With the advent of smartphones and coronavirus break down, the retail eCommerce platform has become better than ever. Analysis of people’s shopping habits suggests that people are selling more and buying more. The impact of a technology-driven marketplace has been apparent for quite some time now.

Whether it's shopping from established brands or wholesalers on eCommerce platforms, or brick-and-mortar stores, there has been an increase in buying behavior. The reason is the ease at which people can procure an item/commodity at half or a quarter of its Maximum Retail Price (M.R.P.). It’s all made available with the help of generous discounts, sales, and other enormously appealing deals.

The retail industry reached US $ 1.1 Trillion in 2020 and is expected to grow leaps and bounds in the coming decade. Let’s explore the top trends in the retail sector in 2022:

1. Social Media Influencers

Influencer marketing has gained traction in the last few years, primarily because of celebrity and influencer endorsements on social media like Instagram and Facebook.

This trend has grown even more due to the Coronavirus pandemic this past year, with celebrities having to fulfill their endorsement commitments from the comfort of their houses because of worldwide traveling restrictions and social distancing.

It won’t be hard to imagine that this particular trend will continue to thrive as people like to buy endorsed items by their favorite celebrities, Instagram influencers, and viral YouTube stars.

2. Social Media E-Commerce

This trend is closely associated with the previous one as the latest technology allows people to buy directly from a brand/company’s social media page without going through a third-party site.

With HulkApps Facebook Marketplace Setup Service, all you targeted consumers have to do is browse over the image, click on it, and options for buying the items displayed on the idea instantly present themselves. This is the easiest and most convenient way to shop, as you don’t have to search for the items elsewhere.

High-Profile brands on Instagram have been doing this for the past couple of years. Multinational corporations usually have worldwide shipping features available, making it easier to reach a broader customer base. Grow your business with Facebook and Instagram — from one place.

3. AI-Powered Retail

Artificial intelligence is a powerful multi-platform utility tool. So, it is no surprise that it can be incorporated into the retail industry. Augmented Reality is one such AI tool that is, by and large, being used by the retail platform to enrich customers’ shopping experience.

Through Augmented Reality, customers can now enjoy a 360-degree view of the items/commodities they are interested in buying. AA.R. allows them to explore an item from all angles and check its dimensions and every other attribute with a magnified view to make informed decisions. Make sure to integrate Shopify AI-related features in the websites to develop.

Any Top Website Development Companies nowadays integrate AI-related features in the websites they develop.

4. Crypto-currency

An increasingly digital marketplace needs to develop a safe and secure financial transaction model with people making more online transactions while shopping; a platform needs to exist where consumers can make secure payments without the fear of fraud or malice.

Crypto-Currency is, by far, the safest model of transaction because one can make payments online without granting access to any sensitive information about themselves. Besides being safe, lower transaction fees and limited interaction with other financial institutions, like banks, have an added advantage.

5. Increase in Responsible and Ethical Sourcing of Commodities

Ethical concepts such as environmental-friendly, vegan/vegetarian, no animal testing, chemical-free, preservative-free, etc., are increasingly popular with GenZ. It has become essential for a company/brand to source its products responsibly and ethically, without harming humans, animals, and the environment.

Set up a Shopify disclaimer popup and entice your customers. In extreme cases, failure to do so usually results in significant backlash, public relations disaster, and legal hurdles and foreclosures.

6. Offline Stores / Online Service

With a global pandemic ravaging economies, businesses have had to become more creative in interacting with their customer base.

Social distancing has prevented people from visiting stores in person, so stores have found a way to get their goods out to the public by making them available on their websites and delivering them to their customers.

This trend has encouraged online inventorying of goods and commodities. Many businesses have managed to stay afloat by adopting this model, and this trend is expected to grow in the next few years.

7. Faster Delivery Options

Why should delivery be any different in a world where instant gratification is celebrated with instant and readymade goods? Many companies have already started same-day delivery services.

To strengthen customer retention, we empower your strategy by setting up the Klaviyo shipment delivery email templates in Shopify. At HulkApps, we unlock the vast potential of the Klaviyo automation engine, helping you build a more pleasant buying experience for your customers.

8. Smart Shopping

Any online or offline shopping behavior necessitates some action, such as picking up your smartphone and typing something, going to the store, etc. What if you could place orders directly to your smart speakers, such as Google Home and Amazon Echo, without doing anything, and have everything delivered to your door?

The possibilities are endless. This trend will take shopping to another level that doesn’t require effort, is intelligent, convenient, and insanely easy.

In Conclusion:

In the aftermath of the global pandemic in 2020 (and ongoing), it is safe to presume that the retail industry will focus more on developing state-of-the-art, contactless shopping experiences for consumers worldwide.

The retail industry experiences the most human interaction. Therefore it would be wise for businesses like yours to find ways to interact with their consumer base from a safe distance while keeping the shopping experience fun and enjoyable, like in pre-Covid times.