Top 4 Ecommerce Benchmarks YOU need to know

The top 4 ecommerce benchmarks

Let’s be honest we all want to know how well the shop, restaurant, or bar next door is performing? So here are all your Ecommerce benchmarks.  From email KPIs to cost per acquisition, see how you stack up!

1. EMAIL PERFORMANCE 

By 2022, Over 347 Billion emails will be sent every day.  Your email channel is one of the highest performing, most cost-effective with the biggest return on investment. 

According to Campaign Monitor, the average email benchmarks for all industries are:

  • Average open rate: 21.5%
  • Average click-through rate: 2.3%
  • Average unsubscribe rate: 0.1%
  • Overall conversion rate: 2.2%

The brands I work with that are outperforming these targets do the following;

1. Use thought-provoking headlines, “Must-haves this Summer”, “Top 5 reasons to…”  

2. Make Call to Actions really clear. Not having a clear Buy Button on your email is like a meeting with no agenda, action items, or purpose.

3. A/B split test your email campaigns so you can see which copy and headlines attract more open rates. It can increase your email marketing ROI by as much as 37%. Here’s one I prepared earlier……

2. ABANDON CART RATES

You spend all that time and money trying to get customers to your cart and then, according to Baymard research 69.57% will abandon it. The main reasons people leave your cart are;  extra costs (shipping, taxes, fees), the checkout process is too long or too complicated, or no guest checkout. To reduce the leakage; 

  • Test your user experience make sure it’s quick, easy and straightforward– use autofill and only ask them the necessary fields needed at cart (2-3 things). 
  • Implement an abandon cart series- this allows the customer to have another chance to purchase that product as they are busy and have a million things to do.  
3. SOCIAL MEDIA SALES 
  • Engagement rate per post  –  0.08%
  • Overall social media conversion rates – 1.0%

If you compare overall social conversion rates to email rates, you can see why building your own database (first-party data) is much more lucrative. Stalking tip:  you can check your competitor’s or other brands’ ads by going on their Facebook page, clicking page transparency, and then ad library. 

Cost per acquisition (CPA): The average CPA – the cost to acquire a paying customer for Facebook ads across all industries is $18.68. If not tracked properly these costs can escalate and erode your profit margin.  The trick is to work out what you can afford to pay and keep your budget capped.

4. CONVERSION RATE 

For me, this is the most important metric (after customer happiness of course) currently across the brands that I work with it’s sitting at around 2%.  According to Smart Insights the UK is sitting at 4%, so there is a lot money being left on the table.

VALENTINES DAY INSPO 

Good luck with your valentines day campaigns, if you are looking for Valentines Day email inspo check out Really Good Emails 

HOW TO SMASH YOUR TARGETS 
The best way to grow digital is to know digital.  If you have committed to a year of growth in 2022 and want to know more about my 6-week program (kicking off on the 15th of Feb), you will be joining some amazing retailers and hospitality providers. 
Learn More

Key Trends for 2022 | Digital Soup

2022 key trends for ecommerce

Each year a bunch of experts make predictions for the year ahead – some data-based, some just made up.  But for those of you that know me, you know I am a total data geek, so last year I worked with Elisa Choy – the founder of Maven Data – to analyse the significant trends for 2022.  Elisa is one of those people, so smart, that I secretly use Google to translate after speaking with her.

The report analysed PETABYTES of data, from the world’s online content using A.I open sources to determine what customers want, what they are saying, what investors are focusing on and what companies are building.  We tested 25 trends and can predict which trends will move the market in the next 12 months.. (if you would like an overview of the report please email me). Here are my top three outtakes for 2022, based on the key areas that will grow your revenue

1. Live Shopping Goes Global.

Rose Keen, Econsultancy:

“Up until now, live commerce has struggled to gain a foothold outside of Asia. This appears to be changing with shifts in consumer behaviour and the arrival of new technologies and specifically social media app functionality supporting its wider adoption.

“The coming year will likely see more brands experimenting with live commerce as part of an omnichannel strategy. One interesting trend is the leveraging of internal talent as Livestream hosts.”

2. Personalisation REPEAT 

I talk about this every year and each year we move a little closer towards it. As someone who has developed a personalised AI shopping platform, Shop You, and someone that passionately believes that we are all unique individuals (not algorithms) and digital should respond to you, not the other way around, I believe we will see a huge shift in personalisation this year.

The challenge has always been data and with Google making changes, first-party data (customer data collected by you) will become even more important.

With data comes insights, and with insights comes the ability to provide deeper personalisation. SO in 2022 think about the data you are collecting; how can you ensure that it’s not just about the first name and email address.  As you collect data, ensure you are providing value in return and constantly ask you and your team the question – what’s in it for them?

3. Click and Collect 

According to Insider Intelligence, Walmart generated $20.4 billion in sales through click and collect last year. As you can see in the chart, Australia continued to grow. There are a few reasons why we love to click and collect so much, mainly around speed, cost, and convenience. Retailers that don’t have click and collect functionality will be passed over for retailers that do. Therefore, Click & Collect is going to be big part trends for 2022.

And now for the real experts…

As school holidays come to an end, I am juggling the children and work, oh… and that never-ending feeling of guilt I am currently sitting writing this while at the Sushi Train with my boys, so I asked them for their predictions/ trends for 2022:

1. Covid is going to end.

That is the best prediction I have heard so far this year!

2. Shops will launch on the metaverse.

If you haven’t read my article, here it is.

3. The government will develop a fund for reopening small businesses.

Digitally educating SMEs is something I am extremely passionate about and I believe that government bodies need to invest in digital education to create sustainable growth in retail

The best way to grow digital is to know digital.  If you have committed to a year of growth  and want to know more about my 6 week program (kicking off on the 15th of Feb), you will be joining some amazing retailers and hospitality providers.  Click HERE to discover more!

The Metaverse for Retail

The metaverse for retail

The Metaverse for Retail

I must admit I was equal parts scared and equal parts excited when I watched Mark Zuckerberg announcement of The Metaverse – a new reality network, pairing physical and digital.

Scared because I have two boys that really don’t require any encouragement to spend more time in a  virtual world. Excited because as a Retail Futurist, this is exactly the platform that is required to evolve retail for the next generation. Think of the train tracks that made the steam engine possible; the network that carried the signal for the telephone; the electricity that enabled the lightbulb. I believe that this is a defining moment in retail that we are yet to realise.

Online retail is still living in the dark ages, rewind 30 years; online retail evolved from catalogues. Catalogues you had to trawl through 1000s of products in one big paper book to find the product that was right for you.

 Flipping through an Argos Catalogue

We digitised the catalogue and transferred it onto the screen back in the early 90s and voila, digital catalogues were born or what we now call Ecommerce sites.

Fast-forward nearly 30 years and we are still flipping through hundreds of pages of digital catalogues. Whilst it’s granted with a level of intelligent categorisation and search, it’s still a catalogue on your screen.

Virtual reality or augmented reality shopping platforms have managed to get some air, but nothing has really had a significant impact. Usually, virtual reality or augmented reality experiences are just a replica of the physical store experience. Again, at which point did anyone say “I love the supermarket so much I would like to see the exact experience replicated on my phone?” Providing the ability to walk up and down aisles virtually isn’t going to revolutionise the shopping experience.

When you look at the conversion rate online for eCommerce stores globally, it sits at around 2%. In-store, the average conversion rate is 20 – 30%. This is the metric that shows us how far we still need to go and how wrong we are getting this digital stuff.

The metaverse is our chance to get this online shopping thing right and add real value to customers.

Gaming

Having two boys who game (probably a bit more than they should) I watch with intrigue at how they run around, pick things up, compete and purchase skins to personalise their journey.

Gaming will become a major sales platform for retailers. One where real-world goods and digital goods are bought, gifted and exchanged. Collabs such as Fortnite and Nike have already set the foundations.  When you can see the latest pair of Nike kicks on your enemy and play to win them, or buy that dress that you saw in the window of a store as you run past while trying to shoot someone with your diamond-encrusted shotgun; this is the next evolution. Connecting payments, providing a platform for retailers to upload products, one-click purchases and ultimately making it seamless for the customer will drive sales.

Home

“Imagine you put on your glasses or headset, and you’re instantly in your home space. It has parts of your physical home recreated virtually, it has things that are only possible virtually, and it has an incredibly inspiring view of whatever you find most beautiful.” This is Mark Zuckerberg’s vision.

The Metaverse gives us the ability to place a piece of art in our digital home to see what it looks like and then buy it in a virtual world for our physical space MIND BLOWN!. Style your house and your garden, reconfigure it and then purchase every product in it.

As you purchase the products, they are automatically added to your virtual house.

Fashion

This is where I really lose my mind. Stay with me – I am in my Metaverse and I invite my stylist, “Rachel Zoe” of course, to join me in my wardrobe. She goes through my real-world wardrobe in my virtual world and advises me on what suits me, what to cull and gives me tips on colours and fit.   I can click on what she is wearing and with one-click purchase her whole outfit…

Meta knows my measurements, my body shape and my preferences so can tell me if it’s right for me.

The Metaverse will give brands the ability to create stores, but these aren’t the traditional four walls that we associate with retail; these are endless stores that are seamlessly integrated into my metaverse – think content placement rather than product catalogues.

I can head to that beach in the Maldives and buy a bikini that the girl sat next to me is wearing OR to an Indian Temple and buy a culturally appropriate outfit for my upcoming real-world trip.  I can pre-check in at a virtual barbeque to see what the dress code is? Think Pinterest in real life but in virtual life and then transferred back into real life.

A world where I can buy digital or physical outfits, so for my next virtual work meeting I can wear that Prada top (whilst still wearing my ugg boots and pyjamas in the real world)

Ok, I admit, I have thought way too much about this!

For brands, they will have a far greater ability to test products, ideas, and to pre-sell items. I believe this will have a positive impact on the environment, reducing waste and landfill (reducing the amount of shit we buy that we don’t actually want or need).

Mark Zuckerberg believes that “Within the next decade, the metaverse will reach a billion people, host hundreds of billions of dollars in digital commerce and support jobs for millions of creators and developers,”

I believe the Shopping Metaverse is only limited by our imagination…..

How retail can get with the times and provide quality customer journeys

This article was a cover story in The Venture Magazine – What does the future have in store for retail? Kelly Slessor discusses the future of retail. Kelly Slessor is the founder of the personalized virtual shopping mall Shop You. Slessor shares her insights on how the pandemic is helping to speed up its arrival.

Retail is broken

To begin with, it’s no secret that retail is broken. That was true before the novel coronavirus shut down storefronts across the globe.

COVID-19 has revealed that retailers are being forced to think about how customers shop in the real world. Realising and understanding this will enhance the customer experience in the future.

When ecommerce was launched, it made retailers forget about humans. It removes the personal touch of an in-person experience. What retailers need to do is to create a smooth connection between online and in-store.

Innovations such as a virtual try-on will increase customer satisfaction and reduce waste. It’s not just about ordering something that fits a customer’s body. Shoppers want clothes that fit their personalities. In fact, Slessor views it as the gap between online and in-store experiences. So, she has been working on a personalization formula for Shop You.

Today, we are seeing more cashier-less stores with contactless payment systems. Of course it’s convenient, but it’s also safer during the pandemic. The ‘Click & Collect’ option will rise over the next several years. Again, it reduces contact and increases convenience over time. 

Retailers looking to remain part of the customer journey must move to multichannel. Otherwise, left behind. So, retailers will need to keep the human aspect of the shopping experience. For instance, asking customers questions and getting to know them. Rather than presenting customers with a catalogue. 

Shop You is a virtual mall that will give customers an online experience of an in-person experience. Customers will be able to find what they’re looking for and get it in a way that is convenient for them. 

To sum up, adding customization elements to the online experience will drive customer satisfaction. This also gives augmented reality another purpose.

Let’s talk: Running a retail business

Running a retail business is full of ups and downs, and isn’t easy. There are risks, but there are also opportunities. There have been many significant challenges that forced retailers to come up with creative solutions to adapt and overcome these challenges. For example, COVID-19 transforming shopping attitudes and behaviours.

COVID-19 has reshaped retail and given business owners many unprecedented challenges so far this year. As shops on high street were forced to close under lockdown rules, consumers switched behaviours and ecommerce saw a huge uptake.

What are the pros and cons for retail businesses considering the circumstances of recent months? We ask experts in the sector to outline their viewpoints on the question.

Kelly Slessor points out that pre-COVID retail was already experiencing huge challenges. Operating seamless channels that integrated both the physical and digital store. It required investment and a skillset that many retailers did not have. During COVID we saw an online increase of 50%. Services such as curbside pickup increase by 208%. The forward-thinking retailers move on to video concierge and personal stylists type services. 

Analysts believe that the retail industry will accelerate by more than 5 years in less than 3 months.

Customers have been retraining to shop online. Over the next 6-12 months, we will be seeing the survivors driving enhanced experiences in their digital channels.

There will be many fallouts of those that cannot invest in and accelerate their digital experience.

There have been many demands and pressures on retailers placed by the pandemic. Such as unprecedented disruptions to supply chains, explosive demands, and rapid shifts in consumer behaviour.

Many retailers face an unknown future. Retailers must be able to adapt whilst staying alongside product innovations and industry trends. These are the ones who will survive.

Read the full story at Dynamic Business.