The evolution of retail ecommerce: From shoppability to consolidation to strategy
Explore the evolution of retail ecommerce, from initial shoppability to effective strategies, and discover the future trends shaping this dynamic channel.
Prior to 2020, many of the ways consumers now prefer to shop didn’t even exist yet.
Shoppability emerged out of pandemic-fueled necessity, with brands and retailers alike seeking ways to create paths to purchase while consumers were confined to their homes. This sparked the development of an entirely new ecommerce channel–retail ecommerce–and changed the retail landscape with buy online/pick up in-store (BOPIS), click-and-collect, curbside pickup, and ship-to-home options gaining quick traction.
Today, the channel has grown in consumer acceptance and adaptation, holding its own as the third ecommerce pillar alongside the established direct-to-consumer and pure play channels.
Let’s explore the evolution of retail ecommerce, from initial shoppability, to streamlining and consolidating, to running a true retail ecommerce strategy:
In 2020, the retail landscape witnessed a significant shift due to COVID-19. Brands started to recognize the power of shoppable experiences and the importance of reducing friction in customer journeys. The mantra became clear: make everything shoppable.
By converting all clickable assets into retail ecommerce opportunities, CPG brands could bridge off-site brand media and brand.com where-to-buy experiences to the digital shelves of retailers, and improve overall customer convenience.
Building on the success of the previous year, 2021 and 2022 marked a period of enhancement. Brands dug deeper into the world of shoppability, prioritizing accurate inventory, connecting paths to purchase, and gaining valuable insights from these tools.
Daily inventory scanning became crucial to ensure real-time updates on product availability. Brands aimed to establish purchase paths across all their retail partners, especially local retailers where shopper loyalty was the strongest. The best retail ecommerce platforms started to capture click-level insights for each transaction, providing granular data to improve retail marketing effectiveness.
The focus grew to making everything shoppable efficiently, driven by full-funnel data and insights into retail ecommerce shopper behavior.
Following the advancements in shoppability through 2022, 2023 brought the focus to creating a more consolidated and streamlined shopping ecosystem. Brands now recognize the need for reducing fragmentation across their retail ecommerce experiences, with many CPGs migrating to a single platform for all brand media and brand.com assets.
Shifting from multiple shoppable media vendors to one that can deliver a unified shopper experience–backed by a robust data backend–not only creates cost efficiency, but paves the way for future growth.
2024 brings a strategic shift in how CPGs approach retail ecommerce. Consolidating and unifying all data and experiences will empower brands to operate with the agility and data-driven decision-making previously exclusive to direct-to-consumer brands. This cohesive approach is known as omnichannel retailing, and it has become a top priority for CPGs looking to stay competitive in the digital landscape.
One of the key elements of omnichannel retailing is creating a seamless shopping experience across all touchpoints–from brand websites and social media platforms to third-party retailers' sites. This requires not only having a unified platform for managing all brand media and assets, but also leveraging data to personalize and tailor the shopper's journey.
In 2024, CPGs will need to strategically increase their digital share of wallet at retail by integrating their offline and online efforts. This means using data analytics to better understand customer behavior and preferences, delivering targeted marketing campaigns, and utilizing ecommerce capabilities such as shoppable media and omnichannel fulfillment options.
One-click paths to purchase with accurate inventory are set to become the standard, ensuring effortless transactions at every digital retail shelf. Click-level insights captured on shoppable tools will help brands understand what levers are driving sales, unlocking the ability to improve Return on Ad Spend (ROAS) in-campaign. Custom audiences built on every shoppable experience will give CPGs the power to run highly targeted and optimized marketing campaigns.
The advancements in retail ecommerce leading up to this point will finally enable brands to strategically increase awareness, encourage trial, secure repeat purchases, and drive sales velocity at retail.
CPG brands looking to use the retail ecomm channel as a strategic advantage need a partner who can support their growth goals for 2024 and beyond.
Pear Commerce is the retail ecommerce platform for omnichannel brands, converting shoppable tools into actionable insights that fuel performance marketing.
Pear’s proprietary technology and best-in-class experiences make it unique in the following for shoppable media and where-to-buy tools:
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Ready to consolidate your shoppable experiences and strategically capture share of wallet at retail? Get in touch with our team today. →
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