E-commerce 2022 Predictions

Last week we looked back on E-commerce in 2021.

Today, we will be looking forwards instead of backwards and will make bold predictions for the E-commerce and Amazon landscape in 2022.

• Scared by events of 2021, Manufacturers will reduce the complexity in their supply chain and increase speed to market by shifting towards local sourcing and manufacturing of products as E-commerce businesses
• More regional, local and vertical marketplaces will pop up. They will compete with Amazon by providing a tailored experience to their customer base
• More retailers will open marketplaces as an extension of their existing retail offering in an attempt to broaden selection and capture more value from their customer base
• There will be consolidation in quick commerce as start ups run out of cash. The winners will become global players competing across international cities
• Amazon's 'Just Walk Out' technology will become the platform of choice for retailers as they look to improve customer experience in store. Creating a new revenue stream for Amazon
• Digital taxes will be implemented around the world to level the playing field with offline retail. Amazon will pass these costs on to sellers making profitability a key focus area for E-commerce businesses
• Amazon will extend their Sustainability Programme to highlight compliant brands and encourage others to address their design and packaging. Further penalties will be put in place to reduce the requirement for over boxing and taping
• Amazon will finally make another grocery acquisition to step change their market position and legitimately compete with the major supermarkets. The Amazon Fresh/Go store roll out will gather pace to create a multi regional US and UK footprint
• Amazon Pharmacy will launch in the UK sending shock waves across the industry
• More focus on omni-channel (in store pick up, 4 star stores, Amazon Fresh) as amazon look to integrate online and offline and use their platform data to power store strategy
• Amazon will start accepting crypto following the lead of Tesla and AMC theatres in the US
• The rise of live broadcasting; Amazon Live showcases products in a QVC style format. Amazon will extend this into other markets and increase exposure of the channel.
• Amazon will add more social content to help shoppers make decisions on what brands and products to choose. Social initiative like Amazon Posts, Amazon Live, Influencer stories and editorial content will get more exposure and gain in popularity
• 360 Marketing will become possible on Amazon - Brand & Performance media working together. DSP is being integrated into the Amazon Ads team now finally, after being separate. Similar to when Doubleclick was integrated with search at Google, we expect there to be far more synergy through the funnel, with corresponding format, measurement and bid management developments as a result
• Advertising costs will increase (driven by CPC Increases). We saw this last year but 2022 will see a huge year of increased competition and CPC inflation. This will start to separate the sophisticated advertisers from the rest. Bid management solutions will be critical, as will detailed understanding of your category dynamics in order to grow effectively within it
• eBay will continue to expand their fulfilment service and will offer end-to-end logistics management to participating sellers, who will be able to use the service for orders that are sold not just on eBay, but their shops and other online platforms as well
• Retail Media will be one of the major growth areas in 2022. We will see a consolidation of e-supermarket (e.g. Tesco, Asda) and other e-retail inventory (e.g. John Lewis, Boots) into leading buying platforms and the offering becoming more sophisticated