have in our lives is on the increase, and that even if the final purchase is made via a bigger screen (desktops are still hanging in there) or in store that the searching and researching starts on the mobile device we carry everywhere.
So what to do about mobile? Well if you’re way at the beginning and want a well-designed mobile site for inspiration, then Asos is a great place to start. Clean browsing experience (although my one wish is that they don’t show me search results if there’s no stock in my selected size), quick creation of a wish list (no, I don’t need to register) and a smooth checkout process (provided I have a PayPal account).
No, mobile users don’t want you to recreate a store experience for them, if they were looking for that or have time for that they will pop in to one of your stores (if you need proof just take a look at some of the online only businesses).
Amazon, the world’s largest retailer, opened their first physical store only recently, heavens only knows whether they think that’s ironic or not. There was some debate about the need and purpose here, leading up to the opening. It will be interesting to see what the reaction is like (some first comments in this article).
What goes with mobile? Get creative… almost everything!
There’s a lot of chat about the millennial group. As customers, they are social, with many versions of themselves and they’re constantly connected and not afraid to reach for their ideals. With short attention spans and desire for the unique, personalised and spontaneous. They’re an important group on the rise in terms of purchasing power, are you catering to them?
Creating fun, connected and authentic content is the best way to connect, quality and transparency (nothing that smells too much like marketing) are important to this group (if you can call it that) but isn’t that something we can all relate to? Creative and inventive ideas well executed are those that get the traction no matter what the medium or method of delivery.
Collaboration on delivery makes things interesting
Temando recently announced their collaboration with Australia Post and drone delivery is being trialled in a number of places. So we are starting to see how collaborating have some positive potential for customers.
We have previously talked about the delivery process, specifically with Australia Post I did wonder where delivery would go, could we improve it to a point where the parcel would find me where I am? They’re onto it! Stay tuned for some interesting ideas in delivery; think Uber like couriers and delivery/ try on pick up points and make sure to give the Aus Post 2016 will mark the commencement of drone trials a go!
Engage in conversation to create a personal link
More and more I hear whispers in the sidelines, is ‘social’ just another way to be kind of anti-social? That it can be the root of anxiety and a way to amplify your own insecurities. Ever felt like everyone else is out having an amazing time whilst you’re paying bills? Yes, we all prefer something recommended by a friend or someone or to get the inside scoop from someone who’s had the experience before us, but how many of the 1,000 plus Facebook friends are truly people that you trust?
The barrage of information we are all struggling to sift through is getting more and more. For sanity I choose to focus on the things that matter to me, which does mean that sometimes I find myself on the very slow uptake end of things, missing out on some important news story. Personalised content and experiences are becoming more the norm; my news feed is personalised to me, so that I don’t have to even consider anything about topics that are of no interest to me at all.
Creating a conversation that is genuine and interesting around your product; tapping into the customers mood and negating that feeling of overwhelm is a great way to start a conversation with your customer.
Ready for a conversation? Sometimes it’s hard to see what’s not working. We can provide the analysis and insight to identify the points in the process where things are getting stuck. Why not contact us today.