Ecommerce Stats to Drive Your Digital Transformation This Year

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This year has transformed the way we do business. 

As we enter a digital-first world, more and more customers are turning to ecommerce, and the change is happening fast. According to a study by McKinsey & Company, ecommerce saw ten years of growth in only three months last year.

This warp-speed growth comes with rising consumer expectations, and retailers looking to stay ahead of the curve will want to meet the new demand with an exceptional digital customer experience. 

We’ve put together a few key statistics and trends to help you refocus your digital strategy and stay on top of the changing world of ecommerce.

Personalization turns customers into fans

When surveyed, 64% of consumers said they felt like a ticket rather than a person due to a lack of personalization in online retail support, but as consumers move increasingly online, they’re looking for service that is personalized and responsive. 

In fact, 79% of consumers say personalized service is more important than personalized marketing, and 77% say they recommend a brand to friends and family if the brand provides a more personalized experience. 

Providing customers with personalized service can also drive sales and turn one-time customers into loyal repeat-buyers:

• 54% of customers say they’ve previously made purchases based on the recommendation of a customer service professional
• 75% of customers say they’re more likely to purchase from a company that provides personalized recommendations
• 82% of buyers make repeat purchases after brands make them feel known

Collecting the right information can also go a long way toward making your customers feel like valued guests. 

Meet your customers where they already are

As ecommerce takes the place of the flagship store, online consumers expect to engage with you using the channels they prefer. In fact, 79% of consumers feel it’s important for online retailers to offer multiple ways to get in touch with customer service, and more than 41% expect live chat on your website. 

For mobile users, that number rises to 50%, which is worth noting as mobile users comprise a growing percentage of all ecommerce sales.

During the COVID-19 pandemic, mobile device usage increased across all age demographics, with younger generations experiencing the greatest increase (members of Gen Z saw mobile device usage increase by a whopping 82%). 

In turn, this growth in phone usage has driven a significant rise in mobile ecommerce:

• It’s estimated that four out of five Americans shop online and that more than 50% use a mobile device to do so
• 91% of millennials have made a mobile payment
• 43% of millennials use their mobile devices to contact customer service
• While only 29% of online merchants accept mobile wallets, digital and mobile wallet payments account for almost 42% of online transaction volume worldwide

The global mobile payments market is expected to grow by an additional 33% by 2022. Optimizing service for mobile shoppers is an important step in meeting your future customers where they are.

Get the right tech for your support heroes

Even the best support heroes need some support. 

Failure to integrate platforms and technology can seriously hurt your team’s ability to provide exceptional service, but many companies still juggle service across multiple platforms, leading to lost efficiency and unhappy shoppers. 

Not convinced? Just take a look at these stats: 

• 63% of companies say duplicate tickets and cases affect overall productivity
• 60% of agents say they use at least three systems or windows to help a single customer, even though 70% of agents say their productivity is negatively affected by juggling multiple platforms or windows
• 78% of contact center agents say they’re expected to upsell or cross-sell to customers, despite the fact that most agents feel they could be better supported in optimizing their efforts

In other words, customer service agents struggle to provide excellent personal support while navigating inefficient systems. In order to help them make a radically personal connection with your customers, make sure that your customer service team has the bandwidth and tools that set them up for success. 

To get your support teams the help they deserve, consider switching to an integrated service like Gladly, the first all-in-one customer service platform.

Check out our full ecommerce report

Want even more data to help you ride the ecommerce wave? Download Gladly’s full report, 45 Ecommerce Stats for Accelerated Digital Transformation.