As the year is winding down, it’s a good time to review the top e-commerce trends of 2017 and consider whether your company has integrated solutions to keep you competitive. How is your company doing in these areas?

Mobile Readiness and Omni-Channel Integrations

An estimated $156 billion of revenue was earned via mobile retail in 2017, according to Stastista, and that number is only expected to grow. If your shopping experience is not mobile ready, you’ve most likely been losing sales—whether you’re a B2B or B2C retailer. It’s long past time for your company to consider users’ mobile experience and whether you are offering a consistent buyer experience across channels. Consider:

⋅  if your marketing is mobile-responsive, including advertising and email, but also campaigns such as customer loyalty programs and social commerce integrations

⋅  if your mobile site facilitates easy completion of the most common buyer browsing behavior

⋅  if users see consistent messaging, search options, and customer service across channels

Interactive Content and User-Generated Content (UCG)

The new face of buying is trending toward social and interactive content: remember that 47% of millennials say their purchasing behavior is influenced by social media, and 18.6% of 2016 U.S. shoppers made purchases via social media. Social commerce is about creating a sense of community and connection around the shopping experience. Consider:

⋅  if your company has developed any campaigns that let customers engage with content, such as a useful blog series with follow-up Q&As from readers or a micro-site that uses quizzes, tests or games to give users information tied to your company’s products or vision

⋅  if your company has solutions that offer easy-to-make interactive content such as quizzes and games

⋅  if any of your marketing campaigns promote user-generated content as a response, such as social media hashtag campaigns or photo and video submission contests

Data Analysis & Visualization

By 2017, our ability to gather customer data has become almost infinite. But it’s all just noise if your company hasn’t created a plan for analyzing that data. Consider:

⋅  if your company has identified that most relevant Key Performance Indicators (KPIs) and the best sources of that data

⋅  if your company has technology that lets you combine data from various sources that can be standardized for comparison

⋅  if your company has implemented visualization tools that offer easy-to-read data comparisons and trends

Customer Service Automation

Customers expect quick responses in modern e-retail. In fact, 53% of US online adults are likely to abandon their online purchase if they can’t find a quick answer to their question according to Forrester Research. So, consider:

⋅  if your customer service anticipates customer needs, such as by sending customers informational emails based on their browsing behavior and indicated interests

⋅  if your FAQ or community support offerings are easily searchable and address major support items

⋅  if your chat bots or other automation tools are set up for human intervention when the automated services cannot handle the customer inquiry