Alexander Storozhuk, founder of the PRNEWS.IO  online platform 

Last year, the e-commerce industry has experienced unprecedented growth – first of all, experts note a genuine breakthrough in customer consciousness. Whereas previously online shopping using mobile apps was top of zoomers' minds, this has now reached the older generation and added a 25-40-year-old audience. 

For e-commerce companies, this was a sign to expand their range of products, improve logistics/service/payment processes, and prepare for severe competition. Now I'm going to tell you about trends and rules that will help your company take the lead in its market.

Three Cheers for a Customer!

The old wise truth "The Customer is King!" became pivotal for Ukrainian e-commerce last year. Whereas previously, with a limited number of players in the market, companies had the upper hand for customers, there is a real struggle for the audience unfolding today.

This is mainly due to the COVID-19 pandemic and quarantine restrictions, which were a powerful enabler for industry development. Most of the businesses responded in time to the potential customers' want to visit supermarkets, malls, and offline stores as rarely as possible, so they urgently finalized and increased the capabilities of online stores and logistics. Companies that had no time to digitize seasonably and in good quality or had too many "peculiarities" in their work before the "Coronavirus Age" have left the market. The one who is up to speed on buying preferences always wins.

Last December, the PRNEWS.IO team conducted a micro-study on what customers want from e-commerce companies and how their preferences changed over the year. According to the survey results, online customers in Ukraine do not need anything extraordinary. They are still primarily interested in cost, range, ease of payment, and delivery promptness.

At the same time, the e-commerce audience is constantly increasing. And It's about more than the quarantine restrictions and the new rules of the game: the pandemic has only gingered up what was already gaining popularity. These days, time is becoming the basic value, and online shopping helps save it considerably.

The key requirements of Ukrainian online customers in 2021 were:

• customer centricity: Adequate cost of product or service, prompt delivery, and several payment methods;
• range: Most often, Ukrainians buy electronics, household appliances, clothing, footwear, and accessories online;
• correct advertising: Customers are best at responding to offers specifically tailored to their requirements and are unhappy about too intrusive service;
• different communication channels: Today, customers consider choosing one channel to communicate with an audience (for example, via text messages or e-mails) as an inconvenience. Therefore, they will easily choose an online-store offering similar products but working with several communication channels. 
• forethought and integrity: Consider all details of the "client-company" communication chain. Today, customers pay attention to everything, ranging from the product quality, the promptness of application execution to the appearance of a courier and his\her communication style.

 

How Do We Promote Business?

It's sad, but even a perfect service cannot guarantee success in the e-commerce business. People should know about you, people should talk about you. The following tools help in this today:   

• social networks;
• native advertising;
• contextual and targeted advertising;
• online events (webinars, conferences, etc.);
• visual content;
• digital marketing;
• performance marketing;
• content marketing, promotion of articles in the media;
• cooperation with influencers.

Note that the SEO strategy for one-page websites no longer works, and outdoor advertising only works for very large and long-term coverage, which requires a lot of investment. Radio advertising and participation in niche exhibitions also show poor performance.

 

The Magnificent Seven Is an Aid 

Based on the survey of e-commerce company executives, we have identified seven main trends for business promotion. They set a path up, promote the growth in sales and help scale up the business. 

Trend No. 1. Correct company identification in the market. It's possible only provided that the enterprise mission is clearly identified. 

Trend No. 2. Up-to-date forecasting. It includes the ability to predict customers' preferences, mood and capabilities, as well as a brand potential assessment.

Trend No. 3. Business process automation. It includes accounting and monitoring of all channels of communication with customers. This requires creating daily dashboards that help monitor changes after innovations.

Trend No. 4. Development of the omnichannel communication models. A potential customer should not waste time by repeatedly communicating information about himself, filling in different forms, etc. The omnichannel model, in particular, helps the customer do this only once.

Trend No. 5. Constant optimization of the customer service and offline presence as a bonus. It includes providing offline customers with the effect of being in an offline point, in a real "live store". One of the trend manifestations was organizing offline events for active customers as a VIP bonus.

Trend No. 6. Introduction of new technologies and continuous personnel training. Operating algorithm upgrades, process automation, utilization of various services to systematize project tasks, etc. Personnel training has also moved from "pampering" to the obligatory part of work in a team, and the phrase "develop or die" has become a new business reality.   

Trend No. 7. Reasonable company promotion and result measurability. Advertising should work, providing maximum results at an economic cost. Moreover, clear measurability of the advertising and PR results, close work with metrics, etc. came to the forefront. 

At the same time, the website speed and technical elements are no longer relevant because IT technologies make us forget about such problems. The service and its diversity are center-stages. 

Information has been and remains the most important part of success in the company promotion: the more data you have before starting, the better chances you have to take a rightful place in the market. 

Therefore, collect information, analyze the market and competitors' activities, aggregate the customer data in all possible ways, automate and constantly improve your service. Remember, at the same time, to popularize your brand and systematically promote it through various channels and tools.