Seamless, personalized, and integrated experiences are transforming the way brands meet new consumer demands and develop a significant competitive edge.
Smartphones, social media, and the adoption of advanced technologies like artificial intelligence, chatbots, augmented reality, and machine learning have progressively made shopping more personalized, faster, and more accessible. These shifts in commerce have not only expanded market opportunities for businesses but have also redefined customer expectations, creating a new paradigm for both offline and online shopping.
Today’s Consumers: Cost-Conscious, Quality-Focused, and Connected
In recent years, we’ve witnessed a true evolution in consumer profiles, reshaping multichannel retail. According to the “State of Commerce 2024” report by Shopify—an industry leader in commerce technology infrastructure—the modern consumer is not just focused on costs, quality, and sustainability but is also highly connected. They no longer distinguish between online and in-store shopping but instead desire a fluid, integrated shopping experience.
In this digitally driven landscape where multichannel is the buzzword, it’s important to note that physical retail still plays a significant role. Shopify’s report reveals that 33% of consumers prefer to shop in-store, while 67% seek a complementary and seamless experience between online and offline shopping.
Investing in Technology to Enhance Relationships
To remain competitive, brands must address the evolving needs of consumers. However, many companies are still not adequately investing in the integration of online and offline sales. Offering a good product at the right price is crucial but no longer sufficient to ensure brand loyalty. According to Shopify’s “State of Commerce 2024” report, 54% of Italian consumers consider value for money essential, but nearly 90% state that an improved shopping experience, such as free returns or loyalty discounts, would increase their loyalty.
Despite this awareness, only 7% of businesses plan significant investments in customer experience over the next year (11% in Italy), even though the vast majority (87%) consider it critical to business success. The use of advanced technologies can be the lever to enhance customer relationships: 62% of Italian consumers expect brands to offer a tech-supported experience, and nearly 50% are more loyal to those that do.
Yet again, businesses seem to underestimate this signal, with only 18% considering it a priority to invest in digital infrastructure.
The Importance of Unified Commerce
The real challenge facing European businesses today is embracing the era of true unified retail, moving beyond a simple multichannel approach. Using a platform like Shopify’s makes it easier to build a consistent sales ecosystem without needing to invest large resources in developing in-house expertise. This approach offers an advanced commerce system that enables businesses to easily create their own store. It provides a web infrastructure (known as SaaS—Software as a Service) that allows seamless management of all activities across multiple channels, including social media, websites, emails, and chats. It also simplifies direct sales operations, such as through integrated POS systems.
A unified system eliminates barriers to purchase, transcending the concept of multichannel retail by meeting the expectations of a frictionless, seamless experience where the physical store is not an alternative to digital channels but becomes a real touchpoint between the customer and the brand.
Shopify’s solution demonstrates that, even in a complex context, there are still opportunities to seize. To transform these opportunities into a competitive advantage, businesses must excel in creating a continuous shopping journey, tied together by the thread of a personalized experience. Welcome to the new era of unified retail: the future of commerce begins today.
