The last few years have been challenging for many retailers, but that doesn’t mean the future isn’t bright with exciting future retail trends on the horizon. In fact, there are plenty of future retail trends for you to get excited about, and we predict they’ll start to gain popularity from now over the next ten years.
Augmented Reality
We expect augmented reality to significantly change how customers shop for products. Rather than determining the suitability of a product from a single image or set of images, augmented reality will enable customers to get a better idea of how products will look or fit in their homes before they purchase.
Augmented reality comes in many forms, from mobile AR to smartglasses. The Etsy app now enables users to see how an artwork will look on their wall before they purchase, using augmented reality. IKEA has launched a similar idea, the IKEA Place app enables users to better envision products in their homes by virtually placing them in the room of their choice. As well as offering an exceptional customer experience, well-built augmented reality apps may help to reduce product returns. This is one of many future retail trends that benefits the consumer and the retailer.
Delivery Goals
It’s no secret that customers love fast, free delivery, and this is one future retail trend that is becoming increasingly important already. The coronavirus pandemic has encouraged many online stores to improve their delivery services, and offer additional services including curbside pick-up. We predict that super-fast same-day delivery will become a customer expectation. This is likely to inspire more spontaneous purchases for immediate use.
Powerful Personalization
Marketing automation and personalization have become popular in recent years, with many businesses managing their marketing from a single platform. We predict that personalization is set to improve and that the experiences we receive as customers will become vastly more tailored to the individual. Get started with personalization now to ensure you’re ready to make the most of future retail trends relating to personalization.
Artificial Intelligence
The development of artificial intelligence will be essential to making the online customer experience more personal. Chatbots are just one example of how retailers can use artificial intelligence in future retail trends, to assist ecommerce shoppers. By using chatbots, retailers can provide exceptional customer service online, and improve user experience.
Voice Recognition
Likely, voice recognition will also become increasingly important as ecommerce progresses. Amazon Voice Shopping, for example, enables users to make purchases using voice commands. This quick and easy way to shop online is one future retail trend that is likely to increase in popularity as it becomes more familiar to users.