In the continuously changing world of fashion, keeping up with the latest industry trends is important to maintain a competitive edge. The strategies that seem effective today may become obsolete later. Hence, this shows a continuous quest for brand approaches. Here comes the technologies that play a critical role for the businesses. In this article, you will find out how trending technologies drive e-Commerce sales for brands and retailers. This will provide insights into the emerging technologies and their usage in the ongoing shift.
Ongoing Challenges for Fashion e-Commerce
There are some challenges that must be addressed by every fashion retailer operating with an e-commerce business model. Firstly, customer engagement is essential but fleeting. The brands need to capture customer’s attention within just 8-12 seconds when they visit the site to drive e-commerce sales.
Secondly, there is an intense competition going on in the industry. As many as 13 out of the top 20 business-to-consumer brands specialise in the fashion segment. Additionally, the rampant increase in costs also poses challenges for businesses. It is also expected to see an increase in the costs across many sectors, and the fashion sector is not an exception. This has mainly impacted the non-luxury fashion sector and may also affect their growth trajectory.
Lastly, it is important to ensure the accuracy of the search. Considering the fact that around 94% of the customers would abandon a purchasing journey if they face inaccurate search results. Hence, it shows the paramount significance of mitigating these challenges with the implementation of effective tools, and strategies to drive e-Commerce sales. This is also relevant for optimising e-commerce experience which contribute to the business strategy alignment.
Top Technology Strategies for Fashion e-Commerce
Technology provides opportunities for the fashion companies to tailor the marketing strategies, endorse brand values, and drive e-commerce sales. Here is a list of technologies and strategies that can help fashion companies and retailers to scale up their business.
Promoting ESG Credentials
There is an increasing demand for ethical as well as sustainable practices within the fashion e-commerce segment. This shows an increasing awareness among modern customers about environmental and social problems. Reportedly, around 80% of the customers show an inclination towards ethically sourced products and they are ready to pay higher prices for such products. Hence, this creates pressure on the brands to consistently align with these values.
In response to this increasing awareness of ESG concerns, the brands can focus on eco-friendly practices that specifically focus on the social and environmental impact of the sector. This includes equal treatment of employees, ensuring fair wages, safe working conditions, and preventing child labour. Additionally, this needs to prioritise the carbon emission reduction methods. It is pretty essential for the brands to acknowledge the overall product lifecycle, right from sourcing and producing to shipping and using, and disposing of the product.
When the brand is devoted to these phases of the product life cycle, it is considered sustainable and ethical. However, engaging in these practices would not give results until the fashion brands show the information with solid data. They must be transparent and creative when they communicate their ESG efforts on the e-commerce platform. These strategies also drive e-Commerce sales.
The fashion brands can showcase their ESG efforts and achievements through the following strategies:
- Make use of interactive dashboards that show the relevant ESG metrics
- Incorporate multimedia storytelling that showcases behind-the-scenes footage and user reviews
- Invest in virtual tours of eco-friendly processes
- Develop transparent and clear reports on sustainability practices
- Conduct interactive quizzes to engage customers
- Add gamification elements to the strategies
AI for Personalisation
Like any other industry, the fashion e-commerce is driven by a technological transformation with the increasing implementation of Artificial Intelligence (AI). Such integration is offering consumers different levels of personalisation. The technology has the potential to analyse a huge amount of customer data to better understand the different tastes, styles, and buying behaviour of the customers. The ability of machine learning algorithms also contributes to the understanding of dislikes and likes, which prepares the brands to personalise their products and drive e-Commerce sales.
AI-driven chatbots and assistants are capable of engaging customers with effective communication and performing different operations. The technology also helps in recommending products that fit the browsing history and purchasing history of customers that drive e-Commerce sales. Hence, the AI application is more effective for personalising the buying journey for the e-commerce customers in a diverse and impactful way.
AI-based product recommendations also drive e-commerce sales while improving marketing strategies and consumer engagement. The investment in AI-driven recommendations can enable the fashion brands to recommend similar or complementary products. Therefore, this motivates the customers to repeat their visits and explore other offerings on the site.
Some of the ways through which brands can shape their customers’ shopping experience are:
- Personalised product listing
- Help customers develop their own list of preferred items
- Automate mailings and offers to improve the omnichannel experience
Virtual Reality and Augmented Reality
In the context of fashion e-commerce, where consumers interact with the products in a virtual world, immersive technologies have special roles in attracting and retaining customers. The customers are more driven by high-quality visuals when they shop online. However, the high-quality visuals are not only about positioning the products in the best light, but also creating a sense of tangibility and realism. Here comes the virtual try-on, Augmented Reality, and Virtual Reality with the game-changing potential. These technologies have the capability to enable consumers to see how apparel would look on them without actually wearing it.
The technologies drive e-Commerce sales by offering interactive and personalised experiences to the customers. The technologies are also filling the gap between offline and online shopping. Additionally, 360-degree product views and interactive product catalogs have become important technologies for fashion companies that provide e-commerce services. The technologies allow consumers to explore the preferred products from different angles and details, and drive e-Commerce sales.
Role of Voice Commerce
Voice commerce is surprising the next generation of online shopping. This requires the fashion businesses to understand the opportunities through which they can include the technologies in their operations and drive e-Commerce sales. Also known as v-commerce, this technology allows the consumers to purchase products using their voice, avoiding the traditional ways of typing keywords or switching between buttons.
Now users can simply use their voice to place an order through their devices like smartphones, speakers and virtual assistants like Alexa, Google Assistant, Siri etc. By leveraging on these voice shopping abilities, the fashion brands can build a burgeoning market while offering the consumers with convenient shopping options.
There are several benefits of including voice commerce, including:
- It improves convenience for the customers
- It streamlines the entire procedure from locating the products to final purchase
- The hand-free approach is ideal for people with disabilities and hectic lifestyles
As a result of this, voice commerce, brands can improve brand engagement and drive e-Commerce sales.
Final Thoughts
The cutting-edge technologies are driving the fashion e-commerce segment and have the potential to drive e-Commerce sales. The technologies like AI, AR, VR and machine learning are increasingly being adopted in the e-commerce industry. Hence, this will continue to impact the industry and competitiveness in the market.
Also Read:
ESG’s increasingly critical role in investing
ESG Principles in Investing and Business | A Definitive Guide On ESG
