Unlike other recent eCommerce trends, the pandemic hasn’t created Close-to-Consumer Commerce (C2CC) but it certainly has supercharged it. With time at home and on our hands, we have found new ways to buy, new ways to sell, new ways to recommend and share, driving the momentum of online shopping and eCommerce growth to new heights.
Consumers are evolving. Now we’re not just buying more online, but also trying new things: 75% of US consumers have tried a new shopping behaviour since the advent of COVID. In this context, with many brands competing in the digital ecosystem for users’ attention, bringing the storefront closer to consumers has become one of the most relevant eCommerce trends in the current digital marketing landscape.
And how to achieve that? For more than 20 years, at Good Rebels we have been helping companies be more human centred and come closer to their consumer. Our latest research shows that availability is the number one driver of new brand purchases, followed by convenience and value. In other words: we want it all, and we want it now.
But it isn’t only about immediacy. The potential of personal relationships is another eCommerce trend that shouldn’t be overlooked. Influencers and social selling expert roles have moved to include the everyman and, as people look for authenticity and genuineness, aspirational content will make way for relatable one.
The user journey is changing, becoming shorter, less linear and omnichannel. As a brand owner, you will need to go in search of your consumers and think of ways to reward and delight them through the process, not just at the purchase. Discover how to tap into the potential of the latest eCommerce trends now!
Pepe Jeans Custom Studio: connecting stories with business
Pepe Jeans challenged us to create brand advocacy through creativity and personalisation. And we delivered, creating unique stickers for using on Instagram Stories to customise iconic denim pieces of clothing. Supported by live events in London, Berlin, Barcelona and Paris, the best creators were invited to see behind the scenes and watch the Pepe designers bring their visions to life.
The #CustomStudio campaign achieved 4.4m views of the digital stickers, and the campaign generated 176,000 impressions a day. Allowing personalisation and co-creation led to advocacy, with Pepe working with its audience to help spread its message and with their storefront always just one click away.
Bringing the storefront to the consumer
Lexus asked us to boost their test driving bookings, and we accepted the challenge by leveraging AI and chatbot’s power in a dedicated Facebook Messenger channel. Users could conduct the entire booking process through a Messenger bot, exploring the range of Lexus cars before booking the test drive.
The content was crafted to deliver Lexus’ brand promise and resulted in a sixfold uplift in conversion versus traditional digital journeys as well as bringing a 30% increase in new customers to the brand.
Creating a flagship store on WeChat’s environment
Nike wanted to connect more closely with its customers and take the commercial journey one step closer. To achieve so, they recreated the Nike store within the WeChat environment and took it one step further by integrating a number of features designed to provide exclusivity to its audience, including access to events, a membership pass, and an ‘expert on demand’ service.
Not only did it appeal to their consumers and potential consumers by offering something ‘elite’, but Nike reaped the benefits of the data.
Utilising the power of the everyman to sell
Diesel knew that, when done right, the power of brand advocacy is endless. And who better to power your brand image than your community? Therefore they combined social and digital connection to harness their followers into their sales force.
Participants could apply through a public landing page and receive a unique URL to a Diesel online store linked to their personal account. When they shared that link, any purchases made through it earnt them discounts, rewards, and other exclusives from the brand. The genius lay in democracy – suddenly anyone could be an influencer.
