Businesses across all categories continue to flock to eCommerce enablement. According to Oracle, in 2020 the US witnessed 10 years’ worth of eCommerce growth within three months and we saw a similar story unfold here in Canada. Standard Media Index (SMI) recently reported that online retail ad expenditure (as reported by agencies) increased by a whopping 303% in the first half of 2021, when compared to the first half of 2020. The trend is here to stay and businesses that have not already come online are slated to do so in the coming year.
Once the share of commerce hits full tilt to online, marketers will need to sharpen their marketing strategies to cut through the highly competitive landscape. While a focus on initial acquisition and transition from offline to online will remain critical to success in eCommerce, the long game will become increasingly challenging. Traditionally, performance media has served as the go-to driver of eCommerce transactions but as the market migrates to all online all the time, brands will need to develop more robust strategies to address all areas of the purchase funnel. With increasing efforts to collect first party data to enable deeper engagement, we will undoubtedly see some great innovation in the space of loyalty, user experiences and deep social hooks into the transactional process.
Reporting from IAB Canada members indicates an increase in demand for contextual advertising as well as social content placements. Social platforms are flexing their muscles in the area of brand influence with Tik Tok and Snap becoming go-to venues for planners as more consumers join their communities every day. All digital channels will have an important role to play in the future of commerce. From connected TV, audio and Digital Out-of-Home, to premium display content, transactions in the moment will create incredible opportunities for the online advertising industry.
Reminiscent of the many “years of mobile”, brands that grasp the importance of early presence on the eCommerce scene will quickly adapt and see the returns while late adopters will miss out. The future of eCommerce is now.
We invite you to join IAB Canada’s annual Business of Digital eCommerce event on September 22, from 1-5PM EST, to unpack the state of the retail space in Canada, and to begin to understand how brands are successfully levering different technological solutions and data strategies to maintain a competitive advantage with the eager online consumer. We have a jam-packed agenda and tickets are free for IAB Canada members. Register here.