Businesses tend to think every ecommerce trend is worth implementing because they’re talked about so often. But if I’m honest, these ecommerce trends are overhyped:
- AI can take over repetitive tasks and give you your time back
- Sustainability branding increases revenue
- Augmented reality = more customers because you can try things virtually
- Conversational commerce makes product research and purchases easier
- Gather more data to personalize ecommerce shopping even more
Overhyped: AI Can Take Over Repetitive Tasks and Give You Your Time Back
They say AI boosts efficiency because it takes those repetitive tasks off your plate, like data entry and sending emails. And the new guy in town, generative and predictive AI trained on large language models (LLM), can take on a bit more creative tasks like drafting product descriptions and designing complete web pages.
There is also a lot of talk about AI’s role in personalization. Its machine learning capabilities can essentially “remember” how people interacted with your site, how they responded to certain content, and what they bought. And then comes the personalized recommendations and campaigns, much like what Netflix does here.
All of this would be great if I didn’t have to go behind AI and fix it. Fix the spelling mistakes. Fact check and fix what AI pulled from the internet. Make sure the data is accurate. And the big one: having to humanize the content. Even the personalized recommendations can be hit or miss.
The time you thought you saved at the beginning of the task absolutely sneaks up on you on the backend. Mind you, these tools don’t work without being trained by humans. So, there goes the rest of any time you saved.
Unless AI can do it without my help, this trend doesn’t deserve the hype.
Overhyped: Sustainability Branding Increases Revenue
Ecommerce brands are realizing just how important sustainability and green practices are to people. More importantly, they’ve realized people want to purchase products that are better for the environment, sometimes more than products that aren’t.
That said, sustainability isn’t going to keep the sales rolling in as long as greenwashing persists. Greenwashing is a form of deceptive advertising that positions products, goals, or policies as environmentally friendly when they really aren’t.
Volkswagen got caught greenwashing and faced so much backlash. They were screaming low emissions and eco-friendly attributes on their cars, when in reality they were cheating emissions tests and their engines tested 40 times the legal limit for nitrogen oxide emissions.
Too many brands are slapping the “vegan,” “eco-friendly,” and “biodegradable” labels on their products just to get people to buy more of them. Really what they’re doing is turning people off because they eventually find out these labels are empty promises.
So, the sustainability ecommerce trend is definitely overhyped.
Overhyped: Augmented Reality = More Customers Because You Can Try Things Virtually
When I think of augmented reality in ecommerce, I think about Warby Parker. You can download their app on an iPhone and virtually try on glasses.
Getting a feel for products without having to have them in person has a chance to enhance online shopping if the experience is high-end enough. But AR becoming more mainstream in ecommerce is a bit overhyped for me.
Yes, it’s cool to be able to try on glasses, see how an outfit fits, or see what your home’s interior could look like on a computer or mobile device. But it doesn’t give real life like a lot of brands think.
Everything might look good in the AR world, but in reality, the glasses don’t sit on their face right or the outfit doesn’t fit like it’s supposed to. I might be all aboard the AR train if it had a real impact on returns. But it doesn’t, and at the end of the day, a lot of people still want to see things in person.
Overhyped: Conversational Commerce Makes Product Research and Purchases Easier
When a business uses messaging apps, chatbots, and voice assistants to enable real-time interactions and process transactions, they’re using conversational commerce. With the help of conversational AI and first-party data, it’s supposed to be relatively easy to search for products, get real-time responses, and make purchases.
The issue is that I haven’t really experienced these “human” chatbots and voice assistants, and neither have a lot of people. I think these tools are learning more things because they’re being trained. However, positioning them as a shopping buddy is a little much.
People notice conversational commerce more, sure. But it isn’t the go-to for shopping help like brands are trying to make it seem. You need a real store associate for that.
Overhyped: Gather More Data to Personalize Shopping Even More
Without data, there’s no personalization. There’s no real way to tailor the shopping experience to each customer. However, people are split on data collection.
Some love it because they value a personalized experience, while others hate it because it’s kind of an invasion of privacy. I get it, you need data in ecommerce. But the need to gather more data than you already are is way overhyped.
Like I said, a lot of people don’t like what’s happening with data collection already. The cookie banners and begging for consent to collect their private information at every turn is a huge turn-off. And if they did give you consent, that was hard enough for them.
Launching more campaigns to gather data doesn’t seem like what the people want. Nor do I think it will make the experience better than it already is. Many people don’t care if the experience is personalized or they don’t really notice.
Plus, how much data do you really need on a person to give them a good ecommerce experience?
3 Ecommerce Trends That Deserve the Hype
You’re probably thinking about which ecommerce trends you should trust, considering the ones above are what most people can’t stop talking about. I’ve got three for you:
- Live shopping is booming because you can buy in the app
- Forget brand recognition, get sales on social media with UGC
- Turn returns and defected items into profit with the resale market
Live Shopping is Booming Because You Can Buy in the App
If you log on to TikTok right now, within 3 scrolls, you’ll see someone hosting a livestream shopping experience.
The best part about live shopping is that you don’t have to leave the app to make a purchase. They have buttons you can click to buy the products right in the livestream. It’s really an entertaining experience that’s transformed how people discover and purchase products online.
Granted, you might see more livestream shopping than you’d like on your timeline. But this trend deserves the hype because of its format. It taps into FOMO for one. You might not get that deal or see those products again if you pass up the live.
It also helps people feel like they’re in the store. Viewers can ask questions, get instant responses from the host, and they walk you right up to the register (product button in this case) to make a purchase. You can do everything within the live stream.
People want more ecommerce shopping experiences that feel like they’re in-person, and livestream shopping gives them that.
Forget Brand Recognition, Get Sales on Social Media With UGC
There’s something so credible and authentic about a product review from a real person versus looking at a professional photo of the product and reading a generic description.
And I’m not talking about the sponsored posts or reviews from influencers. I’m talking about the user-generated content (UGC) coming from a person who isn’t paid for their opinion and instead just really loves the product and what it’s done for their life so much they had to talk about it.
Yozy, a women’s fashion brand, clings to UGC. Women all over the world share their love of the brand’s accessible, trendy, and affordable clothing, especially on TikTok. Many of these reviews include a button to purchase the piece in the video without leaving the app. And that helps Yozy keep the sales coming in.
This trend deserves the hype because it fuels social commerce. Yes, people get on social media to keep up with friends, family, celebrities, and whoever else. But they are also using these platforms more and more to discover products or get suggestions on what to buy.
Slap a buy button or link (that doesn’t need to be copied and pasted into the browser) on the UGC and you’ve really got a recipe for more sales.
Turn Returns and Defected Items into Profit With the Resale Market
The resale market is a huge opportunity for ecommerce brands, especially when you think about sustainability and the circular economy people are supporting more.
Patagonia is one of the many big brands taking advantage of the resale market with its Worn Wear selection. You can buy used gear here for discounted prices, and they offer to buy your eligible pre-loved gear so it doesn’t end up in landfills.
The resale market is booming and deserves all the hype because you can make a killing if it’s approached strategically. For example, instead of tossing out used returns or items with defects, brands can open an online store dedicated to reselling them.
Also, I think people appreciate brands that encourage them to turn in used items, particularly those items that are hard to get rid of, like appliances, furniture, or used clothes. The discarding process is easier for people, and businesses get another source of income. Win-win.
How to Choose Trends to Implement
Choosing which to implement is the hard part about combing through an ecommerce trends list. I’m going to use the trends above, even the ones I think are overhyped, and give you examples of who should implement them below:
- If you get a lot of returns, try the resale market.
- If you’re on social media, cling to user-generated content and let people shop from it.
- If you’re on TikTok or WhatsApp, livestream shopping is worth it.
- If your brand is rooted in sustainability and you can back it up on every level (manufacturing, packing and shipping, delivery, etc), highlight that.
- If the data is coming straight from the customer without prompting, collect it. Otherwise, don’t launch more data-gathering campaigns.
- Use AI if you have a small team, but not for creative tasks.
- If you have a product people need to try on to really see if it will work, you can try AR, but it needs to be built well.
- If your primary audience is individuals living with mobility issues or those who have a hard time using a computer or mobile device, conversational commerce is worth a try.
