We’ve got a roundup of global e-commerce news and developments to keep you current starting off with the surprising news that Walmart’s e-commerce in 2016 grew by 63% compared to Amazon’s 24% growth.
When you think of e-commerce sites, you don’t usually anticipate large advertising revenue but India’s Flipkart Ads is on track to earn $100 million from its digital marketing channels by March 2018. Singapore retailers are feeling the competition from e-commerce but investors still see a relatively strong local retail market compared with other countries, according to Allianz Real Estate.
NYU’s Anindya Ghose says while e-commerce has hurt retail, it could also be a factor in retail’s turnaround if retailers can get on board the mobile commerce trend. UserTesting said the eight best mobile shopping retailers include: Best Buy, Costco, Home Depot, Lowe’s, Macy’s Target, TJ Maxx and Walmart. Mobile and marketplaces are changing the e-commerce landscape significantly according to the latest UPS Pulse of the Online Shopper study.
Social Media Today looks at how virtual reality is poised to play a huge role in reshaping retail and e-commerce soon. Whatech.com showed examples of how augmented reality is impacting six key industries including travel, education, retail and shopping, medicine, gaming and entertainment, and manufacturing.
While there’s a big difference in total e-commerce sales, Walmart e-commerce grew by 63% compared with 24% for Amazon last year according to Nwitimes.com. The latest Retail Dive Consumer Survey shows the top ways consumers use smartphones in-store included product research and price checking instead of depending on sales staff.
Flipkart Ads Targets $100 Mn Business From Digital Marketing Channels
Flipkart Ads, the digital marketing division of ecommerce major Flipkart, is reportedly targeting to become a $100 Mn business by March 2018.
The company has tied ups with Google and YouTube to target customers across digital marketing channels as they expect selling bundled digital products will generate additional revenue for Flipkart Ads.
“In April 2016, we were focussed on growing our business with brands and have now opened up for brands with which we have an indirect relationship. We are working with the BFSI industry and telcos to bundle products with purchases, monetizing the intent to buy. At the end of the day we are the largest online transaction platform,” said Prakash Sikaria, Senior Director of Monetization and New Initiatives at Flipkart and Head of Flipkart Ads, to ETRetail. Via inc42.com
E-commerce may be biting Singapore’s retail real-estate, but investors haven’t lost interest
Bricks-and-mortar retailers globally have taken a hit from e-commerce, but while Singapore’s malls have felt the pinch, investors are still eyeing the city-state. But that doesn’t mean investors are entirely gung-ho.
Rushabh Desai, head of Asia-Pacific for Allianz Real Estate, said he’s still evaluating potential investments into Singapore, expecting the commercial sectors would likely correct further over the next six to 12 months.
“We are looking at retail that is non-discretionary. The larger portion of the retail is discretionary, even if it’s suburban retail,” he said on the sidelines of the ULI Asia-Pacific Summit in Singapore on Wednesday. “I think that is a strong subsector within retail versus the luxury outlets.” Via cnbc.com
What killed retail may also save it
Everyone knows Jeff Bezos killed retail. Or was it the millennials? Or maybe the retailers themselves? There’s much less debate over the murder weapon: The smartphone did it.
Mobile tech turned all the world into a shopping mall, super charging the reach of online retailers like Amazon AMZN, -1.37% , and empowering consumers to “showroom” — that is, check every price tag encountered in physical stores against online competitors.
But what killed retail may now be able to save it, Anindya Ghose, a professor at New York University’s Stern School of Business, argues in his new book, “Tap: Unlocking the Mobile Economy.” Via marketwatch.com
These Are the Best Big-Box Mobile Sites
With m-commerce expected to grow twice as fast as e-commerce this year, it behooves brick-and-mortar retailers to get their mobile houses in order.
To gauge how well they’re doing, UserTesting, an on-demand user research platform, ranked the mobile commerce sites of eight of the top Fortune 100 chains: Best Buy, Costco, The Home Depot, Lowe’s, Macy’s Target, TJ Maxx and Walmart.
The company’s inaugural Retail Mobile Customer Experience Index is based on the evaluations of 800 consumers who considered the sites’ speed, ease of use, credibility, aesthetics and “delight.” UserTesting described those factors as “key user experience attributes” that it gleaned from 10 years of gathering consumer insights for clients. Via twice.com
Mobile and marketplaces are changing the e-commerce landscape
US online shoppers are making more mobile purchases, more cross-border purchases, and more frequently shopping on e-commerce marketplaces and using alternative delivery methods, according to UPS’ newly released annual Pulse of the Online Shopper study.
48% of the 5,000 US online shoppers surveyed have made purchases on a smartphone, up from 44% in last year’s study, and 41% in 2015. Millennials are driving mobile growth — millennial respondents made 29% of their purchases via smartphones, compared with 10% of purchases by all other age groups.
Nearly all (97%) of “avid” online shoppers — customers who made at least seven online purchases in a three-month period — purchased from e-commerce marketplaces over the past year, up from 85% in 2016. Lower prices resulting from merchants competing with each other on these marketplaces drove customers to the sites — 65% of respondents cited better prices when asked why they shopped on marketplaces, and 55% cited free and discounted shipping.
Cost is also driving more cross-border purchasing — 47% of the respondents had purchased from a foreign retailer, up from 43% last year. Lower prices were the top driver cited by 43% of cross-border purchasers, followed by finding something unique that couldn’t be found on US sites (36%).
50% of respondents had used a ship-to-store option for picking up an online order, with 41% planning to use such options more often in the next year. Overall, 37% said they prefer to use alternative delivery locations rather than home delivery for online purchases, up from 35% in last year. Additionally, 44% of those who had used this delivery method made an extra purchase while picking up their order. Via businessinsider.com
E-commerce Revolutionized Shopping and It’s Going to Do It Again with Virtual Reality
Virtual reality is already a multi-million-dollar market, and by 2020, it’s slated to expand to around $38 billion. The technology has come a long way – created and otherwise tossed aside in the 1980s and 90s, VR has seen a resurgence in the smartphone era with consumers drawn to the ability to play interactive games and virtually travel the world. However, now, they’re starting to realize that virtual reality can have real-life applications, too. eCommerce is the biggest and best example to date.
Online shopping has revolutionized the consumer experience. You no longer have to get in your car, drive to the store, hear a sales pitch or dig through piles of clothing to get what you want. With a few simple clicks, you can shop and have a product delivered right to your door. But while eCommerce essentially turned brick and mortar on its head, it still hasn’t totally solved a key element that a number of consumers still desire, and can resolve in physical stores – to be able to visualize a product on them or see how it looks in practical application.
That’s where virtual reality comes in. Today, e-commerce retailers are jumping on board to bring their products right into the consumer’s hands with VR technology. It’s the best of both worlds – shopping in the comfort of your own home with the added value of getting to see the size and shape of a product in ‘real life.’ Via socialmediatoday.com
6 sectors going to the next level with augmented reality apps
Today, an individual with a smartphone can enter the world of virtual reality. There are dozens of apps that take you to a different world.
Augmented Reality (AR) enhances the real world with digital information such as – GPS, 3D models; audio as well as other computer generated sensory information. Augmented reality bridges the gap between real and virtual realm, helping you understand the world in a better way.
But, do you know what fields can benefit from AR based apps. The advancement in the field of smart devices has provided possibilities for AR.
Here is the list of industries that have unlocked the potential of Augmented Reality. Let’s go through the most amazing ways in which augmented reality can be used in apps in: travel, education, medicine, gaming and entertainment, retail and shopping and manufacturing. Via whatech.com
Better Buy: Wal-Mart Stores, Inc. vs. Amazon.com
Don’t look now, but Wal-Mart’s (NYSE: WMT) online sales grew faster than Amazon.com’s (NASDAQ: AMZN) last quarter. Wal-Mart reported a 63% increase in U.S. online sales last quarter, while Amazon managed just 24% growth year over year.
Many point to Wal-Mart’s acquisitions of Jet.com, Modcloth, Moosejaw, Shoebuy, and several other small e-tailers as the basis for its growth. But management says the majority of the growth stems from Walmart.com.
Of course, most of Wal-Mart’s sales come from its physical stores. Wal-Mart’s total revenue increased just 1.4% in the first quarter but was more than three times as much as Amazon’s. Meanwhile, Amazon has a market cap nearly twice as much as Wal-Mart’s. So which makes a better buy for investors? Via nwitimes.com
How shoppers use their smartphones in stores
In our last installment of the Retail Dive Consumer Survey, we examined how often consumers research products online before buying those items in physical stores. Now in our latest and final installment we explored specific ways the 603 consumers surveyed use their mobile phones while shopping in brick-and-mortar stores.
According to our results, the top uses of smartphones while in a store include researching product information and checking or comparing prices. This kind of behavior is even more prevalent among younger shoppers under the age of 35. Our results jibe with a recent Salsify study that found consumers more willing to consult their mobile phones than store associates while shopping in stores.
If nothing else, these findings should set off a few warning bells for retailers and brands. They confirm the importance of offering a seamless and top-notch integrated retail customer experience — one that includes mobile. They also suggest work is needed inside the store to improve the customer experience, providing knowledgeable staff and better information at the point of sale. Via retaildive.com
