Will a new social media app overtake TikTok? What will happen to Twitter? Is the metaverse dead?
2022 left us with a lot of loose ends, and how those scenarios play out will have a big impact on commerce as we know it. To help businesses make sense of the chaos, we rounded up 2023 predictions from our Chief Innovation Officer, Marcel Hollerbach, as well as some of our partners.
Read on to learn about the four key developments we can expect in the year ahead, according to industry experts at Informatica, Pimcore, and Productsup.
1. Higher expectations for social commerce
Dietmar Rietsch, CEO, Pimcore:
“One of the biggest changes that we might see in the social commerce landscape will be the market demand itself. As more and more people are getting into ecommerce, customer expectations will increase. Visual search, visual navigation using augmented reality (AR), and visual chatbots will grow in the social space. Using social media platforms, live commerce may gain popularity to increase brand awareness, help product discovery, and drive online sales.
Another change, which will affect social commerce, will be social norms. Brands will have to mind their social presence and data, because customers are getting more and more sensitive about privacy and data security.”
2. Increased demand for sustainable shopping and transparent supply chains
Antonia Renner, Principal Solutions Marketing Manager, MDM & PIM, Informatica:
“In 2023, there will be an even stronger focus on sustainable shopping, including sustainably sourced products, local/regional shopping, sustainable packaging, recyclability, carbon footprint, reduced plastic waste, or energy-efficient products. 82% of shoppers want brands to embrace sustainable and people-first practices. Therefore, more purchasing decisions will be made in favor of environmentally friendly brands, products, shops, or marketplaces.
No matter if driven by consumers, investors, or ESG-related regulatory compliance, like the new German Supply Chain Act or the Digital Product Passport, 2023 will be a great opportunity for brands and retailers to raise the bar for more sustainable ecommerce supply chains.
Businesses that have invested in technology and intelligent data management will be better prepared to communicate their ESG message and collect, access, and share relevant product information and supply chain data to enable more informed shopping decisions, more supply chain transparency, and ultimately a better customer experience.”
3. More ‘everything’ businesses
Marcel Hollerbach, Chief Innovation Officer, Productsup:
“At one point in time, Google was just a search engine, Apple primarily manufactured hardware, and Amazon only sold books. Now, Amazon alone is a retailer, marketplace, advertising platform, hardware vendor, logistics company, streaming platform, and cloud services provider.
We’re seeing more and more companies become an ‘everything’ business, and it’s not just Big Tech. Retailers are launching their own marketplaces, like UK retailer B&Q, or media networks, like Dick’s Sporting Goods. And marketplaces are adding search engine capabilities, such as Etsy’s new image search tool.
As technology evolves and provides more advanced tools, it removes barriers across industries. But having fewer distinctions between businesses heats up competition and eats up a lot of potential profit margin. The companies that will succeed are the ones that are able to do ‘everything’ well, while managing increased complexity and keeping operating costs low.”
4. Greater emphasis on high-quality product information
Rietsch:
“The future of product information management is definitely moving toward more of a self-service model. Right now, we are seeing a lot of behind-the-scenes innovation that enables employees to interact with product content independently with the help of a product information management system.
Capability improvement in product information management, such as AI-assisted rich-content optimization, channel behavioral data, and complex price handling will be seen to support product experience in the evolving commerce space. Headless PIM applications will also substantiate very soon.
But fundamentally, the role of product information will continue to be critical in improving operational efficiencies, product innovation, and digital product experiences.”
Renner:
“Product information is a key element to drive customer experience in ecommerce. To deliver exceptional, informed, and contextual online product experiences across all channels, organizations will need to include product information management in their CX-strategy. To do so, organizations need to be able to match product information with actionable customer insights.
Thanks to increased use of AI in PIM-workflows, businesses will be enabled to further automate significantly complex product content management, e.g. using auto-translation, -enrichment or -classification, and more easily scale their ecommerce business or target new markets.”
Hollerbach:
“Companies are realizing more and more that high-quality product information has a significant impact on their business. According to recent research from Productsup, 62% of businesses fear poor product information is creating negative online experiences for their customers. This concern has grown 72% from the year before (December 2021).
As I mentioned earlier, businesses are growing more alike, so providing compelling, personalized product information is one area where companies can make their products and offerings stand out. In fact, knowing more detailed information about products (35%) is one of the top factors that would entice consumers to choose one brand or retailer over another.”
About the experts
As CEO and co-founder of Pimcore, Dietmar Rietsch deals with new technologies and the digital transformation of companies daily. Dietmar is a passionate entrepreneur who has been designing and realizing exciting digital projects for more than 20 years.
Antonia Renner is a Principal Solutions Marketing Manager at Informatica. She has been leading global product marketing for Informatica’s MDM applications Product 360 and Supplier 360 since 2014. Her expertise is in product experience management and supplier MDM, with a focus on digital commerce and supply chain optimization. Before joining Informatica, she was leading marketing for AddressDoctor. She holds a double degree in international business economics & marketing.
Marcel Hollerbach is Chief Innovation Officer and member of the supervisory board at Productsup. A serial entrepreneur, he co-founded hiClip, NativeAds, and Cavalry Ventures. Marcel was an early evangelist of the importance and impact of high-quality, contextualized product data. His expertise in commerce and ad-tech gives him an intuitive understanding of consumer behavior in the digital commerce space.
Looking for other trends to follow for 2023?
Check out these free resources for more information on the latest updates in commerce:
Blog post: 5 ways for fashion retailers to beat the downturn
Guide: Social commerce on Pinterest