Customers’ behavior changes almost every year. Some trends deserve attention and are worthwhile investing. I mean the trends which became the customers’ habits. And those so-called trends of 2018 have already become preferences and habits which have been forming for a considerable amount of time. They are worthy to be taken into account because a habit is a thing you just can’t get rid of so easily.
Sharing values with your customers creates new possibilities
The customer can distinguish showing-off from serious actions. Take the future of our planet for example. More and more people start thinking about it. They take measures to improve the environment, learn to appreciate nature and take care of living beings. Guess, whom they will give their loyalty? Their loyalty will be given to eco-friendly brands. To brands who share their values and goals.
Stella McCartney has approached this issue seriously. The brand refused using vinyl, leather, and polyester as these materials have a negative influence on the environment. Gucci refused using natural furs following Vivienne Westwood, Armani and Hugo Boss.
“I will speak truth, the whole truth and nothing but the truth”
The more the customers know about your product or service the better. Or you think they are not interested in such subtle details? Oh yes, they are, more than you can imagine. They want to know the main ingredients of the item and who’s taking part in designing it. If you share the story about the origin of the product – you will make the dialogue between you and the customers more personalized. You will take them backstage and this may cause strengthening of an emotional bond. Show the people who help you in making the product or providing the service. If the story of your brand is appealing, they will start talking about you.
It’s like a process of revealing your know-how to them. You are giving them an opportunity to become a part of your brand’s history.
Hunger for wow-effect and novelties
“Houston, we have a problem”. It happened that technologies are developing and we are all getting used to new conditions in the digital world: new and complex animations. Well, ok, let’s look at things from the positive angle and see CHALLENGES instead of problems. There are many things in eCommerce people got used to, but it should be admitted that static elements do not inspire anymore.
How can we take advantage from it? Add more moving elements to your website: videos, animated buttons, sign up forms…but do it wisely. You don’t need an abundance of them. I will tell you where serious animation can be applied. It can be used in certain marketing tools to attract even more attention to your brand if there is no opportunity to experiment with the online store.
One more thing: check the quality of new graphic elements if you are planning to add some to the e-store. You should be 100% sure that graphic elements look decent.
AR? VR? Oh please…give me a break!
I would recommend you to ignore this point if it was mentioned 5 years ago, but not today. Have you heard of augmented reality? It is already being used by different eCommerce stores and I guess, they don’t regret. It’s somewhat pointless to show different forecasts on this matter because one thing is obvious: AR gives a totally new user experience. Experience, which customers dreamt of for so long. Online store owners have a chance to make a more personalized dialogue with a customer (that’s exactly what a contemporary consumer needs so much) and to boost sales considerably. The users in their turn will get an unforgettable user experience and a chance to make sure that your product is exactly what they are looking for. There is no doubt that more and more online stores will soon take an advantage of this technology. It is a REVOLUTIONARY SOLUTION for eCommerce store owners who want to stand out from the competition and strengthen the brand’s position on the market.
Looks like a very ambitious plan for 2018, isn’t it? Implementation of certain solutions requires serious investments. Some of them can be added to the marketing strategy and be applied within a month or two (if it concerns the content of the website). Whether you are eager to try several approaches or just two of them, one thing is certain: current trends should be considered. If you want your business to grow, you should keep up with the customer, because it’s not about trends for a year this time. We are talking about habits which will be nourished and cherished by consumers for 5 or even more years. So, keep your chin up!
