Nearly at the end of 2012, online retailers and industry analysts try to project what the online shopping trends will be next year and how shopping culture will evolve.
Read more: 2013 Trends in Personal Shopping
Online shopping is gaining more and more popularity and every year online retailers report higher revenues.
Spending at online stores is fast becoming a habit, as more and more people realize that buying items with a click of a mouse is easier, very convenient and, in many cases, cheaper. The constant development of new shopping technologies changed the traditional consumer’s culture. Now, more and more people use tablets or mobile devices to comparing prices, delivery options and customer service.
How online shopping trends will evolve in 2013?
First, we can expect a more personal attitude from online stores. We will be seeing more personalized deals based on our previous experience in shopping. If you are a keen video gamer, and you have purchased a lot of items from this category, the retailer will offer you more deals and discounts for these particular items via tailor-made email newsletter or directly to your account on the its e-commerce platform. And as social networks have become a big part of life, and privacy has a new, modern aspect, the direct connection between consumers and retailers will be easier.
Top selling items in 2013 will be software, mobile devices and in particular smartphones, clothing, toys and hand-made items. Why hand-made items? Well, as people are becoming busier, hand-made products, which require more production time, are becoming rare and more desired.
Lower prices and daily deals will continue to be common, not only during sales events. We already saw Amazon’s holiday sales campaign this year continues longer than expected. We can expect more niche-focused coupon and deals websites for group or limited time discounts. Of course, new technologies and mobile devices will prove helpful here – you can see a good deal and all you need is just one click while in bed, for example.
The next interesting thing that will spread among online stores is the same-day delivery. If you buy a software, of course, this is easy. Regional operators will also try to do their best in order to keep customers loyalty. Many e-commerce sites will start to offer flash sales with the advantage of same-day delivery option.
In addition, methods of payment will change. Mobile transactions are becoming faster, easier and accessible with different mobile applications and platforms. Sellers will be able to receive card payments with just a smartphone and a plug-in device.
So, online shopping in 2013 is expected to become easier, faster and cheaper than it is now.
