The COVID-19 pandemic has changed consumer behaviour overnight and this has led to a huge change in the way retailers function. Insider Intelligence, a research service provided by Business Insider, forecasts a 6.1% rise in e-commerce sales, down from 32% in 2020. In this article, we explore five retail trends that are going to disrupt 2021.

1. Social Commerce

Social media has been used as an effective marketing tool since its inception. However, until now, it has been used as a place to discover new companies. The consumer was then redirected to a website or to the retailer’s page to purchase an item. This trend has been changing. The consumer can now discover, browse, and purchase products within a social media site or app, creating a smooth and efficient shopping experience. Social commerce is a subset of e-commerce that uses the power of social media to connect brands to consumers across a range of platforms. Brands can leverage social commerce to understand the barriers and motivation of online shoppers and create an integrated discovery and shopping lifecycle. In 2020 Shopify and TikTok partnered up to allow Shopify stores to reach a wider user base by making short and engaging videos on TikTok, a classic example of social commerce. Facebook’s Shops, launched in 2020 is another example of Social Commerce.

2. Omni-Channel Retail

Omni-Channel retail is a cross-channel approach to retail, providing shoppers with a seamless and fully integrated shopping experience across different points-of-contact. According to a Harvard Business Review study, 73% of all consumers use multiple channels during their purchasing process. The Omni-Channel purchase journey uses information from one channel to invite the shopper to another channel, creating an immersive brand experience. Omni-Channel retail makes use of technologies like IoT, AI, Robotics and AR to bring the convenience of online shopping to offline stores and vice versa. Amazon’s cashier-less stores and Walmart’s Omni-Channel retail experience are good examples of Omni-Channel retail.

3. Use of AR and VR in Retail

The advent of technological tools in retail has helped companies improve their retail strategy. Retailers are increasingly using AR/VR to improve the purchase process on online as well as offline platforms. According to a Nielsen global survey from 2019, consumers listed Augmented and Virtual Reality as the top technologies that they hope to use and 51% said that they would be willing to use AR technology to assess products. Virtual Reality was particularly important in 2020 as helped to bridge the gap between physical and digital. The use of Augmented Reality is particularly fascinating as it allows you to ‘try-before-you-buy.’ It is currently being used by many companies, including IKEA and Kendra Scott. Needless to say, we will see many small businesses invest heavily in AR/VR technology in the coming year.

4. AI to Become Consumer-Facing

Apart from AR & VR, there has been an increase in the use of AI technologies like Chatbots, voice-recognition technologies, etc. Earlier, Artificial Intelligence was used to gain insights into consumer behaviour through advanced analytics. However, COVID-19 has changed the way businesses interact with their customers. During this time, tools like AI, in the form of chatbots were immensely helpful and helped retailers redress the grievances of consumers promptly. AI-powered voice-technology is also being used to create a better shopping journey in stores. The trend is likely to continue since it’s cheap and efficient.

5. Same Day Delivery

When Amazon Prime was launched in 2005, receiving your order in 2 days seemed fast. However, in recent times, retailers are offering same-day delivery service. A PwC report mentions that 88% of the consumers are willing to pay for same-day or faster delivery services. Amazon is at the forefront of quicker delivery and plans to launch Amazon Prime Air, using drone air technology to deliver orders within 30 minutes or less. Walmart has also jumped on the bandwagon with its two-hour delivery service. There has also been an exponential increase in the adoption of autonomous order fulfilment devices like drones, robots, etc. This trend is here to stay and companies like Target are integrating the safety of consumers with fast delivery, accommodating multiple shifts in consumer behaviour seamlessly.