2024 has come and gone, but there’s still so much to unpack from the past year. In a recent webinar, Emma Clarke, Senior Director of Product Management at Metapack, and Angus Knights, Head of Product Success at parcelLab, analysed the most popular ecommerce trends and what retailers can do to stay ahead of the game in 2025.
Let’s dive into the highlights of the webinar. You can also follow along and watch the on-demand replay here.
2024 in Review: What Ecommerce Trends Stood Out?
There were 4 key trends that shined in 2024.
1. Unified Commerce
One of the most significant trends in 2024 was the shift towards unified commerce and away from omnichannel.
As with most trends in ecommerce, this shift is driven by consumer preference, with 75% of shoppers now using a combination of digital and physical touchpoints in their customer journey, while only 15% exclusively shop online. That means customers expect a seamless experience across all platforms—whether they’re browsing online and buying in-store or vice versa. Or even buying online and returning to a store.
“Omni channel has been a buzzword right for the last few years, and that’s all about creating a seamless experience across those multiple channels. Omni channel primarily drives short-term conversion by creating consistent experiences across those silo channels; unified commerce actually aims to increase lifetime value by consolidating the systems and the data into a single platform.” – Emma Clarke
Why have retailers gravitated towards unified commerce?
- Flexibility: With a unified commerce model, retailers can create a flexible buying journey that allows customers to shop how and where they want.
- Convenience: Unified commerce empowers retailers to customise and build out a convenient returns process for their shoppers.
- Personalisation: Merchants can use customer data to genuinely personalise marketing campaigns and shopping experiences from the richer, wider data
- Adjustability: Retailers can quickly evolve in a volatile market to meet dynamic customer expectations and market changes
2. Digital and Physical Ecommerce Experiences
As ecommerce continues to evolve, successfully blending online and offline experiences has become a crucial strategy for retailers. During the webinar, Angus Knights shared insights into how brands can navigate this integration, emphasising the importance of creating seamless, customer-centric experiences.
Consumers now frequently move between digital and physical touchpoints. Metapack’s benchmark report shows that 62% of shoppers start their journey by browsing online, even when they plan to purchase in-store. When buying online, 74% of shoppers choose home delivery, while 26% opt for out-of-home options like collecting from a store or locker. There are so many different touchpoints, so retailers need to focus on creating a cohesive, customer-centric journey.
“Really, the key to blending digital and physical touchpoints is creating a very customer-centric user experience. When I browse digitally, I want to understand my physical options, and vice versa. When I’m in a store, I want to understand how I could get those products online.” – Angus Knights
3. Delivery Optimisation
As ecommerce continues to grow, delivery expectations are rapidly evolving. Throughout 2024, a few delivery optimisation trends made a lasting impression:
Customers demand faster delivery
55% of consumers expected their deliveries to arrive within 48 hours—up 5% from 2023. Yet, only a third of online merchants currently offer this speed at checkout, highlighting a significant gap between consumer expectations and retailer capabilities.
Delivery impacts conversions
Fast and flexible delivery options are key to boosting conversions. During the webinar, Emma emphasised that express delivery options should be highly visible at checkout, especially during peak shopping periods like the holidays. Offering additional delivery methods—such as store pickup or locker collection—can also enhance the customer experience.
“This is an opportunity for the industry to improve, optimising delivery, especially during high traffic periods like holidays, retailers need to make express delivery options available and highly visible during that checkout process. Customers require flexible delivery methods, so it’s not just the speed of delivery, it’s the choice.”
Accuracy Matters Just as Much as Speed
While fast delivery is essential, Angus noted that accuracy is just as critical.
“Accuracy is critical when it comes to delivery and the post-purchase experience, but if something goes wrong, you need to communicate with your customers and manage their expectations. That’s the key to inspiring much longer-term loyalty from your customers.”
4. Ecommerce Returns
Returns are no longer just a logistical necessity—they are a vital component of the customer experience. Retailers must prioritise convenient, clear, and efficient return options to enhance the buying journey and strengthen customer loyalty.
“To make returns seamless, brands need to offer multiple returns options. Retailers need to consider things like the type of return solutions, whether that’s courier, postal or drop-off points. Perhaps most importantly, retailers need to communicate their returns policy throughout the customer journey, especially considering how pivotal it is to actual purchase conversion.” -Emma Clarke
What’s Next For Ecommerce in 2025?
Looking ahead to 2025, ecommerce is set to evolve further, with technology, data analytics, and customer personalisation leading the way. During the webinar, Emma and Angus shared insights on what retailers can expect in the coming year. Here are some key takeaways:
Unified Commerce and Operational Efficiency
In 2025, retailers will invest more in unified commerce technology to streamline both online and offline operations. The focus will be on improving operational efficiency and enhancing customer personalisation. Data analytics will play a pivotal role, enabling businesses to track customer behaviour across all channels and personalise both outbound and returns processes.
Blending Digital and Physical Experiences
The integration of digital and physical shopping experiences will deepen. Consumers will continue to expect seamless interactions between online and offline touchpoints, with personalised experiences tailored to their preferences. For high-value customers, this could mean even more customised journeys compared to low-value customers, creating a tiered experience based on segmentation.
The Role of AI and Automation
AI and automation will be crucial drivers of innovation in 2025. Retailers that leverage real-time data and embrace these technologies will not only enhance customer experiences but also increase customer lifetime value. The concept of adaptive retail—merging in-store and online shopping seamlessly—will be key in delivering satisfaction and boosting loyalty.
Hyper-Personalisation and Regional Variances
Hyper-personalisation will become even more important, with customers expecting tailored experiences at every touchpoint. As ecommerce grows at varying rates across regions, retailers will need to adapt their delivery strategies. Carrier options, delivery methods, and return processes will require careful consideration, especially for retailers exploring international expansion.
The Key To Resiliency in 2025: Adapting
Brands that can successfully pivot their business strategies to focus on growing their market share will thrive in 2025. Instead of relying on the overall market to grow, retailers need to focus on fostering positive customer experiences, especially throughout the post-purchase experience.
Like what you’re seeing? Watch the full webinar replay here for even deeper insights on 2024 and 2025 trends.
P.S. There’s still time to register for our upcoming in-person event, The Delivery Conference on February 11th in the heart of London. Emma Clarke will be taking the stage to talk about peak season through the lens of the data and trends gathered from our 10’s of millions of shipments. Registration is free to all retailers. Secure your spot here.